Durasian Look

Abstract

This article focus on the study about the look in four Marguerite Duras´ pieces of work: Dix heures et demie du soir en été (1960), Le Ravissement de Lol V. Stein (1964), Détruire dit-elle (1969) and Índia Song (1973). Firstly, I will show the origin of this recurrent topic in the durasian books, which reveals itself as an obsession and establishes the love relations among the characters. My objective is to understand the role of the observer and that of the exhibitionist. In order to be a voyeur, it is necessary to be someone who exposes himself and feels pleasure in doing so. First of all, to comprehend the author’s relation with the look, it is necessary to know her childhood trauma which turned this aspect into an obsession in her work. Secondly, I will show the way this issue appears in the mentioned works and the consequences of the repeated use of the theme. This study on the look shows a new way of conceiving love in the durasian romances. Marguerite Duras subverts the traditional love scheme in which the couple thinks to have found eternal love. The durasian lover does not need to have the loved person; she will be satisfi ed with only watching other couple’s performance. She prefers to be a voyeur rather than an agent of love. Regarding the fact of possessing, this performance is innovative; she accepts to be in the non-possessing position in order to enjoy other’s encounter. Thus, the writer’s role and the movie director’s role are very similar to the voyeur’s role. She writes and directs the things she sees in order to please the reader who gets in touch with her work. Keywords: Marguerite Duras. Look. Obsession. Love. Non-possessing. Voyeur.