The Unbearable Lightness of Being

The Unbearable Lightness of Being

by

Milan Kundera

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The Unbearable Lightness of Being makes teaching easy.

The Unbearable Lightness of Being: Part 3, Chapter 11 Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
All of Franz’s friends know that he is dating one of his students, but they never knew about Sabina, and she simply disappears from his life. Sometimes when Franz is alone with his girlfriend, he thinks about Sabina, but he never talks to her about Sabina. Franz’s girlfriend doesn’t understand his love for countries occupied by Russia, nor does she understand why Franz wants to attend a memorial meeting held by a Czech student group on the anniversary of the Russian invasion. 
Franz loves the idea of Sabina as a persecuted Czech person more than he actually loves Sabina as an individual. Franz’s privileged life in France is wholly unlike Sabina’s experiences in Prague. Protesting communism and Russia’s occupation of Czechoslovakia give meaning, and therefore weight, to Franz’s life, which is generally light and meaningless.  
Themes
Lightness, Weight, and Dichotomies  Theme Icon
Power, Politics, and Inequality Theme Icon