This commentary will explore Milan Kundera's use of vocabulary, punctuation, and imagery in an excerpt from the novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being. The passage to be analyzed is found in the fourth part of the book entitled "Soul and body". It depicts a scene in which one of the protagonists, Tereza, is in front of a mirror and finds herself having to face the conflict between identity and image. His discordances with his body act as a trigger for these questions to arise and to bring back memories of his childhood. The entire piece is structured into three sections: one in which he criticizes his body, another in which questions arise from these observations and finally one in which he demonstrates his definite opinion on the situation. Kundera used language in such a way that the reader is able to relate and respond to Tereza's insecurities. In the novel, Kundera makes extensive use of symbolism through many elements, the mirror included in them. As a symbol, this artifact functions as a depicter of the truth, of the reality that we are sometimes blind to see. There is no compassion; a mirror presents an object as it is before our eyes. The fact that the author uses only one sentence to demonstrate this action ("Tereza entered to dress and stopped in front of the large mirror" (l.1)), gives the impression that there is a pause in which the character is able to reflect on the image reflected back to him. As a result we are faced with his direct reaction: “No, there was nothing monstrous about his body” (l.3). From the beginning we are introduced to an atmosphere of negativity, characteristic of Tereza's attribution of being a “heavy” woman. Through the adjective “monstrous” we understand how Tereza sought...... middle of paper ......ss is demonstrated as a result of childhood scars regarding her trust. Therefore, as a result, she is dissatisfied with her life and often doubts herself, further lowering her self-esteem. In my opinion Tereza tries to unite with Thomas only in the soul because she knows that the union is something in which no one else can interfere, since a bond of that type is guaranteed to be eternal, while a body can change and decay. Despite the idea that our soul must be light since it is what emerges from us after death, I believe that it is the body that is light since it only performs a function for a limited period of time, while our soul can be preserved both alone or in unison with another. Works cited Kundera, Milan. The unbearable lightness of being, trans. Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc. New York: Faber and Faber, 1984. Pp. 134-135.