Answer:

1. The first line of the novel begins with "For a man of his age, fifty-two, divorced, he has, to his mind, solved the problem of sex rather well." What is the "problem" that he has solved? Has he really solved it?

>>The "problem" of sex is simply whether he's having sex, and since he's dealing with the "problem" by sleeping with a prostitute 90 minutes a week, he has, in his view, solved his problem. However he hasn't really, and that is indicated when the narrator says that he's solved the problem "in his mind", therefore, that is not the case. He's frequent and meaningless affairs only lead him to trouble, especially when he starts to get attached to people he shouldn't cling to, like the prostitute, Soraya, and his student, Melanie. Clearly, he's attempting to fill some kind of spiritual void with these affairs, and it seems to that he goes through the motions, is mechanical rather than passionate in his lovemaking, because he is insecure about something or other. Lurie can be compared to Mersault, the protagonist in The Outsider by Albert Camus, a man who is not passionate about his job or his relationships or his life, his whole attitude is quite non-challant. The only thing that differs here, is that David Lurie is able to feel some kind of emotional connection with some women ( no matter how unhealthy his relationship is). As I haven't read on and so don't know how or if he solves his problem, I think that David needs to work on himself before engaging in any kind of affair. Hopefully he finds someone who he can find a non-superficial connection with.