Interestingly, the protagonist Shell in the novel Green Days by the River is clearly having not just a physical conflict, but more so a mental one. Though he explicitly states that he wants to marry Joan - the love of his life - he realizes that this will never materialise since he has already 'made love' to Rosalie Gidharee. Clearly this sends him into shock, especially when he hears Mr. Gidharee share that he agrees with his friend Ramdaat that he will "...chop up..." anyone who seeks to sleep with his daughter and not make her his wife. Shell hesitantly comes to grip with the fact that since the deed has already been done, he has no choice but to submit to the Gidharees' wills.