A Question I would Like to Ask

By all indications when they went off to the dance together, Rosetta and Florinda had sex. The rape was a traumatic experience for the young girl but I think the way her mother behaved towards her afterwards had a big impact too.

When the jeep comes by, she lifts the girl's skirt exposing her body and saying look what's been done to her. She's ruined forever. She was feeling bad enough but to hear those things, especially from her own mother, must have been tough.

When she goes off on her own to the stream, I got the sense she realizes she’s on her own; no longer a girl who can cling to her mother. On some level, even though she couldn't have helped her, Rosetta may even blame her mother for not protecting her. Certainly, she’s not happy with how she treated her on the road.

When they're in the truck with Florindo he talks about how he'd protect his mother and sister. He's singing, joyful, and in an upbeat mood. I think Rosetta wants that. He also talks about including her and saying his own girlfriend was very young. I think after having been so brutally attacked she wants someone to treat her nicely. At this point, Florindo is offering that.

It's not necessarily more sex she wants but to be cared for protected and to feel good. That's the odd thing about sex. It's an experience that can be on one occasion violent and unwanted or it can be tender, loving, and wanted. Clearly, Florinda doesn't force her and then gives her gifts. We have to assume it was a very different experience than what she had just gone through.

Her mother detects this in her and is upset because she's not ready to lose her little girl. We often hear that women who end up in the sex trade or who are very promiscuous were probably sexualized very early on and have learned to use sex to relate to men and to get what they want. It's not even about enjoying it, it's sometimes a way to feel wanted, to control, to feel cared for, etc. It's why a lot of parents try to convince their children, daughters especially, to wait until they are at least mature enough to handle all the emotions that can be stirred.


Woman, man! That's the way it should be Tarzan. [Tarzan and his mate]