While Ginnie remains chaste, though, in hopes of losing her virginity to Ben, Ben releases his sexual frustrations with an emotionally dead but sexually predatory middle aged woman named Maggie. In a bit of dramatic irony, the reader becomes aware that the woman is in fact Ginnie's runaway mother, having dumped her lover and moved on to one-night stands with soldiers.
While Ginnie remains chaste, Ben releases his sexual frustrations on a emotionally detached but sexually predatory middle-aged woman named Maggie. In a twist of irony, the reader learns that she is actually Ginnie's runaway mother, having abandoned her lover and moved on to casual encounters with soldiers.