Bad Love

Sorry guys about being so late to the game. I had a couple pages left to read but let me answer the question.
I think that Ward is trying to tell us many things about love. The main point she is trying to make is that there are different types of love. In the first chapter alone we see physical love, maternal love, paternal love, and a little bit of unrequited love. The one thing I found interesting about this chapter and the thing that will answer the question is that these different types of love can help or hinder future events. For example, Esch is "in love" with Manny, but he doesn't feel the same way. The consequences of the "love" between the two will blow up in both of their faces and can only end badly.

On a different topic, Esch reminds me of a Wale song called, "Bad". The main chorus of the song describes how the young women does not know how to make love, but is great at sex. This reminds me of Esch because states that she is good at sex and swimming, but never really address the love aspect of sex. Yes, she has sex with Manny and talks of the love she feels from him, but is that necessarily love?  I believe that there is a clear distinction between making love and sex and I don't think that Esch is mature enough to understand the difference between the two. I would like to believe that she can't understand the difference because of her mother's death and not having a female figure to tell her the complexities and allure of a women's body.