Jealousy
Long before Mario leaves her, Olga knows that he is having an affair. When he finally tells her he's leaving, she is consumed by jealousy. She accuses him of his infidelity in gross detail. After he leaves, she runs into Mario and his new lover on the street. Having allowed her jealousy to stew since he left, Olga completely loses herself. She attacks the two on the street. Then, in an attempt to evoke the same divisive envy from Mario, Olga seduces her neighbor and tries to have sex with him.
Corrupt Sex
Because this novel revolves around the story of past and present lovers, there is a lot of focus upon sex. After her husband leaves, Olga becomes preoccupied with thoughts about sex. She is disgusted by the mechanics of it, viewing it as an empty act which serves merely as a tool for the devious and selfish. Since her husband had an affair, she views all men as sexual deviants, bent on getting what they want from women. This thought process influences how she views her neighbor. She seduces him and tries to have sex with him, but he is unable to keep an erection. As the narrator, Olga describes every reference to sex in light of disgust. The beauty of what it was within her marriage was corrupted by Mario, so she views all sex as corrupted and manipulative.
Heritage
As Olga processes her marital abandonment, she spends much time thinking about her children. While she is finally free of Mario's hold on herself, she realizes that he will continue to influence the kids. She wins joint custody, but that means they will spend time with their father. Even if they spent no time with him, they will still be subject to his influence. They are carriers of his DNA after all. Genetically, they are predisposed to turn out like him, much to Olga's alarm. Because of her love for her children, she will continually be forced to interact with the shadow of her husband. The heritage of her children is only partially hers.
Despair
When Mario leaves, Olga is forced to deal with all of the fallout alone. He makes a mess of her life, but she is forced to be the one to clean it up. Unfortunately, in her fragile emotional state, Olga is incapable of processing all of this for a long time, so she despairs. She abandons responsibility for her life. She loses the ability to perform daily tasks. Then, she experiences extreme mental anguish in the form of debilitating panic attacks and intense distraction. After all, her entire lifestyle has changed because she is now a single mother. On her own, dealing with her own feelings of worthlessness and loneliness, she continually wrestles with despair.
