: To understand their own nature, a young Brazilian deliberately becomes a prostitute. She withstands the test of pain and pleasure in sex, considering them to be manifestations of true masculine love.

Part one

Like all girls, Maria, born in a small town in the Brazilian province, dreams of love, marriage and children. However, in love she is not lucky. All novels with cute boys end in failure. Each time, Maria behaves incorrectly and misses her chance. She allows herself to dream about children and the house, but not about love.

Part two

At nineteen, Mary is perfectly able to use her beauty. She has already graduated from high school and works as a saleswoman in a fabric store whose owner is in love with her. For two years of work, Maria collects enough money to go for a week to the city of her dreams - Rio de Janeiro. The girl settles in the "third-rate hotel" on Copacaban. On the first day, she meets the rich Mr. Roger from Switzerland on the beach. He turns out to be a Swiss impresario who needs beautiful Brazilian women to perform in a cabaret. Maria agrees to sign a contract and leave for Switzerland. She does not want to miss a chance, as she has already done this many times.

Before leaving, Maria wants to go home. Roger is afraid that the girl will run away, and accompanies her. The girl’s parents understand that nothing can be changed, and they release their daughter. The owner of the fabric store confesses Mary's love. He wants to marry her and is ready to wait. Maria is pleased. Now she chooses the career of a samba dancer, hoping to become a star, but the merchant in love remains in reserve, and Mary has a place to return to.

In Switzerland, Roger becomes cold and aloof. The Brazilian who works for him explains to Mary that she may not count on the money promised to her under the contract. In order to earn a return ticket and reimburse expenses “on the table and shelter”, Mary will have to work for a whole year. The marriage of dancers inflicts a significant blow on Roger’s wallet, so girls are forbidden to communicate with customers. Maria decides not to give up, make money, "get to know a foreign country and return home victorious."

Maria lives in a small room without a TV, hardly ever goes out and cannot call home - a call to Brazil is too expensive. Gradually, despondency covers her.

If love changes a person quickly, then despair is even faster.

The rest of the dancers only think about marriage. Maria decides to be different and goes to daytime French courses, where she meets a young Arab and starts an affair with him. Three weeks later she skips a working evening. Roger dismisses Maria, but she threatens to court, and he has to pay the girl a substantial amount of forfeit.

Now Maria has money for a ticket, but she is in no hurry to return home. It seems to the girl that she did not use the chance she had.

She decides to become a fashion model and sends her photos to modeling agencies. One of the agencies organizes a dinner with a rich Arab for Mary. He offers the girl to spend the night with him. Maria recalls all the unused opportunities, agrees and receives a thousand francs. Before her opens a new source of income. The girl does not want to return home without fame and money and marry the owner of a fabric store. She again decides to take a chance.

Maria chooses an institution under the guise of "Copacabana", which turned out to be one of the most expensive and respectable. The owner introduces Maria to the local rules and traditions: no drugs and alcohol, and money - 350 francs per client - go ahead.

Maria becomes a professional prostitute. She considers herself the mistress of her fate.Contact with customers does not bring her sexual pleasure. She treats her craft as an ordinary job, and cannot "convincingly explain to herself why she does what she does."

Part three

Maria calculates that “pure sex” lasts eleven minutes.

All women are sure that a man does not need anything other than these eleven minutes of pure sex, and for them he puts a lot of money. But this is not so: a man, in essence, is no different from a woman: he also needs to meet someone and find the meaning of life.

The girl believes that our civilization went "somewhere wrong", and the problem is not in ozone holes and not in the destruction of forests, but in these eleven minutes.

However, the girl does not seek to save humanity, but to replenish her bank account, and she succeeds. Maria firmly adheres to the main rule - do not fall in love. She marks the date of departure. Now she has enough money in her account to buy a farm in Brazil. Once, while walking, Maria enters a small bar. There she is stopped by a long-haired artist of about thirty with the intention of painting a portrait of a girl. The waitress whispers to Mary that he is very famous. The artist Ralph Hart visited Copacabana and recognizes Maria, but this does not scare him away - he sees in the eyes of the girl the light inherent in her alone.

Ralph Hart was married twice, travels a lot, earns a lot of money and believes that sex is incredibly boring. He asks Mary to teach him to love, but she does not want to love. The girl refuses him and gradually calms down, but after three days the artist appears in Copacabana, and Mary meekly accepts this gift of fate. Ralph takes her to his place all night. This evening there is no closeness between them - they get used to each other.

Part four

Maria’s freedom of love “consisted in that there was nothing to wait, nothing to ask for,” but the girl understood that someday Ralph would realize that “she is just a prostitute, and he is a famous artist,” and will turn her back on her .

Maria continues to work. The owner of the establishment informs her that Ralph is the “special client” of his establishment. One evening, he entrusts Mary with another “special client,” a handsome, black-haired Englishman. He pays the girl a thousand francs and takes him to the hotel. Mary is worried. She refuses to stay with the Englishman all night, but she does not want to leave without knowing what a “special client” is. The Englishman turns out to be a sadomasochist, but this evening he only explains to Mary that the pain can turn into "jubilation, a feeling of fullness of life, bliss."

People do not dare to look deep into their souls, and therefore they will never know where the desire to release a wild predatory beast comes from.

Then Mary meets Ralph. They indulge in fantasies by the fireplace, but closeness does not happen again - the girl wants to prepare her beloved for sex. A few days later she meets with Terence and discovers a new facet. She likes to be submissive and feel pain. For the first time in her career, Maria reaches an orgasm with a client.

After this night, Maria believes that she “found herself,” and dreams of going further with the Englishman. She talks to the artist about pain and pleasure. It turns out that Hart tried this too. He takes Maria late in the evening to a public garden, makes him undress and walk barefoot for a long time on prickly gravel. Maria hurts her legs to blood, freezes severely and almost faints. So Ralph manages to prove to her that the pain is not only pleasant, but also painful. The test, arranged by Ralph, inspires Mary with an aversion to the profession of a prostitute, in which suffering seems to be a reward, and money justifies everything.

Part five

Maria buys a ticket to Brazil. Ralph - "this is the only truly pure thing that happened to her." But he, like a bird, was created "for free flight", and she does not want to fetter him.

In the evening, Maria comes to Ralph to say goodbye. They make love.Maria reaches an orgasm four times in a row. He asks her not to leave, but she has already made a decision. Maria leaves when Ralph is still sleeping. Until the last moment, she hopes that Ralph will catch up with her.

But a miracle does not happen. Maria flies to Paris to transfer to a transatlantic flight. A familiar voice suddenly hails her. This is Ralph with a bouquet of flowers and shining eyes. He flew to Paris before Mary and waited for her at the terminal. Maria understands that she has all her youth ahead and forgets about the farm and the owner of the fabric store.

In conclusion, the author thanks the woman who told her her story. The former prostitute who appeared in the novel under the name Maria, now lives "in Lausanne with her husband and two lovely daughters."