Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Fuente Ovejuna, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Tyranny vs. Collectivism
Love and Respect
Honor
Power and Christianity
Language, Knowledge, and Truth
Summary
Analysis
Commander Fernán Gómez de Guzmán enters, flanked by his two servants Flores and Ortuño. The Commander asks his servants if the Master of Calatrava, Rodrigo Téllez Girón, knows that the Commander has arrived. It is disrespectful to make the Commander wait, especially given his high rank.
The opening lines of the play introduces the way the society of the play (15th-century Spain) conceives of honor. A high social rank—like the Commander’s—automatically makes people honorable and thus worthy of respect.
Themes
The Commander affirms that respect is the key to men’s goodwill, and his servants agree that disrespecting an equal shows a lack of manners, while disrespecting inferiors is sheer tyranny. But Flores and Ortuño also assure the Commander that the Master is young, and so he doesn’t know any better. The Commander counters, explaining that becoming the Grand Master of the Order of Calatrava should have been enough to teach the boy respect.
The Commander’s statement that disrespecting people of inferior rank is tyranny foreshadows the main plot of the play, wherein the Commander himself disrespects the people of Fuente Ovejuna. Moreover, the Commander’s beliefs fall in line with the idea that high rank automatically makes a person honorable. He argues that simply by earning his title, the Master should then know how to be honorable.
Themes
The Master enters, apologizing to the Commander and explaining that he was only just told of the Commander’s arrival. The Commander says that this is no way for the Master to treat his most obedient servant, as the Commander’s love for the Master and the Commander’s social rank demand respect in return. The Master swears by the Order’s Cross on their clothes that he honors the Commander as much as he honors his own father.
The Master and Commander’s interaction here reinforces that men of a certain high social rank (as denoted by the Order’s Cross) are automatically given honor and respect. Additionally, the Commander argues for the value of mutual love and respect: the Master should treat the Commander the same way the Commander treats him.
Themes
The Master asks for news of the war, but the Commander provides the Master’s backstory instead: the Master of Calatrava owes his position to his father, who stepped down when the Master was eight years old. The Master governed with his uncle, Juan Pacheco, until the man’s recent death, leaving the Master to rule alone at age 17. But the Commander implores the Master to continue to carry out his family’s wishes. Now that King Henry the Fourth of Castile has died, the Master’s family supports Henry’s daughter Juana and her husband, King Alonso of Portugal, to rule Castile. However, others support Henry’s sister Queen Isabel and her husband, King Fernando of Aragon.
The Commander’s speech here sets up two ideas. First, the Commander’s treachery: at the time Lope de Vega was writing, King Fernando and Queen Isabel were real-life figures who were renowned throughout Spain for being just and merciful rulers (and the ultimate victors in this battle for succession). So, the Commander’s suggestion that the Master support Alonso instead establishes the Commander as opposed to the moral values that Fernando and Isabel stand for. Moreover, the speech shows that the Master isn’t interested in pursuing justice or peace— instead, he’s worried about his family’s social standing because they support Alonso. Thus, both of these characters desire power for self-interested reasons.
Themes
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The Commander urges the Master to call upon the Knights of Calatrava to take Ciudad Real, a key stronghold between Castile and Andalusia that is loyal to Fernando and Isabel. The Commander says that the Master should surprise people who think he is too young and prove his bravery in battle, staining his sword with blood so that it is as red as the Cross embroidered on his clothing. The Master agrees, saying that he will support his family in their just cause, prove his courage, and turn his sword the color of the Cross.
Under normal circumstances, the cross is a key symbol of Christianity and its values of justice, peace, and mercy. But here, the Commander’s encouragement that the Master turn his sword as red as the Cross in order to prove his worth in battle highlights how the Commander and Master act in their own self-interest and are spurred by a desire for glory and bloodshed instead.
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The Master asks if the Commander has soldiers that he can provide from his town, Fuente Ovejuna. Though the Commander might be able to garner a few soldiers, he explains that his vassals are humble people who are more accustomed to fields than battles. The Master and Commander agree to summon their respective men and ride out to Ciudad Real.
Even before the scene shifts to Fuente Ovejuna, the Commander paints a picture of the villagers there as humble, peaceful people, in contrast to the battle-ready and high-ranking Commander—establishing the power disparity between them already.
Themes
The scene shifts to Fuente Ovejuna, and Laurencia and Pascuala enter. Laurencia says that she hopes the Commander never comes back to Fuente Ovejuna. Pascuala is surprised to hear Laurencia say this so fiercely. Laurencia asks Pascuala if she thinks the Commander would marry her, and when Pascuala replies no, Laurencia says that she wants nothing to do with him. Many girls in the village have put their trust in the Commander and seen their “reputation shot to pieces.” She explains that the Commander has been pursuing her for a month and even got his servants to gift her with clothes and necklaces on his behalf. The servants frightened her but didn’t persuade her at all.
While the opening scene set the stage for the Commander’s villainy on a national scale, Laurencia and Pascuala’s discussion illustrates the Commander’s abuse on an individual level. Laurencia suggests that the Commander is a womanizer and even an abuser, and the way that he quickly discards women shows him to be anything but honorable. It is notable that Laurencia seems open to the potential of getting involved with the Commander if he wanted to marry her. But because she implies that he simply wants sex, she is frustrated that he would treat her with such a lack of respect that would cause her to lose her good reputation. Moreover, this passage implies that it’s difficult for the women to avoid the Commander’s abuses because his status affords him servants who help him target the women. As individuals, the women do not have the same physical or social power.
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Even though Laurencia “a young bird,” she feels that she’s too tough for men. She describes her ideal day: cooking herself a nice breakfast, a lunch of “beef and cabbage / Dancing to a merry, bubbling tune.” After traveling all day, she would eat a slice of bacon “wedded to” an eggplant. Later on, she would eat grapes, meat, and peppers. Then at night, she could say her prayers and go pleasantly to sleep. She’d much rather live like this than experience rogues’ “promises of love,” which are often empty. She declares that men just want to go to bed with women, and when the morning comes, the men are gone.
Laurencia’s description of her ideal day is notable, as images like cooking and language like “wedded to” connote marriage and a traditional, domestic lifestyle. This is ironic when contrasted with the fact that she wants to achieve this idyllic vision alone rather than as a man’s wife. By contrast, men’s empty “promises of love” and lack of respect for her would fill her life with discord, emphasizing that lust without respect only creates conflict. In addition, the fact that Laurencia refers to herself as “a young bird” is key, because animals symbolize the predator-prey relationship between men and women throughout the play. Laurencia’s description suggests that she is innocent but also hints at the fact that she might be preyed upon.
Themes
Pascuala agrees with Laurencia, explaining that when men stop loving women, they are as ungrateful as sparrows. In the barren winter, sparrows enter the farmer’s house and eat crumbs from his table. But in the summer, when fields are green and food is plentiful, the birds quickly forget about the farmer’s kindness. Laurencia concludes that men should never be trusted.
Pascuala carries on the bird imagery to demonstrate men’s fickleness. Just as birds greedily eat the farmer’s crumbs in the winter, men love women when it’s convenient for them. But then, just as birds leave in the summer when fields are green, men leave when there are other options for them men to pursue. The metaphor implies that Pascuala and Laurencia simply desire faithfulness and respect in their relationships—that these qualities form strong bonds of love, which men like the Commander rarely show them.
Themes
In that moment, Mengo, Barrildo, and Frondoso approach, greeting the “lovely ladies.” Laurencia is surprised that Frondoso is calling them ladies, and Frondoso replies that he’s following the fashion. Nowadays, he says, a schoolboy is called a graduate, someone who is blind is called myopic, someone with a big mouth is an entertainer, someone who is cowardly simply lacks initiative. Big feet are the sign of a solid man, while the pox is only a runny nose—and so this is why he calls them ladies. Laurencia replies that that’s just “city talk” when they want to be polite.
That the women are shocked that Frondoso would call them “lovely ladies” illustrates how commoners aren’t usually treated with the same kind of respect as people of high birth. Thus, his statement comes across as unusual because he is affording Laurencia and Pascuala honor that they wouldn’t normally get. Laurencia’s criticism of this statement as “city talk” (as opposed to the plain, honest language the villagers use) introduces the play’s skepticism about euphemistic language, because it doesn’t always tell the full truth.
Themes
City people, Laurencia explains, use a different speaking style when they want to insult a person: they say the opposite of what they mean. A serious man is a bore; someone who speaks their mind is rash; talent is just lucky; putting up with things is cowardice; a modest woman is a fool; a chaste woman is into seduction. Mengo comments that Laurencia is very witty.
Laurencia’s additional criticism of “city talk” illustrates how euphemisms in language can be used to outright lie, including in the case of smearing a woman’s reputation. Again, the play criticizes this kind of language, because of its power to manipulate what others think in a devious way.
Themes
Mengo, Barrildo, and Frondoso want Laurencia and Pascuala to settle a debate for them. Mengo admits that he’s not a philosopher and can’t read, but he believes that love does not exist, while Barrildo and Frondoso think that this is ridiculous. Barrildo explains that there is harmony in this world and in Heaven, and that harmony cannot exist without love. Mengo clarifies that he thinks love is natural and exists in every man—but his point is that people love themselves, and no one else.
Even though Mengo, Barrildo, and Frondoso are arguing, they all agree on the fact that love is natural and that it’s the basis for harmony not only on an interpersonal level, but on a societal level. Their agreement supports the play’s overall implication that mutual respect provides a strong foundation for love, and consequently, for harmony between people.
Themes
Pascuala argues Mengo’s point, explaining that men and women love each other passionately. But Mengo says that this is self-love, because people just want pleasure for themselves. Barrildo recalls the village priest talking about Plato’s idea of love, which is that people should love only the soul and virtue of the person they love. Pascuala says that these kinds of topics even challenge great thinkers like professors and academics. Laurencia agrees that Mengo shouldn’t get tangled up in supporting the academics “idiocies” and says he should be grateful that he hasn’t experienced love.
Laurencia again criticizes people who purport to have great knowledge, as she says that the academics’ complicated debates are really just “idiocies” because the arguments become so convoluted. While the debate on love is never fully settled, the play does go on to illustrate that the best kinds of loving relationships are based in selflessness or mutual respect, disproving Mengo’s theory.
Themes
Mengo asks who Laurencia loves, and she says she only loves her honor. Barrildo asks who won the debate, and Pascuala says that the sacristan or the priest would have a better answer than she or Laurencia can give, because they’ve never been in love. Frondoso comments that Laurencia’s coldness is his answer to the debate.
Frondoso’s comment here hints at his love for Laurencia, but Laurencia’s statement that she loves her honor is telling. Despite Laurencia’s lower class status, she has already established her honor in showing how important her reputation and her chastity are to her—and she wants to act in a way that will maintain that honor.
Themes
Just then, Flores enters, and Laurencia comments that he’s a “fine falcon.” Flores explains that he’s just come from the battle at Ciudad Real, and he describes the scene: the Master was a splendid sight on a mighty stallion, and the Commander sat at his side. The city took up arms, as the people were loyal to Fernando and Isabel. In response, the Master seized the town. Those of high status who offended his name had their heads cut off, while those of lesser social rank were gagged and flogged. Flores explains that the Master is feared there but also loved, because even though he is young, the people believe he can one day beat the Moors and take back Granada.
Laurencia’s description of Flores as a “falcon” reinforces the symbolism of animals in the play. The falcon is a bird of prey, paralleling how Flores preys on women for the Commander. Additionally, the description of the battle reinforces how the Master is only interested in vengeance, rather than justice or peace, as he kills the nobility in the town simply for a perceived personal offense. The reference to Granada also touches on why Christian values were so important for leaders to have at this time. Grenada was controlled by Muslim Moors, and so many Christian Spaniards were afraid of being conquered by people who were not Christian, making Christianity integral to monarchs’ reign.
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Flores concludes that the Master has been generous to everyone, including the Commander—he gave the Commander many gifts taken from Ciudad Real and even from the Master’s own estate. Then, Flores points out that the Commander will be arriving in Fuente Ovejuna imminently, and that the villagers should receive him joyfully. At that moment, the Commander and Ortuño walk into the square with Esteban and Alonso, magistrates of the town. Musicians sing, praising the Commander and the Master for conquering the enemy, and wishing the Commander a long life.
The villagers’ warm welcome for the Commander shows how they treat him with the honor and respect that would be afforded a lord in the feudal system. However, the fact that the Commander already has a reputation for abusing the women in the town illustrates that the he isn’t necessarily treating the townspeople with honor or respect in return.
Themes
After the musicians’ song, the Commander thanks the people for receiving him so warmly. Esteban presents the Commander with humble gifts: baskets filled with polished pots of clay, a flock of geese, and salted hogs. The townspeople don’t have fancy gifts like weaponry, horses, or gold, but Esteban comments that the townspeople’s love is the purest gold of all. Esteban also presents him with wine and cheese, saying that these gifts represent the love that the Commander deserves. The Commander thanks Esteban heartily, and the musicians sing their song again.
Here, Esteban exemplifies another type of love: that between a noble and his vassals. The townspeople show their love through gifts in exchange for protection and often land from the Commander. And like other forms of love, when that relationship is built on mutual respect, it fosters harmony throughout the town. In this passage, Esteban demonstrates that the villagers are fulfilling their aspect of the social contract in providing their love and respect.
Themes
As the crowd disperses, the Commander instructs Laurencia and Pascuala not to leave. He points out that Laurencia was cold to him the other day, and he says that Laurencia and Pascuala belong to him. He tells them to step inside a nearby stable, where his men are waiting. Laurencia says she’ll only do so if her father, Esteban, comes as well. Frustrated that the women aren’t obeying him, the Commander instructs Flores and Ortuño to bring the women inside and lock the stable door. But when Ortuño and Flores try to grab Laurencia and Pascuala and pull them into the stable, they women pull away and leave, refusing to become part of the Commander’s spoils.
While the townspeople show their love and respect for the Commander, he does not return that respect. He abuses his power in trying to abduct Laurencia and Pascuala, showing himself to be completely dishonorable. The women have little recourse other than fighting off the Commander’s henchmen and refusing to become part of the Commander’s “spoils,” illustrating how they are treated like objects. This skirmish also shows why it’s often hard for the women to escape their abuse, because the Commander has henchmen who can overpower them.
Themes
The scene shifts to King Fernando and Queen Isabel’s court. Isabel explains that they have to act fast and strike King Alonso’s army—if they can control Castile, their victory will be assured. Just then, two aldermen from Ciudad Real enter. The first man explains that they’ve come humbly to talk to “Most Catholic King Fernando / Whom Heaven has sent from Aragon / To be our help and savior in / Castile.” The man explains that they enjoyed being the King’s subjects, but now the Master has conquered their city. They fought as best they could, but they were no match for him and the Commander. The King asks where the Commander is now, and the alderman says that he is in Fuente Ovejuna, which the Commander rules as he wishes, “denying his subjects any kind of happiness.”
The alderman’s speech establishes King Fernando and Queen Isabel as having close ties to Christianity—even going so far as to say that Fernando has been “sent from Heaven.” This speech suggests that the aldermen believe in the concept of divine right—that monarchs receive their right to rule from God. This depiction of Fernando and Isabel as being aligned with Christian values contrasts with the Commander and the Master, who are motivated purely by greed and bloodlust. The aldermen also make clear here that the Commander has a poor reputation even outside Fuente Ovejuna for his tyranny, as they point out that he “den[ies] his subjects any kind of happiness.” Again, although the Commander expects people to treat him honorably and respectfully, he doesn’t reciprocate that treatment.
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Isabel again states that they should not delay, and the King agrees. He instructs his advisor, Don Manrique, to take two armies to retake Ciudad Real and “curb / The enemy’s excesses.” Manrique agrees with this bold action and says that he’ll put an end to their enemies’ arrogance. Isabel comments that with Manrique, their triumph is guaranteed.
Isabel and Fernando’s rapport underscores their relationship as a marriage of equals: she gives Fernando counsel and he takes her advice into account, establishing their mutual respect. Additionally, Fernando’s note to “curb the enemy’s excesses” further reinforces that the Commander and Master have overstepped, taking what does not belong to them because they are greedy and self-interested rather than motivated by a desire for peace or justice.
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Back in Fuente Ovejuna, Laurencia is chastising Frondoso for interrupting her doing laundry by the stream. People constantly gossip about her and Frondoso, and she doesn’t want more rumors spreading. She tells him that everyone expects their marriage, but she never gave it a thought.
Laurencia’s statement that she doesn’t want the villagers gossiping about her ties back to her monologue about chaste or modest women being criticized. Laurencia cares deeply about her honor, and she doesn’t want gossip to tarnish her reputation. Moreover, Laurencia doesn’t give marriage to Frondoso a thought because she is wary of a potential husband disrespecting her the same way the Commander does. Thus, the play illustrates how the Commander’s disrespect causes conflict not only between him and Laurencia, but also between Laurencia and Frondoso.
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Hurt by Laurencia’s coldness, Frondoso affirms that he wants to marry her. He can’t eat, drink, or sleep without Laurencia, and he wonders if this touches her at all. When Laurencia tells him that he should see a doctor, Frondoso assures her that she is his cure. He tells her that when they marry, they’ll be like turtle-doves making music together. Laurencia says she’s not in love with Frondoso, though she admits there might be a small spark between them.
Commander and his henchmen are often described as predatory animals or beasts, while Laurencia has been likened to animals that are often hunted. Frondoso, by contrast, describes himself and Laurencia as two turtle-doves symbolizes the mutual respect and love that would form the foundation of their relationship. Turtle-doves are associated with both faith and love, and this metaphor suggests that they are equals, rather than having a predator-prey relationship.
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Laurencia and Frondoso see the Commander coming—he is hunting deer with a bow and arrow. Laurencia tells Frondoso to hide in the trees, and he does so. As the Commander approaches Laurencia, he comments that he’s come across much prettier game than the deer he was hunting. Laurencia tries to continue washing her clothes, but the Commander stops her. He tells her that she can’t possibly reject him now that they are alone, because Pedro Redondo and Martin Del Pozo’s wives surrendered willingly to him. Laurencia says that the other women knew how to please him and she doesn’t, and she again tries to walk away. She says that if it weren’t for the Cross on his chest, she’d take him for the devil.
This passage reinforces the Commander’s predatory nature in several ways. First, in comparing Laurencia to the deer he was hunting and in holding a bow and arrow, he indicates that he similarly is hunting her. He pursues her out of lust rather than love and completely ignores her wishes. Moreover, Laurencia’s comparison of the Commander to the devil indicates the irony that the Commander wears a Cross despite acting with no regard for Christian values. All of these symbols demonstrate the Commander’s lack of respect, virtue, or honor.
Themes
Setting down his bow, the Commander tries to grab at Laurencia, telling her not to resist. Laurencia calls out for help, and Frondoso emerges from his hiding spot in the trees. He grabs the bow, which he points at the Commander, and tells Laurencia to run away; as she leaves, she implores Frondoso to be careful. The Commander warns Frondoso to set the bow down now that Laurencia is gone, but Frondoso refuses, worried that the Commander will try to kill him with it.
The bow and arrow are a common symbol of Cupid (the ancient Roman god of love), so the Commander setting down the bow indicates that he doesn’t have any love for Laurencia—only lust. By contrast, Frondoso picks up the bow not to hunt or kill the Commander, but purely as an act of defense—indicating Frondoso’s higher virtue, and the fact that he respects Laurencia’s wishes and wants to protect her from the Commander’s tyranny. Frondoso’s opportunity to kill the Commander also demonstrates how the Commander’s lack of respect for women creates disorder in the town and even endangers himself.
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The Commander wonders what to do, not wanting to break the rules of chivalry and turn his back on a peasant. Frondoso says he knows his place and doesn’t intend to kill the Commander, but he’ll take the bow with him to stay alive. After Frondoso leaves, the Commander vows to get revenge on Frondoso both for the insult and for thwarting the Commander’s advances on Laurencia.
This exchange again indicates the disparity in honor between the Commander and Frondoso. The fact that the Commander is concerned with the chivalric code of conduct is ironic, as his behavior toward Laurencia has been anything but chivalrous. This indicates that just because someone is a noble and is familiar with these codes doesn’t make them honorable. Frondoso, on the other hand, does act honorably, both in protecting Laurencia and in choosing not to kill the Commander for his offense. This illustrates that even someone who isn’t high-born can act with honor.
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