MARTÍN FIERRO FOR STUDENTS · THE RETURN · 1879
Canto 21 Explained: Picardía's Childhood: Loss, Labor and Life with His Aunts
A source-linked English study guide alongside José Hernández’s original Spanish poem.
What happens in Canto 21?
Picardía begins his own song. He says his mother, named Inocencia, died before he could mourn her and that he never knew his father. As an unsupported child he works tending sheep for an abusive employer, then leaves with entertainers for Santa Fe. An accident during a rope performance forces another change. Aunts take him in, but their nightly prayers become the setting for awkward mistakes, especially when he confuses the phrase 'Artículos de la fe' with 'Artículos de Santa Fe'. Eventually he leaves again.
Original verses: three passages worth studying
The following stanzas are taken directly from the repository's original-text corpus, without modernization. Explanations elsewhere on this page are interpretation, not translation.
-Voy a contarles mi historia(perdónenme tanta charla),y les diré al principiarla,aunque es triste hacerlo ansí:a mi madre la perdíantes de saber llorarla.
Me llevó a su lado un hombrepara cuidar las ovejas,pero todo el día eran quejasy guascazos a lo loco,y no me daba tampocosiquiera unas jergas viejas.
"Rezá", me dijo mi tía,"Artículos de la fe".Quise hablar y me atoré;la dificultá me aflige;miré a la parda, y ya dije:"Artículos de Santa fé".
Main characters and voices
Picardía, now the first-person storyteller; his absent mother Inocencia; an abusive sheep owner; entertainers; his religious aunts; a woman whose presence distracts him during prayers.
Literary themes to identify
Childhood abandonment and hunger; naming and irony; exploitation of child labor; oral humor; prayer, embarrassment and performance.
Gaucho vocabulary in context
Picardía (name suggestive of clever mischief); Inocencia (his mother's name, meaning innocence); maroma (rope used in acrobatics); rosario (rosary); ovejas (sheep); Santa Fe (Argentine province and place name).
What to notice in the narration
Picardía's narrative voice is distinct from Fierro and his sons. The episode with the aunts turns on a pun between 'fe' (faith) and Santa Fe, so a literal English paraphrase alone cannot explain it. The canto's account of poverty and abuse should not be confused with the later gaming incidents.
Reading-comprehension and discussion questions
- What does Picardía say about his mother and father?
- How does the contrast between Inocencia and Picardía shape his introduction?
- What mistreatment does he experience while tending sheep?
- What happens during the performance in Santa Fe?
- Why is the 'Artículos de Santa Fe' confusion humorous, and how does it relate to the place where he lived?
Support answers with details from the original canto. Different interpretations may be justified if the quoted passages and narrative context support them.
Sources and further reading
Primary source: José Hernández, La vuelta de Martín Fierro (1879), Canto 21, reproduced from the site's structured Spanish corpus. Summary and questions are original English educational commentary, not quoted authorial explanations.
Original canto · Summary of both parts · Character guide · All study guides