# II explained — Saragossa

> Chapter companion for Saragossa by Benito Pérez Galdós.

## What happens

The narrator and Don Roque, accompanied by two others, are guided through the ruined streets of Saragossa by a loquacious beggar named Sursum Corda. Despite their hunger and impatience, Sursum Corda regales them with vivid tales of the recent siege, recounting the heroic deeds of various patriots, the destruction of buildings, and the fierce fighting against the French. Eventually, he leads them to the house of Don José de Montoria.

## Themes in this chapter

### Heroic Resistance and Patriotism

The chapter is filled with tales of individual and collective heroism against the French, emphasizing the patriotic fervor of the Saragossans.

### War and Dehumanization

The vivid descriptions of death, destruction, and the dehumanizing effects of war are prominent, as seen in the treatment of the dead and the chaos of the fighting.

## Character check-ins

### Don Roque

Accompanies the narrator, impatient with Sursum Corda's lengthy stories, eager to reach Don José's house.

### Don José de Montoria

The person the group is seeking; his house is the destination.

### Antonio Laste

Mentioned by Sursum Corda as a hero who saved money from the treasury and recovered stolen candles.

### Don Antonio Quadros

Recounted as a fearless commander who died after being shot in the head while defending the wall.

### Countess de Bureta

Mentioned for her heroic act of building a barricade and firing a gun at the French.

## Key lines

> you see this house? Well, here lives Antonio Laste, first sergeant of the Fourth Company of Regulars, and you must know he saved from the treasury sixteen thousand, four hundred pesos, and took from the French the candles that they stole from the church.

Sursum Corda points out the house of Antonio Laste, a sergeant who heroically rescued money and church candles from the French.

_Illustrates the beggar's tendency to share heroic anecdotes._

> Don Antonio Quadros said that that did not bother him any, and seeing that the enemy’s batteries had opened a large hole in the wall, went to stuff it full of bags of wool. Then a bullet struck him in the head. They brought him here; he said that was nothing either, and died.

Don Antonio Quadros, despite being wounded, continued to defend the wall by stuffing it with wool, and died after being shot in the head, dismissing his injury as nothing.

_Highlights the extraordinary bravery and stoicism of the defenders._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/saragossa_se/chapters/ii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/saragossa_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/saragossa_se/chapters