"El Güero Candelario"
 
by Payson Tucker
 

 
EL GUERO CANDELARIO. Juanita y María Mendoza. Ideal 650B.
 
Era un domingo en la noche,
no se me puede olvidar,
cuando el güero Candelario
empezó a escandalizar.
 
El baile estaba en su fuerza
cuando Dolores llegó,
como era mujer bonita
Candelario la nombró.
 
Ella le dijo sonriendo:
--No lo puedo acompañar,
soy una mujer casada,
y no he venido a bailar.
 
--A mí, no me digas nada,
porque no quiero saber,
a mí nadien me desaira,
cuantimás una mujer.
 
Estaban en la porfía
cuando Ricardo llegó,
y al ver lo que sucedía
al güero se dirigió:
 
--Oye, güero Candelario,
Dolores es mi mujer,
y vale más que la sueltes
o algo te va a suceder.
 
El güero fue decidido,
y su pistola sacó,
pero Ricardo más pronto
con dos tiros lo mató.
 
¡Qué bonitos son los hombres
que se saben defender
y defienden con su vida
el honor de su mujer
 
Explanation:
 
The corrido "El Güero Candelario" is yet another story of a young girl and the conflicts that arise out of her presence at a dance. This corrido can be classified by the underlying dance motif and its role as an ejemplo corrido.
 
>Unlike the "Corrido of Rosita Alvarez," "El Güero Candelario" focuses more on the male participants rather than the female. Although, the female, in this case Dolores, remains the focus of attention throughout the entire corrido. There are also many similarities between the formulas used in both corridos. The second stanza in "El Güero Candelario" shares many similarities with the third stanza in "Rosita Alvirez":
 

"EL Guero . . . ":   El baile estaba en su fuerza cuando Dolores llegó, omo era mujer bonita Candelario la nombró.

"Rosita Alv. . . .":   Llegó Hipoacutelito a ese baile, y a Rosa se dirigió y como era la más bonita, Rosita lo desarió.

 
Both stanzas address the question of the man's motivation and intent for approaching the girl. In "Rosita Alvirez" the significance of the woman's beauty depends on the version of the song. In some cases the man's motivation is based solely on the woman's beauty which allows for a negative reaction from the girl in order to save her place in society. In other cases, Rosita rejects her counterpart out of arrogance when the man's intentions are implied to be sincere and honest. "El Güero Candelario" shows the man as an aggressor and looking to capitalize on her beauty, especially since Dolores was a married woman. Thus Dolores response in stanza three:
 
Ella le dijo sonriendo:
No lo puedo acompañar,
soy una mujer casada,
y no he venido a bailar.
 
According to Paredes, refusing to dance was as bad as a slap in the face, yet necessary to retain the custom of only dancing with your true love. Consequently, without being the aggressor, Dolores has ignited a conflict with her in the center. In stanza four, el güero Candelario reacts with some heavy machismo, similar to the reaction of Hipolito in older corridos of "Rosita Alvirez."
 
In stanzas six and seven:
 
Oye, güero Candelario,
Dolores es mi mujer,
y vale más que la sueltas
o algo te va a suceder.
 
El güero fue decidido,
y su pistola sacó,
pero Ricardo más pronto
con dos tiros lo mató.
 
In these two stanzas the actions of the man are brought to the attention of the reader. A significant message in the importance of defending the honor of your woman (for the men), and the importance of selecting a man who can defend your honor (for the women) is effectively sent through these stanzas. Even though the "lesson part" concentrates on the male figure, the message is still most important for the woman. If Ricardo, the husband, had not arrived on time the blame for dancing with another man would have fallen onto Dolores. In essence, Ricardo saved Dolores from dishonoring herself. In the last stanza, the corrido glorifies the actions of Ricardo making it a more palatable lesson for the audience. In addition, the corrido spells out the lesson in case the target audience was incapable of recognizing it.
 
While most people enjoy corridos for their entertainment value alone, the audience these corridos were directed toward had a significantly more dynamic relationship between their life and these songs. The corridos offered entertainment as well as lessons that helpled guide society by teaching them rules and expectations.
 
Link to Rosita Alvirez home page
 
Link to Leslie's Rosita Alvirez page
 
Link to Martha's Machismo
 
Link to Liz's El Pipporo page
 
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