The Fountains of Silence: A Novel

Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2019

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Chapters 56-63Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 56 Summary

Daniel returns to the hotel, which now seems too opulent, stunned by the poverty he has seen. Lorenza serves Daniel and Ben, lingering as if eavesdropping, and Ben tells Daniel that Lorenza’s father works for the Guardia Civil.

Daniel asks Ben about the Valley of the Fallen, and Ben gives him the real story. The monument is being built with slave labor, and the people resent the expense. Ben also encourages Daniel to think about Franco in relationship to other fascist leaders, including Mussolini and Hitler. Ben points out that though Spain’s “history hasn’t written itself yet” Daniel is “capturing it as [they] speak with [his] photos” (202). Although Ben’s admiration of him and of his work pleases him, Daniel feels increasingly uncomfortable that his father is doing business with a brutal dictator.

Following Chapter 56 is an excerpt from an article printed in The Rosebud News from 1960, announcing the completion of the Valley of the Fallen.

Chapter 57 Summary

Julia allows Ana to keep one box of candy but insists that Ana sell the others. Ana uses some of the money to call Nick and ask him why he sent Daniel there. He admits to having a malicious intent, stating that he thought Daniel was just “a coddled rich kid” but has since decided that Daniel’s “a really good guy” (205). Ana agrees, but asks Nick not to cause trouble.

Chapter 58 Summary

Daniel goes to the Inclusa to take pictures; “[f]lanking both sides of the arched sandstone entry is an inset figure of an infant with empty eyes, arms outstretched, and palms open” (207). He photographs dozens of children at play in a large garden, where they are supervised by young women who wear white dresses and black pinafore aprons.

As Daniel leaves, he encounters a small boy near the entrance who holds out a note. The boy tells Daniel that “mamá doesn’t love me anymore” (208).

Chapter 59 Summary

Puri wants answers about the adoption fees and wishes she has someone to ask, but every avenue she thinks of pursuing seems like a dead end. She knows what her mother will say: “We are prettier with our mouths shut” (210).

She finds and reads letters from families whose children have died—but these families appear to suspect that their children did not really die. One family outright asserts that the Inclusa stole their child. When Puri hears a noise, she takes the remaining letters and hides them in her clothing.

Chapter 60 Summary

Julia and Antonio discuss Daniel, and Julia wishes that she could encourage and support Ana rather than blocking her happiness. Julia recalls that her mother said they must accept fate, pursue peace, and leave truth for another day. Julia wonders if that day will ever come, noting that it has “been nearly 20 years since the war ended and truth still clings to the shadows” (213).

Chapter 61 Summary

Daniel reads another telegram sent to his parents, this time from his uncle, Bud Matheson. The message states that Father Brodd told them the news and asks if they’ve “told Daniel? Worried will be hard on him” and that he will “prepare the home staff for change” (216). Daniel cannot understand any of this and wonders if his parents are separating.

Chapter 62 Summary

Daniel thinks back on his parents’ behavior and begins to think their separation is likely. Daniel picks up his photos without looking at them, and Miguel asks him to return and discuss the photos with him later.

Daniel goes back to the hotel, and Ana notices that something is wrong. She, however, cannot ask Daniel in the lobby in front of everyone.

Chapter 63 Summary

Ana checks on Daniel later, and he shares his concerns about his parents; she tells him that he is wrong, but cannot tell him how she knows because of privacy concerns. She is so sure, in fact, that she bets Daniel that if his parents do separate she’ll help him with his project. Daniel asks her if that means she’ll be “Jane Doe” using a pseudonym like his hero Capa, and Ana says she will be Tom Collins, after “a drink on the lobby bar menu” (221).

Chapters 56-63 Analysis

In this section, Daniel’s personal experience of Vallecas and the repression faced by its people leads to a broader education on the topic by his mentor, Ben. Ben insists Franco is a dictator along the lines of Mussolini and Hitler, both of whom supported Franco’s rise to power. Daniel’s discomfort with thinking of Franco in this way reflects the wider American response to Franco’s rise.

Like many, including Ben, who thought that America should have nothing to do with Franco—doing so would legitimize Franco’s government and give him unspoken permission to continue atrocities—Daniel opposes American business, specifically his father’s business’s, involvement with Franco. The American presence in Spain, and whether it helped or harmed the Spanish people, continues to be a subject of debate. Some react like Antonio, believing that the American presence helps financially and prevents more atrocities. Others react like Fuga, believing that if the Americans refuse to take down Franco, they are complicit. Antonio’s suggestion that Daniel take pictures of the Inclusa stems from Antonio’s belief that transparency can lead to change. Puri’s behavior, on the other hand, epitomizes the desire to change things internally, as shown by her unwillingness to discuss her fears with anyone, as well as by her continued searches in the file library.

In some ways, Daniel and Ana remain on uneven footing. The possibility that his parents are separating completely stuns Daniel, while Ana’s family worries about paying the rent and having food. When Ana is able to comfort Daniel, it puts their relationship back on even footing. It also reveals that Ana, through cleaning rooms (consider the green bottle she saw in the Matheson’s trash), holds inside knowledge on events that Daniel may not have.