Song Meaning

The lyrics paint a vivid picture of a beautiful girl from Albaicín, described with rich, natural imagery. She is kept in a "carmen moro," confined by "llaves y con cerrojos." Her lover arrives nightly, singing a song steeped in possessive fear. The core tension here lies between the girl's radiant beauty and the lover's desperate attempts to control it. His repeated plea, "Me da miedo de la luna," isn't just about the celestial body; it's a thinly veiled anxiety about her allure under the night's gaze. He sees her "piel de aceituna" and "verdes ojos" as his "fortuna," something to be hidden and protected from the world. The most striking craft element is the evolving symbolism of the moon. Initially, it represents the external world's gaze and the lover's fear of losing his "fortuna." However, when the girl visits the Alhambra, the moon becomes an active agent: "la luna le dio en la cara." This suggests an empowering illumination, a moment where the moon facilitates her encounter with another man and her subsequent escape, turning the lover's deepest fear into a catalyst for her freedom. These lyrics are effective because they weave a classic tale of confinement and escape, driven by potent imagery and a clever narrative twist. The lover's initial, almost superstitious fear of the moon ironically foreshadows his loss, as the very force he dreaded ultimately enables the girl's departure. The final stanza, where he blames the moon for "robbing" his fortune, underscores the tragic irony of his possessiveness.