La fuerza de la sangre is a tale difficult to stomach or understand, and even the title of this article will be deemed unacceptable by some readers – but then, the article's title but mirrors the dilemma provoked by the story itself. Can one talk of exemplarity and unpunished rape in the same breath? At the end of the essay, I shall consider the concept of exemplarity as Cervantes expresses it in his prologue to the collection, but my primary focus will be the exemplary tale itself. La fuerza de la sangre is usually translated as ‘The Power of Blood’, although, as will become evident from my discussion, ‘Overpowering Blood’ is perhaps nearer the mark. The story is the following.

A young girl, Leocadia, living in Toledo, is walking home one night from the river to the city with her elderly parents and younger brother. The family is noble but rather poor. A gang of young good-for-nothings, led by a spoilt noble brat, surprise the family, and stare impudently at the women's faces. Rodolfo, the high-born leader of the group, is overcome with desire to have sex with the girl, who is sixteen years of age and extremely beautiful. He communicates this to his companions and, while they retrace their steps, Rodolfo carries her off. She faints. Rodolfo carries her back to his bachelor pad, where, while she is still senseless, he rapes her. She comes to, and asks him to kill her to put an end to her dishonour. Confused by what she has said, and by the spirit of the girl when he attempts to rape her again, he leaves her to go and ask his friends what he should do. Leocadia is now able to explore the room in which she is held prisoner and conceal a silver crucifix about her person as evidence of what happened to her and who did it. When Rodolfo returns, she asks him to leave her by the main church of Toledo so that she can find her way home, and that he not say to anyone what has happened to her so that she may not be publicly defamed for being raped.