"facundo" is not only a critique of rosas's dictatorship, but a broader investigation into argentine history and culture, which sarmiento charts through the rise, controversial rule, and downfall of juan facundo quiroga, an archetypical argentine "caudillo". sarmiento summarizes the book's message in the phrase "that is the point: to be or not to be savages". the dichotomy between civilization and barbarism is the book's central idea; facundo quiroga is portrayed as wild, untamed, and standing opposed to true progress through his rejection of european cultural ideals—found at that time in the metropolitan society of buenos aires.