Lourdes School of Mandaluyong

High School Department

Academic Year 2013 2014













An Analysis of Miguel de Cervantes Work
The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha















Submitted to:
Joneth D. Vibar











Submitted by:
Patrick Xavier M. Silerio
IV Bl. Apollinaris of Posat
January 23, 2014

Outline of Analysis
1. Authors Writing Style
1.1. The Need for Imagination
1.2. The History and the Historian He Fashioned
1.3. The Contradictions That Were Not
2. Appropriate Approaches in Literature
2.1. Historical Approach
2.2. Reader-Response Approach
2.3. Psychological Approach
2.4. Sociological Approach
2.5. Archetypal Approach
3. Contemporary Parallelism
3.1. The Armada
3.2. The Satire of War
3.3. Fighting Fire with Fire
4. Analysis
4.1. The Morality Behind The Delusional Don Quixote
4.2. The Themes That Hide Behind The Knight-Errant
4.3. An Ending Fit For A Knight
4.4. As It Was According to Standards

An Analysis of Miguel de Cervantes Work
The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha

The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha, more commonly known as simply
Don Quixote, is the first bestselling novel written. It was the most influential literary piece
during the Spanish Golden Age.
Authors Writing Style
According to Byatt (2004), the power of the novel (and of all novels, but most
particularly of this one) lies in the need to imagine people and things that don't exist. In
that sense Quixote's desire for the world to be a place of extreme adventures, concerned
with high moral virtues and chaste sexual passion, is a version of every human need to
make the world more real and more meaningful through the unrealities of art. Cervantes'
peculiar skill lies in the way in which he delightfully confuses his own readers by writing
about enchanted windmills and wineskins, magic helmets and barbers' basins. We have
all used the equivalent of a basin to turn ourselves into a character in a tale.
It was necessary for Cervantes to create a character not so different from the rest of
us. He created Don Quixote as an ordinary man with an imagination that spreads wider
than most people of his time. Don Quixote simply made a world for himself wherein what
he saw and believed was right, that is, the world of knight-errantry. Although it is
somewhat confusing that everything he saw were enchanted windmills, magic helmets
and barbers basins, we are not so different in that each of us also have an equivalent to
Don Quixotes basin to turn ourselves to a whole other person.
As lifted from Cliffnotes.com, Cervantes chose to write a "history" and thus gives
himself certain limitations and advantages. He must journalistically give facts of what
clearly occurs at each part of the action; he cannot invent attributes of his characters
without documenting these qualities by actions. As a responsible historian, he cannot
impose any opinions on his reader but must present each character with as many details
of description and action so that his readers can draw their own conclusions.
Furthermore, according to Sparknote Editors (2004), Cervantes alone reports the
story in the first section, using a straightforward narrative style. In the second section,
Cervantes informs us that he is translating the manuscript of Cide Hamete Benengeli
and often interrupts the narration to mention Benengeli and the internal inconsistencies
in Benengelis manuscript. Here, Cervantes uses Benengeli primarily to reinforce his
claim that the story is a true history.
With which I shall continue with another citation from Cliffnotes.com which says, To
further this ideal of objectivity, Cervantes invents the eminent historian, Cid Hamet
Benengali, for only a Moor would try to underrate any Spanish achievement, and this
guarantees the verisimilitude of all details in the life of Don Quixote.
These citations further support Cervantes need for imagination. He writes not with
his imagination alone but with the readers imagination in mind as well. In the previous
citations, it is stated that Cervantes used a factor of his imagination that he intended to
integrate with the readers imagination, that is, in the person of Cide Hamete Benengali.
Cide is a historian, according to Cervantes, one who would not exaggerate about our
knight-errant but would rather underrate him. This historian supports the validity of the
claims regarding the truth regarding Don Quixotes life.
With regards to the numerous contradictions and mistakes inside Don Qiuxote,
Lathrop (2011) mentions that Cervantes had put them there on purpose. Lathrops
reason in stating this is the lack of the same contradictions and mistakes in Cervantes
other works. Lathrop then emphasized Cervantes objective in writing Don Quixote.
Cervantes advertised objective in writing Don Quixote was to imitate and make funof
the ancient romances of chivalrybooks that told tales of roaming knights in armor
that no further ones would be written, says Lathrop.
Furthermore, Lathrop stated, Cervantes imitated the careless style of the romances
by, in a very carefully planned way, making mistakes on purpose about practically
everything, and made sure that whatever was said was eventually contradicted.
Cervantes, as a rule, simply does not make mistakes and hes not careless either.
Indeed he has to be particularly keen and creative in order to make sure everything was
contradicted. Every contradiction, every mistake, every careless turn of phrase is there
because Cervantes wanted it exactly that way.
Here, Lathrop clarifies the mistakes in Don Quixote. He emphasizes the need of
Cervantes to recreate multiple occasions of literary mistakes seen in chivalric romances.
He repeatedly states the careful manner in which Cervantes wrote his novel.
Appropriate Approaches in Literature
Historical Approach
The novel Don Quixote was written during the Spanish Golden Age. Among the
events of that era were the Spanish Armada, the Christian crusades, the Renaissance
and the Reformation of the Church. The Spanish Armada was formed in the context of
preparations for the invasion of England. The crusades were for the Christian mission of
spreading the word of God and to take back the holy land. The Renaissance brought
about the revival of the Greek and Roman cultures which gave birth to the classics.
Then, there was the Reformation of the Church which brought about the sects of
Protestantism, Anglican, and the like.
In literature, the fondness for chivalric romances were still present thanks to the
stories of Amadis de Gaula, King Arthur, Sir Gawain, the Knight Bernado and many
more. This was given notice in the prologue of the novel which included a conversation
between Cervantes and his friend.
The novel, though, was successful in its quest to stray the minds of the public from
the romances that overran the libraries filling it with thoughts of knights in armor, riding
through the country, and slaying dragons. After the novel sold in the market, romances
about such knights lessened if not vanished all together.
Reader-Response Approach
Don Quixote is a long read especially for my generation. The thought of knights is
exciting but Don Quixote gives off a different aura. My generation would expect knights
to be going all around the land in search for a damsel in distress to rescue and slaying
the dragon that guarded the tower. Its not in my expectation that a knight would just go
around looking for adventure, without a definite mission, and only referring to his beloved
when he needs her blessing. Don Quixote was boring, however, only at first sight.
Don Quixote, after looking behind the long conversations, and the arduous
paragraphs that come with it, is quite likable. Its likable not because Don Quixote
himself is involved in likable activities or humorous situation but because Don Quixote
was not so much different from a normal person. Although I admit that he may be a bit
more eccentric than usualor may be even morehe radiates an aura of a normal
person. He would wander off in his own world, looking for a place he belongs, imagining
that he is a different person, wishing more than what was. Don Quixote becomes likable
because of that because I too wander off to my own world, looking for a temporary
escape from this world, looking for my place.
Before I read the novel, I imagined Don Quixote to be far from normal. Little did I
know that he was not so. Don Quixote made me see a human side I had, a human side I
didnt think I ever recognized before. Don Quixote was a mirror to any other human for
anyone to realize what he lacked or what he didnt see that was right in front of him.


Psychological Approach
As it is known, the major focus of Don Quixote is the main characters adventures
which are mainly fueled by his fantasies and his illusions of grandeur. This aspect of the
novel becomes an avenue for the readers to confirm to what Quixotes adventures really
mean. The concept of idealism has been something that humanity has struggled to
express. This is the reason why a lot of talented individuals turn to the arts. It allows
them to materialize the ideals that were never meant to be.
The use of imagination in Don Quixote grants Cervantes a relative advantage to
write whatever he wants while still maintaining a sense of relation towards his readers.
This proves to be true as most people go through adolescence thinking of their future, of
their place in society, which then serves as an aspiration for people to commit
themselves.
Sociological Approach
Don Quixote, was written during a period where Absolutism was very much
prominent in Europe. Society was rip apart by social classes bringing discrimination
along with it. The nobles were at the top, ruling over the peasants and commoners,
acting like gods and enjoying all the power in their disposal. The commoners, the
members of the peasantry, the majority, were often looked down upon, their efforts and
contributions to society were no more than a pebble along the side of the road less
travelled; they were usually disregarded, if not, forgotten.
This distinction this discrimination may have been one of the many bases
Cervantes had for writing Don Quixote. Using characters such as the duke and the
duchess as a medium to play along the fantasies and dreams of the oblivious Don
Quixote, Cervantes gave a vague depiction of the type of society in which he lived and
exposing the cruelty behind the higher personas in a society that look up to the rich and
powerful. In comparison to modern times, those who are subject to insults, mockery and
discrimination are also those who are found to hold odd hobbies, odd activities and
odd preferences. They were odd only because it was not the norm; because it was
different; because it was not accepted.
Archetypal Approach
A knight that plays the noble role in any fight no matter what the context was, that
was who Don Quixote saw himself. Against the giants, the Basque, and the muleteers,
Don Quixote always saw himself in the right. And, true enough, that was how knights
would act in romances. They were rarely wrong. Moreover, that was the norms for any
hero, that hed be in the right, always fighting the wrong.
It is also imperative to mention Don Quixotes ideal to help the defenseless and
destroy the wicked. Like any other knight or any other hero character for that matter,
Don Quixote places himself in a position that ultimately gives him the authority to be the
judge that the situation lacks despite no one else essentially recognizing that same
authority.
Furthermore, two archetypical and symbolic polarities can be cited in the work
namely, the rich and the poor, and good and evil. This was prominent in the encounters
of Don Quixote such as his encounter of the duke and the duchess who both played with
Don Quixote and Sancho abusing their social status that they possess. Sancho who was
but a peasant could not have done anything against the two and Don Quixote, bound by
his own ideals, could not have possibly go against a duke and a duchess given that he is
a knight. Another example is the encounter of Don Quixote with the shepherds who,
compared with the previous example, could not have acted wiser and more morally
upright. On the other hand, Don Quixote distinguished between good and evil ever since
he first began his journey such as the encounter with the man lashing his servant.
Although Don Quixote left satisfied due to the oath taken by the man, it was as if it did
not exist after he had left seeing that the man continued to harm his servant. This just
showed the cruelty of the man in contrast to Don Quixotes honest and righteous
disposition.
Contemporary Parallelism
The Armada
According to Adams (2011), the preparation of the Armada, which began more or
less from scratch early in 1586, took over two years. Credit for the delay has been given
to Drake's Raid on Cadiz in April 1587 and the subsequent pursuit of his fleet, but even
without this diversion it is doubtful whether the Armada would have been ready to sail by
the summer of 1587. The old strategic dilemmas had not been resolved. The duke of
Parma, Philip's governor in the Netherlands, was unhappy about mounting an attack on
England before he had regained a large enough port on the Dutch coast. Philip over-
ruled his doubts by deciding that a fleet from Spain would secure a landing area on the
Kentish coast and then ferry Parma's army across. So worried was Philip that the
English might successfully divert the fleet that he refused to permit a stage by stage
advance up the Channel and made no preparations for a battle if the English fleet should
be encountered en route.
This relates to the time period when Don Quixote was written. This could have
provided Cervantes with inspiration and reason to write his novel. Furthermore, this can
be further related to the US Seventh Fleet of modern times.
According to the official website of the US 7th fleet, the U.S. 7th Fleet is the largest
U.S. numbered fleet, with 60-70 ships, 200-300 aircraft and approximately 40,000
Sailors and Marines operating in the region on a typical day.
The official site also mentions the 7th Fleets Area of Responsibility which
encompasses more than 48 million square miles (more than 124 million square
kilometers) from the Kuril Islands in the north to the Antarctic in the south, and from the
International Date Line to the 68th meridian east, which runs down from the India-
Pakistan border. The area includes 35 maritime countries and the worlds five largest
foreign armed forces Peoples Republic of China, Russia, India, North Korea and
Republic of Korea. Five of the seven U.S. Mutual Defense Treaties are with countries in
the area Republic of the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand, Republic of Korea,
Japan, and Thailand.
This gives a connection between two timelines, one that repeats history. The United
States of Americas dedication to the military is reflected in a novel that is older than the
nation. In a similar manner, its actions aside from naval matters can be easily related to
the events and mannerisms in Don Quixote such as the United States of Americas war
against terrorism and the nations participation in wars and disputes in continents other
than its own.
The Satire of War
Reynolds mentioned on quixote-quest.com that Don Quixote has a selective vision of
the real world where windmills are giant brutes, sheep are attacking armies and slaves
are oppressed gentlemen. This reflects the authors theme of satirizing the Catholic
Church at the time, acting like giant brutes flailing their arms, and making fun of the
Spanish Government going to war, like a flock of sheep. Quixote is an idealist seeing
things through rose-colored glasses at times.
This satire can be incomparably linked to the modern actions of the United States of
America. The United States of America is one the biggest countries in the world with the
biggest military funding. Surprisingly, despite the fact that the country is an ocean away
from either Asia or Europe, it still managed to interfere in the affairs in the two
continents. It was part of both World Wars which took place in Central Europe and East
Asia, both of which are separated from America by the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific
Ocean, respectively. Furthermore, in its more recent military actions, the United States
of America has managed to join the war in the Middle East, an ocean and a continent
away from the nation, under its propaganda of war against terrorism.
Fighting Fire with Fire
Fajardo-Acosta (2001) mentions that Don Quixote is blind to the contradictions in his
own approach to the correction of the evils of the world; he fights fire with fire and finds
himself repeatedly defeated, making things worse for himself and others.
In a similar matter, the United States of America had begun their military advocacy in
their effort to end terrorism. However, the nation had not managed to even decrease the
amount of terrorism. In fact, the nation had only managed to do the exact opposite thing;
their war on terrorism increased terrorism on a global scale.
As lifted from globalresearch.ca, killing innocent civilians is one of the main things
which increase terrorism. As one of the top counter-terrorism experts (the former number
2 counter-terrorism expert at the State Department) told me, starting wars against states
which do not pose an imminent threat to Americas national security increases the threat
of terrorism because one of the principal causes of terrorism is injuries to people and
families. The Iraq war wasnt even fought to combat terrorism. And Al Qaeda wasnt
even in Iraq until the U.S. invaded that country.
Furthermore, James K. Feldman former professor of decision analysis and
economics at the Air Force Institute of Technology and the School of Advanced Airpower
Studies and other experts say that foreign occupation is the main cause of terrorism.
(GlobalReseach.ca)
This strengthens the earlier comparison of Don Quixote and the United States of
America. Don Quixote admired the romances of the knights, the military units of the time,
to the point that he saw himself to be one; the United States of America on the other
hand had experienced being the world power in terms of military and is desperate at
keeping it. Both military mindsets differ from their respective peers and could be deemed
as their similar point: a knight who protects with violence and a nation that fights
terrorism with the same acts of terrorism that they are experiencing.
Analysis
The Morality behind The Delusional Don Quixote
By distinguishing the right from the wrong, Cervantes illustrated his concept of morality
in Don Quixote. Don Quixote himself characterizes the values of faith and perseverance,
values significant to Christian life then. Don Quixote, despite the surplus of imagination in
his whimsical adventures, would continue to tread in the path he had chosen in spite of all
the odds that he would be joked upon and criticized, never really taken seriously for he
believes that he is in the right. Though it was vague, the adage, to see is to believe, could
not be dismissed in the faces and reactions of those he encounters, though drifting from the
norms of the Christian faith which chooses to believe what is not seen.
In contrast to the candid Don Quixote, his neighbors were more of his polar opposite, so
inclined to commit a lie than to show honesty in words and actions. They then begin to
symbolize the deception and hypocrisy of the human race shown in our history just for the
sake of mans selfish desires. These lies that cover our true colors give the unjust a window
to be justified, allow a step ahead of our neighbors and provide an opening to victimize
those around us. This becomes prominent in the novel Don Quixote as those around the
knight-errant would continue to bear false witnesses to foster the delusions that take root in
the mind and heart of Don Quixote. This they do not for Don Quixote but as a source of
entertainment, to laugh and differentiate Don Quixote from those around him.
The Themes That Hide Behind the Knight-Errant
Don Quixote was absorbed in the thought of righteousness and justice. These affected
his perception of reality. With that, I can say that Don Quixote had two themes prominent in
his arduous journey, that is, to protect what is right and just, and to differentiate reality from
fiction.
The first you can see in the journey of Don Quixote. He would meet several people,
making several choices and making ends meet. And all of that, he would do following his set
of ideals, the rules of chivalry, the rules of a knight. The second one can be seen in the
psychological progress that Don Quixote made, that with every step he took, he would little
by little regain his sense of reality, seeing what was real and what was not.
An Ending Fit for a Knight
Don Quixote died from an illness after he was forced to retire after losing to the Knight of
the Moon. That was the ending depicted in the novel. If it was up to me, I would not dishonor
such a knight filled with so much ideas of valor. Instead, I would have chosen a death suited
for a knight.
Don Quixote certainly was not the best of knights but he showed the people of his time
and of his country that despite being the laughing stock of nearly everyone he could incite a
sense of righteousness and justice in his path. Furthermore, Don Quixote, although not to a
significant extent, exhibited skills that would become of a knight-errant, an example of which
is his victory over the Basque who quoted the terms, Basque on land, hidalgo on sea.
Going back to the main point, if it were up to me, I would have given Don Quixote a
fitting end, one that suits a knight such as him. He fought the Knight of the Moon and lost yet
he lived. That is not an ending that suited a knight. I believe that the most suiting ending for
any knight was in battle such as that of King Arthur who died in the Battle of Camlann.
Therefore, if it were up to me, Don Quixote would have died in the battle against the Knight
of the Moon. Don Quixote would have made a wound that would have been fatal to the
Knight and in fear, the Knight would have made the final blow to the rib of Don Quixote thus
ending the life of the knight-errant.
As It Was According to Standards
Artistry, intellectual value, suggestiveness, spiritual value, permanence, universality, and
style. These were prominent in the novel Don Quixote.
The novel appealed to the senses of the reader in which the reader would be able to feel
the tension, the feeling that arises from the numerous encounter of the knight-errant.
Furthermore, the novel appeals to somewhat elevate the soul of the reader through its blunt
humor and through the way Don Quixote brings out the human that is within everyone.
Don Quixote makes the readers laugh at the fact that he acts like an eight-grader that
still believes in all the fantasies, fairy tales and stories, and even tries to live it out. However,
despite that fact, Don Quixote strikes within the readers something that follows the initial
reaction. What everyone laughed at, the fact that Don Quixote still believes in everything
that he read in his books, is not something that was unique to him. It was in everyone
though not as prominent as Don Quixotes stride. That hopeful feeling, the feeling that, deep
within everyone, still believes, is not unique because everyone though not shown to
everyone else, still believes in everything and sees in it another world to escape to. Don
Quixote, though humorous, makes its readers realize that they too have a knight-errant
they want to be.
The novel also highlights Don Quixotes moral drive to keep to his ideals. Don Quixote
was perseverant in upholding the virtues that he followed through his knighthood. He kept
on following a route that seemed the most just in his eyes which suggested to his readers
to follow their own paths down their own ideals, to strive for the results, the future, that one
so eagerly yearns for.
Furthermore, Don Quixote is just as important now as it was when it was first printed and
just as important to different parts of the world as it was in its birthplace. The need for a Don
Quixote had never really been satisfied and just kept on through the centuries.

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