Don Quixote Book Review + Analysis
Don Quixote book review + analysis will explore three themes: madness, beauty, and fear.
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Summary:
Don Quixote suffers from delusions. He considers himself a chivalrous knight, like those he reads about, but his journey begins with an old horse and a poor neighbor. Sancho Panza agrees to be his squire and indulge the old man’s fantasy because he wants to become a governor; Don Quixote promises to fulfill this desire.
As they set out for their voyage, they encounter a variety of people who weep over their woes. Quixote feels obligated to remedy every situation, but more often than not, the two men get into trouble and make matters worse. Quixote’s plan to become a true knight errant and win Dulcinea del Toboso's affection continues to go unfulfilled because of his delusions.
“‘In those times the amorous conceptions of the soul were expressed as simply as they had been conceived, without any search for artificial circumlocutions to enhance them.’”
Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Don Quixote: Part One Book Review + Analysis
*This book review + analysis reveals spoilers*
Structure & Theme:
This story was different than anticipated; it’s a comedy and a tragedy that broke into short stories— unexpectedly episodic. Don Quixote and Sancho found themselves in various places, learning lessons through cautionary tales.
Honestly, I loved the book until the adventures grew cyclical—it was one random encounter after another. By the end of part one, I was flabbergasted because I spent so much time reading about random characters' lives. It seemed as if there weren’t any character arcs. This book took A LOT longer to read than it should have. Frankly, it dragged. It was one giant meandering story, so when Don Quixote officially gave up on his one goal: become a knight errant and save Dulcinea, I felt like I wasted my time.
I appreciate what this book did for its time, but it's overwritten. This book was all tell and no show. The story explained every scene through dialogue and narration, which took me out of the novel because it felt like reading the same thing twice. I wonder if Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra had an editor because plenty should be rewritten and cut.
Okay, lets dive into the themes.
Part One:
Descent into madness
Beauty
Fear
Descent into madness
We are plopped into Don Quixote’s world; he lives with many knight-errantry novels and reads them constantly. Soon it's his mission to become a knight and save people from harm. He changes his name from Alonso Quijano, takes his old horse, makes his own hauberk, and searches for quests.
The perspectives of this book are foretold by a narrator, the protagonist, and a random cast of characters. When we live through Quixote’s eyes and read his monologues, it never feels like he’s mad. His viewpoints evoke emotion and truth— he believes everything he says. But once we shift to the other characters, they converse behind his back about his sanity while indulging his fantasies. It’s hard to believe who is truly mad— Don Quixote or the people around him.
“‘So that you may see, Sancho, what great good there is in knight-errantry, and how close those exercising any of its ministries always are to being honoured and esteemed by the world, it is my wish that you should come and sit by my side in the company of these excellent people, and be one with me, your natural lord and master— that you should eat from my very own plate and drink from my very own cup: for of knight-errantry may be said what is said of love, that it makes all things equal.’”
Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Don Quixote is innocent and pure in his pursuit to become a knight errant, so as a reader, I want it to be an ascension. I wanted to believe that everyone else around him was mad. His philosophical truths are universal— they were relatable and poetic. But his sanity is questioned multiple times along the way: he fights a windmill and believes they are giants. The quests he and Sancho undertake cause both physical and emotional pain.
You could argue that he potentially made the entire succession of events up in his head as if it were a book. Maybe he was mad enough to imagine every adventure. Maybe he never left his bed and wrote a book like those he admired.
“Every minute of every hour his imagination was filled with those battles, enchantments, adventures, extravagances, loves, and challenges that books of chivalry recount, and everything he said, thought or did was channeled into such affairs.”
Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Beauty
Women are symbols of beauty in this book. Appearances were an element of life during that time period because women had to look and present themselves in a specific way to find marriage.
However, this concept is foretold as a caution by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra; this philosophy made this story ahead of his time. For example, Grisóstomo’s Song gave insight into this idea. Marcella is a beautiful woman, admired by many, but no man is good enough for her because project their lust and infatuation on her. Marcela tells the village that she is esteemed for her outside appearance, but she seeks something deeper and more meaningful in a partner. Love born out of desire and attractiveness is shallow and purely infatuation; it cannot last a lifetime.
“‘And just as the viper doesn’t deserve to be blamed for her poison, even though she kills with it, because nature gave it to her, so I don’t deserve to be blamed for being beautiful; because beauty in a virtuous woman is like a distant fire or sharp sword, which don’t burn or cut anyone whole doesn’t come too close.’”
Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
There weren’t many flattering descriptions of men’s beauty, but you can interpret that Don Quixote believed a man was attractive based on courage and chivalry. This concept was essentially what Marcela explained through her woe. We are more than our appearances. Beauty is relative, and loves true nature is revealed through actions, morality, and values.
“‘I can see her even now, that lovely face of hers with the sun in one cheek and the moon in the other.”’
Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Fear
Sancho was Don Quixote’s squire and took most of the pain on the adventures they trekked. Sancho’s motives were purely selfish; he desired a reward for his actions. Quixote promised to make him a governor, and Sancho abandoned his family to become someone else because he never felt fulfilled. He left for the wrong reasons; Sancho played along with Quixote’s fantasies instead of learning honor.
“‘It is your fear, Sancho,’ said Don Quixote, ‘that is preventing you from seeing or hearing properly; because one of the effects of fear is to muddle the senses and make things seem to be what they are not…’”
Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
I believe Quixote was meant to be Sancho’s mentor; the squire was illiterate, lazy, and greedy. Quixote had beliefs, values, and lived by an honor code. We witness Sancho slowly merge into selfless actions as the story progressed.
“‘I know, of course, that there are no spells in the world that can control a person’s will, as some simple people believe, for our free will is sovereign, and there is no herb or enchantment that can control it.’”
Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
If you, as the reader believed that Don Quixote was sane and the rest of the world selfish, (like I did) one could say that fear represses our capacity to see clearly. Finding internal peace means to rid oneself of the ego. Fear seeks to control. So instead of allowing it to rule you, use fear constructively. People are not free who live stuck within rigid boundaries of rules, ego, and fear. Don Quixote was free and sought to help others.
Afterthoughts:
Every adventure breeds lessons about life, love, and humanity. This book has insightful philosophy and cautionary tales, but it’s overwritten. It took me way too long to read this story because it was one tale after another while the two characters listened and observed them. The biggest flaw about this story was that Don Quixote and Sancho were passive characters, not active. This book is a comedy-turned-tragedy with a disappointing finale.
I went in fairly blind to this classic; my advice is to investigate this book before you dive in, and I hope this book review gives you the insight you need to determine whether Don Quixote is worth that plunge.
So, I partially enjoyed my experience with this book. Share your thoughts on this Don Quixote book review in the comments below!
