Don Quixote by Cervantes: Review

Don Quixote endures not just because it was the first of its kind, but because it is filled with humour, compassion, and timeless insights into human nature.

Synopsis: Don Quixote

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra is the timeless story of a man so bewitched by tales of chivalry that he sets out to live them himself.

Declaring himself a knight-errant, Don Quixote embarks on a series of absurd yet moving adventures, armed with nothing but rusty armor, unshakable conviction.

Along with his loyal companion and his earthy squire, Sancho Panza. Together, the dreamer and the pragmatist tilt at windmills, grapple with imagined foes, and blur the line between madness and wisdom.

First published in the early seventeenth century, Don Quixote is widely regarded as the first modern novel.

With playful structure, sharp humour, and profound insights into human folly the novel has influenced generations of writers from Fielding and Dickens to Flaubert, Melville, and Faulkner.

Both a brilliant parody of medieval romance and a moving meditation on hope, illusion, and the power of storytelling,

Don Quixote remains one of the most important and beloved works in world literature.

Review: Don Quixote

Don Quixote, first published in the early 1600s, is often regarded as the world’s first modern novel and one of the most influential works in literary history.

At its heart, it tells the story of Alonso Quixano, an ageing gentleman from La Mancha, who becomes so consumed by tales of knights and chivalry that he renames himself Don Quixote and sets out to revive knighthood.

Armed with little more than an old suit of armour, a tired horse, and an unshakable sense of idealism, he embarks on a series of adventures alongside his loyal squire, Sancho Panza.

Plot and Structure

Don Quixote is an episodic novel, unfolding as a chain of loosely connected adventures. Some of these are comic, such as the famous windmill’s scene.

While others are deeply moving, exploring themes of loyalty, disillusionment, and the fine line between reality and imagination.

At times the structure can feel long, but Cervantes uses this format deliberately to showcase a broad cross-section of Spanish society in the 17th century. Each episode becomes a mirror reflecting human weakness, folly, or resilience.

Characters
Don Quixote himself could easily have been written as a parody, a deluded old man chasing impossible dreams, instead Cervantes treats him with remarkable care and empathy. As he is absurd and noble, foolish and courageous, embodying the human desire to live by ideals even when the world mocks them.

Sancho Panza, by contrast, is practical, earthy, and full of proverbs. He provides comic relief but also profound wisdom, and his loyalty to Quixote grounds the novel in genuine friendship.

Together, they form one of literature’s greatest duos, dreamer and realist, idealist and pragmatist.

Themes

At its core, Don Quixote is a novel about imagination, identity, and the tension between reality and illusion.

It questions whether living with lofty ideals is foolish or it is, in fact, the only way to make life meaningful. The novel in addition examines class, power, and society, with Cervantes’s satirizing everything from outdated chivalric romances to the hypocrisies of the church and aristocracy.

Despite being written over 400 years ago, the novel feels surprisingly modern, as Don Quixote’s struggles to reconcile his inner vision with the harshness of the world remain deeply relatable today.

Who Should Read This Book?

Don Quixote is a must-read for anyone exploring the classics of world literature. As it also appeals to readers who enjoy stories about the human spirit, idealism versus reality, and male friendship.

While, also perfect for those interested in how fiction itself has evolved, since many techniques we now take for granted in novels were pioneered here.

Conclusion

Don Quixote endures not just because it was the first of its kind, but because it is filled with humour, compassion, and timeless insights into human nature.

Cervantes created characters who are simultaneously flawed and heroic, ridiculous yet inspiring. Whether approached as a classic to tick off the reading list, or as a moving meditation on dreams, friendship, and humanity,

Don Quixote more than earns its place as one of the greatest books ever written.

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