About the author
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (1547-1616) was a Spanish novelist, playwright, and poet during the Renaissance. He was born on September 29, 1547. He was born on April 22, 1616 and died in Madrid on April 22, 1616. He is known as the greatest writer in the Spanish literary world. Critics call his novel "Don Quixote" the first modern novel in the history of literature and one of the treasures of world literature. His life experience is a typical Spanish adventure career. He was born in Spain in the 16th century, an exciting time. The Moors who believed in Islam were expelled back to North Africa, and Spain was unified both geographically and religiously. With funding from the Spanish royal court, Columbus discovered the New World. Ocean adventure promoted the rise of colonialism, and the plunder of the Americas stimulated the development of domestic industry and commerce. Capitalist production relations began to sprout in some cities. Spain had more than a thousand ships sailing around the world, becoming a powerful feudal empire that dominated Europe. However, Spain's prosperity was extremely short-lived. The autocratic monarch Philip II launched many failed wars, which not only depleted the assets of the national treasury, but also caused Spain to lose its status as a maritime hegemon.
At home, the feudal nobles and monks still maintained their privileges, and there were many harsh taxes and miscellaneous taxes, which made the uneven distribution of rich and poor more prominent and class conflicts increasingly intensified. Although the autocratic royal power colluded with the Catholic Church and used the Inquisition to suppress all progressive ideas and people's resistance, humanist ideas were still spread and a number of outstanding writers emerged.
Cervantes was born in a poor family, his father was a traveling surgeon. Because life was difficult, Cervantes and his seven brothers and sisters traveled around with their father until 1566, when they settled in Madrid. His troubled childhood meant that he only received a middle school education.
At the age of 23, he went to Italy and became a retainer of Cardinal Julio. A year later, his unwillingness to settle for the status quo drove him to join the Spanish army in Italy, preparing to fight against the invading Turks. He participated in the famous Battle of Lepando. In this battle, twenty-four warships of the Spanish-led combined fleet severely damaged the Turkish fleet. Cervantes, who stayed at his post despite being ill, suffered three wounds in the fierce battle and even had his left hand amputated. He was known as the "One-Armed Man of Lepando" ever since. After four years of a life-and-death military career, he returned home with letters of recommendation from Juan, the commander of the Christian coalition, and the governor of Sicily to the King of Spain.
Unfortunately, he encountered a Turkish pirate ship on the way and was kidnapped to Algeria. Because of these two letters of recommendation, the Turks regarded him as an important figure and prepared to extort a huge ransom. As a slave, Cervantes organized escape after escape, but all ended in failure. However, his courage and courage gained the trust and love of the captives. Even the Turks who enslaved them admired his indomitable spirit. Impressed. Relatives and friends finally raised funds to redeem him in 1581, when he was 34 years old.
Cervantes, who returned home as a hero, did not get the attention of King Philip and was busy with life all day long. While writing books, he worked as a clerk in the government. He worked as a quartermaster and a tax collector, and was exposed to rural life. He was also sent to America on official business. He was arrested and imprisoned more than once because he could not pay the taxes he should collect, and sometimes he suffered unreasonable disasters. Even his immortal "Don Quixote" was partly conceived and written in prison. He died in poverty and illness in 1616.
Cervantes loved literature very much. When life was difficult, selling literature was the only way for him to support his wife, children and children. He used literary language to advertise one businessman after another and one product after another. He wrote so many lyric poems and satirical poems that even he could not remember, but most of them did not arouse much response. He has also been invited by theaters to write thirty or forty scripts, but they did not achieve the expected success after they were released.
In 1585, he published the pastoral novel "Galatea" (Part 1). Although the author was very satisfied with it, it did not attract the attention of the literary world. Cervantes began writing "Don Quixote" when he was in his 50s. "Don Quixote" is a precious cultural heritage. In the book, Don Quixote's experiences in the life of a knight reveal the darkness of society, criticize the tyranny of the church, and reveal the plight of the people. The Don Quixote and his servant Sancho he created are two typical images in Western classical literature.
The first volume of "Don Quixote" was published in 1605, and it immediately became popular all over the country. It was reprinted six times within a year. Although the novel failed to lift Cervantes out of poverty, it won him immortal honor. The satire and ruthless ridicule of current ills in the book were dissatisfied and hated by the feudal nobles and the Catholic Church. In 1614, someone published a forged sequel. From the standpoint of the church and the nobility, he wantonly distorted and vilified the image of the protagonist of the novel, and viciously slandered and attacked Cervantes himself. In order to resist the bad influence of counterfeit books, Cervantes rushed to write the second part of "Don Quixote", which was released in 1615. In addition, he also published "Stories of Punishing Evil and Promoting Good" in 1613, which included thirteen excellent short stories, including twists and turns of love stories, descriptions of social customs, and some philosophical discussions. The book describes the evils of feudal society and the poverty of the Spanish lower class, affirms human nature and individual freedom, and makes an angry protest against social injustice. These realistic short stories full of humanistic ideas occupy an important position in Spanish Renaissance literature.
Among the works he created, "Don Quixote" is the most famous and influential. It is the most outstanding work in Spain and Europe during the Renaissance.
Summary of content
"Don Quixote" (pronounced tánɡ jí hē dé) was originally called "The Gentleman Don Quixote de la Man", author It is stated in the preface: "This book is nothing but a satire on chivalric literature[3]" and its purpose is to "completely destroy the territory of chivalric literature." But in fact, the social significance of this work exceeds the author's subjective intention. In this work of nearly one million words, the entire society of Spain in the 16th and early 17th centuries appears, including dukes, duchesses, feudal landowners, monks, priests, soldiers, craftsmen, shepherds, farmers, people of different classes. About 700 characters, both men and women, sharply and comprehensively criticized the politics, law, morality, religion, literature, art and private property system of feudal Spain during this period, making it an "epic of the dying knight class." , a great masterpiece of realist literature.
The protagonist Don Quixote is an immortal typical character. It is written in the book that this thin, sad-faced little nobleman was fascinated by reading chivalry literature. He actually rode a thin old horse Roji Nanti, found a rusty spear, and wore it. Wearing a helmet with a hole in it, he went to be a ranger, to eliminate the strong and help the weak, and to fight injustice for the people. He hired Sancho Panza, a nearby farmer, as his attendant and followed him on a donkey. Don Quixote also imagined a milkmaid from a neighboring village as his benefactor and named her Dacinnia of Toboso. So he went out to look for adventure as an unofficial knight. He completely lost his sense of reality and sank into boundless fantasies. He treated everything and dealt with everything ideally. As a result, he got into many troubles and suffered a lot along the way. Unfortunately, I made a lot of jokes, but I still persisted in my obsession. He regarded the country inn as a castle, the boss as the owner of the village, and insisted that the boss make him a knight. The shopkeeper was happy to tease him. He used the horse-feeding account book as a Bible, hit him twice on the shoulder with the back of Don Quixote's knife, and then asked a cobbler's daughter to hang the knife for him. Don Quixote, a knighted knight, walked out of the inn and regarded the rotating windmill as a giant. He rushed up and had a fight with it, leaving him covered with bruises. He treated the sheep as an army and rushed to fight, but was beaten with stones by the shepherd boy, his face was swollen and his teeth were knocked out. Sancho Panza corrected him again and again, but he still didn't believe it. He also treated a barber as a warrior, gave him a head-on attack, and used the copper basin he won in victory as the famous Mambrino helmet.
He mistook a group of criminals as persecuted gentlemen, killed the guards and rescued them, and asked them to go to the village to find their female benefactor to thank them, but they were beaten seriously. His friends tried many ways to get him home. In the second volume, he continued to take risks, suffered a lot, and became ill. One of his friends, Samson Carrasco, pretending to be a warrior, struck him down and fined him for a year as a knight. Don Quixote did not repent until his death.
The character of this character has duality: on the one hand, he is insane, crazy and ridiculous, but it is also he who represents high moral principles, fearless spirit, heroic behavior, and commitment to justice. firm belief and loyalty to love, etc. The crazier he is, the greater the disaster he causes. Almost everyone who encounters him will suffer a disaster, but his excellent moral character is also more distinct. Sancho Panza originally followed Don Quixote in order to become the "Governor", but after seeing no hope, he still refused to leave. This is why. Don Quixote is ridiculous, but he is always the embodiment of idealism. He had infinite sympathy for the oppressed and the weak. From many chapters, we can find him praising freedom in passionate language and opposing the oppression and enslavement of others. It was through this example that Cervantes sadly announced the end of fideism. This exactly reflects the social mentality during the Renaissance when old beliefs were disintegrated and new beliefs (bourgeois) had not yet been proposed.
Don Quixote’s attendant Sancho Panza is also a typical image. He was created as a counterpoint to Mr. Don Quixote. His image highlights the theme of the decline of fideism from a negative perspective. Don Quixote is full of fantasy, Sancho Panza is practical; Don Quixote is an ascetic ascetic, and Sancho Panza is an Epicurean hedonist; Don Quixote There is a wealth of knowledge, but Sancho Panza is illiterate; Don Quixote is thin and tall, and Sancho Panza is fat and short. He, Sancho Panza, is a farmer who has the shortcomings of a small private owner. However, when he is really put in the position of governing the island (actually a village), he can act impartially, without favoritism, and without favoritism. Corruption and bribery. Later, he resigned because he couldn't stand the teasing of the nobles. He said: "I came naked and went naked. I neither suffered a loss nor took advantage. This is what makes me different from other governors." When Mr. Zhu Guangqian evaluated the two characters of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza Said: "One is Don Quixote himself, who is full of illusory ideals and fights windmills with a spear to show his majesty as a knight. The other is Sancho Pan who wants to enjoy the taste of life from fine wine, fine food and high official salary. Sand. One of them is a ridiculous idealist, and the other is a ridiculous pragmatist. But Don Quixote belongs to the past, but Sancho Panza belongs to the future. With the increasing power of the bourgeoisie, the ideal man is not. Don Quixote, but Sancho Panza[4]"
In terms of creative methods, Cervantes is good at using typical language and actions to portray the protagonist's character, and repeatedly uses exaggeration. The technique emphasizes the personality of the characters and boldly alternates some opposing artistic expressions. It has both thought-provoking tragic elements and comic and exaggerated comedy elements. Although the structure of the novel is not rigorous enough and some details are inconsistent, it is a big step forward than previous European novels in terms of the depth and breadth of reality reflected and the typicality of the characters created, marking the European novel Creation has entered a new stage. Many famous European writers have high praise for Cervantes, such as:
Goethe: "I feel that Cervantes's novels are really a treasure trove of pleasant and instructive things." ."
Byron: ""Don Quixote" is a sad story. The more it makes people laugh, the more sad it is. The hero is the one who upholds justice and subdues. Bad people are his only purpose. It is those virtues that drive him crazy."
Heine: "Cervantes, Shakespeare, and Goethe became a triumvirate in narrative, drama, and lyricism. Each of the three categories of creation has reached its pinnacle.
”
Hugo: “Cervantes’ creation is so ingenious and seamless; the protagonist and Sancho, riding their own animals, are integrated, ridiculous and tragic, and extremely touching...”
Belinsky: “In all the famous literary works in Europe, seriousness and comedy, tragedy and comedy, triviality and vulgarity in life and greatness and beauty are so seamlessly blended... Such an example is only Seen in Cervantes' "Don Quixote". "
Artistic Achievements
"Don Quixote" may seem absurd at first glance, but in fact it implies the author's profound understanding of Spanish reality. The author uses ironic and exaggerated artistic techniques to portray Realism and fantasy are combined to express his views on the times. Realistic description dominates in "Don Quixote". In terms of environmental description, it is completely different from the decorative scenery description of the old chivalric novels. The grand scale of the play takes the countryside as the main stage, with mostly civilians appearing, with a total of nearly 700 people. In this broad social background, the author draws a series of social pictures with unique characteristics and interconnectedness. It is also a combination of fiction and reality, with praise in the negation, meaning in the absurd, and strong artistic quality.
The famous Nigerian writer Oakes said emotionally: "If there is any must-read work in life, then it is." It's "Don Quixote." ”
When I first came into contact with this novel, I was still young and thought it was very funny. I am used to reading traditional Chinese novels that are known for their plots, except for a man in full armor riding a high horse. There is nothing to talk about except the cartoon-like image of a tall skinny horse and a chubby horse who is as short as his donkey. When I read this novel again, I was already in college and learned about foreign literature. I have learned about the development of chivalry literature, and found that the novel "Don Quixote" is an anomaly from the traditional chivalry literature, because I think traditional chivalry literature is more tragic and elegant; while the alternative chivalry literature is absurd, as if As far as literary styles are concerned, there is not much difference between Zhou Xingchi's nonsensical movies (because I think any literary form has some flaws, but this is just a matter of literature). It is concluded after comparing the history of development, but it can occupy a period in cultural history and influence that generation, which has its own advantages) If Tang Dynasty's novel is said to be to criticize chivalry novels, etc. Well, it was placed in the cultural atmosphere of the Renaissance at that time, and perhaps it was just in line with the development of current events. When Cervantes himself described writing "Don Quixote", he originally planned to write it. Several short stories were written later. He wrote down his own life experiences and life ideals. The content of his thoughts became more and more rich, and the characters became more and more realistic, until he depicted the disasters that Spanish society had brought to the people. , has become an encyclopedia for us to understand and study the social politics, economy, culture and customs of Spain at that time.
From this perspective, the book shows a broad social picture and overflows with rich ideas. It is far from a simple motive to eliminate chivalry novels.
A classic work will always give people different feelings and new enlightenment for people of different eras and different life experiences. People with different ideal goals in life will have different understandings. Not only will such works be translated into multiple languages ??at the time, but also new translations will continue to appear as the times evolve. This is the work. When I realized this, I suddenly realized: Isn't "Don Quixote" just such a work? Since ancient times, ideals and reality have been an irreconcilable contradiction. "Don Quixote" uses literary form to reveal this contradiction in a profound, vivid and vivid way, so that people of every generation can feel that it is true and recognize it. Don Quixote is a poor country squire who has read chivalry literature. Confused, he not only longed for the life of a knight in his heart, but also put this desire into action. He left home several times to hoe the strong and help the weak, and to do a vigorous career to make his name in history.
The novel creates two famous typical characters in world literature, the ridiculous, respectable, and pathetic Quixote and the pragmatic, timid, yet smart and fair peasant Sancho. It organically combines realism and romanticism, and is both simple and honest. It contains unpretentious real life, as well as comically exaggerated fictional plots. It has reached a new level in reflecting the depth and breadth of reality and in shaping the typicality of characters.
This book can be called a classic, but it is best not to read it with such a serious eye, because this book was a street reading for a long time after it was published, and its value was also considered It's just "funny" (Cervantes was uneducated, but he was a genius. He was the funniest writer in Spain - as people said at the time). No matter what reviews it has received, this book is indeed funny. I write this I couldn't help but laugh when I read this article. The language of this book is light and lively. It seems that every sentence is picked up and very appropriate, but it is not so precise. Even the connection of the plot is very casual, so that there are many loopholes, but this does not affect the appeal of the whole book. , this book has a kind of vitality that comes from the folk. If you get together and joke with a bunch of simple country people, you can feel this warm, natural vitality.