Don Quixote - Part I & II

The first edition of one of the most significant and fascinating works of world literature!Miguel de Cervantes published his novel about the nobleman Don Quixote de la Mancha in two parts in the year 1605 and 1615. The adventure stories concerning the foolish country squire Don Quixote, with its sharp-witted humor and numerous contemporary themes, had its finger on the pulse of the early 17th century. The parody of a chivalric romance is considered today to be the most important primary work of Spanish literary history. This can be spectacularly experienced and discovered in the original editions from 1605 (Part I) and 1615 (Part II) from the Spanish National Library in Madrid!

A Life like an Adventure Story

Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616), the author of this fantastic, two-part novel, was a contemporary of William Shakespeare and a primary representative of this epoch of world literature. Cervantes originated from an impoverished Spanish noble family. After studying theology, he served as a valet in Rome and finally as a soldier in the Spanish army. While in service and on his return from the Battle of Lepanto in 1575, he was attacked by pirates. He was hauled off to Algeria as a slave and ransomed after 5 years. Thereafter followed his first attempt as an author. The success he hoped for eluded him until the publication of his famous magnum opus. Although he became famous with his novel Don Quixote, he died in poverty in Madrid. The tumultuous life of the author is itself reminiscent of the tragedy of the novel’s hero.

Lunatic Adventures across Spain

The novel El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quixote de la Mancha – translated as The history of the valorous and witty Knight-Errant Don-Quixote of the Mancha – is named after its protagonist, a foolish country squire. He seeks to imitate the adventurous stories of his beloved chivalric romances in reality. In this way, Don Quixote experiences countless of adventures that are tragic for him and entertainingly comical for the reader. “The knight with the tragic figure**, as he himself described Don Quixote, is accompanied by his squire Pancho Panza and his horse – a rickety nag – named Rocinante, and dreams continuously over his beloved Dulcinea.

A Classic of World Literature in the Original Edition

The novel plays with the themes of delusion and insanity in a playful manner. Don Quixote is depicted to the reader as a confused man who fights windmills or against a herd of goats or filled wineskins. It plays with the levels of reality in a manner that is tragic for Don Quixote and entertainingly funny for the reader. Cervantes’ novel enjoyed an incredible reception and, inter alia, coined numerous sayings within and without Spain. Don Quixote is considered today to be one of the most important classics of world literature and is “probably the most famous work of Spanish literary history”!