Mounting his skinny steed, the protagonist of Don Quixote charges an army of giants. In his eyes, it is his duty to vanquish these behemoths in the name of his beloved lady, Dulcinea. However, this act of valor is ill conceived. As his squire Sancho Panza explains to him time and again, these aren’t giants; they are merely windmills. Don Quixote is undeterred, but his piercing lance is soon caught in their sails. Never discouraged, the knight stands proudly, and becomes even more convinced of his mission.
Menunggangi kuda kurusnya, pahlawan kita Don Quixote menyerang sekawanan raksasa. Baginya, sudah menjadi tugasnya untuk menaklukkan kumpulan jahanam ini demi wanita yang dicintainya, Dulcinea. Namun, tindakan beraninya ini salah sasaran. Pelayannya, Sancho Panza, berulang kali menjelaskan, itu bukan raksasa; mereka hanya kincir angin. Don Quixote tidak peduli, tetapi ujung tombaknya tak lama kemudian tersangkut di layarnya. Tak gentar, sang kesatria berdiri gagah, dan semakin yakin akan misinya.
This sequence encapsulates much of what is loved about Don Quixote, the epic, illogical, and soulful tale of Alonso Quijano, who becomes the clumsy but valiant Don Quixote of la Mancha, known as the Knight of the Sorrowful Countenance. Originally published in two volumes, the narrative follows Don Quixote as he travels through central and northern Spain fighting the forces of evil.
Adegan ini merangkum semua yang begitu disukai dari Don Quixote, kisah epik, tak masuk akal, dan menggetarkan jiwa tentang Alonso Quijano, yang menjadi si ceroboh tapi gagah berani Don Quixote dari la Mancha, dikenal juga sebagai Kesatria Berwajah Pilu. Aslinya diterbitkan dalam dua volume, kisahnya mengikuti Don Quixote saat dia berkelana melalui Spanyol tengah dan utara melawan kekuatan jahat.
Despite Don Quixote’s lofty imagination, his creator, Miguel de Cervantes, could never have imagined his book would become the best-selling novel of all time. Barring 5 years as a soldier, and 5 more enslaved by pirates, Cervantes spent most of his life as a struggling poet and playwright. It wasn’t until his late 50’s that he published his greatest creation: an epic satire of chivalry novels.
Walau Don Quixote berimajinasi tinggi, penciptanya, Miguel de Cervantes, tak pernah membayangkan bahwa bukunya akan menjadi novel terlaris sepanjang masa. Selain 5 tahun pengabdiannya sebagai prajurit, dan 5 tahun diperbudak perompak, Cervantes menghabiskan sebagian besar hidupnya sebagai penyair dan dramawan melarat. Baru di penghujung usia 50-an dia menerbitkan karyanya yang terbesar: novel kesatria satire yang epik.
At this time, medieval books chronicling the adventures of knights and their moral code dominated European culture. While Cervantes was a fan, he was weary of these repetitive tomes, which focused more on listing heroic feats than character development. To challenge them, he wrote Don Quixote, the story of a hidalgo, or idle nobleman, who spends his days and nights reading chivalry novels. Driven mad by these stories, he fashions himself a champion for the downtrodden. Everyone in his village tries to convince him to give up his lunacy, going so far as to burn some of the lurid books in his personal library. But Don Quixote is unstoppable. He dresses up in old shining armor, mounts his skinny horse, and leaves his village in search of glory.
Pada saat itu, buku abad pertengahan tentang hikayat petualangan para kesatria dan kode moralnya mendominasi budaya Eropa. Walaupun Cervantes menggemarinya, dia jenuh dengan buku-buku repetitif, yang hanya berfokus pada sifat heroik daripada pengembangan karakter. Sebagai bentuk penentangan, dia menulis Don Quixote, kisah seorang <i>hidalgo</i>, atau bangsawan pemalas, yang menghabiskan siang malam membaca novel kesatria. Dirasuki oleh kisah-kisah tersebut, dia melabeli dirinya sebagai jawara kaum tertindas. Semua orang di desanya berusaha menyadarkannya, sampai-sampai membakar beberapa buku seram di perpustakaan pribadinya. Namun Don Quixote tak bisa dihentikan. Dia mengenakan baju zirah tuanya yang mengilap, menunggangi kuda kurusnya, dan meninggalkan desanya demi mencari kejayaan.
Cervantes’ novel unfolds as a collection of episodes detailing the mishaps of the valiant knight. Yet unlike the chivalry books and perhaps all other prior fiction, Cervantes’ story deeply investigates the protagonist’s inner life. Don Quixote matures as the narrative develops, undergoing a noticeable transformation. This literary revelation has led many scholars to call Don Quixote the first modern novel. And this character development doesn’t happen in isolation. Early on, Don Quixote is joined by a villager-turned-squire named Sancho Panza. Sancho and Don Quixote are a study in opposites: with one as the grounded realist to the other’s idealism. Their lively, evolving friendship is often credited as the original hero and sidekick duo, inspiring centuries of fictional partnerships.
Novel Cervantes terdiri dari sekumpulan episode yang mengisahkan kemalangan si kesatria gagah berani. Namun tidak seperti buku kesatria dan kisah-kisah fiksi terdahulu, cerita Cervantes menyelami secara dalam kehidupan batin sang protagonis. Don Quixote berkembang seiring jalannya cerita, dan mengalami perubahan yang kentara. Ilham kesusastraan ini menyebabkan banyak akademisi menjuluki Don Quixote sebagai novel modern pertama. Perkembangan karakter ini tidak terjadi dalam kesendirian. Sejak awal, Don Quixote didampingi oleh penduduk desa yang menjadi pelayannya bernama Sancho Panza. Sancho dan Don Quixote adalah sebuah studi tentang antitesis: yang satunya realis terhadap idealisme yang lain. Persahabatan mereka yang dinamis dan terus berkembang sering disebut sebagai duo pahlawan dan pendamping tulen, yang menginspirasi kemitraan fiksi selama berabad-abad.
Don Quixote was a huge success. Numerous editions were published across Europe in the seventeenth century. Even in the Americas, where the Church banned all novels for being sinful distractions, audiences were known to enjoy pirated editions. The book was so well received that readers clamored for more. After a rival author attempted to cash in on a fake follow-up, Cervantes released the official sequel in response. Now published alongside the first volume as a completed text, this second volume picks up where the original left off, only now Don Quixote and Sancho have become folk heroes. Just as in real-life, Cervantes included his novel’s success in the world of his characters. This unconventional meta-awareness created philosophical complexity, as the knight and his squire ponder the meaning of their story.
Don Quixote sangat sukses. Banyak edisi diterbitkan di Eropa di abad ke tujuh belas. Bahkan di Amerika, di mana Gereja melarang semua novel karena dianggap dosa yang mengganggu, para penggemar tetap menikmati edisi bajakannya. Buku itu begitu diterima luas hingga pembaca menuntut lebih. Setelah penulis saingan mencoba meraih keuntungan dari sekuel palsu, Cervantes merilis sekuel resminya sebagai balasan. Kini setelah diterbitkan dengan volume pertama sebagai teks yang utuh, volume kedua melanjutkan cerita buku pertama, hanya saja sekarang Don Quixote dan Sancho telah menjadi pahlawan rakyat. Seperti di kehidupan nyata, Cervantes menyertakan kesuksesan novelnya di dunia para karakternya. Atensi meta yang tak lazim ini menimbulkan kompleksitas filosofis, saat sang kesatria dan pelayannya merenungkan kisah mereka.
Unfortunately, Cervantes had sold the book’s publishing rights for very little. He died rich in fame alone. But his treatise on the power of creativity and individualism has inspired art, literature, popular culture, and even political revolution. Don Quixote argues that our imagination greatly informs our actions, making us capable of change, and, indeed, making us human.
Sayangnya, Cervantes menjual hak cipta bukunya dengan sangat murah. Dia meninggal hanya dalam ketenaran. Namun risalahnya tentang kekuatan kreativitas dan individualisme telah menginspirasi seni, sastra, budaya populer, bahkan revolusi politik. Don Quixote membuktikan imajinasi kita sangat menggambarkan tindakan kita, membuat kita bisa berubah, dan, bahwasanya, membuat kita lebih manusiawi.