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.
騎上他皮包骨的駿馬, 主人翁唐吉訶德 衝向巨人軍團。 在他眼中,他的責任是 要擊敗這些巨獸, 且要以他的摯愛杜爾西內婭之名。 然而,這個英勇之舉的構想很拙劣。 他的侍從桑丘潘薩向他再三解釋, 沒有巨人存在; 那些只是風車。 唐吉訶德不受影響, 但他的長矛 很快就被風車翼給打斷。 這位騎士從來不氣餒, 驕傲地站著, 反而更相信這是他的使命。 這個橋段包含了許多
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.
《唐吉訶德》最為人所愛的特點, 這本史詩故事, 儘管不合邏輯但很有感情, 講述阿隆索·吉哈諾的故事, 他變成了笨拙卻英勇的 「曼查的唐吉訶德」, 為人所知的「愁容騎士」。 最早出版時有兩冊, 故事開始於唐吉訶德 穿越西班牙中部和北部的旅行, 一路上對抗邪惡勢力。
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.
儘管唐吉訶德的想像力很高, 他的創作者,米格爾德塞凡提斯, 從來沒有想像過他的書 會成為史上最熱賣的小說。 塞凡提斯當了五年的士兵, 又被海盜給奴役了五年, 他的人生大部分時間 都是個掙扎的詩人和劇作家。 一直到快要六十歲時, 他最偉大的創作才出版: 一部諷刺騎士道小說的史詩作品。
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.
此時,記載了騎士的冒險 及其道德規範的中世紀書籍 主宰了歐洲的文化。 塞凡提斯雖然是這類書迷, 但他也厭倦了這些不斷重覆的書, 重點都比較是在列出英勇功績, 而不是角色發展。 為了挑戰這些書, 他寫了《唐吉訶德》, 故事主角是個 無所事事的西班牙貴族, 他不分晝夜 都在閱讀騎士道小說。 這些故事讓他發了瘋, 他把自己塑造成 為受壓迫者而戰的鬥士。 他村中的每個人 都試著說服他放棄他的愚蠢行為, 甚至做到燒毀了他個人圖書館中 一些駭人聽聞的書籍。 但沒人能阻擋唐吉訶德。 他穿戴上古老的閃亮盔甲, 騎上他那匹皮包骨的馬, 離開了他的村落,去追尋榮耀。
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.
塞凡提斯的小說是以 一系列事件的方式呈現, 詳細刻劃了這位英勇騎士的不幸。 但,和騎士道書籍不同, 可能也和所有其他先前的小說不同, 塞凡提斯的故事深入探究了 主人翁的內在生活。 隨著故事發展, 唐吉訶德也漸漸成熟, 經歷了重要的轉變。 這種文學揭示性, 導致許多學者把《唐吉訶德》稱為 第一部現代小說。 這種角色發展 並不是單獨發生的。 早先,有位由村民轉任的侍從 加入唐吉訶德, 名叫桑丘潘薩。 研究認為,桑丘潘薩 和唐吉訶德是完全相反的: 一個是踏實的現實主義者, 一個是理想主義者。 他們生動的友誼不斷演變, 這段關係被譽為 最早的英雄和搭擋二人組, 是後來數百年小說中 夥伴關係的靈感來源。
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.
《唐吉訶德》是很大的成功。 在十七世紀時, 歐洲各地出版了許多版本。 甚至風行到美洲, 在美洲,教堂禁止所有小說, 因為小說是罪惡的分心之物, 讀者看的都是盜版。 這本書很受好評, 讀者吵著想要看更多。 在一位競爭對手作家試圖 用假的續集來賺錢之後, 塞凡提斯推出了官方續集做為回應。 現在續集和第一冊一起發行, 成為完整的文本, 第二冊接續第一冊沒講完的故事, 差別只在於,現在唐吉訶德和桑丘 已經成為了民間英雄。 和真實人生一樣, 塞凡提斯把他小說的成功 放入了他的角色的世界裡。 這種不因循守舊的元認知 隨著騎士與他的侍從思考著 他們的故事的意義, 創造出了哲學式的複雜性。
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.
不幸的是,塞凡提斯 低價賣出這本書的版權。 他過世時,只有名聲上的富足。 但他用創造力所寫出的論述 以及個人主義, 啟發了藝術、文學、 流行文化, 甚至政治上的改革。 唐吉訶德主張, 我們的行為大部分是 基於我們的想像力, 想像力讓我們能夠改變, 也確實,讓我們成為人類。