Don Quixote

The discussion between the priest from Toledo and Quixote provides a chance for the protagonist to demonstrate his absurdity and his intelligence in equal measure. The two men debate literature and ethics, particularly the blurred lines between fiction and reality. To Quixote, the historical details included in the tales of chivalry means they must have been based on some real events. In doing so, the narrator hints that Quixote’s own story must be based on real events. The fictional story of Don Quixote includes passages and details that would make the actual Quixote convinced the story was real. As a result, the protagonist of a work of fiction argues for his own existence. He becomes the arbiter of his own reality, going beyond his argument with the priest to justify his own existence to the audience.

Pero Perez and Master Nicholas play strange roles in the novel. While they seem to show genuine affection for Quixote, they spend most of the novel trying to trick him into returning home and abandoning his ambitions. Perez is wrought with similar tensions. When he discusses the tales of chivalry, for example, he criticizes them for being silly and distracting. At the same time, the way he treats the books in Quixote’s house and at the inn suggests he is genuinely interested in the works of literature but denies himself the pleasure of the books because he has a reputation to uphold. As such, there is a degree of envy in his treatment of Quixote. He watches the absurd man enjoying the literature Perez denies to himself and then watches Quixote acting out these same adventures Perez could never hope to experience. Perez’s plan to trap Quixote in a cage is a mix of concern for a friend, an awareness of their reputation in the community, and a spiteful act motivated by envy. When Quixote fights the goatherd, for example, Perez is in the crowd, cheering and applauding. He treats Quixote like an entertainment but takes vicarious pleasure in the goatherd hurting his friend as a way to punish Quixote for acting on the pleasures that Perez denies to himself.

During Part 1 of Don Quixote, the protagonist has discovered a useful trick to maintain his delusion. Anything that goes wrong, he realizes, can be blamed on malicious magicians who want to place enchantments on him to trick him. At the end of Part 1, the other characters realize the nature of Quixote’s relationship with the magicians. They weaponize his delusion and use the magicians to force him to follow their orders. The characters—ostensibly acting in Quixote’s best interests—convince him they are trying to save him from an enchantment. Quixote has two options: to listen to them or to deny the existence of the enchantments. The latter option would force him into a reckoning with reality. His arrogance and his ego mean he does not want to admit the magicians are not real, as to do so would be to admit to his own mistakes. Therefore, he embraces their explanation. The tricks Quixote uses to further his delusions are eventually turned upon him.