Don Giovanni

At the end of Act Two, we see Don Juan’s desire for female beauty as he flatters Leonor, thinking she is Estela, saying she would recognise her own beauty if she looked in the mirror; Vos sois discreta, y sabéis que adoraros es fuerza si al cristal queréis miraros The reference…

Writing The Idiot coincided with Dostoyevsky’s financial hardships which forced him and his wife Anna to move temporarily to Europe. Being in Europe and experiencing the constant lack of means, Dostoyevsky continuously maintained correspondence with his brother Mikhail, his close friend Maikov and his niece Sonia to whom he often confessed about his futile attempts to write a great novel and about the disappointing mediocrity he was receiving instead (Frank 245). In fact, Dostoyevsky dedicated…

control. Hamlet and Don Quixote are two perfect examples of a troubled individual in a troubled world. At what point does a man's passion, diligence, and determination cross into the realm of madness? The authors of both Hamlet and Don Quixote portray protagonists that are potentially mad. Hamlet and Don Quixote are two characters that both potentially…

whole. It can be difficult to distinguish between conventional and satirical novels if the absurdities the author intends to critique are presented in a subtle tone. An example of a novel that is subjectively a mockery of contemporary American life is Don Delillo’s White Noise. While the main characters of the book made be interpreted as arrogant and unintelligent by some readers, a non-literal look at the work can bring up questions regarding humanity. Often works utilizing this type of humor…

that feeling. That’s why Don Quixote’s humor was and still is so appealing to the masses despite diverging from the traditional literary experience; because its humor and self-awareness connect with readers on a level that allows them to understand what…

Makeover. Miguel de Cervantes’s novel Don Quixote is the story of an extreme makeover gone wrong. Though Alonso Quixano tries to recreate himself as a hero and make his dreams come true, in reality he is only a pseudo hero; though he himself looks beyond social class and position to see the worth and potential of others, others view him as a fool; though he perseveres in his attempts…

Man of La Mancha and Don Quixote The film Man of La Mancha is a movie that is based on both Don Quixote and its canonical collection, making it a more loosely canon piece within the canon. The film, which was released in 1972, is originally based off the 1964 musical of the same name. The musical itself is also based upon a 1959 teleplay, making the movie actually a canon piece based on a canon piece based on another canon piece based upon the original material. If that isn’t crazy, I don’t know…

portrays a naive man whose main objective is for travel to attempt reconnection with his love, Cunégonde. In this journey, he encounters many social issues and hardships exposing the inherent problems with the world. Then, Miguel de Cervantes’s, Don Quixote, depicts an old hidalgo who reads and praises chivalric romances. Comically, he is inspired by these books of gallant knights that motivate him to become one himself. The contemporary film Mean Girls effectively employs satirical techniques…

How should we live, in order to "live a good life"? For someone such as Albert Camus, author of The Myth of Sisyphus, living a good life would involve living freely. Camus believed strongly that we as humans should not hope for anything. Nothing is guaranteed to us; we could literally drop dead at any moment. Camus believed everyone should live in the moment. His essays suggest we should accept whatever our actions result in, no matter how bad it is; as long as we find happiness in the present,…

to remind us that what is real, is in fact real. In Miguel de Cervantes’ novel ‘El ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha’, the main protagonist Don Quijote has trouble separating what is real to what is only in his imagination. Throughout the novel, Don Quijote believes he is a knight and demands he bring justice back to the land. Through the use of old literature, characters and the way Don Quijote perceives his surroundings, Cervantes’ explores how the connection between imagination and…