At least once in his life, William Faulkner said that he read Don Quixote once a year like some folks read the Bible.   It seems an interesting coincidence that the day I stumble across a Faulkner quote used as the Thought For the Day, there is a connection to Don Quixote.   The first printing of Cervantes’ Don Quixote was licensed on September 26, 1604.

We have previously posted on this grand tale.   For further information about Cervantes and the basic gist of things you might want to look there.  As you may recall, Alonso Quixano is usually a rational man but he had not been sleeping well and was reading far too much about chivalry to the point he came to believe these things absolutely true.  Given this he sets out to become a knight errant in search of grand adventures.

He suits up in old armor and gives himself the name Don Quixote.  In a fit renaming his reality, he renames his tired horse Rocinante and decides that a neighboring farm girl, Aldonza Lorenzo, is his lady love.  Of course, her name will not do either so she becomes redubbed Dulcinea del Toboso.  Sadly, he neglects to tell her of this and that causes some confusion.

Off he goes on his first adventure landing himself in an inn that he redesignates a castle  and the ladies of the night working there are elevated to the position of ladies (doncellas).   The innkeeper having been elevated himself to lord of the castle is asked to dub Alonso as a knight.  As luck might have it, during his night vigil watching his armor that he has placed his armor in a horse trough having been dubbed God knows what.. he must fight off scandalous muleteers who would like to give water to their mules.  Having had enough of all of this the innkeeper pretends to dub Don Quixote and sends him off to begin his quest for nobility.

It may seem that I’m laughing a little too loudly at this confused man.  If so, it is only because I too have wandered off in the quest of nobility more than once.  Mostly, I have found that maybe there were other ways of taking things and that perhaps I didn’t quite get things right either.  Hey… it happens….

You may read Don Quixote, Part 1, Chapter 3 here:

http://www.bartleby.com/14/103.html

Or, alternatively, you may listen to this material in an audiobook format here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YS02kRtX9mc&t=59s