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Part 1, Prologue
Explanation and Analysis:
Don Quixote is widely regarded as a major work of satirical literature. Like other satirical works, it uses humor and irony as tools for social critique, and the primary target of its satire is the tradition of chivalric literature that was popular in Cervantes’s day. In the Prologue, Cervantes comments upon the techniques and goals of his satire:
You should also try to ensure that the melancholy man is moved to laughter when he reads your history, the jovial man laughs even more, the simpleton is not discouraged, the judicious marvel at its inventiveness, the serious-minded do not scorn it nor the wise fail to praise it. In short, always have as your aim the demolition of the ill-founded fabric of these books of chivalry, despised by so many and praised by many more; and if this is what you achieve, it will be no mean achievement.
In the Prologue, Cervantes speaks with a friend, most likely fictional, who encourages him to stick to his “aim” of criticizing the “ill-founded fabric of these books of chivalry,” a goal that he characterizes as “no mean achievement.” Though the aim of the novel is to criticize what Cervantes considered to be the absurdity and implausibility of chivalric literature, with its typical focus on virtuous knights and diabolical villains, it does so with humor rather than harsh condemnation. The friend advises Cervantes to “ensure that the melancholy man is moved to laughter” and “the jovial man laughs even more.” This emphasis on humor as a means of critique is characteristic of satire.
Related Themes:
