Comic aspect
of the story has underlying serious intentions.
Critique of
life in a world dominated by greed, pride, and violence.
Critique of
the hypocritical use and manipulation of the Christian religion.
Author's stance
in defense of ideals of goodness, justice, truth, and beauty.
Don Quixote's
insanity is, in part, a form of higher wisdom; in his madness,
he sees humble people as noble and elevated and challenges the
rich and the powerful, often calling them monsters and villains;
ecclesiastics are also targets of the wrath of Don Quixote.
In his ideals
and desire for a better world, Don Quixote mirrors Christ and
criticizes a world that lacks a genuine spiritual center.
Don Quixote's
violence and aggressive methods, on the other hand, identify him
with the people of his time and with the madness of the historical
past (the Crusades, the adventures against the Turks, etc.)
Don Quixote
is blind to the contradictions in his own approach to the correction
of the evils of the world; he fights fire with fire and finds
himself repeatedly defeated, making things worse for himself and
others.
Through Don
Quixote, Cervantes confronts and ridicules an aspect of his own
former life as a soldier fighting for Christian Europe.
Where Don
Quixote, the warrior, fails, however, Cervantes, the writer, triumphs.
Novel about the idea that "the pen is mightier than the sword."