Don Quixote

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1605

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Symbols & Motifs

Magicians

Once he sets out on his adventure, Quixote is forced to confront his own failure. Fortunately for Quixote, he does not have to deal with reality. He decides to blame magicians and their enchantments for his repeated failures. These magicians become a symbolic demonstration of Quixote’s fragile ego and the extent of his delusion. He does not want to admit he is wrong—that a castle is actually an inn or that Dulcinea is actually a peasant girl—so he insists magicians have played a trick upon him. The running joke of Quixote becomes more frequent throughout the course of the novel, to the point where almost every adventure has some element of failure or delusion that must be blamed on the magicians. This need to blame an outside force for failure shows how Quixote does not want to admit he is wrong. To do so would shatter the illusion he is right and damage his swollen ego. As such, the magicians become a convenient tool for him to avoid self-examination. The magicians symbolize Quixote’s desire to never scrutinize himself.

As the novel develops, however, the role of the magicians becomes slightly altered. At first, they are blamed for physical changes and inconveniences in the world. They are first introduced, for example, when Pero Perez blames a magician for sealing off Quixote’s library. Quixote repeats this excuse, blaming the magicians for his mistakes or failures. Soon, however, the magicians become responsible for deeper, more ideological failings. When Quixote is forced to reckon with the failures of his worldview, he begins to worry that his problem is himself. He does not want to abandon the idea of knights or chivalry, so the need to blame the magicians for everything becomes more pronounced. Rather than a convenient excuse, the magicians become a crutch that can support his wounded worldview.

Quixote comes to rely on his excuse rather than question reality. When the magicians shift from being a peripheral excuse to a core element of his delusion, the change represents Quixote’s increased desperation. He needs the world to believe in him, and the stakes are higher than ever before. Failure is no longer just the failure of one man but the failure of chivalry itself. The more famous Quixote becomes, the more he believes he must spread the gospel of chivalry. As such, the importance of his mission is greater than ever before, and the magicians come to represent the forces of the world who are resistant to change. The magicians are no longer accidents or mistakes. They are the extant institutions and structures of the world, such as the duke and duchess, who are mocking and disparaging Quixote’s quest.

Inns

Inns are an important symbol of Quixote’s delusion. Large sections of Part 1 are set in different inns, which Quixote often mistakes for castles. The same delusion that tells him he is a knight, Dulcinea is a beautiful princess, and Rocinante is a large horse tells Quixote that every inn he approaches is actually a castle and that every innkeeper is a castle lord. Mistaking something as commonplace and as ordinary as an inn for something as grandiose and as rare as a castle demonstrates the extent to which Quixote has become separated from reality. The other characters are certain of his delusion because they can compare and contrast reality with Quixote’s delusions. They know the inn is an inn, so Quixote’s insistence the inn is a castle shows them he has lost his grip on reality.

Inns are also a symbolic representation of the different sections of society. In any one inn, someone like Quixote can meet peasants, sex workers, judges, and soldiers. He meets the greedy innkeepers and the disreputable women who work at the inn. The inn is located at the side of the road, so any passing person in need of food and shelter is forced to stop there. The same basic human needs bring together people from every stratum of society, thereby exposing them to the delusions of Quixote. These people are forced to interact and share resources in a way they would not have to in the rest of society. To this extent, Quixote’s delusions are built on a foundation of reality. The inn, in some respects, is a castle. The innkeeper is the governor who welcomes people into his lands and offers them protection. The innkeeper may lack the obvious power and wealth of a castle owner, but in some respects he performs a similar social role. By representing the cross section of society and bringing together people from different social classes and backgrounds, the novel uses the inns to remind the audience of the fundamental humanity that transcends demographics and differences.

At the end of the novel, Quixote’s waning delusion and his fading enthusiasm are shown by his recognition of inns as inns. When he and Panza approach an inn after Quixote is defeated in a duel with Carrasco, Quixote does not pretend to see a castle or anything other than an inn. He is exhausted and ashamed. He feels dishonor by his defeat and is disheartened he can no longer be a knight. As such, he no longer wants to delight in his delusion. His willingness to admit that an inn is an inn is a symbolic demonstration of the way his character grows. He abandons his delusion, but his fame precedes him. By this time, Quixote is too famous to simply fade away. While he might not see the inn as a castle any longer, the society has learned to see Quixote as a knight. The delusion has become reality, just as Quixote has abandoned the delusion.

Mambrino’s Helmet

Early in the story, Quixote spies a man riding a donkey along a road. The man has a brass basin on his head to protect himself from the rain, but Quixote convinces himself the basin is actually a helmet once belonging to a famous knight named Mambrino. The basin becomes an important symbol of Quixote’s delusions and how they affect those around him. In terms of Quixote’s character, the basin is a symbol of his loosening grip on reality. Panza tells Quixote the basin is, in fact, only a basin and therefore confirms to the audience that Quixote is mistaken. However, Quixote will not be convinced. He insists the basin is a helmet and then wears it on his head; when the reality of the helmet is challenged again, Quixote blames a convenient magician for placing an enchantment upon him. The basin symbolizes Quixote’s willing delusion and his refusal to accept the truth as told to him by others.

Later in the novel, the man returns and tries to claim his basin. He accuses Quixote of robbery and shows how he has been harmed by Quixote’s delusions. This moment is a symbolic illustration of the damage that Quixote and his delusions can cause. The man was hurt and robbed because Quixote mistakenly believed a basin was a helmet. The man’s misfortune shows the material impact of Quixote’s delusion and suggests his adventures are not as comic as they appear to be. Real people are hurt by these delusions, and real people are made poorer because Quixote refuses to accept reality.

Despite the man’s pleas, the people at the inn take a vote and they all agree the basin is actually a helmet. This is an important moment in the story as it symbolizes the seductive qualities of Quixote’s delusions: The people at the inn know that Quixote is wrong, and they know that the helmet is a basin, but they are too entertained by the spectacle, so they loosen their grip on the truth. The people at the inn democratically vote to reshape reality to fit Quixote’s delusions because they find him interesting. The vote symbolizes that reality is a mutable idea and can be altered based on mood or circumstance. Quixote may be wrong, and the helmet may be a basin, but the vote reminds the audience of the importance of social constructs. If everyone agrees the basin is a helmet, and if everyone agrees that Quixote is a knight, then this becomes the new reality. The ultimate role of the basin is to symbolize the extent to which people can and will change society and reality based on their situation.