Cervantes
G.Rigas
A Small Biography
"Miguel de Cervantes
Saavedra, (1547-1616), Spanish writer, whose novel Don
Quixote (Part I, 1605; Part II, 1615) is regarded as one of the
masterpieces of world literature. II Life Cervantes was born in Alcalá de Henares. In 1571 he fought against
the Ottoman Turks in the Battle
of Lepanto, in which he lost the use of his left
hand. While returning to Spain in 1575, Cervantes was captured by Barbary Coast pirates.
He was held in Algeria as a slave and was finally ransomed in 1580 by his family and
friends.
Back in Spain, Cervantes began to produce poems and plays at a prodigious rate between
1582 and 1585, including his pastoral novel La Galatea (1585). Cervantes then took
government jobs, including one collecting taxes, but he was imprisoned several times for
failing to explain all of his tax-collecting activities. While in prison Cervantes
conceived the idea for his masterpiece, The Ingenious Hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha,
the first part of which appeared in 1605. It was an immediate success, although Cervantes
never gained substantial wealth from the work
because numerous unauthorized editions were produced. The second part of Don Quixote was
published in 1615.
Cervantes also published a collection of short stories, Exemplary Novels (1613), and
completed the allegorical novel Persiles y Sigismunda (1617) four days before his death.
III Don Quixote
Don Quixote describes the adventures of a Spanish nobleman who, as a result of reading
many tales of chivalry, comes to believe that he is a knight who must combat the world's
injustices. He travels in search of adventure with his squire, Sancho Panza, a practical
peasant. Quixote's imagination often runs away with him, and he sees windmills as giants
and country inns as castles. The novel was intended as a satire on medieval tales of
chivalry, but it presents a rich picture of Spanish life and contains many insights. Don
Quixote had a tremendous influence on the development of prose fiction and has been the
subject of many works in other fields of art, including opera, film, ballet, and
painting". "Encarta Online"
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