The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, Part 35

In Short

This section of the legendary picaresque novel tracks the aging knight-errant Don Quixote and his pragmatic squire, Sancho Panza, as they travel toward tournament jousts in Saragossa. Along the way, they encounter religious processions, pastoral masquerades, and, most crucially, a pair of gentlemen reading a false, unauthorized continuation of their own life story. The book remains a masterpiece because it brilliantly collapses the barrier between fiction and reality, forcing the characters to confront the "official" version of their history and struggle to define their own truth against public perception.

The Story

Don Quixote and Sancho depart the duke’s castle feeling a bittersweet relief. Quixote prizes his regained independence, while Sancho enjoys the security of a purse of gold crowns. Their journey is initially marked by a series of philosophical exchanges. They encounter a group of laborers transporting religious statues, which allows Quixote to offer learned, chivalric interpretations of Saint George, Saint Martin, and Saint James the Moorslayer. These moments of quiet are soon broken when they stumble into a "pastoral Arcadia"—a group of wealthy locals dressed as shepherds for a holiday. The shepherdesses are so enchanted by the knight’s fame that they invite him to join their festivities. Quixote, ever the knight-errant, feels compelled to issue a public, boastful challenge, vowing to defend the beauty of these women against any who would dare claim otherwise.

This bravado leads to an immediate and ignoble disaster: a herd of bulls being driven to a local village barrels through the meadow, trampling both the knight and his squire. Bruised and humiliated, they retreat, only to face a deeper existential crisis at a roadside inn. There, they overhear other guests reading aloud from a published book that purports to be the "Second Part" of their adventures. Quixote listens in mounting rage as the text misrepresents his character, insults his devotion to Dulcinea, and incorrectly names Sancho’s wife.

The knight confronts the readers, who turn out to be gentlemen named Don Juan and Don Jeronimo. Upon meeting the "real" Quixote, the gentlemen are struck by the strange dissonance between the man’s articulate, noble bearing and his profound madness. They show him the fraudulent book, which he dismisses as "obscene and filthy" due to its factual inaccuracies and poor style.

The encounter forces a change in plans. Because the false book claims he attends the jousts in Saragossa, Quixote decides to avoid that city entirely, reasoning that by changing his destination to Barcelona, he can prove the "historian" a liar. He leaves the inn with his reputation defended in the eyes of his new acquaintances, yet he remains trapped in his own delusion, still pressuring his squire to undergo a ritual scourging to break the magical enchantment of his beloved Dulcinea. The narrative closes with the pair continuing their journey, bolstered by the realization that their legend is now a matter of public debate, yet still bound to the rigid, self-imposed roles of master and servant.

How It Unfolds

The Departure Quixote and Sancho leave the duke’s estate, with the knight reflecting on the necessity of freedom while the squire remains focused on the practical reality of their newfound wealth.

The Religious Statues The duo meets travelers carrying images of famous saints, sparking a conversation where Quixote characterizes these figures as the spiritual predecessors to his own chivalric calling.

The Pastoral Masquerade A group of wealthy neighbors playing at being shepherds invites the pair to join their camp, leading to a display of Quixote's courtly manners and his pride in his own profession.

The Challenge and the Bulls Quixote insists on defending the beauty of the shepherdesses in the middle of the road, only to be crushed by a passing herd of livestock, a physical rebuke to his vanity.

The False History Taking refuge in an inn, the knight discovers a book that narrates their past exploits with gross inaccuracies, leading to a tense confrontation with the readers.

A New Resolution Don Juan and Don Jeronimo validate the true identity of the pair, prompting Quixote to abandon his original route to Saragossa to invalidate the lies printed in the unauthorized sequel.

The People

Don Quixote remains the central enigma, a man whose profound intellect and noble vocabulary are consistently undermined by his inability to reconcile his chivalric code with the modern world. He is driven by a desperate need for validation and a belief in his own greatness, yet he remains deeply wounded by the "ingratitude" and mockery of others.

Sancho Panza serves as the grounding force. While he increasingly adopts his master’s complex language and worldview, he never abandons his concern for his own physical comfort and his family. Unlike the knight, who lives in a state of romanticized despair, Sancho manages his life through humor, proverbs, and a stubborn, earthy wisdom.

Don Juan and Don Jeronimo appear as the bridge between the reader and the subjects. They represent the "general public," fascinated by the fame of the knight yet unable to decide whether he is a tragic hero or a mere clown. Their presence highlights the central irony of the book: the man who wants to be judged by his actions is instead being judged by a book that lies about them.

In Its Own Voice

"Freedom, Sancho, is one of the most precious gifts that heaven has bestowed upon men; no treasures that the earth holds buried or the sea conceals can compare with it."

Quixote explains to his squire why he felt stifled by the forced hospitality of the duke’s castle.

"Who is this that answers us?"

One of the gentlemen at the inn asks this when Quixote, overhearing his own name being discussed in a false biography, erupts from his room in indignation.

"The Sancho and the Don Quixote of this history must be different persons from those that appear in the one Cide Hamete Benengeli wrote, who are ourselves."

Sancho makes this distinction while speaking with the two gentlemen, highlighting the meta-fictional conflict at the heart of the narrative.

What It's Really About

At its core, this volume explores the instability of truth in the face of narrative. It interrogates how legends are formed and how history, once written, can usurp the reality of the people it describes. Quixote’s obsession with "correcting" his own story reflects a human desire to control one’s reputation, yet the book argues that once one enters the public sphere, they lose ownership of their own identity. It is a work that questions the ethics of storytelling, the difference between fact and fame, and the persistent human struggle to remain consistent in an world that prefers to classify us as either heroes or fools.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy meta-fiction or stories about the nature of fame will find this text remarkably modern. It captures the strange, unsettling experience of realizing that the world’s perception of you—whether through gossip, media, or misrepresentation—has become more powerful than your own actions. The language is elegant and often witty, balancing high-minded chivalric idealism with the gritty, unvarnished reality of Spanish country life.

However, prospective readers should be prepared for the deliberate pacing of the 17th-century style. The narrative is heavy with long speeches and philosophical digressions that move at a different rhythm than contemporary fiction. Additionally, the text reflects the social hierarchies and religious attitudes of its time, which can feel alien or challenging to a modern audience. Despite these hurdles, the warmth of the character dynamic between the knight and his squire keeps the text accessible. What lingers is the poignancy of the final scenes: a man who has become a living myth realizes he is no longer the master of his own biography, forcing the reader to consider how much of our own lives we actually own, and how much is merely the story others choose to tell about us.