Don Quixote

Author: Miguel de Cervantes
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-07-01
Features: This book is a masterpiece of the important Spanish Renaissance writer Miguel de Cervantes (1547—1616). Since its publication in 1605, it has been translated into over 50 languages, published in more than 2,000 editions, and ranked first among the 100 greatest world literary works by 100 world-renowned writers. The novel depicts a poor gentleman who becomes obsessed with knightly romances and decides to revive the chivalric system of the Middle Ages. He adopts the pseudonym Don Quixote, puts on old armor, rides a lean horse, and takes a farmer named Sancho as his squire, embarking on adventures. Along the way, he mistakes windmills for giants and flocks of sheep for armies, enduring much hardship and causing many laughs, ultimately returning in vain and only realizing the truth upon his death. The novel profoundly reflects the ideals of humanism during the Renaissance, with its protagonist becoming an immortal archetype in the history of world literature and social thought. For centuries, millions of readers have continuously drawn intellectual, creative, and aesthetic nourishment from it. This translation was adapted from the 1984 edition of Editorial Alfredo Ortells, S.L. by Professor Dong Yansheng, a renowned expert in Spanish language and literature in China. After its publication in both simplified and traditional Chinese characters in mainland China and Taiwan from 1995 to 1998, it became a bestseller, receiving widespread acclaim. It was awarded China's highest translation prize—the Lu Xun Literature Award for Rainbow Translation. For this edition in the "100 World Literary Masterpieces" series by Yangtze Literature Press, the translator has made several revisions after rereading the text. The Spanish Santiana Publishing Group, the Cervantes Institute, and the Autonomous Community of Castile and León have enthusiastically supported the publication of this book. The book includes 156 illustrations, with the author being Gustave Doré of France (1832—1883).