Don Quixote

Character Guide

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Alonso Quixano (Don Quixote of La Mancha)

An aging country gentleman of La Mancha who, obsessed with books of chivalry, loses his wits and sets out to revive knight-errantry under a new name.

Sancho Panza

A poor, simple farmer who becomes Don Quixote's squire, drawn by promises of an island to govern; his earthy common sense constantly collides with his master's fantasies.

Rocinante

Don Quixote's old, bony, broken-down horse, which he regards as a magnificent steed worthy of legend.

Dulcinea del Toboso (Aldonza Lorenzo)

A humble peasant woman whom Don Quixote reimagines as a peerless, noble lady and dedicates all his chivalric deeds to, though she never actually appears in person early on.

The Curate

Don Quixote's village priest, who examines and burns much of his library of chivalric romances in an attempt to cure his madness.

Master Nicholas (The Barber)

A friend of Don Quixote and the curate who helps assess his books and later joins schemes to bring him home.

The Niece and Housekeeper

Members of Don Quixote's household who despair over his obsession with chivalry books and try to protect him from himself.

Samson Carrasco (The Bachelor)

A clever young university graduate from Don Quixote's village who takes a keen, scheming interest in the knight's adventures and their retelling.

Teresa Panza

Sancho's wife, who reacts with practical skepticism and humor to her husband's tales and ambitions.

Cide Hamete Benengeli

The fictional Moorish historian whom the narrator claims originally chronicled Don Quixote's exploits, a device used to frame the whole narrative as a translated found manuscript.

Glossary

Knight-errant

A wandering knight who travels in search of adventures to prove his chivalry and right wrongs, the role Don Quixote sets out to imitate.

Squire

An attendant or assistant to a knight; Sancho Panza serves in this role, tending to practical needs Don Quixote ignores.

Books of chivalry

Popular romance novels about knights and their fantastic adventures, which Don Quixote reads obsessively until they distort his sense of reality.

Enchanter/Enchantment

In the story's logic, a magical figure or spell Don Quixote blames whenever reality contradicts his fantasies (e.g., windmills turning into giants) or whenever his defeats need explaining away.

Venta

A roadside inn, which Don Quixote repeatedly mistakes for a castle in keeping with his chivalric delusions.

Duenna

An older woman serving as a chaperone or attendant in a noble household, a stock figure appearing in several comic episodes.

Barber's basin

A common shaving basin that Don Quixote insists is the legendary 'Helmet of Mambrino' from chivalric legend.

Clavileño

A supposedly magical flying wooden horse rigged up by the duke and duchess as an elaborate prank on Don Quixote and Sancho.

Sally (sallying forth)

Don Quixote's term for setting out from home on a new chivalric adventure or expedition.

Ínsula (island)

The 'island' governorship repeatedly promised to Sancho Panza as a reward for his service, eventually granted to him as a mock, staged joke.

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