Discussion Topic
The relationship and character dynamics between Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in Don Quixote
Summary:
The relationship between Don Quixote and Sancho Panza is marked by a blend of contrast and complementarity. Don Quixote is an idealistic, delusional knight, while Sancho Panza is his practical, down-to-earth squire. Their dynamic highlights the balance between dreams and reality, with Sancho's common sense often grounding Don Quixote's lofty fantasies, creating a rich, interdependent partnership.
What are some similarities and differences between Sancho Panza and Don Quixote in Don Quixote?
Don Quixote and Sancho Panza are different in that Quixote has made the decision, under the delusions created by reading too many knightly romances, that he is a knight. He doesn't just want to read about knights doing noble deeds. He wants to be the knight enacting good to save and protect people. Having gone "mad," he insists on seeing the world through the lenses of his own dreams and desires.
Sancho, in contrast, is a practical peasant who is firmly rooted in reality. In this sense, he couldn't be more different than the master who takes him on as his "squire." This difference is illustrated in part I, chapter 18, when Quixote mistakes a dust cloud for an army:
Quixote saw on the road they were on an enormous thick cloud of dust. When he saw it, he turned to Sancho and said:
“This is the day, Sancho, that...
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Fate has reserved for me. ... Do you see that cloud of dust swirling up over there, Sancho? Well, it has been churned up by a colossal marching army consisting of innumerable soldiers from many different places.”
However, Sancho only sees dust and wryly comments:
“In that case, there must be two armies,” said Sancho, “because from the other side there’s a similar cloud of dust.”
Yet Sancho is like Quixote in wanting more than what his current life offers. He wants adventure, just as Quixote does, and while Quixote wants to be a knight, Sancho wants to be governor of an island. There are moments, too, when Sancho believes Quixote or is seen by others as being as delusional as he is. In the second chapter of the first part of the book we learn:
Sancho ... believed every word that dropped from his master's mouth to be truth, as having known him from his cradle to be a man of sincerity.
In part 2, chapter 1, the Duchess sees Sancho as the crazier one:
The Duchess was ready to die with laughing at Sancho, whom she thought a more pleasant fool, and a greater madman than his master; and she was not the only person at that time of this opinion.
To the extent that Sancho believes in dreams coming true, even if his dreams differ from his master's, he is a mirror image of Quixote.
Discuss the relationship between Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in Don Quixote.
The story's depicted relationship between both of them is one of leader and follower. Quixote as the leader has his trusty Sancho to help him in his endeavors. Sancho is shown to be round and wise, while Quixote is gaunt and idealistic. They both complement one another. Thinkers like Carlos Fuentes in his work, The Buried Mirror, have gone a bit further in asserting the relationship between both. Fuentes believes that the relationship between both characters helps to develop the composite view of what it means to be human. Quixote believes in his ideals, while Sancho is looking for a place to sleep and good food. Quixote sees the monster, while Sancho recognizes the windmill. Quixote seeks to uphold the honor of a maiden who might not exist, while Sancho simply wants a good payoff at the end. The relationship between both characters represents the dynamic of what it means to be human, to live for the promise of ideals while being chained to the reality of one's predicament.