1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,920 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:12,719 Speaker 1: Heart Radio, Hello and Welcome to This Day in History Class, 3 00:00:12,720 --> 00:00:15,520 Speaker 1: a show that flips through the pages of history to 4 00:00:15,600 --> 00:00:19,759 Speaker 1: deliver old news in a new way. I'm Gay Bluesier 5 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: and in this episode, we're looking at a turning point 6 00:00:22,920 --> 00:00:26,720 Speaker 1: in literary history. The day when a self proclaimed night 7 00:00:27,120 --> 00:00:38,920 Speaker 1: introduced the world to the modern novel. The day was 8 00:00:39,080 --> 00:00:44,519 Speaker 1: January sixteen, six oh five, the first half of Miguel 9 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:49,479 Speaker 1: de cervantes landmark novel Don Quixote was published in Spain. 10 00:00:50,479 --> 00:00:53,440 Speaker 1: The book is widely considered to be the first modern 11 00:00:53,479 --> 00:00:57,280 Speaker 1: novel set apart from earlier texts, due to its story 12 00:00:57,440 --> 00:01:01,920 Speaker 1: arcs and nuanced dialogue and character zation. Although it was 13 00:01:02,040 --> 00:01:06,679 Speaker 1: retroactively declared part one of a two part story, the book, 14 00:01:06,720 --> 00:01:10,639 Speaker 1: released in sixteen o five, does have a clear beginning, middle, 15 00:01:10,720 --> 00:01:15,520 Speaker 1: and end. Its official title is The Ingenious Nobleman Sir 16 00:01:15,680 --> 00:01:19,240 Speaker 1: Quixote of La Mancha, but we know it better today 17 00:01:19,440 --> 00:01:23,840 Speaker 1: is plain old don Quixote. If you're unfamiliar with the story, 18 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:29,119 Speaker 1: it follows a minor nobleman named Alonzo Kixano, who lives 19 00:01:29,120 --> 00:01:32,360 Speaker 1: in a central region of Spain known as La Mancha. 20 00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:35,759 Speaker 1: At the start of the book, Alonso has become obsessed 21 00:01:35,800 --> 00:01:40,280 Speaker 1: with chivalric romance tales. He eventually reads so many of 22 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:43,960 Speaker 1: them that his brain quote dries up, and he decides 23 00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:46,960 Speaker 1: to set out in search of his own gallant adventures. 24 00:01:47,720 --> 00:01:51,440 Speaker 1: Dressed as a knight and calling himself don Quixote, he 25 00:01:51,600 --> 00:01:55,280 Speaker 1: roams La Mancha, righting wrongs and doing battle with all 26 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:58,560 Speaker 1: sorts of foes, most of which are only in his head. 27 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:03,280 Speaker 1: Along the way, he's joined by a peasant named Sancho Panza, 28 00:02:03,640 --> 00:02:06,560 Speaker 1: who agrees to travel with him as his faithful squire. 29 00:02:07,400 --> 00:02:11,440 Speaker 1: Unlike his master, Sancho doesn't try to imitate the exploits 30 00:02:11,480 --> 00:02:15,240 Speaker 1: of literary heroes. In fact, he doesn't even know how 31 00:02:15,280 --> 00:02:19,200 Speaker 1: to read. However, he does have an endless supply of 32 00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:23,960 Speaker 1: half remembered folksy proverbs, which he frequently shares, much to 33 00:02:24,000 --> 00:02:28,519 Speaker 1: the annoyance of his well read companion. As you've probably gathered, 34 00:02:28,639 --> 00:02:32,360 Speaker 1: the two characters are polar opposites, a fact that's even 35 00:02:32,360 --> 00:02:35,960 Speaker 1: reflected in their body types, with Don Quixote being tall 36 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:39,799 Speaker 1: and thin and Sancho Panza being short and fat. This 37 00:02:39,919 --> 00:02:43,519 Speaker 1: idea of a mismatched duo has since become a comedy 38 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:47,160 Speaker 1: staple not only in literature, but in film and television 39 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:51,000 Speaker 1: as well. Still, there is at least one way in 40 00:02:51,040 --> 00:02:55,200 Speaker 1: which Sancho and his master are alike. The squire tags 41 00:02:55,240 --> 00:02:58,240 Speaker 1: along on the journey in hopes of one day becoming 42 00:02:58,280 --> 00:03:01,640 Speaker 1: a governor of his own island, a dream that seems 43 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:04,919 Speaker 1: just as far fetched to the rest of society as 44 00:03:04,960 --> 00:03:09,280 Speaker 1: don Quixote's quest for honor and glory. The story is 45 00:03:09,440 --> 00:03:13,720 Speaker 1: very episodic and intentionally funny, with many of the segments 46 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:17,280 Speaker 1: working as satire of older tales of medieval knights and 47 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:22,639 Speaker 1: their daring deeds. Instead of squaring off against enemy soldiers, sorcerers, 48 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:26,800 Speaker 1: or dragons, don Quixote battles a flock of sheep, a 49 00:03:26,880 --> 00:03:30,839 Speaker 1: group of monks, and, most famously, a bunch of windmills, 50 00:03:30,919 --> 00:03:35,320 Speaker 1: which he imagines to be giants. And yet don Quixote, 51 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:38,960 Speaker 1: both the character and the book are much more than 52 00:03:39,080 --> 00:03:43,160 Speaker 1: mere farce. He is driven mad by his own imagination, 53 00:03:43,400 --> 00:03:47,280 Speaker 1: no question, but by imitating what he admires in stories, 54 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:51,520 Speaker 1: the misguided hero actually finds new meaning in his life. 55 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:55,760 Speaker 1: This raises all kinds of interesting questions about the nature 56 00:03:55,840 --> 00:03:59,600 Speaker 1: of reality, free will, and fate, and how far someone 57 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:03,640 Speaker 1: could or should go to become who they dream of being. 58 00:04:04,520 --> 00:04:08,440 Speaker 1: Quixote's author, Miguel de Cervantes, was a lot like his 59 00:04:08,520 --> 00:04:12,440 Speaker 1: star character. He was well traveled, well educated, and a 60 00:04:12,440 --> 00:04:15,880 Speaker 1: little out of step with most of his contemporaries. He 61 00:04:15,960 --> 00:04:19,480 Speaker 1: took on a variety of jobs during his lifetime, including 62 00:04:19,520 --> 00:04:22,640 Speaker 1: a stint where he served the Spanish crown on adventures 63 00:04:22,680 --> 00:04:25,719 Speaker 1: that would later make their way into his novel, But 64 00:04:25,800 --> 00:04:28,120 Speaker 1: it was his time as a tax collector for the 65 00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:31,560 Speaker 1: Spanish government that wound up having the greatest impact on 66 00:04:31,640 --> 00:04:35,960 Speaker 1: his life, albeit in a roundabout way. While serving in 67 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:40,679 Speaker 1: that role, Servantes was actually imprisoned twice due to frequent, 68 00:04:41,520 --> 00:04:45,880 Speaker 1: let's say, discrepancies in his accounting. It all worked out 69 00:04:45,960 --> 00:04:48,679 Speaker 1: for the best, though, because it was during his time 70 00:04:48,720 --> 00:04:52,039 Speaker 1: in prison that Servants is believed to have first thought 71 00:04:52,080 --> 00:04:56,200 Speaker 1: up the story that would later become Don Quixote. The 72 00:04:56,320 --> 00:04:58,719 Speaker 1: novel was a big hit when it was released in 73 00:04:58,800 --> 00:05:02,120 Speaker 1: sixteen o five, but the author only made a small 74 00:05:02,240 --> 00:05:05,640 Speaker 1: profit off of selling the publication rights and didn't receive 75 00:05:05,680 --> 00:05:09,280 Speaker 1: a cut of the actual sales. The book proved so 76 00:05:09,440 --> 00:05:14,200 Speaker 1: popular that someone else actually wrote a sequel using Servante's 77 00:05:14,279 --> 00:05:18,479 Speaker 1: story and characters, basically an early form of fan fiction. 78 00:05:19,120 --> 00:05:24,039 Speaker 1: Cervantes was furious about this false Quixote, especially since his 79 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:27,800 Speaker 1: imitator was making more money off the characters than he had. 80 00:05:28,400 --> 00:05:32,320 Speaker 1: The outrage compelled Servantes to write his own part two, 81 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:36,560 Speaker 1: providing an official conclusion to the adventures of Don Quixote 82 00:05:36,720 --> 00:05:42,240 Speaker 1: and Sancho Panza. The second installment was published in sixteen fifteen, 83 00:05:42,760 --> 00:05:45,560 Speaker 1: meaning their readers of the first volume had to wait 84 00:05:45,600 --> 00:05:49,360 Speaker 1: a full decade to see how the story ended. More 85 00:05:49,400 --> 00:05:53,560 Speaker 1: than four hundred years later, the complete Don Quixote is 86 00:05:53,600 --> 00:05:57,200 Speaker 1: now considered one of the greatest novels ever written, a 87 00:05:57,240 --> 00:06:00,200 Speaker 1: feat that's all the more impressive when you consider that 88 00:06:00,279 --> 00:06:03,640 Speaker 1: it may very well have been the first one. It's 89 00:06:03,680 --> 00:06:08,640 Speaker 1: subversive humor and beating heart have inspired countless interpretations and 90 00:06:08,760 --> 00:06:13,520 Speaker 1: adaptations across every artistic medium. It's even given rise to 91 00:06:13,600 --> 00:06:18,159 Speaker 1: a few popular expressions, including the word quixotic and the 92 00:06:18,200 --> 00:06:22,719 Speaker 1: phrase tilting at windmills. The novel also serves as a 93 00:06:22,800 --> 00:06:27,000 Speaker 1: relevant reminder to be aware of how our chosen ideologies 94 00:06:27,320 --> 00:06:31,599 Speaker 1: influence the way we perceive the world at large. Sometimes 95 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:34,839 Speaker 1: a looming, sinister giant can turn out to be a 96 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:39,360 Speaker 1: harmless mundane windmill. It all depends on how you look 97 00:06:39,400 --> 00:06:44,520 Speaker 1: at it. I'm Gave Louizier and hopefully you now know 98 00:06:44,680 --> 00:06:48,680 Speaker 1: a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 99 00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:51,640 Speaker 1: You can learn even more about history by following us 100 00:06:51,720 --> 00:06:56,440 Speaker 1: on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at t d i HC Show, 101 00:06:57,160 --> 00:06:59,760 Speaker 1: and if you have any comments or suggestions, you can 102 00:06:59,800 --> 00:07:02,400 Speaker 1: say in them my way at this Day at I 103 00:07:02,560 --> 00:07:06,600 Speaker 1: heart media dot com. Thanks to Chandler Mays for producing 104 00:07:06,640 --> 00:07:09,520 Speaker 1: the show, and thank you for listening. I'll see you 105 00:07:09,560 --> 00:07:13,400 Speaker 1: back here again tomorrow for another day in History class. 106 00:07:22,960 --> 00:07:25,000 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the I 107 00:07:25,080 --> 00:07:27,680 Speaker 1: Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 108 00:07:27,720 --> 00:07:28,520 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.