William Sullivan – The Spanish novel, written by Miguel de Cervantes, El ingenioso hidalgo don Quixote de la Mancha, is often credited as the first modern novel in Western literature.  Literally translated to English, the title reads “The Ingenious Low-Born Nobleman Don Quixote of La Mancha.”

The inclusion of “ingenious” describing the title character is a curious choice, given that Don Quixote is, in fact, a crazy old man named Alonso Quixano that imagines himself a gallant knight.  He mounts his trusty steed (a skinny nag) and dons his shining armor (with a shaving basin for a helmet) in order to fight giants (that are, in reality, windmills), while his trustworthy squire (his short, fat, yet profoundly loyal servant named Sancho Panza) supports his quest to win the hand of his Dulcinea del Toboso (a chaste maiden that he invents in his mind). Continue reading →