Miguel De Cervantes Research Paper

Miguel de Cervantes: The Satirical Genius When people think of literature from the 16th century, many associate this time with Shakespeare, but his contemporary, Cervantes, was equally on par in skill. Miguel de Cervantes lived a life filled with struggles (Bailey). Although he was the first author to write a modern novel, it did not come without hardships (Munoz and Molina). He found himself destitute for many periods of his life. Cervantes wrote countless poems, dabbled in playwriting, and wrote many novels. It cannot be disputed that he was a profound expert in literature. Unfortunately, before writing his greatest novel, Don Quixote, none of his works garnered attention nor fame. (Bailey) His poverty-stricken life influenced Miguel de

To have a bond with someone for life is something special that is difficult to erase. Cervantes himself naturally had a spouse, and her name was Catalina de Salazar y Palacios, being 18 years her senior. Before that, however, he had a child called Isabel in 1584, and she was the result of an affair with a married women, her name was Ana Franca (Bailey). It’s not surprising, because in love, there is no right or wrong, only passion. But love cannot exist without conflict and obstacles constantly overshadowing as time goes on. Even before Cervantes met these two women, he encountered many problems. Earlier in his life, Cervantes was to be arrested for wounding a rival of his when they dueled. He was to have his right hand mercilessly removed and exiled for a decade. Cervantes fled to Italy and served Cardinal Giulio Acquaviva for a period of time (Lathrop). Then he joined the Spanish military in Italy and fought the Ottoman Turks. Unfortunately, at the “Battle of Lepanto,” Cervantes suffered 3 wounds from firearms. Two of them healed, but the final one caused a permanent disability to his left hand. Because of this, he reaped the nickname, “The Cripple of Lepanto.” Cervantes service did not end there, however, once he recovered he took part in more battles. At the same time, Cervantes became more intimate with literary trends of Italy. His service ended in 1574. That was not the end, as he was returning

But in order to survive in the modern society, one must have adequate funds to sustain himself. Otherwise, one can only dream of experiencing the joys of living. Likewise, Cervantes was one who couldn’t be careless with his money, every penny was needed to ensure the future of the family. Cervantes had to take on many occupations to pay off his debts. He tried to write plays, but had little success even after writing over 30 plays. His biggest opponent was Felix Lope de Vega, but he could not be his match, so he departed from drama. Cervantes also took up being a tax collector to support his family. But he encountered many problems as time went on. He was jailed multiple times for mismanagement, putting a close on his career as a tax collector (Bailey). Before writing his hit novel, Don Quixote, Cervantes could not find much success in conceiving literature. As a seasoned poet, he wrote countless poems, and as an expert writer he wrote many novels. In fact, in his famous novel, he had 45 poems. What made Don Quixote was all the mistakes it had, it is part of the novel’s unique design. These inconsistencies and contradictions that ridicule chivalric romances led to the success of the novel (Lathrop). Regardless of his failures as a elite composer of literature, he can still be seen as a ground-breaking novelist, because of his first modern novel, Don Quixote