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Was Cervantes a Feminist?

Some Irritating Thoughts on the Quixote of 1605

The title alone might cause an astonished frown. For Gender Studies, as a
rule are engaged, but sometimes lacking seriousness. Is Don Quixote,
mirror of knighthood, feministically contaminated? That sounds like a
joke, even high spirited experts of Gender Studies would not dare to utter
similar assertions. Nevertheless, as soon as we start scrutinizing closely
some crucial situations and persons we are confronted with astounding
results. Of the men present in the novel no one is really sympathetic.
Only Don Quixote himself. But as we are told already in the first chapter,
he has lost his mind.

As far as the women are concerned it is completely different. First of all
we have Dorotea. Don Fernando sneaked in, promised to marry her and then
abandoned her. A fact, not gentlemanlike at all. Dorotea has left her
parents' house, has clothed herself like a young man and gone in search of
her noble seducer. She is prudent, energetic and helpful. This becomes
obvious when she is told the crazy plan of the parson to bring Don Quixote
home to his village. For she resolutely declares that she will play the
part of the unfortunate princess far better than the fat parson or the
barber. The amused reader certainly agrees. At any rate, Dorotea plays her
part of the unfortunate princess so perfectly, that Don Quixote is
convinced at once. Also, Cervantes loves her with all his heart. And he
shows his sympathy. Not by exaggerating her beauty or her other
perfections. On the contrary. He makes her human by attributing her little
shortcomings. When she tells her story, how Don Fernando seduced and then
abandoned her, she scolds and reviles like a muleteer. And when she tries
to describe her journey, she confounds seaports with other cities, blushes
and looks for an evasion. Just, like a beginner in school. And exactly
those blunders, skillfully chosen by Cervantes, make her so lovable to the
reader. •1•

Also the feminine trio in the inn of Juan Palomeque has the sympathy of
Cervantes and the reader. Tired from the long ride, Don Quixote
immediately goes to sleep. But the others prefer to chat a bit and the
innkeeper and his women join them. They come to speak of Don Quixote and
his madness, for the innkeeper and the women know him already from a very
turbulent night. It turns out that the innkeeper has also two books on
chivalry a traveller left behind some time ago. He cannot read, but at
harvest time groups assemble in the inn and there is always someone who
reads for an interested audience. The innkeeper particularly enjoys the
bloodiest battles most. And when the parson wants to convince him of the
deceitfulness of the books of chivalry, he is obstinate and comes out with
a nice argument: those books wear the approbation of the king himself, so
they could contain no lies.

Then the parson asks the women. Compared with the wild exaggerations of
the innkeeper, their commentaries are rather realistic. And very
characteristic for each one of them. The wife of the innkeeper admits at
once a sympathy for the books of chivalry. At harvest time, when someone
was reading to a company, her husband sat there listening openmouthed.
That was fine, for she had a peaceful time and could do her work without
him meddling with it or standing in the way. The next who answers the
question is Maritornes, the ugly Asturian maid. She is enraptured of the
books of chivalry, especially of the appetizing love-scenes, when the
knight holds the lovely young lady firmly and kisses her tenderly. Such
scenes, she assures, fade away like honey on your tongue. Another aspect
is named by the adolescent daughter of the innkeeper. She likes the tender
complaints of the knights-errant. But confesses that it is hard to
understand why they do not marry their beloved ones.•2•

Cervantes, infatuated with revealing situations, has succeeded in
presenting the «libros de caballerías» from rather surprising points of
view. In the discussions between experts and fans of those books the
debate is mostly concerned with the categories of Aristotle, History vs.
Poetic inventions, Truth vs. Fantastic exaggerations, or the complexity of
probability. Cervantes breaks the fetters of the traditional discussion in
a most unconventional way. At the same time, he succeeds splitting up the
feminine trio in the house of Juan Palomeque in manner, not only striking,
but most amusing. Everyone of those women has well-determined features and
evokes our sympathetic interest. But only at the rim of the scene. As for
Cervantes, the outstanding star of them is the prudent, energetic and
humorous Dorotea. A peach of a girl.

Kurt Reichenberger

Notes

(1) With respect to Dorotea see «La ingeniosa Dorotea y su voluble don
Fernando». In: Kurt & Theo Reichenberger, Cervantes. »Don Quijote« y sus
mensajes destinados al lector. Traducido por Pablo Álvarez Ellacuria.
(Estudios de literatura 93). Kassel 2004. pp. 115-128. – Mª Carmen Marín
Pina, «Don Quijote, las mujeres y los libros de caballerías». In:
Cervantes y su mundo II. Eds. Kurt Reichenberger / Darío Fernández-Morera.
(Estudios de literatura 94). Kassel 2005. pp. 309-340.

(2) With respect to Maritornes see «La noche pasada en lo que don Quijote
creía castillo y la lasciva Maritornes». In: Kurt & Theo Reichenberger,
Cervantes. »Don Quijote« y sus mensajes destinados al lector. o.c., pp. 71-
75. – Joan F. Cammarata, «Descifrando los códigos de clase, cultura y
poder en el mundo de Cervantes». In: Cervantes y su mundo II. o.c., pp. 86-
100; – "Typological Forays: Maritornes, the Asturian Maid, and Her
Hagiografic Model." In: Kurt Reichenberger, Cervantes and the Hermeneutics
of Satire. (Estudios de literatura 94). Kassel 2005.

As a matter of fact, due to the exaggerated agressiveness of some
authoresses, the terms “feminism, feminist” etc. sound rather despective.
I am convinced Kurt does not mean that, but that by reading attentively
the Quijote, he has adopted from Cervantes the trick to shock the readers
by fresh formulations, thus stimulating them to decided reactions.

Well, what is your position in this case? Cervantes, is he, or is he not a
feminist?

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