DON QUIXOTE
作者简介：
塞万提斯(Miguel de Cervantes，1547-1616)生于西班牙马德里近郊。他的父亲是位不得意的外科医生，因此，他自幼即随同其父到处迁徙。一五六九年他至罗马游历。两年后，在勒班图(Lepanto)海战中，丧失了左手。一五七五年，由义大利返回西班牙途中，被海盗捕捉，沦为奴隶，五年后才被赎救出来。回到西班牙，塞万提斯开始了他的文学生涯。可是，因为写作不足以维持起码的生活，他也替政府做些小差事谋生。一五九二年及一五九七年，他两度被捕入狱。在狱中，完成了不朽巨作「唐吉诃德」。
In a little village in La Mancha, Spain, there lived a gentleman named Alonso Quijano. He was a thin man of fifty years or so.
Quijano's hobby was to read books about knights who traveled everywhere to save young ladies, to fight giants, and to kill dragons. He read these books so often that he believed he could become a knight. He found an old suit of armor, a lance, and a lean horse, which he called Rosinante. He picked the name of Don Quixote for himself. Moreover, he chose a simple country girl, Alodnza Lorenzo, and gave her the beautiful name of Dulcinea del Toboso.
One morning Don Quixote traveled to an inn. Since he believed that the inn was a castle, he asked the innkeeper to make him a knight. That night he fought with some guests, because they touched his armor and refused to admit Dulcinea's beauty.
Later Don Quixote asked Sancho Panza, a farmer, to become his servant. He promised to give Sancho an island to rule in the future. So the two men set out for adventures.
They saw many windmills in the plain. Don Quixote believed them to be giants and rode Rosinante quickly toward them. He was hit by a rotating windmill blade, and thrown from his horse to the ground. Sancho hurried and picked him up.
Shortly afterward they met two monks traveling with a lady. Don Quixote imagined that she was a captive princess. He drove away the two monks but her servants beat Sancho.
At an inn Quixote fought a porter over a servant girl. He was injured by the porter. In the morning he refused to pay the innkeeper. For this Sancho was tossed up in the air on the blanket as punishment for his master's debt.
Later, as they had resumed their journey, Don Quixote and Sancho saw a cloud of dust in the distance. Believing this to be the enemy, Don Quixote galloped to the scene and killed two of the creatures there. Alas, the creatures which he killed were only sheep from two harmless flocks. The shepherd was angry and threw stones at Don Quixote, knocking him down.
That evening, Don Quixote observed a funeral in progress. He attacked the priests conducting the funeral, believing the religious men to be monsters.
Next the knight took away a big basin from a barber. He considered it to be the golden helmet of a hero in the past. Then he set free a gang of chained prisoners, but he was insulted by their talking about his lady, the pretty Dulcinea.
Now Don Quixote believed it necessary to repent for his sins. So he tortured himself in every way possible.
Soon they came to the inn where Sancho had been tossed in the air on a blanket. There he again got into trouble by harming some of the guests. Fortunately his friends came in time to take him home.
But it was not long before Don Quixote and Sancho were traveling again. This time they planned to look for Dulcinea. One day a playful duke, who had heard of their adventures, invited them to his castle. He pretended to treat them as heroes and made fun of them. Here Sancho's dream to rule an island came true. The duke gave him the town of Barataria on his estate. Every day the duke ordered some people to cause Sancho trouble on purpose. Sancho became angry and tired of the whole thing. Then in a mock battle he was attacked by his people. So, Sancho decided to leave the town of Barataria, and continue onward with his master, Don Quixote.
Some time later, a friend of Don Quixote named Carrasco, disguised as a knight, defeated Don Quixote in a fight.
At home Alonso Quijans's health quickly worsened and he felt very sad. He believed that he would never see his lovely Dulcinea. Moreover, Sancho was unable to cheer him up. Don Quixote became fatally ill.
On his death bed he came to realize that his dream to achieve the knighthood was in vain . He regretted his actions, and also that he had caused so much trouble for his friend, Sancho.
注解：
hobby 嗜好
knight 武士
armor 盔甲
lance 矛
lean 瘦
castle 城堡
admit 承认
adventure 冒险
windmill 风车
rotating 旋转中的
blade 风车叶
captive 被监禁的
porter 门房；看门人
over 为了
tossed up 被抛上去
resume 重新进行
gallop 快跑；奔驰
scene 现场
flock 一群(马、羊)
shepherd 牧羊人
observe 注意到
basin 水盆
golden helmet 金盔
chained 被锁著的
repent 忏悔
torture 苦刑
duke 公爵
estate 地产
mock battle 群殴
disguise 伪装
worsen 转坏
fatally ill 病入膏肓