full transcript

From the Ted Talk by Ilan Stavans: Why should you read "Don Quixote"?

Unscramble the Blue Letters


Mounting his skinny steed, the protagonist of Don Quixote charges an army of gnitas. In his eyes, it is his duty to vanquish these behemoths in the name of his beevlod lady, Dulcinea. However, this act of valor is ill conceived. As his squire Sancho Panza elipnxas to him time and again, these aren’t giants; they are merely wlnmdliis. Don Quixote is ueetdrrned, but his piercing lance is soon caught in their sails. Never discouraged, the knight sadnts proudly, and becomes even more cciennovd of his mission.

This sequence encapsulates much of what is loved about Don Quixote, the epic, illogical, and soulful tale of Alonso Quijano, who becomes the cmusly but valiant Don Quixote of la Mancha, known as the Knight of the Sorrowful cnennauctoe. Originally pueibhlsd in two vmeouls, the narrative follows Don Quixote as he travels through central and northern Spain fighting the forces of evil.

Open Cloze


Mounting his skinny steed, the protagonist of Don Quixote charges an army of ______. In his eyes, it is his duty to vanquish these behemoths in the name of his _______ lady, Dulcinea. However, this act of valor is ill conceived. As his squire Sancho Panza ________ to him time and again, these aren’t giants; they are merely _________. Don Quixote is __________, but his piercing lance is soon caught in their sails. Never discouraged, the knight ______ proudly, and becomes even more _________ of his mission.

This sequence encapsulates much of what is loved about Don Quixote, the epic, illogical, and soulful tale of Alonso Quijano, who becomes the ______ but valiant Don Quixote of la Mancha, known as the Knight of the Sorrowful ___________. Originally _________ in two _______, the narrative follows Don Quixote as he travels through central and northern Spain fighting the forces of evil.

Solution


  1. published
  2. convinced
  3. clumsy
  4. explains
  5. beloved
  6. undeterred
  7. countenance
  8. stands
  9. volumes
  10. giants
  11. windmills

Original Text


Mounting his skinny steed, the protagonist of Don Quixote charges an army of giants. In his eyes, it is his duty to vanquish these behemoths in the name of his beloved lady, Dulcinea. However, this act of valor is ill conceived. As his squire Sancho Panza explains to him time and again, these aren’t giants; they are merely windmills. Don Quixote is undeterred, but his piercing lance is soon caught in their sails. Never discouraged, the knight stands proudly, and becomes even more convinced of his mission.

This sequence encapsulates much of what is loved about Don Quixote, the epic, illogical, and soulful tale of Alonso Quijano, who becomes the clumsy but valiant Don Quixote of la Mancha, known as the Knight of the Sorrowful Countenance. Originally published in two volumes, the narrative follows Don Quixote as he travels through central and northern Spain fighting the forces of evil.

Frequently Occurring Word Combinations


ngrams of length 2

collocation frequency
don quixote 12
sancho panza 2
chivalry novels 2
character development 2


Important Words


  1. act
  2. alonso
  3. army
  4. behemoths
  5. beloved
  6. caught
  7. central
  8. charges
  9. clumsy
  10. conceived
  11. convinced
  12. countenance
  13. discouraged
  14. don
  15. dulcinea
  16. duty
  17. encapsulates
  18. epic
  19. evil
  20. explains
  21. eyes
  22. fighting
  23. forces
  24. giants
  25. ill
  26. illogical
  27. knight
  28. la
  29. lady
  30. lance
  31. loved
  32. mancha
  33. mission
  34. mounting
  35. narrative
  36. northern
  37. originally
  38. panza
  39. piercing
  40. protagonist
  41. proudly
  42. published
  43. quijano
  44. quixote
  45. sails
  46. sancho
  47. sequence
  48. skinny
  49. sorrowful
  50. soulful
  51. spain
  52. squire
  53. stands
  54. steed
  55. tale
  56. time
  57. travels
  58. undeterred
  59. valiant
  60. valor
  61. vanquish
  62. volumes
  63. windmills