the protagonist of Don Quixote charges an army of giants.

《唐吉訶德》的主角向一支巨人大軍進攻

In his eyes, it is his duty to vanquish these behemoths in the name of his beloved lady, Dulcinea.

在他眼中，他的職責就是要以他摯愛的女士杜爾西內亞之名殲滅這群巨獸

However, this act of valor is ill conceived.

然而這樣英勇的舉動是不明智的

As his squire Sancho Panza explains to him time and again, these aren't giants;

他的隨從桑丘．潘沙一再像他解釋，那些並不是巨人

they are merely windmills.

它們只是風車

Don Quixote is undeterred,

唐吉訶德不受任何阻擾

but his piercing lance is soon caught in their sails.

但他的槍矛很快就被它們的帆卡住了

Never discouraged,

信心絲毫未損

the knight stands proudly, and becomes even more convinced of his mission.

這位騎士驕傲地站起身，甚至變得更加堅定

This sequence encapsulates much of what is loved about Don Quixote,

這越挫越勇的過程說來就是人們之所以愛唐吉訶德的原因

the epic, illogical, and soulful tale of Alonso Quijano,

阿隆索．吉哈諾毫無邏輯且熱情滿載的史詩般故事

who becomes the clumsy but valiant Don Quixote of la Mancha, known as the Knight of the Sorrowful Countenance.

他也就是後來成為來自拉曼查英勇但卻笨拙的唐吉訶德的人，亦被熟知為「愁容滿面騎士」

Originally published in two volumes,

故事原先分為兩冊出版

the narrative follows Don Quixote as he travels through central and northern Spain fighting the forces of evil.

故事敘述唐吉訶德遊歷西班牙中部和北部，到處對抗惡勢力的過程

Despite Don Quixote's lofty imagination,

即便唐吉訶德有著高超的想像力

his creator, Miguel de Cervantes, could never have imagined his book would become the best-selling novel of all time.

他的創造者，米格爾．德．塞萬提斯做夢都想不到他的書會變成歷史上的暢銷作

Barring 5 years as a soldier,

被囚為士兵五年

and 5 more enslaved by pirates,

還有另一個五年是被海盜奴役

Cervantes spent most of his life as a struggling poet and playwright.

塞萬提斯大半人生都是個困苦奮鬥的詩人和劇作家

It wasn't until his late 50's that he published his greatest creation:

他一直到五十幾歲晚年才終於出版了他最偉大的著作：

an epic satire of chivalry novels.

一部史級詩的諷刺性騎士小說

At this time,

在當時

medieval books chronicling the adventures of knights and their moral code dominated European culture.

記錄騎士冒險和他們道德規範的中世紀書本主宰了歐洲文化

While Cervantes was a fan,

塞萬提斯雖然也是那些書的粉絲

he was weary of these repetitive tomes,

但也對那些重複性的書籍感到厭煩

which focused more on listing heroic feats than character development.

那些書多著重在列舉英雄事跡，而非角色的發展

To challenge them, he wrote Don Quixote,

為了挑戰它們，他寫了《唐吉訶德》

the story of a hidalgo, or idle nobleman, who spends his days and nights reading chivalry novels.

一個有關一位一整天遊手好閒、日夜閱讀騎士小說的鄉間貴族的故事

Driven mad by these stories,

被這些故事洗腦了

he fashions himself a champion for the downtrodden.

他於是將自己塑造為一位行俠仗義的騎士

Everyone in his village tries to convince him to give up his lunacy,

他村裡的每個人都試圖說服他恢復神智

going so far as to burn some of the lurid books in his personal library.

甚至將他私人圖書館中一些可怕的書都燒了

But Don Quixote is unstoppable.

但是堂吉訶德心意已決

He dresses up in old shining armor,

他穿上閃亮的老舊盔甲

mounts his skinny horse,

騎上他的瘦馬

and leaves his village in search of glory.

離開他的村子，踏上尋找榮耀的道路

Cervantes' novel unfolds as a collection of episodes detailing the mishaps of the valiant knight.

塞萬提斯的小說以一系列的章節開展，詳述了這位英勇騎士遭遇的各種災禍

Yet unlike the chivalry books and perhaps all other prior fiction,

然而和騎士文學還有或許也是當時所有既有的科幻小說不同的是

Cervantes' story deeply investigates the protagonist's inner life.

塞萬提斯的故事深深探討了主角的內心世界

Don Quixote matures as the narrative develops,

隨著故事發展，唐吉訶德也越來越成熟

undergoing a noticeable transformation.

經歷了顯著的轉變

This literary revelation has led many scholars to call Don Quixote the first modern novel.

這個新的書寫方式使得許多學者將《唐吉訶德》稱為第一步現代小說

And this character development doesn't happen in isolation.

而且這一個角色發展並不是單獨一人

Early on, Don Quixote is joined by a villager-turned-squire named Sancho Panza.

在很早的時候，唐吉訶德就有了一個叫做桑丘．潘沙的農村小夥子當隨從

Sancho and Don Quixote are a study in opposites:

桑丘和唐吉訶德可以被視為兩個對立的人：

with one as the grounded realist to the other's idealism.

一個是徹頭徹尾的現實主義者，另一個是理想主義者

Their lively, evolving friendship is often credited as the original hero and sidekick duo,

他們活潑、持續推展的友誼常被譽為是英雄和跟班的原版

inspiring centuries of fictional partnerships.

激發了幾世紀以來的科幻搭檔們

Don Quixote was a huge success.

唐吉訶德是一大成功

Numerous editions were published across Europe in the seventeenth century.

在 17 世紀，無數種版本在歐洲各地出版

Even in the Americas,

甚至是在美國

where the Church banned all novels for being sinful distractions,

當地教會嚴禁各種小說，將它們視為罪大惡極的娛樂

audiences were known to enjoy pirated editions.

讀者們則流行閱讀盜版版本

The book was so well received that

這本書獲得許多讚譽

readers clamored for more.

讀者叫嚷著還要看更多

After a rival author attempted to cash in on a fake follow-up, Cervantes released the official sequel in response.

隨著一名企圖賺進大把鈔票的競爭對手寫了假續集，塞萬提斯於是釋出了官方續集

Now published alongside the first volume as a completed text, this second volume picks up where the original left off,

現在上下冊作為一個完整的著作合在一起賣，下冊就是接續了上冊結束的地方

only now Don Quixote and Sancho have become folk heroes.

只不過在下冊中，唐吉訶德和桑丘成了民間英雄

Just as in real-life, Cervantes included his novel's success in the world of his characters.

就如同在現實生活中，塞萬提斯將他作品的成功也寫進了他角色的世界裡

This unconventional meta-awareness created philosophical complexity,

隨著騎士和他的隨從思考著他們自己故事的意義時

as the knight and his squire ponder the meaning of their story.

這種非常規的高度意識就創造出了哲學複雜性

Unfortunately, Cervantes had sold the book's publishing rights for very little.

不幸的是，塞萬提斯藉著版權賺得的收入相當微薄

He died rich in fame alone.

他過世時僅有一身的名氣

But his treatise on the power of creativity and individualism has inspired art,

他針對創造力和個人獨特性所帶有的力量加以論述，激發了藝術、

literature,

文學、

popular culture,

流行文化

and even political revolution.

甚至是政治革命

Don Quixote argues that our imagination greatly informs our actions,

唐吉訶德論述道，我們的想像力會大大影響我們的行為

making us capable of change,

使我們得以改變

and, indeed, making us human.

並根本上使我們得以為人