Knight's he(art): in search of Angelica and Dulcinea for the different chronotopes of Orlando furioso e Don Quixote de La Mancha

Abstract

This work intends to analyze Orlando furioso (1532), by Ludovico Ariosto, and Don Quixote of la Mancha (1605), by Miguel de Cervantes, by comparison. Although they are separated by more than seventy years, and they are works that reflect the society of distinct nations, it is possible to notice the deep dialogue that exists between them. At first, one of the most striking points is the question of the search. There is almost always a character looking for something: a person, a place, a horse, or even adventure and glory. However, there are two characters that best represent this incessant aspiration: Angelica, in the Italian work, and Dulcinea, in the Spanish case. Orlando spends most of the story searching for his beloved, and it is because of her that he becomes furious (crazy). Not counting the other movements that are provoked, directly or indirectly, by Angelica. And Don Quixote also moves in the work because of his lady. It is for her that he becomes a knight, and it is for her that he seeks adventures, with the intention of becoming famous and worthy of her love. Since the characters are almost always moving in the story, they go through different chronotopes, such as islands, castles, a burrow, and even the Moon, each with its own particularities. In view of these issues, this work aims to demonstrate the importance of these two female figures, Angelica and Dulcinea, because they both act as engines, that move the story, making the characters to face the most different types of adventures, in the most diverse and wonderful chronotopes. To achieve the expected results, this research will use the studies of Jacques Le Goff, Mikhail Bakhtin, Anthony Close, Jean Canavaggio, Mario Santoro, Luigi Scorrano, among others. (AU)