Cervantes on good writing

Wed, 25 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

...puesto que es mejor ser loado de los pocos sabios que burlado de
los muchos necios, no quiero sujetarme al confuso juicio del
desvanecido vulgo, a quien por la mayor parte toca leer semejantes
libros.

  — Don Quixote, Chapter XLVIII

Loosely translated by me, Cervantes says that “given that it’s best to be praised by a few wise than mocked by many fools, I don’t want to hold on to the confusing judgment of the faded layman, to whom, for the most part, it falls to read such books.”

The fictional character that speaks in this way is el canónigo—the canonist—who thought about publishing a book about knights-errant in a way that’s agreeable with the fine art of literature, and not some nonsense agreeable with the masses.

This dilemma remains the same throughout the centuries. Contemporary authors that are considered “successful” are, more often than not, producing fast literature because that’s what the industry demands, sacrificing quality over quantity. There’s an economical aspect that justifies this behavior; writers by profession need to eat, and they need to deliver to their editors fast enough to meet their deadlines.

We later read:

  Y no tienen la culpa desto los poetas que las componen, porque algunos
  hay dellos que conocen muy bien en lo que yerran, y saben
  estremadamente lo que deben hacer, pero como las comedias se han
  hecho mercadería vendible, dicen, y dicen verdad, que los
  representantes no se las comparían si no fuesen de aquel jaez; y
  así, el poeta procura acomodarse con lo que el representante que
  le ha de pagar su obra le pide.
  
    — Don Quixote, Chapter XLVIII

A rough translation could read: “It is not the fault of the poets that compose them, because there are some of them that know very well where they err, and absolutely know what they must do, but given that comedies became saleable merchandise, they say, and they say truly, that agents would not buy them if they don’t belong to that sort; and so, the poet procures to befit what the agent who is going to pay is asking for.”

Does that mean that quality writing belongs only to the privileged minority that can afford not to work for a living? Absolutely not. History is packed with examples about writers dealing with draining day jobs to make ends meet, such as Kafka working at insurances companies, Orwell doing dish-washing, or Borges acting as a librarian. It also teaches us examples about writers that got commercial success writing what their era was demanding from them, to later persevere and reach an artistic achievement. Such was the case for Fitzgerald and The Great Gatsby.

Pragmatism may demand to succumb to editorials requests, under penalty of not being published at all, but that must not be the only purpose for writing, nor must it be spurious motives such as making it to the industry of a so-called “best-sellers” list. Great authors push through the boundaries or their era because they endure, care for their craft, and do not betray their art.

Don Quixote was published in 1605, and I find remarkable how his words are still relevant today, more than four hundred years later. Cervantes might have struggled himself with the creation of Don Quixote, and el canónigo may reminisce his initial concerns. I, for one, am glad that he pushed through.

Musings | Raul Benencia

Cervantes on good writing