Oh Lord! -said the niece-, may your mercy be to burn, like others, because it would not be much that, having healed my lord uncle of chivalrous disease, reading these, you want to become a pastor and go through the forests and meadows singing and tañendo; And, what would be worse, become a poet; That, they say, it is incurable and catchy disease.
In the book "Don Quixote" by Miguel de Cervantes, a niece expresses her concern about the effects of chivalry on her uncle. She wishes that his affliction, the obsession with knight-errantry, could simply be cured by divine mercy. Instead, she fears that he may become a pastor, wandering through nature and singing, or worse, become a poet, which is often seen as an even more difficult condition to escape from. Her remarks reflect the light-hearted criticism of romantic ideals and the unpredictability of such passions.
The niece’s worried remarks highlight her belief that the ideal of chivalry, while noble, can lead one down a path of frivolity and madness. She draws attention to the ridiculousness of transforming one's life into a wandering minstrel or a poet, which she views as similar to the afflictions of chivalry. This illustrates the tension between societal expectations and personal aspirations, a recurring theme in the novel, as characters navigate the clash between fantasy and reality in their pursuits of love, adventure, and purpose.
