The conflict between individual and society
The individual versus society conflict arises when an individual holds a belief at odds with societal beliefs or standards. The individual is then forced to decide whether to conform to societal beliefs or risk public scrutiny for continuing to believe in what he or she feels is right.
Don Quixote by Pablo Picasso, 1955[1]
[1] Le
Cloirec, Gwenola. "After Pablo Picasso. Don Quixote and Sancho -
Expertissim." After Pablo Picasso. Don
Quixote and Sancho - Expertissim.
Expertissim, n.d. Web. 16 June 2016.
<https://en.expertissim.com/after-pablo-picasso-don-quixote-sancho-12214027>.
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From Cervantes' Don Quixote, the persistent image we have is one of the Don “tilting at”, or jousting with, windmills. Described as the first modern novel, the first volume was published in 1605 and the image of fighting a battle that cannot be won has persisted and transcended cultures ever since. “While Cervantes is regarded now as the father of the Spanish language, he spent most of his lifetime as a loser, an outsider, a poor, struggling writer who ventured from city to city to make ends meet.”[2] In 1955 Pablo Picasso sketched Don Quixote for his friend Pierre Daix, who ran the weekly LES LETTRES françaises, in celebration of the 350th anniversary of the publication of Part I of Cervantes novel. In the sketch, Picasso draws Don Quixote on the right, astride Rocinante, a lance in his right hand and a shield in his left. Both the Don and his horse appear scrawny and tired. His companion, Sancho, is on the left and the windmills appear on the horizon. Despite the Don’s image of being thin and worn down, the difference in scale between Don Quixote and the windmills, the Don’s imagined giants, suggests a heroic nature in the Don. Despite the approbation of his peers, the Don did not give up his fight for truth and honor. The drawing is full of movement, imparted by the animated lines with which it is drawn.
[2] Conde,
Arturo. "Author: Cervantes' 'Don Quixote' Has Become A Handbook For
Life." NBC News. NBC News, 22 Apr. 2015. Web. 16 June 2016.
<http://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/author-cervantes-don-quixote-has-become-handbook-life-n345801>.
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