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Sancho Panza () is a
fictional character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, Play (theatre), play, Radio series, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or b ...
in the novel ''
Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Wester ...
'' written by Spanish author Don Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra in 1605. Sancho acts as
squire In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight. Use of the term evolved over time. Initially, a squire served as a knight's apprentice. Later, a village leader or a lord of the manor might come to be known as a ...
to Don Quixote and provides comments throughout the novel, known as ''sanchismos'', that are a combination of broad humour, ironic
Spanish proverbs Spanish proverbs are a subset of proverbs that are used in Western cultures in general; there are many that have essentially the same form and content as their counterparts in other Western languages. Proverbs that have their origin in Spanish have ...
, and earthy wit. "Panza" in Spanish means "belly" (cf. English "paunch," Italian "pancia", several Italian dialects "panza", Portuguese "pança", French "panse", Romanian "pântec").


''Don Quixote''

Before a fit of madness turned Alonso Quijano into Don Quixote, Sancho Panza was indeed his servant. When the novel begins, Sancho has been married for a long time to a woman named Teresa CascajoAlso known as Teresa Panza and ''Sancha'', a probable nickname derived from her husband's name. Later in the book, though, she is sometimes named Juana Gutiérrez, in an example of continuity failure. and has a daughter, María Sancha (also named Marisancha, Marica, María, Sancha, and Sanchica), who is said to be old enough to be married. Sancho's wife is described more or less as a feminine version of Sancho, both in looks and behaviour. When Don Quixote proposes Sancho to be his squire, neither he nor his family strongly oppose it. Sancho is illiterate and proud of it but by influence of his new master, he develops considerable knowledge about some books. Sancho instead provides the earthy wisdom of Spanish proverbs, surprising his master. During the travels with Don Quixote, he keeps contact with his wife by dictating letters addressed to her. Sancho Panza offers interpolated narrative voice throughout the tale, a literary convention invented by Cervantes. Sancho Panza is precursor to "the sidekick," and is symbolic of practicality over idealism. Sancho is the
everyman The everyman is a stock character of fiction. An ordinary and humble character, the everyman is generally a protagonist whose benign conduct fosters the audience's identification with them. Origin The term ''everyman'' was used as early as ...
, who, though not sharing his master's delusional "enchantment" until late in the novel, remains his ever-faithful companion realist, and functions as the clever sidekick. Salvador de Madariaga detected that, as the book progresses, there is a "Quixotization" of Sancho and a "Sanchification" of Don Quixote, so much that, when the knight recovers sanity on his deathbed, it is Sancho who tries to convince him to become pastoral shepherds. In the novel, Don Quixote comments on the historical state and condition of Aragón and
Castilla Castile, Castille or Castilla may refer to: Places Spain *Castile (historical region), a vaguely defined historical region of Spain covering most of Castile and León, all of the Community of Madrid and most of Castilla–La Mancha *Kingdom of ...
, which are vying for power in Europe. Sancho Panza represents, among other things, the quintessentially Spanish brand of skepticism of the period. Sancho obediently follows his master, despite being sometimes puzzled by Quixote's actions. Riding a donkey, he helps Quixote get out of various conflicts while looking forward to rewards of ''aventura'' that Quixote tells him of.


''Don Quixote, Part Two''


Sancho's name

Cervantes variously names Sancho in the first book Sancho Zancas (legs); however, in the second book, he standardizes Sancho's name in reply to the "false" Avellaneda Quixote sequel. At one point, Sancho alludes to the "false" Avellaneda book by addressing his wife (standardized as Teresa Panza) using the wrong name. The Sancho name does not change, but he calls his wife various names throughout the first part of the volume, and her 'true' name is not revealed until almost the end of that portion of the novel.


The promised insula

Don Quixote promises Sancho the governance of an ''ínsula'', or
island An island or isle is a piece of subcontinental land completely surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island in a river or a lake island may be ...
. However, Sancho has never heard of this word before and does not know its meaning. Sancho has long been expecting some vague but concrete reward for this adventure and believes the word to signify the prize that will make the trouble he has been enduring worthwhile. The two later encounter a duke and duchess who pretend to make Sancho governor of a fictional
fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of f ...
, ''la ínsula Barataria'' (roughly "Isle Come-cheaply"; see
Cockaigne Cockaigne or Cockayne () is a land of plenty in medieval myth, an imaginary place of extreme luxury and ease where physical comforts and pleasures are always immediately at hand and where the harshness of medieval peasant life does not exist. S ...
). He eagerly accepts and leaves his master. In a letter, Don Quixote gives Sancho provincial advice on governorship gleaned from the romances he has read, thought to have been inspired by the ''Diálogo de Mercurio y Carón'' attributed to Alfonso de Valdés (-1532). Quixote's simplistic and romantic understanding of government may be allegorical, with the use of ''ínsula'' satirising the lack of practical learning on the part of philosopher-doctors placed in positions of power. The Duke's servants are instructed to play several pranks upon Sancho. Surprisingly, Sancho is able to rule justly (mostly), applying common (if occasionally inconsistent) sense and practical wisdom in spite of, or because of simplistic advice that Don Quixote has read about. As Sancho is abused in these staged parodies, he learns how difficult it is to rule, and "resigns" to rejoin Don Quixote and to continue the adventure.


Ricote

Sancho encounters Ricote ("fat cat"), his former
Morisco Moriscos (, ; pt, mouriscos ; Spanish for "Moorish") were former Muslims and their descendants whom the Roman Catholic church and the Spanish Crown commanded to convert to Christianity or face compulsory exile after Spain outlawed the open ...
neighbor, who has buried a small fortune. Ricote, like all Moriscos, was expelled from Spain and has returned in disguise to retrieve the treasure he left behind. He asks Sancho for his help. Sancho, while sympathetic, refuses to betray his king. When Don Quixote takes to his deathbed, Sancho tries to cheer him. Sancho idealistically proposes they become
pastoral A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music ( pastorale) that de ...
shepherds and thus becomes 'Quixotized'.


Other appearances of the character


Broadway musical

In addition to stage and screen adaptations of the novel itself, Sancho Panza is a major character in the play within a play in the Broadway musical '' Man of La Mancha'', and in the film of the same name. In ''Man of La Mancha'', the newly imprisoned Cervantes recruits his fellow prisoners to portray characters from his novel, with Cervantes himself playing Don Quixote and his manservant playing Sancho. Sancho sings the title song as a duet with Quixote, solos "The Missive", "I like him", and "A Little Gossip", plus ensemble numbers "Golden Helmet of Mambrino" and "The Dubbing". Actors who have played Sancho in the play include
Irving Jacobson Irving Jacobson (June 18, 1898 - December 17, 1978) was a Yiddish theater star, American stage and film actor. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio to actors Joseph and Bessie Jacobson, his brother was Hymie Jacobson and his sister Henrietta Jacobson, who mar ...
(who also sang on the original cast album), Tony Martinez (1977 and 1992 revivals), and Ernie Sabella (2002 revival). James Coco played the character in the 1972 film.


Ship

''Sancho Panza'' of Boston was an 1855 medium clipper ship of 876 tons, built in Medford, MA by Samuel Lapham, and owned by John E. Lodge & Co. The ship was renamed ''Nimrod'' in 1863, upon sale to British owners, resold to German owners, and re-rigged as a
bark Bark may refer to: * Bark (botany), an outer layer of a woody plant such as a tree or stick * Bark (sound), a vocalization of some animals (which is commonly the dog) Places * Bark, Germany * Bark, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland Arts, ...
. ''Sancho Panza'' was bound for Liverpool, having left Pictou, N.S. on Oct. 31, 1890, but was not heard from again.


Additional appearances

*The Sancho Panza name is used for a cigar brand originating in Cuba in 1852. While it is still made in Cuba, a Honduran version made by General Cigar was introduced in 2001 for the United States market. *Panza is depicted in Pablo Picasso's 1955 drawing ''
Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Wester ...
''. *In
The Stranglers The Stranglers are an English rock band who emerged via the punk rock scene. Scoring 23 UK top 40 singles and 19 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are one of the longest-surviving bands to have origin ...
' song "
No More Heroes No More Heroes may refer to: Music * ''No More Heroes'' (album), a 1977 album by The Stranglers ** "No More Heroes" (The Stranglers song), the title track * "No More Heroes", a song by Westlife from the album ''Where We Are'' Video games * ...
", as well as a song entitled "Sancho Panza" by the Swedish twee pop group Hello Saferide. The name was also featured in the Bush track titled "Monkey" from the album Sixteen Stone. *The proposed name of a part of the planned Don Quijote space probe is "Sancho". Sancho would stand back and observe while the second part, "Hidalgo", slammed into an asteroid. *Sancho Panza is parodied as Sancho Panda, the
panda The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''), also known as the panda bear (or simply the panda), is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its bold black-and-white coat and rotund body. The name "giant panda" is sometimes use ...
sidekick in ''
The Adventures of Don Coyote and Sancho Panda ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'' by
Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer t ...
. *Sancho Panza is a character in the tone poem ''
Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Wester ...
'' by
Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic music, Romantic and early Modernism (music), modern eras, he has been descr ...
, in which he is represented by the solo viola, as well as the tenor tuba and bass clarinet playing in unison. *Sancho Panza is the main character in '' The Musical Sancho Panza'' by José Luis Narom, premiered in Madrid in 2005. *Sancho Panza is parodied as Sancho Pansa in a Super Nintendo Entertainment System game titled ''Jimmy Connors Pro Tennis''.


See also

* List of ''Don Quixote'' characters


Notes


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Panza, Sancho Sidekicks in literature Don Quixote characters Fictional Spanish people Fictional squires Literary characters introduced in 1605 Male characters in literature