Cardenio

Also known as: The Knight of the Thicket / The Ragged One / The Ragged One of the Sorry Countenance / the Ragged One / the Ragged One of the Sorry Countenance / the madman / the ragged knight of the Sierra / the unfortunate Cardenio · Role: the Ragged One of the Sorry Countenance · First appears: Part 1, Ch. 23.3

In Part 1, Ch. 23, Cardenio is found in Sierra Morena in torn clothes, performing severe penance and living through fits of madness. His ravings reveal his hatred of Don Fernando, whom he accuses of betrayal, while the goatherd and his companions plan to seize him and take him to Almodóvar for treatment. Don Quixote resolves to search the mountain for him, and when they meet, Sancho Panza and the goatherd feed him before he begins recounting his misfortunes; during another fit, Cardenio attacks Don Quixote, Sancho Panza, and the goatherd.

In Ch. 24, Cardenio tells how he and Luscinda loved one another from childhood and expected to marry. He enters the household of Duke Ricardo as the companion of his eldest son, where he becomes closely befriended by Don Fernando and tries to dissuade him from his own dishonest course. After Luscinda urges him to seek her hand, Don Fernando secretly reads their letters, promises to arrange the marriage, and instead plots to ruin Cardenio. When Luscinda is forced toward marriage with Don Fernando, Cardenio leaves the city in despair; his mule dies, and he becomes a starving fugitive, sheltering in a cork tree while compassionate herdsmen and goatherds leave him food.

By Ch. 27, the curate and the barber find Cardenio living in misery, and he completes the account of his betrayal. In Ch. 29, he reveals himself to Dorothea as “the unfortunate Cardenio” and promises not to abandon her until she is restored to Don Fernando, accepting the curate’s help and disguise. At the inn, Cardenio and the curate restrain the innkeeper when he attacks Don Quixote; Cardenio later helps manage the departure with Don Fernando and directs Sancho Panza as Don Quixote is carried away in the cage.

In Ch. 36, Cardenio and Luscinda recognize each other, and she embraces him as her true husband. Don Fernando accepts their union and embraces them with affection. Cardenio then continues offering help to others, including Dorothea, Don Luis, and the captive, while taking part in the arrangements surrounding Don Quixote’s removal.