A recurring motif in Don Quixote is the love relationships that develop between males and females and the many different consequences that these relationships can have. In fact, most of the "stories" present in the text of the novel are driven in some way by the force of love. Don Quixote's actions are supposedly all spurred on by his love for his lady Dulcinea del Toboso, a woman whom he has never physically met. Throughout the play, Cervantes appears to criticize notions of courtly love and how it would function in real society, stating that the idealistic belief in courtly love does not translate well into the real world2E Love, for Cervantes, cannot exist under false pretenses and false emotions; it should be based on genuine feelings of compassion and exist only between two individuals who share an equal bond of respect and understanding. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The first significant story in which love plays an important role is the story involving the shepherdess Marcela and how her incredible beauty inflames the desires of those around her. Former student Grisostomo falls in love with this lady for her otherworldly beauty; a physical attraction that comes only from the desire for sexual gratification and is not rooted in any kind of real human love between two people. Eventually, Grisostomo's feelings become so strong that they drive him into a state of extreme desperation from which he will eventually die. While such a situation may seem far-fetched today, Cervantes is perhaps over-dramatizing the events so as to effectively satirize some of the concepts and ideas about love that may have been prevalent in his time. This is made clear in the telling of the story that Marcela was in no way trying to attract men's desires to her heavenly body or make them fall madly in love with her. In telling the story to Don Quixote, Pedro says, "No, she was so careful of her honor that, of all those who wooed and wooed her, none ever boasted, and indeed none of them could have boasted, that she gave him had given even the tiniest, tiniest prospect of getting what he wanted." (66). Recognition of this statement should automatically render all complaints about Marcela's shyness absurd; she doesn't make men love her, so she shouldn't be blamed for any of the consequences of their physical attractions. Those who pine for Marcela become so consumed by their obsessions that they fail to see where the blame for their anguish and anguish lies. falsely place it on Marcela's shoulders. Only a few sentences after his previous statement about how Marcela never induces her suitors, Pedro adds: "And yet, living like this, she does more damage, here on this earth, than if she brought the plague, because her pleasantness and her beauty she attracts the hearts of those who deal with her, and then they court her and love her, but her contempt and honesty drive them to despair, and they know not what to say to her except to call her cruel and ungrateful, and other things like that, which is actually the way he behaves." (66). Because of this attitude towards her, many people place the blame for Grisostomo's death on Marcela, sometimes even acting as if what she did to him amounted to murder. On page 67, one of the men calls her "the murderous shepherd", while Grisostomo's best friend, Ambrosio, does not hesitate to place the burden of responsibility on Marcela's shoulders. He says, “It was here…where Marcela last time, like thiscontemptuously, so abruptly, put an end to it, and pushed him to end the tragedy of his miserable life" (72). Although many might blame Marcela for the After Grisostomo's death, Cervantes subtly criticizes the actions of the her suitors by portraying them as irrational and sometimes pathetic. She clearly does not try to inspire pity in us for Chrysostom's fate; instead she uses his death as a tool to illustrate the traps and ridiculous consequences that can arise from courtly love or based love; merely on physical desire. Marcela's own words seem to speak very reasonably and clearly illustrate Cervantes' view on the matter. Marcela defends herself by exclaiming: "Heaven... has made me beautiful--so beautiful that it moves you.. .but I don't understand how, since it is loved, what is loved for its beauty is obliged to love those who love it" (77). Marcela then goes on to define the difference, in her eyes and probably in Cervantes's, between love and desire. He says: "...because everything beautiful does not inspire love... Some beauties are beautiful to look at, but do not arouse affection... And according to what I have heard, true love is not divisible, and must be voluntary , not forced." (77). Marcela clearly does not love those who love her, nor does she attempt to enhance the desires of those who love her. She cannot therefore be blamed for Grisostomo's disappearance; the man was a victim of his false vision of love. The love between Cardenio and Lucinda is perhaps the best example in the novel of what Cervantes thinks true love should be. The affection between these two people is mutual, as Cardenio says when telling his story to Don Quixote and Sancho: "I loved, desired and adored this Lucinda almost from the moment I was born, and she loved me, with all innocence and the simple good will of childhood." (144). When Don Fernando treacherously steals Lucinda from Cardenio, Cardenio goes mad and becomes a tormented soul living his distraught existence in the Sierra Morena mountains. His afflictions parallel those of Chrysostom, who also suffered greatly when he was denied the one he adored. However, Cardenio's situation is different because Lucinda actually loves Cardenio. For this reason, Cervantes does not let Cardenio suffer a fate similar to that of Grisostomo and instead allows him to get his beloved Lucinda back. The character of Don Fernando serves to show the destructive power that false love can have, as it is his inability to control his desire that leads to so much anguish for Cardenio, Lucinda, and Dorotea. Don Fernando initially desires Dorotea strongly, telling her that he is in love with her and asking her to give in to his desires. His feelings of love for her, however, cannot be genuine, because as Dorotea explains, "And he had barely seen me when, as he later told me, he fell just as madly in love with me..." (181). These feelings Don Fernando felt were of lust, and it was these desires that drove him to trick Dorotea into sleeping with him if he promised her his hand in marriage. Don Fernando's desire then turns towards Lucinda, whom he treacherously rescues from his clutches. of his friend Cardenio and gets married. This marriage is also not destined to survive because true love has nothing to do with it; the feelings Don Fernando has for Lucinda, however great they may be, are based more on lust than love, and Lucinda cannot return the affection because her love goes to Cardenio. In the end, things work out between all these characters because Dorotea convinces Don Fernando that she is the one who should belong to him. He states that love must exist between two people who share equal affections for each other: "And if you think about it, how much easier it will be to bend someone who adores you to your will,.