The artwork titled “Don Quixote’s Moralising on Ingratitude,” created by the artist Gustave Doré, is an engraving belonging to the Romanticism movement. This piece is an illustration and part of the “Don Quixote” series. It resides in a private collection.
The artwork depicts a somber scene drawn from the novel “Don Quixote” by Miguel de Cervantes. The intricately detailed engraving shows Don Quixote, a knight adorned in his armor, collapsed on the ground in a position suggesting defeat or exhaustion. Nearby, his loyal horse, Rocinante, is seen lying on its side, lifeless and contorted, symbolizing the trials and tribulations faced by the knight. In the background, a group of horsemen on the ridge and a vast, desolate landscape contribute to the melancholic ambiance. The precise lines and shading typical of Doré’s engravings lend a dramatic and illustrative quality to this Romantic piece, encapsulating themes of struggle, idealism, and disillusionment.
