Sinister Street · Chapter
IX: The Lesson of Spain explained
Michael's passion for Don Quixote leads him to Spain, where he seeks a constructive ideal of conduct.
What happens
Michael's passion for Don Quixote leads him to Spain, where he seeks a constructive ideal of conduct. He travels with Maurice Avery and Wedderburn, visiting Burgos Cathedral and reflecting on subordination, faith, and the contrast between Spanish Catholicism and the dreary mission work of Viner in Notting Hill. Upon returning, he finds Stella in Germany and his mother absorbed in a crusade against premature burial. Michael continues his Oxford religious explorations, attending meetings of De Rebus Ecclesiasticis and visiting various clergy, but remains unsatisfied.
Themes in this chapter
Religion and Spiritual Quest
Michael's journey to Spain and his encounters with Viner, Sandifer, Pallant, and the De Rebus Ecclesiasticis society highlight his ongoing search for faith and subordination.
Art and Self-Expression
Michael's collection of Don Quixote editions and the artistic endeavors of Maurice and Wedderburn in The Oxford Looking-Glass underscore the role of art in shaping identity.
The Passage of Time and Memory
Michael's attachment to the childhood copy of Don Quixote and his nostalgic reflections on Spain illustrate the interplay of memory and personal growth.
Characters to notice
- Michael Fane
Driven by his collection of Don Quixote editions, Michael travels to Spain seeking spiritual and philosophical clarity, and upon return engages with Oxford religious life.
- Maurice Avery
Accompanies Michael to Spain after his own Rome plans fall through; later becomes editor of The Oxford Looking-Glass.
- Stella Cunningham
Writes to Michael from Germany about her Brahms recitals and her desire to escape London and Prescott's attentions.
- Mr. Viner
Michael visits him in Notting Hill, bringing vestments from Spain; Viner represents a dreary but devoted mission priest.
- Alan Merivale
Michael meets Alan at Paddington; Alan is pale and worried about his Mods exams.
- Mrs. Fane
Michael's mother has shifted from Mental Science to a campaign against premature burial, and discusses cars with Dick Prescott.
Key passages
“However much the zest in Doré’s illustrations had died away in the flavor of Skelton’s English, Michael could not abandon the big volume with what it held of childhood’s first intellectual adventure.”
Even though Michael no longer enjoyed Doré's pictures as much as Skelton's translation, he couldn't part with the book because it reminded him of his first childhood intellectual discovery.
Michael's sentimental attachment to his first Don Quixote edition.
“The very soul of Spain seemed to be symbolized by those sere quartos of the seventeenth century, nor was it imperceptible even in Smollett’s cockney rendering bound in marbled boards.”
The essence of Spain appeared to Michael in those dry old books from the 1600s, and he could even sense it in Smollett's colloquial translation.
Michael's romanticized view of Spain through literature.
“He felt he needed a constructive ideal of conduct to sustain him through the long pilgrimage that must ensue after these hushed Oxford dreams.”
Michael believed he required a practical moral framework to guide him through the journey ahead, once his quiet Oxford days were over.
Michael's quest for a guiding philosophy.
“There was a dreariness about the ministrations of this Notting Hill Mission which had been absent from the atmosphere of Burgos Cathedral.”
The work of the Notting Hill Mission felt bleak compared to the majestic atmosphere of Burgos Cathedral.
Contrast between Viner's mission and Spanish Catholicism.
“Long ago had the priests learned subordination. They had been absorbed into the omnipotence of the church against which the gates of hell could not prevail.”
The Spanish priests had long ago accepted their place within the all-powerful church, which was invincible against evil.
Michael's admiration for the subordination he observed in Spain.
