Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote

One feature of “Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote” is the unique and paradoxical nature of Borges’s exploration of The Relationship Between Reader and Author. The absurdity of Menard’s quest to fully recreate Don Quixote from scratch is taken seriously by the fictional critic. This creates a clear sense of dramatic irony; the reader seems to be the only person privy to the idea that Menard’s project might be ridiculous and futile.

The absurd nature of the fictional project serves to highlight the tension between the stated intentions of an author and that author’s reception by readers. The majority of the text serves one of two functions for the reader: either stressing the importance of Menard’s literary credentials or analyzing the comparative weight of his Don Quixote versus the original.

The first half of the text is primarily concerned with making the reader aware of the literary importance of Pierre Menard. Early on, the critic states his whole reason for writing this piece of criticism: He wants to defend Menard’s reputation against the “omissions and additions perpetrated by Mme. Henri Bachelier in a deceitful catalogue” (Paragraph 1). Thus, Mme. Henri Bachelier is commentating on a recreation of Don Quixote, and the unnamed critic is responding to Bachelier’s response.