“ A virtuous woman, too, is like a mirror, of clear shining crystal, liable to be tarnished and dimmed by every breath that touches it. She must be treated as relics are; adored, not touched. She must be protected and prized as one protects and prizes a fair garden full of roses and flowers, the owner of which allows no one to trespass or pluck a blossom ”
Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote (1605). copy citation
| Author | Miguel de Cervantes |
|---|---|
| Source | Don Quixote |
| Topic | mirror women |
| Date | 1605 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by John Ormsby |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/996/996-h/996-h.htm |
Context
“he must not put before her the mire of the gifts and attentions of persevering lovers, because perhaps--and even without a perhaps--she may not have sufficient virtue and natural strength in herself to pass through and tread under foot these impediments; they must be removed, and the brightness of virtue and the beauty of a fair fame must be put before her. A virtuous woman, too, is like a mirror, of clear shining crystal, liable to be tarnished and dimmed by every breath that touches it. She must be treated as relics are; adored, not touched. She must be protected and prized as one protects and prizes a fair garden full of roses and flowers, the owner of which allows no one to trespass or pluck a blossom; enough for others that from afar and through the iron grating they may enjoy its fragrance and its beauty. Finally let me repeat to thee some verses that come to my mind; I heard them in a modern comedy, and it seems to me they bear upon the point we are discussing.”
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