Each of us is the maker of his own Fortune

“Each of us is the maker of his own Fortune” is a proverb Don Quixote uses after his defeat by the Knight of the White Moon to interpret responsibility, providence, and the cost of overconfidence. Its force lies in the tension between his claim that people shape their own fortunes and his belief that nothing happens outside heaven’s preordination.

The Saying in Context

As he leaves Barcelona, Don Quixote looks back at the place where he fell and describes it as the point where his happiness ended and the glory of his achievements was dimmed. Sancho Panza answers with a contrasting account of Fortune as blind and whimsical: he had been glad as a governor and remains untroubled now that he is again a squire on foot. Don Quixote praises Sancho’s good sense, then rejects Fortune as an independent power. In his view, events, whether good or bad, occur by heaven’s special preordination.

Responsibility and Defeat

Don Quixote immediately turns the proverb upon himself. He says that he has been the maker of his own fortune, but failed to exercise sufficient prudence. His confidence led him to risk a contest without considering that Rocinante could not withstand the great bulk of the Knight of the White Moon’s horse. The saying therefore does not serve as a boast of mastery: in this scene it names responsibility for a costly misjudgment. Don Quixote acknowledges that he was overthrown and lost his honor, while distinguishing that loss from the virtue he can still preserve by keeping his word.

Promise and Meaning

The proverb becomes a hinge between defeat and the next stage of Don Quixote’s life. He resolves to fulfill the promised year of retreat in his own country, accepting the consequence of the defeat rather than evading it. At the same time, he says that the seclusion will let him regain strength before returning to arms. The passage holds self-determination and providence together: Don Quixote regards his choices as consequential, even while denying that events happen by chance.