Don Giovanni, Critique of the short story

A detailed Summary of Don Giovanni, Critique of the short story

In Garrison Keillor's short story "Don Giovanni" the main character, Don Giovanni, is portrayed as a self centered, self serving, seducing womanizer. The story focuses on conversations held between "The Don" and Figaro. In these conversations "The Don" attempts to erode Figaro's positive views on marriage. The attitude that "The Don" has about women is negatively viewed by most societies, and it's because of this attitude that he ends up at the fiery gates of hell!

The story begins by setting up, in the mind of the reader, a mental picture of an old seducer preaching his philosophies through clouds of cigarette smoke. "The Don" says, "Figaro, my friend, a man owes it to himself to stop and consider the three advantages of single life. One, if you're single, you can think. Two, you can act. Three, you can feel...there is no prison so deadly as a life of unnecessities, which is what marriage is." In most religions marriage is

"The Don's" second downfall is his sexual habits. Any person who shares his/her bed with different partners, including the occasional married one, each night of the week, walks with a black cloud over his/her head. At one point in the story "The Don" tells Figaro that "Some men should have two lovers, some three; it depends on the man...I am selfish, Figaro, because I have a larger capacity for pleasure than other people do...this to me is the beauty of the male existence."

As proof that "The Don's" philosophies don't match those of the society that he lives in, the author uses Figaro as a foil. Don tries to convince Figaro that the monogamous life is inferior, and Figaro attempts to redeem "The Don's" soul. "The life of a libertine ends badly," Figaro says. " You get old, your teeth turn yellow, you smell like a mutt, and you have to pay women to look at you..." This passage shows how Figaro tries to convince "The Don" tha

Some common words found in the essay are:
Don Figaro, North Dakota, Don Giovanni's, Don Giovanni, Garrison Keillor's, don giovanni, story don, tries convince, don figaro, broke deal,

Approximate Word count = 627
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

join now Save Paper

Saved Paper

Save your papers so you can locate them quickly!

Newest Essays

Testimonials

"Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
Jack M.
"With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
Brian P.
"I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
Sara J.
"I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
Rachel W.
"I love this site!!!"
Marie N.