All translations from Spanish, except where indicated, are mine. Non-English titles in the text are translated on first mention of the work, except when the title consists of a name or the sense is self-evident. In referring to Cervantes's works, I have used the editions specified in the Preliminary Note of the Bibliography at the end of the book.

Abbreviated references to the text of Don Quixote conform to the following example: DQ I, 32; p. 373 or I, 32; p. 373, where the first two numbers correspond to Part and Chapter, and the third to the page.

In referring to works of modern criticism in the text, I have used the author/date or author/date/page system, keyed to Section C of the Bibliography. For example, the abbreviation ‘(Riley 1986: 100)’ would refer to page 100 of the book by E.C. Riley published in 1986. ‘Murillo (1975)’, would refer to the book by L.A. Murillo published in 1975, and so on. Where the Bibliography lists two or more works by the same author published in the same year – for example, 2004 – references to the first work that is listed would have the form 2004a, to the second, 2004b, and so on.

In referring to pre-modern texts other than those by Cervantes, I have used a rather fuller abbreviated system, consisting of author's name, brief title, editor's name, date of edition if helpful, page number. Full publication details may be found in section B of the Bibliography.