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Abstract

In this story, Borges, long before Barthes, proclaims the death of the author, The author is dead and the reader takes his place, This is possible through an "irreverent reading" of Don Quijote as practised by Borges, a reading based on "theft" and "betrayal".

Menard, when effecting a "total citation" of Cervantes' text, steals word by word, betraying likewise the notion of author and original. What Menard does is "to write his own reading of the Quijote, which, although becoming a literal copy, is radically distinct in meaning, because it is always read from a cultural tradition that is often constructed. The result is that there are as many Quijotes as readers of it.

As supplements, the ideas of Pierre Menard as Cervantes' predecessor are explored, and the superiority of the reader over the author. "The most difficult literary career is trhat of the reader", writes Macedonio Fernandez, secret source of all that is affirmed here.