Don Quixote orders the lion's cage to be opened. The lion looks, yawns and lies down. And he proclaims himself the winner anyway.
What happens
On his way to new adventures, Don Quixote finds a cart carrying lions and demands that the cage be opened. The tamer is reluctant, but gives in. The lion just stretches, yawns and lies down again, indifferent.
Why does he win
Reality neither denies nor confirms heroism: it simply ignores it. Don Quixote transforms indifference into victory, because for him heroism lies in the willingness to face, not in the result. It is an anticipation of an existentialist idea: the subject is defined by the project, not by the outcome.
The Knight of Lions
From then on, Don Quixote adopted a new name: Knight of the Lions. The episode summarizes the logic of the work, in which courage is worth the intention that moves it.
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See recommended readingsFrequently asked questions
What is the lions episode?
It's the scene in which Don Quixote demands to open a lion's cage to confront him. The animal just yawns and lies down, and he declares himself the winner even without combat.
Why does Don Quixote declare himself the winner?
Because, for him, heroism is in facing, not in winning. The willingness is enough, even if reality ignores the gesture.
Don Quixote becomes Knight of the Lions?
Yes. After the episode, he exchanges the title of Knight of the Sad Figure for that of Knight of Lions.
Continue: Ortega's perspectivism · Don Quixote, Part 2: summary and analysis · Macbeth's descent into hell and Dante
Source class (YouTube): Dom Quixote, Parte Dois (NousCast)