Author: Laura Muñoz
Peer-Reviewers: Kathryn McClain and James Fleury
Website Developer: Kristen Figgins

Assignment Overview

Summary: Throughout this course, first-year students read Don Quijote de la Mancha as their primary source text while also learning about the process of adapting the novel for film. Each week, we focused on different aspects of the filmmaking process, such as creating musical motifs or the composition of mise-en-scène, while watching illustrative examples from existing film adaptations of the novel. The assignment’s purpose was to have students engage in several aspects of the adaptation process in a way that would be more flexible than the final project. The goal was to have students reimagine an aspect of their source text for a different medium, which may or may not have been associated with the filmmaking process. Students were encouraged to think outside the box, and many ran with it! 

Some examples of adaptations included:

• Reimagining characters as different types of financial stocks based on interpretations of character personalities and actions (Quijote as high-risk, high-reward)
• Creating color palettes for characters, like those used in film and theater design, by matching color theory to interpretations of characters
• Applying the criteria of the library scene in Quijote (characters go through Don Quixote’s library and decide on books to keep vs. burn) in relation to books students had read in high school 
• Creating a storyboard adapting a scene from the novel into film/animation

While the quality of the adapted material varied, the results were highly successful in getting students to do a close reading of the novel and then transfer their interpretation of the text across media. A key aspect of this assignment is that students had to present their adaptations to the class, who would then determine how successful they felt the adaptations had been.

Instructions Provided to Students:

Each student is required to prepare two (2) adaptation exercises which they will present to the class. Students may choose any element from the novel DQ (e.g., a scene or a character) and may recreate or reimagine this element in any medium they choose. The purpose of these exercises is for students to practice visualizing and presenting their interpretation of the novel in a different medium or format. They will present their adaptation during the class session, explaining how they have interpreted the original text and why they have chosen their specific medium. Students may choose to present at any point in the semester, but can complete only one presentation per class session. 

Potential Projects: 

• Develop a storyboard of a scene from the novel
• Create a playlist for a specific episode of the novel (windmills; Rocinante feeling frisky)
• Create sound design, theme, or motif for a specific character
• Rewrite a monologue or scene from the perspective of a character in the novel
• Write a pitch for an adaptation of the novel (can include visuals)
• Create a vision board for mise-en-scène (color scheme; lighting; props)
• Choose props for recreating a specific scene 
• Make short videos or imagine something from the novel

Presentation in Class:

The in-class presentation is no more than 5 minutes and should address the following questions:

1. What aspect of the novel inspired your adaptation?
2. What medium have you chosen for your adaptation? Why choose this medium?
3. How does this adapted work showcase your interpretation?
4. Anything you learned from this experience?

Author Bio

Laura Muñoz is an Assistant Professor of Spanish at Colorado Mesa University whose teaching spans introductory language instruction, literary survey courses for medieval and early modern Spanish literature, and Spanish for the professions, especially translation and interpreting. Her research focuses on sixteenth and seventeenth-century Spanish theater with specializations in bilingual theater, translation studies, and adaptation studies. As a member of the Diversifying the Classics initiative at UCLA she has collaborated with theater artists on pedagogical materials introducing K-12 students to early modern Spanish literature, creating everything from theater games about Spanish history to a 12 week curriculum for high school students to work with Guillén de Castro’s The Force of Habit [La fuerza de la costumbre]. These pedagogical materials are available as open-access resources as part of Classics in the Classroom.

About the Adaptation Today Pedagogy Series

Adaptation Today is a free, accessible resource for all academics and students who are interested in adaptation, especially graduate students, contingent scholars, and early career researchers. The pedagogy series creates a space of community and resource-sharing, with rolling deadlines for submission. See our CFP page to see how you can submit your own syllabi, lesson plans, assessments, and blog posts for publication.