The legacy of antiquity forms a constituent part of Cervantes’ opus. The vicinity of the classical imaginarium, with which Cervantes became acquainted during his education and while living in Italy, is represented by classical elements, topics, and motifs. Through these, he establishes a constant dialogue with antiquity. However, the humanistic note in his opus is most noticeable in his constant defense of freedom and human dignity and the value of the human being, reflecting the Renaissance concept of the human person. Freedom becomes a key element and cornerstone of Cervantes’ poetics, linking to the Renaissance tradition. Cervantes frequently expresses the premise of human freedom and its fundamental value. This pro­nounced orientation toward freedom may be related to his personal experience and explained by his painful captivity in Algeria, where he spent five years. He started to write to survive and maintain clarity of mind and spirit. Cervantesu antični klasiki niso bili tuji, z njimi se je seznanil v času šolanja in med bivanjem v Italiji. Da mu je bil klasični svet blizu, dokazuje z vpletanjem antičnih elementov, snovi in motivike. Huma­nistična nota v njegovem delu je najbolj opazna v nenehni obrambi svobode in človeškega dostojanstva oziroma vrednosti človeškega bitja samega po sebi v skladu z renesančnim konceptom človeka. Svoboda kot ključni pojem in temelj Cervantesove poetike navezuje njegov opus na renesančno tradicijo. Premiso o človekovi svobodi in njeni temeljni vrednosti Cervantes izrazi na številnih mestih. Cervantesovo izrazito usmerjenost k svobodi in prežetost njegovega dela z njo pa je treba razumeti tudi skozi njegovo osebno izkušnjo in mučno ujetništvo v Alžiru, kjer je preživel pet let. Da bi preživel ter ohranil bistrost duha in razuma, je začel pisati.