[1] Ginés first appears as a criminal freed by Don Quixote in the 22nd chapter of the first part of the novel.

He later reappears as Maese Pedro, a puppeteer who claims that he can talk to his monkey, in the 25th and 26th chapters of the second part.

Prior to his release by Don Quixote, Ginés tells him that he is in the process of writing his autobiography.

"So good is it," replied Gines, "that a fig for 'Lazarillo de Tormes,' and all of that kind that have been written, or shall be written compared with it: all I will say about it is that it deals with facts, and facts so neat and diverting that no lies could match them."

finished?This is the only reference to the popular novel Lazarillo de Tormes in the main narrative of the book (Lazarillo, specifically an episode in which he uses a straw to steal wine from a blind man, is also mentioned in one of the "commendatory verses" before the narrative), and it acts as a foil for Don Quixote's will to be a literary hero in his own lifetime.