George Gordon, Lord Byron Romantic Poetry

His Life… Born January 22, 1788 Died April 19, 1824 in Greece Poet, Revolutionary Romantic poet by time period, Neo-classicist by style

Byron was raised as George Gordon His mother was emotionally difficult – pushing him away and then frantically drawing him to her for attention

His cousin, Baron Byron of Rochdale died in battle, and George became baron at the age of 10 He was poorly prepared for the responsibility and privilege that came with his new title He often over-spent his income He was periodically radical in the House of Lords, but was often on the side of the common man

Extremely handsome but clubfooted Constantly tried to impress by learning to box, swim, and ride He often overate and drank excessively so he would binge diet to lose weight Aside from occasional periods of depression, he was a good-natured young man and a good conversationalist

Ironically, he married someone for convenience to avoid the pursuit of another woman; they had a daughter and were soon separated Had several scandalous affairs, including one with his half-sister Augusta Because of this, a bad divorce from his wife, and his support of the French, his life in England was uncomfortable so he left forever

After leaving England, Byron “played hard” and wrote voraciously, producing some of his best work Bored with his frivolous life, Byron settled into a relationship and continued writing his most complex and famous work He encouraged English support of the Greek war for independence and left writing to help their cause

Byron planned to help the Greeks in their struggle for independence from Turkey He came down with a fever that ultimately killed him He was only 36 years old

His Work… Met Percy Shelley and Mary in Switzerland – started the “challenge” that created Mary’s Frankenstein

Classed as a Romantic because of the time in which he lived, but his style is actually neoclassical Byron was often critical of his fellow poets and was accused of sometimes writing to please his audience Byron was immensely popular in his day – it was not until his personal journals were available to the public that his followers began to see his true values

Byron did not write autobiographically as Wordsworth and Coleridge did; however, his work was often considered to be a reflection of his true identity – which is inaccurate His “Byronic hero” became what many consider to be representative of the time, inspiring sympathy and admiration from the reader for this dark, misguided soul Byron (and those close to him) saw his many moods and intense emotions; he was determined to tell the truth as he saw it about the world and about himself

Byron had a purpose in everything he did and wrote: “There are two sentiments to which I am constant – a strong love of liberty, and a detestation of cant.” - Byron to Lady Blessington Cant means to whine or complain – being insincere Cant – insincere, especially conventional expressions of enthusiasm for high ideals, goodness, or piety.