The Byronic Hero
Mrs. Cumberland
Objectives:
1.
To study the concept of the
“Byronic hero” and to show how
it grew out of Byron’s own
experiences
2.
To recognize the recurrent nature
of this character type
George Gordon, Lord Byron ( 17881824)
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A stormy, sensitive, fiercely proud man
He was the son of a spend thrifty army
captain known as “mad Jack Byron.”
His mother, an emotionally unstable woman,
alternately pampered him and taunted him
about his one physical imperfection- a
clubfoot
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Of noble birth, Byron nevertheless lived in
near poverty until he reached an age of ten,
when he inherited his great-uncle’s estate,
Newstead Abbey
This inheritance enabled him to attend
Cambridge, where he gained a reputation as
an accomplished athlete, especially in
swimming and boxing
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After graduating, he traveled throughout
Europe and parts of Asia
He recorded his impressions in a highly
fictionalized account of his travels in the
narrative poem, Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage
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After publication of the first two cantos of the
work, Byron said, “I awoke one morning to
find myself famous.”
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Suddenly he was the darling of high society,
invited to a dizzying array of social events,
where he was often the center of attention
Women flung themselves at him, and he
usually didn’t turn them away
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He foolishly married a very prim lady, then
found himself embroiled in a scandalous
divorce case
His excesses were no longer winked at, and
the society that had lionized him became his
enemy
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He left England, spending the rest of his
years ins elf-imposed exile
He wandered across Europe, writing bitter
satirical verse aimed at the hypocrisy of the
society that he had felt had betrayed him
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His love for freedom ultimately led him to
Greece, where he joined the cause of Greek
independence from Turkey
He became an officer in the Greek army, but,
before he ever saw battle, died of a fever in a
Greek army camp
He was 36 years old
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Byron’s poetic heroes are idealized portraits
of himself
They are mysterious, somewhat exotic
creatures whose passionate intensity cute
them off from others
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They suffer from profound yearnings that re
beyond the comprehension of lesser persons
Aware of their superiority, these Byronic
heroes are frequently aloof, sometime sullen
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They show disdain for the petty regulations
of society
They are sometimes imprisoned or become
voluntary exiles, living examples of the
restless spirit of the Romantics
Video clips of Byronic Heroes
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James Dean in “Rebel without a cause”
Clark Gable in “Gone with Wind”
Humphrey Bogart in “Casablanca”
The Romantic Outsider
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Complete worksheet
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Why are such character so appealing?
Byronic Hero: characteristics that
were highly valued of ourselves
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Mysterious
Arouse curiosity
Sensitive inside
Don’t care what others
think of them
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Idealistic
Nonconformists
They revolt
They’ve been hurt
–
Enhances attractiveness
as romantic heroes
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All such characters are examples of Byronic
heroes and can be traced back to Lord
Byron.
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Hazlitt once said, “He hath a demon!”: the
Byronic hero does not have to perform great
deeds.Unlike traditional heroes such as
Beowulf or King Arthur, a Byronic hero does
not personify the values of his society.
Resources
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http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/8
916/byron.html
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Contains artwork, poetry, film information etc.
Read: From Childe Harold’s
Pilgrimage
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Canto 3: 15
Canto 3: 113
Canto 4: 137
From “Manfred” ( Act 3, 11, 124-141)
In what ways do the main characters present
an image of the Byronic hero?