“Don Juan Canto-I” is a Social Satire. -Discuss. 

Answer

“Don Juan Canto-I” is a social satire. -Discuss. 

Or, discuss Byron’s treatment of love and marriage. 

Or, Discuss the romantic and satirical elements in Byron to evaluate it as a social satire.

Or comment on the poetic style of Don Juan.

A revolutionary attitude towards love and marriage has been picked up by the second-generation romantic poet Lord Byron (1788 – 1824). Don Juan Canto-1 (1819) reflects on several aspects of society. His treatment of love and marriage bears a certain psychological significance of how to be happy in marital life. Again, he exposes the hypocrisy and corruption of upper-class society. 

Byron’s Concept of Love: Byron’s view of love clashes with that of G. B. Shaw, who criticizes the romantic notion of love. We can see a different type of love in “Don Juan.” Here, the poet shows the necessity of romantic and physical love since the hero seduces women. The hero does not hesitate even to establish a physical relationship with an almost mother-like woman named Julia. Juan’s relationship with Julia matches Byron’s relationship with his nurse, Mary Gray.

Byron’s Personal Experience of Life and Womanhood: Byron’s personal experience of life is not a happy one. His shameful relationship with his half-sister and his marriage with and separation from Anna Isabella Milbanke are significant incidents in his life. The sexual attention of his nurse when he was only nine years old made a permanent impression on him. The marriage and separation of his parents also influenced him to a great extent. On the other hand, his attractive personality and his love affairs with several women helped him make keen observations on womanhood.

Byron’s Attitude to First and Passionate Love: Byron’s attitude to love is the direct outcome of his personal bitter experience in marital life. According to him, first love is light and thoughtless. It begets only sentimental and sensual aspects. To highlight the superiority of first and passionate love, he has given a long description of various sweet things to focus on the emotion of love. To