Preview

Byronic hero and his evolution within the Victorian literature

Best Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1880 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Byronic hero and his evolution within the Victorian literature
“Byronic hero“ and his evolution within the Victorian literature Lord Byron is one of the most famous and influential writers of the Romantic period and literature overall, which is largely due to his evermore interesting type of hero. Inspired by Milton 's Satan, Byron took over the figure of heroic character and perfected it in his poem Childe Harold into a figure which has thereafter become known as the “Byronic hero“. Many critics agree that Byron 's inspiration for this character lies largely in Byron himself and that Childe Harold is his semi-autobiography. However, whether this hero is a fiction produced by Byron and public, or it was created by Byron 's reflections on himself, it remained one of the most important, influential types of character as well as an inexhaustible source of inspiration that continued throughout the 19th century to this day.
Therefore, in this paper I am going to analyse the evolution of the Byronic hero that appeared in Childe Harold, into that variations noticeable in the Victorian literature, more precisely those in Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre written by the Brontë sisters. His dark characteristics are what make the original Byron 's hero different from the traditional idea of a hero, even though he retains his heroic virtues. However, the original idea has slightly changed over time. Therefore, in the Victorian literature, this type of hero often either loses his Byronic features or becomes almost a villain. Hence, I am going to deal with those analyses that I find relevant in relation to one of the most interesting phenomena in literature and modern culture that still keeps holding peoples’ attention.
Within the next passages, I 'm going to deal closely with the mentioned various ideas of the Byronic hero in terms of analysing them, as well as determining the reasons for their change. As mentioned previously, Byron introduced the original prototype of Byronic hero in Canto I. of Childe Harold where he might be



Cited: Byron, Lord. Childe Harold 's Pilgrimage. Chicago: W.B. Conkey Company, 1900. Web. 24 May 2012. (http://discoverarchive.vanderbilt.edu/jspui/bitstream/1803/1792/1/Childe%20Harolds%20Pilgrimage,%20Byron.pdf) Stein, Atara. The Byronic Hero in Film, Fiction, and Television. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 2004. Web. 20 May 2013 (http://www.scribd.com/doc/115213806/Atara-Stein-the-Byronic-Hero-in-Film-Fiction-And-Television-2004) Thorslev, Peter. The Byronic hero: types and prototypes. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1965. Web. 21 May 2013. (http://bookos.org/book/1328268/17c796) Hsu, Eric. “A Loss Unbearable: Byronic Heroes in Victorian Fiction.” 19 Jan. 2011. Web. 20 May 2103. (http://english.fju.edu.tw/lctd/word/ByronicHeroesinVictorianFiction_proofread.pdf) Ceron, Cristina. “Emily and Charlotte Brontë’s Re-reading of the Byronic hero.” Revue LISA/LISA e-journal, 09 March 2010: 1-14. Web. 24 May 2013. (http://lisa.revues.org/3504)

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Heroes are known to be courageous, considerate and helpful to others. On the other hand, a Byronic hero is man who is rebellious, unruly, and careless. What makes him a hero is solely based on his superiority. In From Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage by George Gordon, Harold is an example of a Byronic hero. He struggles to come to terms with his sinful past.…

    • 250 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Coming of Age in Mississippi

    • 16769 Words
    • 68 Pages

    ©2000−2005 BookRags, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. The following sections of this BookRags Premium Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare &Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources. ©1998−2002; ©2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design® and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license. The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". © 1994−2005, by Walton Beacham. The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". © 1994−2005, by Walton Beacham. All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copywritten by BookRags, Inc. No part of this work covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, Web distribution or information storage retrieval systems without the written permission of the publisher.…

    • 16769 Words
    • 68 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Year of Wonders Study Notes

    • 16401 Words
    • 66 Pages

    ©2000-2007 BookRags, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. The following sections of this BookRags Premium Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources. ©1998-2002; ©2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design® and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license. The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". © 1994-2005, by Walton Beacham. The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". © 1994-2005, by Walton Beacham. All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copywritten by BookRags, Inc. No part of this work covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, Web distribution or information storage retrieval systems without the written permission of the publisher.…

    • 16401 Words
    • 66 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    What are the qualities of a Byronic hero? This character type, named after Lord Byron, is not similar to the archetypical hero of many stories. These characters display qualities such as intelligence, cunning, and violence. Byronic heroes do not act like normal heroes in the sense that they scorn typical heroic behavior and are not perfect. Mr. Rochester, from the novel Jane Eyre, is an example of a Byronic Hero. In Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontё characterizes Mr. Rochester as a Byronic Hero by portraying him as self aware, emotionally traumatized, concerned with matters of justice over matters of legality, and manipulative.…

    • 910 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Literary heroes have been important to stories and poems throughout history. Each author develops his hero through a unique writing style, combining conscious use of detail, diction, tone and other narrative techniques to outline a hero's personality. Homer, in his epic poem The Iliad, develops two classic heroes who are distinctly different at first glance, but upon closer inspection are very similar in terms of their basic characteristics. Hector and Achilles both are courageous soldiers, relatively honorable men, and respected leaders, but they also both have human failings that eventually lead to tragedy. In Homer's lyrical verses and in his use of detail, diction, meter and imagery, he paints his own portrait of a classic hero through the brave deeds as well as the human flaws of Hector and Achilles that eventually lead to the downfall of proud and powerful Hector.…

    • 984 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cited: “Character.” The Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford, 2008. 123-43. Print…

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    A High Wind in Jamaica

    • 1687 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Jonsen William. The adolescent hero: A trend in modern fiction. Twentieth Century Literature, 5 (1959): 3-11. Print.…

    • 1687 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Harold Bloom, a Yale University professor, once said that “George Gordon, Lord Byron, is literature’s most notorious instance of a writer’s life becoming his work, indeed taking the place of it.” (Pesta, Bloom and Willis 1). Lord Byron was a famous poet that illustrated his emotions through his literature very effectively. Ironically, Byron enjoyed reading and writing, but hated poetry at an early age (Pesta, Bloom and Willis 9). However, Byron’s first piece of literature to be published, called “Fugitive Pieces,” was introduced in November, 1806 (Pesta, Bloom and Willis 21). Many factors contributed to the various writing styles and themes of Lord Byron’s literature; his troubled childhood as well as the way that he obsessed over sexual relationships…

    • 1885 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The dashing English poet and adventurer, Lord Byron, provided a living model for Romantic heroism. The Byronic hero was an exceptional and gifted loner, perhaps misunderstood, who was driven to follow personal passion rather than traditional societal expectations.…

    • 14665 Words
    • 52 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A poet, Lord George Gordon Byron, was the first to develop a Byronic hero. They’re typically known as the rebel “mad, bad, and dangerous to know.” Byronic heroes have many traits, which include intelligence, self-aware, highly emotional, prone to bursts of anger, etc.……

    • 248 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Needler, H.(2010). 'She Walks in Beauty ' and the Theory of the Sublime. The Byron Journal…

    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Scarlet Ibis

    • 5323 Words
    • 22 Pages

    JAMES HURST Adapted from: Elements of Literature: Third Course. Austin: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. 2003.…

    • 5323 Words
    • 22 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Raglan, L 2003. The Hero: A Study in Tradition, Myth and Drama. New York, USA: Dover Publications.…

    • 2370 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Byron's Legacy

    • 1200 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Lord Byron was a moody, proud, cynical and fierce man who frowned upon society and constantly defied it. We see in much of his literature a reflection of himself. The characteristics of Byron are illustrated in works of writing other than his own. His fictitious embodiment appears in the book Frankenstein, the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, and the modern book The Hunger Games. The characters with Byron-like qualities are considered Byronic(or Romantic) Heroes. They are defined as: “A passionate, moody, restless character who has exhausted most of the world’s excitements, and who lives under the weight of some mysterious sin committed in the past … He is an “outsider” whose daring life both isolates him and makes him attractive (Adventures in English Literature 527).” Victor Frankenstein, The Ancient Mariner, and Katniss Everdeen are the epitome of the Byronic hero. They also compare to the classic Byronic heroes Satan from “Paradise Lost”, and Prometheus of classical Greek Mythology.…

    • 1200 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Frankenstein

    • 1894 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Byron, Lord. Manfred. Vol. XVIII, Part 6. The Harvard Classics. New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1909-14: Bartleby.com, 2001. www.bartleby.com/18/6/. [September 26, 2012].…

    • 1894 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays