Kanishk Hemani A0067293X ULT2299A Understanding Irony Don Juan, Lord Byron Cant and The Free Individual

al (Dedication and Canto 1)

Don Juan, an epic poem written by Lord Byron, chronicles the adventures of a Byronic hero by the same name. As much as it is about Don Juan it is also about Byron. Not necessarily autobiographical, but the poem is laden with innuendos that deviate from the narrative of the life of Don Juan and speak of the narrators own life and thoughts. It is difficult to claim that the narrator and Byron are the same however; it is hard to completely ignore Byrons influence. So, to show that Byron does lend weight to the poem, we shall regard him as the ironic voice. The poem is loaded with ironic utterances from start to finish. Ironic utterances achieve two things an aggressive edge and distancing and they are prevalent in the poem. Both of them work in the ironic voices favour through the need to distance itself from the subject of its attack. Till, after cloying the gazettes with cant (Stanza 1, Don Juan), with deceptive simplicity Byron makes this the theme of his poem. Cant is the uncritical though or speech that Byron claims is pervasive in our society, so pervasive that it has entered into our daily gazettes, thoughts and ideas. Cant implies certainty and rigidity in societal models of certain subjects that Byron highlights throughout the first Canto. But that verse is the only time the word

cant has been used in Canto 1, its early usage and subsequent absence highlights the ironic voices distancing from the subject matter. Byrons attack on cant doesnt leap out of the poem straight away; it is masked with flippancy and a lack of seriousness. The absolute antithesis of cant, uncertainty and mockery, is juxtaposed with the seriousness and unwonted certainty that is symptomatic of cant. The irony in Don Juan is revealing of Byrons intentions, but what are they? What is the underlying message beneath the mocking and flippant tone that permeates the entire poem? Irony works with the presentation of a superficial meaning acting as a front for the meaning beneath; the true intention. In Don Juan, we see a total lack or regard to sincerity. Byron doesnt imply seriousness, he ends up with non sequiturs and deciphering his true meaning is a lost cause. Take the name Don Juan for example; he is supposed to be the protagonist, the epic hero. Yet the only reason for that is that Don Juan rhymes with true one, Byron mocks this himself and says that it is only because Don Juan is adapted to my rhymes (Stanza 3), that he is the poems hero. Blatant mockery and comic justification is a counterpoint to the populist notion of a hero. Byron is targeting the populist cant with his own brand of flippancy and mockery implicitly representing free individualism that deviates from the rigidity and seriousness of societal expectations. Don Juan is Byrons epic poem, and he casts the most unlikely of epic heroes. This in itself is an attack on cant, the rigid belief that a hero fits into a mould that the society has created. Any deviation from such expectations isnt worthy of the title of a hero. Byron lists renowned heroes of his time in Stanza 2 and 3, only to categorically deny them a place in his epic poem, where the role of the epic hero is being assumed by the least likely of them all. Byron teases with the rhyming of Don Juans name, thereby negating the seriousness of any

thought as to why Don Juan is chosen but also stating that Don Juan is fit for my (Byrons) (Stanza 5), epic poem and suits his purpose. Irony is hard at work here as, John Lauber aptly remarks in Don Juan the Anti-Epic, Satire is directed at the past as well as at the present (through the introduction of many epic heroes), and the epic concept of heroism is deflated (pg.610). What we see here is free individualism in two forms, the first of Don Juan as a hero and the second of Byrons own deviation from the stereotypical idea of an epic poem through his choice of hero. However, Byron is an ironist and he never once mentions free individualism and so distances himself from the subject. The reader wades through the poem being impressed with the unique lack of seriousness and only witnesses a subtle lack of conformity to cant. At the end of Canto 1, we see Byron asking for public approval in a manner that is more tongue in cheek than sincere, he says And if their appropriation we experience, Perhaps theyll have some more a year hence. (Stanza 199). The call for public acceptance is for the portrayal of Don Juan as an epic hero and for Byron as an epic poet. Through this deflation of the epic hero in the form of Don Juan and the call for acceptance, Byron is mocking society and the importance that they place on themselves and their opinion. What we see here, is a sudden diminishing of Byrons distancing from his attack on cant. Following the rich vein of form he shows in mockery, the call for public opinion falls short and reveals Byrons lack of regard for public opinion. This event in Canto 1 leads the reader to witness Byrons free individualism and disregard of populist cant and public opinion. Cant pervades every societal thought and idea, its pervasiveness is what Byron targets. The story of Don Juan as told by Byron chronicles Juans growth from his birth. Byron relates the story of Juans education as dictated by his mother. Arts, sciences no branch was made a

mystery, To Juans eyes, excepting natural history. (Stanza 34). Juan was given the most moral of educations. His ancient texts were vetted, Expurgated by learned men, Judiciously from the schoolboys vision, The grosser parts (Stanza 44). However, Byron the ironic voice leaves salient markers which convey his true intentions. He never once implies a form of negative education, he pretends as though his narration is matter of fact. In doing so, the reader admires the comic spirit but is also jolted by the shock of a censored education. The humour and the shock has a combined effect as Leonard W.Deen in Liberty and License in Don Juan, expounds on, The result is a kind of wit verging on violence that shocks us into a fresh awareness of the disorder and dynamism of experience. (pg347). The generation of such an effect is used as a template by Byron at every juncture that he deems cant has pervaded. The reader realises that there is incoherence in such a conformist education and in doing so Byron does what Lauber accurately notices, Byron deflates the importance of societal interference in reality. Byron shows his scepticism through If such an education is a true one (Stanza 48) with regard to censored and conformist education. However, Byron stops short of explaining the subtleties of what exactly is wrong with censored education or what an ideal educational form should be. He allows the reader to acknowledge the obvious disorder as Deen highlights. Irony is at work here and Byron utilises the distancing properties that irony makes available. Byron is willing the reader to make a judgment without once giving them an insight into his own thoughts, save that one sceptical utterance. The disorder of the societal model of education as dictated by cant is now under scrutiny. Byrons attack on censored education follows the same form as he attempts to provide a counterpoint to everything that cant happens to encapsulate. The shock of cant based education leads one to understand the need for autonomy in education without having to deal with the grosser parts being omitted. Byron argues for a lack of

dictatorship that society imposes and the ability to be a free individual by showing not necessarily the pitfalls of censored education but of the disorder that it symbolises. Love eventually features in Don Juan; Juan has fallen in love with Donna Julia faces the trials and tribulations of love. Stanza 92, is one that aptly conveys the extent of Juans love, he contemplates the birth of stars and How many miles the moon might have in girth, such profound thoughts are a natural occurrence for someone in love according to Byron. Byron uses some of his most embellishing language in his conveyance of the depth of love that Juan possesses. Juan is portrayed as a lovelorn youth and his struggle within himself is one of passion and his moral education, he is unable to decipher what his feelings mean. While Juan is tortured by his passion, Byron takes a stab at Plato and his confounded fantasies (Stanza 116), he calls Plato a charlatan, a coxcomb.and at best a go-between. Byrons mockery of Plato highlight the Platos ideals on love are at disjuncture with reality, where love is supposed to be controlled and an exercise in pretence and cant. However, Byron doesnt deride love itself. By mocking Platos philosophical ideals, Byron professes his indignation at love that is bound. In relation to Juans affairs, Byron says If you think twas Philosophy that this did, I cant help thinking puberty assisted. (Stanza 93). Byron accepts love as something that nature condones and possibly encourages and so we see Juan set off on his affair with Donna Julia. The attack on Plato is made even more pronounced here as philosophical views on love are ignored to allow for a form of love that is unbound with the freedom of expression that is unparalleled in the philosophical realm that Plato and the society inhabit. Byron ensures that his portrayal of love is one that is supposed to go against the stereotypical norms of his day. In the narrative, the line And whispering I will neer consent consented. (Stanza 117), love breaches the boundary that society has built

around it and in doing so; Byrons message of free individualism is conveyed. However, what this shows is how cant is an impediment through its detachment with reality and emotions. Returning to Deens claim that satire allows for a perceptive analysis of the disorder in reality, we see Byrons use of mockery and irony in his tirade against Plato serving as another marker and reflecting the prevalent attitude of societal rigidity and narrow mindedness that stems from cant. In Don Juan, Byron mocks societal expectations in a form of scathing flippant remarks. However, for an attack to hold some semblance of direction Byron uses targets. In the argument for unbound love, Byron reproaches Platos idealised concept of love and thus we have a target and the springboard for an analysis of cant and its failings. In the Dedication, Byron attacks people of his own ilk, poets. In Stanza 5 of the Dedication:

You--Gentlemen! by dint of long seclusion From better company, have kept your own At Keswick, and, through still continu'd fusion Of one another's minds, at last have grown To deem as a most logical conclusion, That Poesy has wreaths for you alone: There is a narrowness in such a notion, Which makes me wish you'd change your lakes for Ocean.

(Dedication, Don Juan, Lord Byron)

The reference to Keswick and lakes is an obvious reference to the Lake poets who hailed from Keswick. The likes of Wordsworth, Coleridge and Southey are Lake poets and they feature heavily in the Dedication and Canto 1. In Stanza 5, Byron lays bare his grievances with cant and the propagators of it. The notion of self-importance and seriousness that Byron later derides in Canto 1 are evident tin this stanza. The culmination of this is his attack on narrow mindedness and his plea for a removal of this folly through wish youd change you lakes for oceans. The natural implication is that Byron is actually on the ocean that allows for a broader perspective unlike the narrow-minded Lake poets. What Byron has achieved in his tirade against other poets is a mentality of Byron against the other Lake poets. He sets himself apart from them on the basis of principal. The Lake poets with their illusions of grandeur and propagation of cant being in direct conflict with Byrons anti-cant mocking attitude. Byron provides an alternative to the Lake poets who seem stuck in their ways with Scott, Rogers, Campbell, Moore and Crabbe, will try,'Gainst you the question with posterity. According to Michael Robertson who provides a context as to why these poets feature in the dedication, Rogers, Campbell and Moorethey were a continuation of an urban social tradition as well (pg. 717, The Byron of Don Juan as Whig Aristocrat). These neo-classical poets are supposed to be more inclined to the changes that the future will bring unlike the Lake poets who are fixated with the past and the beliefs that accompany it. Byron very artfully, omits his name from that list of neo-classical poets and remains in the shadows. Once again, we witness Byrons distancing from his beliefs. The separation from the Lake poets and their pervasive narrow mindedness that encompasses the society set Byron apart as a free individual who isnt swayed by what is expected by society or by his own self-importance. We see the manifestation of Byrons disenchantment with cant and the people who symbolise it as the basis of Don Juan.

In Don Juan, Byron features almost as prominently as the epic hero. Byron makes his presence felt through his mockery of events and thoughts, yet the distancing of the ironic voice prevent one from gleaning the exact message of Byrons statements. He doesnt assert or advocate an alternative to cant, yet as a reader we see an anti-cant streak that pervades Canto 1. Cant stands for uncritical thought and serious belief in that thought; with Byron we see mockery and flippant remarks that are non sequiturs at times. But not once does he state he is against cant, not once does he lay claim to an alternative. As Lauber and Deen rightly highlight, Byron achieves the true impact of his attack on cant through a reflection of the disorder in a cant based society and the deflation of that particular notion to shock the readers into realising the faults of cant. Whether it is the populist notion of an epic hero, education, love or conformity, Byron maintains the distance required by an ironist. At times, the distance diminishes especially in his attack of Plato and Lake poets, where he attacks not just a societal view but the origin of that particular view. Don Juan is a deviation from the epic hero and that retains his individualism. But it is Byron, the ironic voice, who mocks cant and elucidates its failings to portray himself as a free individual in a society trapped in cant.

(2469 words)

Sources: Lord Byron, Don Juan, 1819-1824

John Lauber, Rice University Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900,Vol. 8, No. 4, Autumn, 1968,Don Juan as Anti-Epic (pg. 610)

Leonard W.Deen, University of Texas Press, Texas Studies in Literature and Language, Vol. 8, No. 3, Autumn 1966 , Liberty and License in Byrons Don Juan (pg. 347)

Micheal Robertson, University of Texas Press, Texas Studies in Literature and Language, Vol. 17, No. 4, Winter 1976 ,The Byron of Don Juan as Whig Aristocrat (pg. 717)