Erin's Class Summary

The class began with a sigh of disappointment from the students as we were given yet another reward quiz on various details of Lord Byron’s “Manfred, a Dramatic Poem.” This was followed by an equal, if not greater, sigh from Dr. Foss when he realized, after his attempts to stand on a chair and turn on the projector, that the screen was blurry and the text illegible. After those twin disappointments, Dr. Foss continued the class by explaining what he would have shown us on the wiki, if the projector hadn’t misbehaved. Then the discussion of Lord Byron began with an introduction of his biography, followed by small group discussion, and an overall large group introduction. Through the close analysis of “Manfred” in comparison to the poems of Coleridge and Wordsworth, and the interpretation and understanding of the Byronic hero, our British Romantic Literature class came to the conclusion that Lord Byron plays with romantic irony. This irony is the stepping stone for the construction of the Byronic hero and reveals Byron as a unique romantic writer of his time.

Lord Byron, also referred by his birth name, George Gordon, lived from 1788-1824. During his thirty-six years of life, he wrote poetry that put him in the league of the “Big Six” and while Wordsworth is considered the main figure of romantic poetry, Byron was considered the greatest writer of his day. He was a very influential writer and even though many critics did not like his work, he gained approval in Europe and became even more famous posthumously. When his uncle, the previous Lord Byron died, George became next in line for the lordship. He lived a romantic lifestyle with an education from Cambridge, a love affair, and a life of debt. Byron dabbled in politics; he was progressive with an aristocratic background and made appearances in the House of the Lords, speaking out against the death penalty and Irish rights. Lord Byron’s personal life is intriguing: his marriage ends quickly after rumors are spread that he had a secret affair with his half-sister. This prompts him to move to England to visit another famous romantic poet, Percy Shelley. These two poets, while living together, had discussions which later influenced future works. Some these works include an autobiographical tale and poems, including the dramatic poem “Manfred” which established a significant characteristic of Byron’s work: the Byronic hero. This different type of hero is characterized by romantic madness, metaphysics, guilt, and forbidden longings (Mellor 881). The character Manfred is described in the Longman as unstable, extreme, angsty, narcissistic, contempt for conventional morality. This dramatic poem can be described as a gothic parody. The Byronic hero was criticized and referred to as a satanic school. After joining a secret society and having “extra-curricular escapades with women”, Byron’s life ends during his time in the army.

During small group, my group discussed whether or not the poem “Manfred” reflected romantic imagination or romantic irony. We all agreed that it was a dark text because the main character Manfred’s behavior and thoughts were very cynical and pessimistic. Looking through the text we found evidence that supported the power of the imagination and the power of the human mind. Manfred refuses to yield to any higher power and during his death, he doesn’t make a deal, like in Doctor Faustus, and dies on his own terms. While we agreed that Byron is different from the rest of the other important romantic poets because of his “crazy” outlook on life, the poet that we could compare him to would be Coleridge. They are similar because they agree on the notion that aging does not necessarily mean knowledge. My group also discussed the possibility of the poem’s role in telling Byron’s autobiography and confessing the truth behind the scandalous rumors. It seems like Byron was able to form the Byronic hero from his own life. Just like Manfred is tortured by guilt, it is possible that Byron himself lived in agony from the guilt of having incestuous relations with his half-sister. Lastly, we found it coincidental that all the names of the human characters in the poem contain the word “man”, such as Manfred, Manuel, Herman, and Arimanes. We suggested that perhaps this is Byron’s way of furthering Manfred’s belief that he’s not like every man and in an ironic way this focuses on the human condition.

After small group, the class got together for a large group discussion. The class seemed to agree that while Byron makes an attempt towards romantic imagination, the main style of his writing, when specifically looking at the poem “Manfred” is a focus on romantic irony. The usage of romantic imagination is played up in the elements of the supernatural and the spirits, as well as a display of the power of man’s mind. However, the romantic irony is apparent in the text when Manfred clearly has power but the one thing he desires is out of his reach. The class discussed how Manfred does not find redemption yet his soul is not won over, he defies salvation, resulting in a pessimistic and uncharacteristic ending to the play. Even though the play does not continue long after Manfred’s death, we wondered and pondered the uncertainty about what happens to Manfred after he died. Lastly, Dr. Foss mentioned that some of Byron’s other work like “Prometheus” and Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage are dark and assertive works that further Byron’s style of writing in the realm of romantic irony. Overall, through these discussions and analysis of Lord Byron’s “Manfred” it seems that Byron uses elements romantic imagination to show the power of the mind while his gloomy use of irony contrasts with other romantic poets of his time, making him famous for his Byronic hero.