From Inspiration to Transformation: The Influence and Similarities of

Homeric Epic in Byrons Don Juan

Word Count: 11,441

CLA3090: Special Study on an Aspect of Classical Influence in English
Literature
School of History, Classics and Archaeology
QQ83 BA Honours in Classical Studies and English
Submitted: 09/05/2016
120158407

CONTENTS

Introduction: Love, and War, a Heavy Gale at Sea ................ 1

Chapter 1: Love ......... 4
Chapter 2: War .......... 15
Chapter 3: A Heavy Gale at Sea ........ 25
Conclusion: ... 31
Bibliography ...... 34

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Love, and War, a Heavy Gale at Sea

Having heard that the location of Troy had been disputed, Lord George Gordon Byron
recorded in his Ravenna Journal on 11th January, 1821, a sincere defence of Homers, grand
original the Iliad1:
But I still venerated the grand original as the truth of history (in the material facts) and of
place. Otherwise, it would have given me no delight. Who will persuade me, when I
reclined upon a mighty tomb that it did not contain a hero? - its very magnitude proved this.
Men do not labour over the ignoble and petty dead- and why should not the dead be
Homers dead?2

Byron went on to further reiterate his belief of Homers poetry citing Save change; Ive
stood upon Achilles tomb, / and heard Troy doubted, (Byron, Don Juan IV.101.807-808)3 in
his self-proclaimed epic Don Juan. What the entry in the Ravenna Journal brings to light is
the intense relationship Byron maintained with Homers Epic poems. The history of the Iliad
and the Odyssey is not only venerated by Byron, but Homers influence becomes part of the
truth of his poetry. Through Don Juan, Byron is inviting his readers to stand with him upon
Achilles tomb (Byron, Don Juan IV.101.807) and acknowledge his epics Homeric heritage
as he sets about redefining the genre.

Thus,

the

importance of the connection between Byronic and Homeric poetry in answering the question
of how Don Juan was influenced by Homers Odyssey and Iliad should not be understated.
As Byron himself asserts Men do not labour over the ignoble and petty dead, 4 and Don
1 All quotations from this [and other classical texts] are from the
translations/editions listed in the bibliography.
2 L. Marchand, (ed), Lord Byron: Selected Letters and Journals (London: John
Murray, 1993), 243.
3 All quotations from this text are from Byron, Don Juan in: J. McGann (ed), Lord
Byron, The Major Works (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009).
4 Byron, Selected Letters and Journals, 243.

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Juan was certainly one of Byrons greatest labours, which was to occupy him until the
summer of 1823, a year before his death fulfilling his own aristeia in Greece.5 Therefore, it
stands to reason Don Juans debt to Homer is more than just a trivial association. The
difficulty in assessing Don Juans relationship with the Iliad and the Odyssey is the frivolity
and satire which obscures the extent to which Byron depended on Homer as a source.
Underneath the veneer of Byrons modus operandi to amuse and divert, it is easily
discoverable that Don Juan was written with a strong classical association. Byron
undoubtedly utilizes the epic tradition established by Homer as a catalyst for important acts
of poetic, social and political self-definition. 6 Homeric Epics for Byron were to be the
building blocks on which Don Juan would be constructed; with the greater epic models being
manipulated and updated so they remained relevant to Byrons readership. As Solomou puts
it: Byron would use his knowledge of Homeric Epic in Don Juan as a way to showcase that
he was the king of poetry of his time,7 just as Homer was in antiquity.
Unfortunately, it appears to be a staple criticism of Don Juans connection to
the Homeric to regard it as, purely accessory 8 or even as Rawson claims, a debonair
flourish.9 The grounding for such dismissive critiques being: The epic as a genre in Byrons

5 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics: A Study of the Influence of Classical

Poetry on the Work of Lord Byron, (PhD Thesis, Durham: Durham University,
1984), 171. Available at: hhtp://etheses.dur.ac.uk/5816/ [Date Accessed:
20/04/2016].
6 C. Rawson, Byron Augustan: Mutations of the Mock-Heroic in Don Juan and
Shellys Peter Bell the Third in: A. Rutherford (ed.), Byron: Augustan and
Romantic (London: Macmillan Press, 1990), 85.
7 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, (PhD Thesis, Aberdeen: University of
Aberdeen, 1890), 114.
8 J.A.K. Thomson, The Classical Background of English Literature, (New York:
Collier Books, 1962), 209.
9 C. Rawson, Byron Augustan, 86.

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period had become a topic for intertextual jokerie 10 and an examination of Byrons
character; the self-propagated image of the dashing, tempestuous traveller of wild, exotic
places [] shaking off the dust of the schoolroom. 11 Byron was however, just as divisive and
controversial as his poetry and the public image cultivated to, play down his intellectual
interests12 belied a comprehensive classical education. Byrons education included thirteen
years studying classical Greek poetry in various forms, from his first school in Aberdeen,
through schooling at Harrow before ultimately attending Trinity College, Cambridge. 13 It is
this education which gives Byron the easy familiarity with the Iliad and the Odyssey14 that
he so casually draws upon in Don Juan. What may at first appear a flippant or off-the-cuff
remark often disguises a deeper Homeric reverberation which rewards the reader willing to
explore the connection.Within this paper, the exploration of Homeric influence in Don Juan
is not to discover if Don Juan has any rightful claim to being an epic, as Boyd points out,
whether Don Juan should be classed as an epic is a moot point. 15 Rather it aims to examine
precisely how the Odyssey and the Iliads textual reverberations are felt within Don Juan. It is
a study of how Don Juan is able to effectively preserve the essence of Homeric Epic through
textual similarities whilst concomitantly creating something new and unique. The primary
focus will be on exploring the relationship of; thematic, structural, narrative, allegorical and
symbolic textual identities between Homeric Epic and Don Juan. The separation of major
themes, as stated in Byrons manifesto for Don Juan, of love, and war, a heavy gale at sea
10 C. Rawson, Byron Augustan, 86.
11 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 2.
12 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 2.
13 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 12.
14 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry. 125.
15 E.F. Boyd, Byrons Don Juan, A Critical Study, (New York: Routledge: 1958), 52.

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(Byron, Don Juan I.200.1595), is fitting, as they are just as pertinent to the Homeric Epic as
they are universal human experience.

Love
Love is a fundamental driving force in Homeric Epic. It is Odysseus nostos, his love for
family that most inspires him to return home and it is the pseudo-pederastic 16 love between
Achilles and Patroklos which impassions the warrior to return to the fray of battle, thus
bringing about the fall of Troy. Akin to its Homeric counterparts Don Juan employs a
dominant theme of love which permeates the entire poem,17 and provides a framework for
the narrative and a vehicle upon which Byron can examine precisely what it means to be
human. Trying to ascertain the influence of how Homers depiction of love manifests in Don
Juan is analogous to the trouble the tutors in the first Canto have of teaching Juan the
classics:
16 J. Brouwers, A Note on Romantic Love in Homer, Talanta, vol. 42-43, (20102011), 106.
Accessed via:
https://www.academia.edu/6940661/A_note_on_romantic_love_in_Homer
17 R.F, Gleckner, Byron and the Ruins of Paradise (Baltimore: John Hopkins Press,
1967), 333.

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5
His classic studies made a little puzzle,
Because of filthy loves of gods and goddesses,
Who in earlier ages made a bustle,
But never put on pantaloons or bodices;
His reverend tutors had at times a tussle,
And for their Aeneids, Iliads, and Odysseys,
Were forced to make an odd sort of apology,
For Donna Inez dreaded the mythology.
- (Byron, Don Juan I.41.321-328)

The issue being the reverential societal, trappings 18 placed on the epic genre, the type that
causes the tutors to apologise, is precisely the condition Don Juan wishes to depart from.
Byron acknowledged ancient Greek and Homeric love must feature in Don Juan, and it is the
filthy love (Byron, Don Juan I.41.322), which he seeks most keenly. When put to scrutiny
Byrons debasement of love to lust, deceit, sexual abandon, jealousy, intrigue [and] habit 19
are all in part inspired by the representation of love in Homeric Epic.
Juans first romance in the poem is with Donna Julia a woman that is, married,
charming, chaste and twenty-three (Byron, Don Juan I.59.472). It is a romance of seduction
and betrayal which ultimately ends with Juan fleeing naked (Byron, Don Juan I.188.1498)
from his lovers older husband. When it is reduced to its simplest form, the structure of the
love narrative bears many striking similarities to the affair between Helen and Paris in the
Iliad. Initially, a seduction takes place in both accounts with Paris claiming to have, caught
(Homer, Iliad 3.444) Helen with the gift (Homer, Iliad 3.65) of seduction granted to him by
Aphrodite. Likewise, Don Juan is unable to resist being seduced by Donna Julia since her
charms are as potent as, her zone to Venus, or his bow to cupid (Byron, Don Juan I.55.439).
The inclusion of the divine and otherworldly in the seduction is a motif established by Homer
and echoed by Byron. Secondly, both of the female actors in their love affairs are ashamed of
18 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 125.
19 R.F, Gleckner, 333.

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betraying their spouses. In Helens confrontation with Aphrodite she refuses to go to Paris
citing, It would be too shameful, and only with Aphrodites threat to make Helen
wretchedly perish (Homer, Iliad 3.410-417) does she eventually give in. Donna Julia
likewise is loath to disgrace the ring she wore (Byron, Don Juan I.109.868) and Byron
makes this her last thought by whispering I will neer consent-consented (Byron, Don
Juan I.117.936) before consummating their affair. The keynote of feminine shame in extramarital love is echoed from the Iliad into Don Juan.
The shame and sorrow (Byron, Don
Juan I.196.1563) Donna Julia suffers as a result of her affair in Don Juan is imbued with
Homeric resonance. The parallelism to Helens being apparent as both are shamed women of
their societies. However, the treatment of female shame in Don Juan is corrupted from its
original Homeric source, Donna Julias dishonour is private and will only come to bear after
she has been apprehended. Helens shame on the other hand is public, constant and ongoing
as she has become the icon of shame20 in the Iliad. Byron appears to have no wish to glorify
or acknowledge the shame cultures21 that were are made prevalent by Homer but still retain
the narrative essence. Instead Byron takes the affair concept, as defined by Homer, in a
different direction by inverting the sexuality of the seducer, thus moving the power from the
masculine to the feminine sphere of control. Finally, the love that Paris and Helen embodies
is youthful and lustful desire, the epitome of eros and the narrow-minded pursuit of pleasure.
Paris claims that never before as now has passion enmeshed my senses (Homer, Iliad 3.442)
and his actions are driven not by logic but by physical desire. Byron draws on the primal
desire displayed in the Homeric source and applies it to Donna Julia. Donna Julia loses
control of her body, as does Helen when forced to visit Paris by Aphrodite, Donna Julia
20 N, Austin, Helen of Troy and Her Shameless Phantom (Cornell: Cornell
University Press, 2008), 29.
21 N. Austin., Helen of Troy, 37.

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becomes so enraptured in pleasure that her voice was lost, except in sighs (Byron, Don Juan
I.117.929). Eros blinds both seducers to the consequences of their actions and makes them
incapable of resisting. Additionally, the instigation for the narrative to begin in earnest in both
the Iliad and Don Juan is a love affair. Just as the seduction of Helen is the impetus which
sparks the Trojan war, so too does the seduction of Juan begin his epic sea journey.
Where erotic love blooms
in the first Canto of Don Juan, the love which Juan finds on the Isle of Haidee (between
Cantos II and V) is where Byron takes the opportunity to explore the true romantic. Here the
impact of Homeric Epic is clearly illustrated in how Byron appropriates and transforms the
notion of romantic love depicted in the Odyssey. By first establishing the particulars of
Homers definition of romantic love, the influence it has in Don Juan is made palpable.
Beginning with the love Penelope holds for Odysseus, a love which attempts to transcend
both time and societal values and is depicted by Homer as the highest form of love. It is clear,
Penelopes reticence in picking a new husband, and the tricks she comes up with []
demonstrate she loves but one man.22 What this brings to light is for romantic love to be
realised, in the true Homeric sense, requires three conditions: the first, that it is capable of
surviving economic adversity, secondly, that it remain unaffected by the march of time and
finally must remain soley true to one individual - even to the point of death. Penelopes love
is the epitome of these three romantic virtues, for she still [weeps] for Odysseus, her beloved
husband (Homer, Odyssey 1.363) although there is little hope of his return all whilst the
suitors continue, eating up one mans livelihood (Homer, Odyssey 1.141) and ruining her
economically. Having established three tenants of Homers portrayal of romantic love within
the Odyssey it is easier to observe the how they are made apparent in Don Juan.
After
22 J. Brouwers, Romantic Love in Homer, 107.

establishing

the

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romance between Juan and Haidee within the idyll of their island paradise, Byron goes on to
affect their love with a fragile sense of timelessness. Timelessness being one of the three key
requirement of Homeric romantic love. Whilst the lovers recline in their Eden (Byron, Don
Juan IV.10.74) they found no fault with Time (Byron, Don Juan IV.13.99) and their love is
immortal within the stasis Byron creates. The feature of timelessness in Juan and Haidees
love is pertinent since it is similar to the timeless love Penelope embodies. Byron stylises
Juan and Haidees romantic love on the type which Penelope personifies. And, it is not farfetched to imagine had they been given the time, Juan and Haidees love would have
blossomed with a strength comparable of Odysseus and Penelopes own love. The supremacy
of romantic love is reiterated in Juans response to Gulbeyaz when she asks, Christian, canst
thou love? (Byron, Don Juan V.116.927). At which Juan promptly begins weeping thinking
of Haidees isle and soft Ionian face (Byron, Don Juan V.117.931). The weeping bears a
marked Homeric symbolism, for Odysseus often weeps in the Odyssey when longing for his
wife and home, he notably also wept as he held his lovely wife (Homer, Odyssey 23.232) in
their final reunion. Moreover, Juans refusal to engage sexually with Gulbeyaz, declaiming
that although he may be a slave, slaves hearts are still [their] own (Byron, Don Juan
V.127.1016) showing his defiance in spite of danger, is the crux of romantic loyalty that
Penelope personifies. Furthermore, Juans loyalty to Haidee is reminiscent of Odysseuss
loyalty to Penelope despite Kalypsos advances, as he recalls to the Phaiakians:
A dread goddess, and she received me
and loved me excessively and cared for me, and she promised
to make me an immortal and all my days be ageless,
but never so could she win over the heart within me.
-

(Homer, Odyssey VII.225-258)

Gulbeyaz offers Juan comfort and wealth in an oriental parody of what Kalypso offers
Odysseus. Byron effectively models the characteristics of Juans love and devotion for

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Haidee on those represented by Odysseus.

Byron also brings to the fore the financial stress that opposes Haidee and Juans
romantic love affair; economic peril being one of the three adversities which endanger
Penelopes love. Granted Juan and Haidee are oblivious to the economic stress their romantic
love creates. Lambro, Haidees father and to an extent Odysseus doppelgnger within Don
Juan, is quite the opposite and is abhorred by the inflammation of his weekly bills (Byron,
Don Juan III.35.280). Lambro can be seen as the personification of economic stress on true
love in Don Juan, just as the suitors are in the Odyssey. Lambro occupies a bipartite space
within the Homeric echo of the Odyssey, he is both simultaneously representative of
Odysseus, awful vengeance23 and the economic stress of the suitors. Where Penelopes love
survives through the return of Odysseus and the subsequent economic safety he provides, in
Byrons parallel Juans romance is destroyed by it. In essence, the love found within the idyll
of the island is devastated by economic reality, as a consequence of the worlds having made
love well-nigh impossible24 romantic love cannot ultimately exist in Don Juan, as it cannot
reconcile itself with the fiscal pressures of reality. The symbol of Odysseus being the
financial safety that romantic love requires in the Odyssey is attacked by Byron and inverted
so that it becomes lethal for the love of Juan and Haidee.
There is a powerful link between romantic love, suicide and the death of a child,
established when Penelope learns of Telemachus having set sail, causing Penelope to lament,
he would have had to stay, though hastening to his voyage, / or he would have had me dead
in the halls (Homer, Odyssey 4.733-734). Penelopes anguish comes from both losing her
husband and the thought of losing her son, she would have sacrificed herself had she known
of Telemachus plan. Homer creates the trope of the fractured family reunification which
23 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 22.
24 R.F Gleckner, Byron and the Ruins of Paradise, 333.

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Byron chooses to replicate and then goes on to manipulate in Don Juan. Haidees love for
Juan is so complete that it is ultimately the cause of her death and tragically, the death of her
un-born child, her fair and sinless child of sin (Byron, Don Juan IV.70.555). As the reader
and the narrator share omnipotent knowledge of Haidees pregnancy, Byron accentuates the
suffering and fear of a mother losing her child beyond that of Homer. Moreover, Byron
utilises the Homeric traditions of pathos and romance to create a uniquely melancholic
moment that blends the motifs of family from the Odyssey and death from the Iliad. Just as
Homer builds pathos for warriors, as exemplified with Sarpedons supplication of Hector;
Son of Priam, do not leave me lying for the Danans
to pray upon, but protect me, since otherwise in your city
my life must come to an end, since I could no longer
back to my own house and the land of my fathers, bringing
joy to my own beloved wife and my son, still a baby.
-

(Homer, Iliad V, 684-688)

Sarpedons direct speech, isolation and fear for his son being orphaned 25 are pathetic in the
extreme, thus the audience is drawn in emotionally. Byron imitates the sorrow Homer evokes
through destroying the family idiom, and is better enabled to accentuate the loss of potential
life in romantic love through such replication. The reader is lulled into a false sense of relief
when Don Juans narrator recalls, she died, but not alone (Byron, Don Juan IV.70.553), this
suggests momentarily Juan may have at least been able to die by his lovers side. However,
when it is revealed to be Juans unborn child, a child he would never even know existed, the
Homeric pathos of a family lost is contrasted by the more tragic Byronic bleakness of a
potential family never realised.

The

theory that Byron crafted much of the emotional tableaux of Haidees Isle with Homeric Epic
in mind is further sustained through the explicit use of flower imagery. The comparisons

25 J. Griffin, Homer on Life and Death (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1983), 109.

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between a dead warrior to a flower [are] so common in epic as to be almost formulaic 26 and
Byron ensures the formula is a recognisable feature in Don Juan. Haidee in her death
becomes metaphorically, a bleeding flower and her unborn child the blasted fruit of love
(Byron, Don Juan IV.70.560). The vocabulary Byron choses to enact his metaphor is
powerfully militaristic, and fortifies the Homeric connection of pathetic language for the
fallen in the Iliad. Additionally, time has left the Isle all desolate and bare (Byron, Don Juan
IV.72.569) as if a battle had taken place which is quietly reminiscent of the post battlefields
of the Iliad. Barbour points out that the simile used to describe Haidees death has
similarities with two similes from the Iliad27 and exemplifies with Homers description of
Gorgythions ultimate moments as a garden poppy / bends beneath the weight of its yield
and the rains of springtime (Homer, Odyssey 8.306-307) comparing Byrons and her head
droopd as when the lily lies/ oercharged with rain (Byron, Don Juan IV.59.467-68). Byron
by directly borrowing from Homer showcases an attempt to add intertextual complexity to
Haidees death once examined against the description Homer ties to Gorgythion. 28
Specifically, when Homer refers to the fallen warrior as, Gorgythion the blameless (Homer,
Iliad 8.303) and the reader discovers his death is caused by an arrow meant for Hector the
mirroring becomes all the more potent. Byron choses this specific flower simile to establish a
link between Gorgythion and Haidee and reiterates how Haidee was blameless and tragically
dies in place of another. An argument for Byron replacing the poppy in Homers Iliad simile
for the lily in Don Juan, stems its association with purity. The lily being a fitting flower
symbol for Haidees fragility and innocence.29
26 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 21.
27 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 21.
28 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 21.
29 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 22.

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Following on from what must be the closest Juan gets to true

love, he soon encounters the overbearing sexual force of Sultana Gulbeyaz. Sultana Gulbeyaz
is the epitome of a characteristic mixture of power, lust and unrequited love. It is through
Gulbeyaz that the influence of Homers Kalypso can be seen to shine most prominently.
Kalypso is a dreaded goddess (Homer, Odyssey 12.449), who according to Athene detains
[Odysseus] / by constraint (Homer, Odyssey 5.14-15) as she reigns over her island paradise.
Kalypsos status and identity as a goddess means she is recognisably more powerful than the
hero, just as being a Sultans wife connotes the same power for Gulbeyaz. Byron not only
adopts Homers plot structure of the powerful and regal female who holds the hero captive,
but also picks up on the latent sexual nature to which Homer underpins the scene. The
influence of Homers depiction of Odysseus and Kalypso as they enjoyed themselves in
love (Homer, Odyssey 5.227), manifests into the predatory sexual nature of Gulbeyazs
becoming a tutor in loves ways (Byron, Don Juan V.122.973). Byron also subverts the
heroic echo of Odysseus unflinching loyalty by having Juan wonderd why he had refused
(Byron, Don Juan V.142.1131) as he witnesses Kalypsos tears. Homer also hints that
Odysseus and Kalypso could have once been more than lovers but she was no longer
pleasing / to him (Homer, Odyssey 5.153-154). Byron adapts this subtle hint in his
replication of the scenario and makes it explicit to the point of parody. Gulbeyaz and Juan
could have been more than lovers if Juan had taken a moment before shouting I love not
thee! (Byron, Don Juan V.127.1010) and incensing Gulbeyaz to rage and pity.
The

connection

between weeping and lost love which is reiterated time and time again in the Odyssey, is
reflected in Don Juans portrayal of Juans lost love. Homer portrays Odysseus strength at its
most vulnerable in Book Five, describing Odysseus as his eyes were never / wiped dry of
tears, and the sweet lifetime was draining out of him (Homer, Odyssey 5.152-153). The

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influence of Homers depiction of Odysseus great lamentation and sorrow (Homer,

Odyssey 5.157) is echoed in Juans melancholy for his lost Haidee as he burst into tears
(Byron, Don Juan V.117.936) upon remembering her. Juans emotional response mirrors that
of Homers depiction of Odysseus in the midst of his worst depression whilst being held
captive by a powerful female. The dichotomy between heroic misery underpinned by lost
love and the presence of a strong female character is a thematic trope that Byron draws from
Homer and reinterprets in Don Juan.
The abundance of wealth and luxury found in Gulbeyazs oriental palace also
transmits reverberations of the natural luxury of Kalypsos island. Don Juans Homeric
source is echoed as the familiar trope of luxury is reiterated. 30 Kalypsos markers of wealth
that earn her Hermes admiration are: the flourishing / growth of vine, the four fountains
and the meadows growing soft with parsley (Homer, Odyssey 5.69-72) and are notably all of
natural origin. Nature is used to frame the glimmers of manmade prosperity which is found
within Kalypsos home. A natural camouflage which belies Kalypsos greater wealth. Hermes
observes Kalypso at her loom weaving with a golden shuttle (Homer, Odyssey 5.62) and is
invited to sit on a chair that shone and glittered (Homer, Odyssey 5.86). Trough Kalypsos
weaving is symbolic of the Greek ideal of feminine work, a shuttle made of gold is rather
unpractical and superfluous. Homer gives no indication of precisely what it is Kalypso is
weaving, rendering it meaningless whereas Penelopes weaving is symbolic of Time 31
which Odysseus must strive against.32 Consequently, Kalypsos portrayal becomes one of a
goddess that is powerful and wealthy, but at the same time being bored and idle. This in turn
30 D, Hill, Orient, Self and Other in Byrons Don Juan, International Journal of
Arts and Sciences, 07(2014), 580.
31 K.S. Kruger, Weaving the Word: The Metaphorics of Weaving and Female
Textual Production, (London: Susquehanna University Press, 2001),78.
32 K.S. Kruger, Weaving the Word, 78.

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suggests Odysseus is more a form of entertainment than a true romantic object. The natural
imagery disguising the manmade is echoed in Juans approach to the palace, where after
plodding on their winding way / Through orange bowers and jasmine (Byron, Don Juan
V.42.329-330) they are confronted with a deal of gilding in a gaudy taste (Byron, Don
Juan V.46.363-365). Byron also includes a marble fountain (Byron, Don Juan V.55.436) in
his description of the palace which is perceived to be a veiled allusion to the fountains
situated outside Kalypsos cave. Gulbeyazs attraction to Juan is termed as the latest of her
whims (Byron, Don Juan V.114.905) and carries a resonance of ephemerality that underpins
Kalypsos affection for Odysseus.
Just as the setting, characterisation and situation of Gulbeyaz bears
reminders of Kalypsos own, so too does the broader question Kalypso raises of feminine
sexual desire within a male dominated society. Byron recognised the merit hidden in
Kalypsos complaint to Hermes of you are resentful toward the goddesses for sleeping /
openly with such men as each has made her true husband (Homer, Odyssey 5.119-120).
Byron invites the reader to interpret Kalypsos question through questioning the hypocrisy of
treatment between the Sultana Gulbeyaz and Sultan. Gulbeyaz riskd her life to get (Byron,
Don Juan V.122.972) Juan in what will ultimately become a failed sexual encounter. On the
other hand, the Sultan has the comical inversion of fifteen-hundredth concubine[s] (Byron,
Don Juan VI.8.64) which are suggested as a root cause for Gulbeyazs infidelity. The narrator
further draws attention to the disparity through sarcastically condemning Gulbeyaz, saying I
know Gulbeyaz was extremely wrong; / I own it, I deplore it, I condemn it (Byron, Don
Juan VI.8.57-58). Kalypsos anger and frustration at the sexual inequality in male and female
relationships is made manifest in Don Juan through the farcicality of the Sultans harem and
Sultan Gulbeyazs position as fourth wife. Byron goes on to develop the idea through
highlighting the discrimination between male and female emotional worth, mockingly stating,

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a womans tear-drop melts, a mans half sears (Byron, Don Juan V.118.941). Don Juan pays
homage to Homeric Epic by rephrasing the same questions raised of love Homer proposed,
and further developing the interrogation within a modern paradigm.

War
The central concept of war which defines and dominates the Iliad provides a major stimulus
in Don Juan, Byron states in the first Canto:
My poems epic, and is meant to be
Divided in twelve books; each book containing,
With love, and war, a heavy gale at sea,
A list of ships, and captains, and kings reigning,
New Characters; the episodes are three:
A panorama view of hells in training,

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After the style of Virgil and of Homer,
So that my name of Epic is no misnomer.
-

(Byron, Don Juan I.200.1593-1600)

Byron recognised if his poem were truly to be considered an epic (Byron, Don Juan
I.200.1593-1600), rather than a mere imitation33 the themes of conflict and warfare on a
grand scale would have to be included in Don Juan. In the first Canto war is identified as one
of the three fundamental Homeric pillars to be addressed in Don Juan; alongside love and a
sea voyage. Specifically, just as the heavy gale at sea (Byron, Don Juan I.200.1595) is most
probably an allusion to the stormblasts (Homer, Odyssey 5.304) and tempests that plagued
Odysseus in the Odyssey; the list of ships, and captains, and kings reigning (Byron, Don
Juan I.200.1596) is a direct connection to the catalogue of ships in book two of the Iliad. A
reason for Byron choosing the catalogue as a key marker from the Iliad to define epic warfare
in Don Juan, is through the form of lists Homer keenly recognises the human cost of warfare.
Homer makes the individual prominent in both memory and on the battlefield by giving each
hero and warrior an extensive biography of origin for the reader to envision.
Byron recognised Homers ability to emphasize the individual within the
greater whole of war by having the ability to demonstrate ancestry, family and
companionship. As Barbour concurs, it is Homers attempt to see warriors as individuals
rather than en masse34, which Byron undoubtedly draws a focus to within Don Juan.
Comically the problem Don Juans narrator encounters in recalling names is not how to justly
immortalise each warrior but rather, How shall [he] spell the name of each Cossacque
(Byron, Don Juan VII.14.107). Byron is playfully mocking Homers poetic style of recalling
the names of warriors in an attempt to show the futility of his narrator following suit. The
allusion to the list of heroes in the Iliad is further cemented with the naming of Achilles
33 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 114.
34 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 70.

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(Byron, Don Juan VII.14.110) as a signpost of intention within the same stanza. Byron also
attacks the formal invocation of the Muse, a staple of Homeric Epic, by either including it as
a glib formality, as he does in the opening of the third canto, Hail, Muse! et cetera (Byron,
Don Juan III.I.1) or by direct insult, my Muse is a capricious elf (Byron, Don Juan,
IV.74.590). What the reconfiguring of the Muse provides an insight into Byrons appreciation
of Homeric Epics substance rather than the structural form by which it is bound.
Arguably, the purpose of Byron drawing
attention to the list of heroes in Iliad is to highlight the disparity in the scale of warfare
between the siege of Troy and the siege of Ismail. Byron is making the point that Troy may
have been a large scale battle in antiquity but pales in comparison to modern conflict.
Solomou goes on to verify, the carnage involved in the siege of Ismail is much greater than
any described by Homer,35 as such, Byron casts a much bloodier tableaux of battle in Don
Juan then illustrated in the Iliad. Furthermore, the narrator struggles with the spelling
alongside simply naming the thousands of this new and polished nation (Byron, Don Juan
VII.14.111) instead, making up Russian sounding names like Mouskin Pouskin (Byron,
Don Juan VII.17.130) in a parody of its Homeric inspiration. There are just too many dead to
warrant recalling each name in Don Juan. That said, the inability to put a name or create one
for each of the soldiers contains a much darker undertone when Byron compares, more men
were slain at Ismail than at Troy in thy Greek gazette of that campaign (Byron, Don Juan
VII.80.634-636). Moreover, Byron is assimilating Homer to the shoddy ephemera of daily
scribes,36 by means of a way to downgrade the Homeric influence to that which is less
revered; so the parody is not subverted by, reminders of epics martial values. 37 Byron will
35 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 122.
36 C. Rawson, Byron Augustan, 102.
37 C. Rawson, Byron Augustan, 102.

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not let his depiction of futility in war be touched by any aspect of Homeric glorification and
relegates it to the burlesque. This argument is partway constructed around how one perceives
the social caste of the Gazette during Byrons time, but nonetheless goes someway to
highlight how Don Juan discerns between the various institutions employed in Homer Epic.
In
choosing the siege of Ismail as the landscape on which to explore conflict, Byron also draws
on the topography of Troy as designed by Homer. Both include fortified cities that occupy a
space near to both sea and a river with a section of plains for battle to take place in-between.
Just as Troy is the stronghold of the age in the Iliad, so Ismail is a fortress of the foremost
rank (Byron, Don Juan VII.9.68) in Don Juan. Both fortresses are defended by a body of
water; Ismail by the Danubes bank (Byron, Don Juan VII.12.93) and Troy literally by
Skamandros the river god, who tries to fend destruction away from the Trojans (Homer,
Iliad 21.250). Byrons broad knowledge of military history may have perhaps carried over
into Canto VIII38 and suggests he chose a historical siege befitting the Trojan conflict where
his Homeric allusions would be easily substantiated. In turn, by choosing a setting similar to
that of Troy, Byron invites the reader to compare the epic set-pieces whilst showcasing his
freedom from the epic conventions he despises39. The only sacrosanct expression remaining
in Canto VIII of Don Juan being the futility of war. That said however, it is important to
retain though Byron does transform many facets of the Homeric Epic to suit Don Juan and
does so in order for the reader may have an encounter with the genuine epic tradition freed
from the trappings of degenerate imitation 40. Byron believed epic imitative works, such as
Virgils Aeneid, had corrupted and become corrupt through their canonical status and he did
38 R. Beaton, Byrons War, Romantic Rebellion, Greek Revolution, (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2013), 91.
39 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 124.
40 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 124.

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not want the same apotheosis to obscure the moral communication in Don Juan.41
Where the Iliad has a competent and formal narrated commemoration of those
that fought, the siege of Ismail only offers a mirrored parody. Don Juans narrator
acknowledges the only comparison that can be drawn to eternal Homer is to equal you in
blood (Byron, Don Juan VII.80.633-640) with the death of men at the siege of Ismail made
proportional to Homers poetic ability to memorialise. Byron goes as far as to say, the dead at
Ismail should be thrice happy he whose name had been well spelt (Byron, Don Juan
VIII.18.142) on the inventory of the fallen. This comparison draws forth a macabre yet
somewhat comical reminiscence of the narrators inability to spell the Cossacques names in
Canto VII. The soldiers that fall in Don Juan die without the hope of any similar Homeric
immortalisation through poetry. The jokes in Don Juan, which are made at the expense of
Homers stylistic listing of heroes, go on to emphasize the argument Byron proffers on
modern warfare. War in Don Juan cannot retain a modicum of Homeric glory in the face of
such wanton carnage and death. Thus, the poetic commemoration of warriors in the Iliad has
been ostracised by the gross magnitude of battle in Don Juan.
In conjunction with drawing a comparison to the scope
of war in the Iliad, Byron as a realist42 wanted to render war in all of its grimmest and
gruesome faculties, an affinity he shared with Homer. Barbour tells us Homer does not shirk
from showing us the ugliest, goriest detail of the battlefield, and is fully alive to wars pathos,
a pathos which extends to the entire human condition.43 Against the framework of battle in
Don Juan, Byron goes on to employ the grisly descriptions of combat which Homer utilizes
to ascribe conflict realism in the Iliad, albeit in Byrons sardonic manner. It is worth noting
41 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 124.
42 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 162.
43 J. Barbour, Homer among the Classics, 9.

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Byrons overarching satirical tone withdraws itself slightly when portraying shock and
violence, or moments of obvious intrinsic pathos. 44 When Juan trips over a wounded
comrade, sprawling in his gore amidst dead and dying thousands (Byron, Don Juan
VIII.20.154-160) the influence of Homers depiction of battle is realised in the echoed
parallels of graphic imagery such as, all his guts poured / out on the ground (Homer, Iliad
4.525-526). Don Juan does not allow its reader to forgo the shocking realities of combat, akin
to the way how Homers Iliad does not let glory despoil the depiction of the brutal actuality
of battle.

This brings to focus Byrons

treatment of martial glory and how intensely juxtaposed it is with the portrayal of heroic
glory found in Homers Iliad. Byron begins by following the standard epic framework by
invoking his true muse (Byron, Don Juan VIII.1.5) at the outset of battle in Canto VIII.
Byrons imitating of when Homer invokes his Muse (Homer, Iliad 11.218) is to ensure the
irony is well connected, and can thus be contrasted with its Homeric source. The irony acts as
the nucleus for Byrons attack on Glory sought through conflict, as such, the words Glory
and Hero hardly ever appear in Don Juan without an ironic connotation.45 This is
exemplified in the acerbic, tongue-in-cheek claim of the narrator to love Glory: - glorys a
great thing and ridicules the pursuit of glory in absurdly alleging it is mankind worth
destroying (Byron, Don Juan VIII.14.105-112). Byron is so unable to reconcile Don Juan
with the Homeric veneration of heroic glory and in response he goes to great lengths to
degrade Glorys dream shaming it as vulgar (Byron, Don Juan VIII.I.2-4). Byron exposes
the false heroics of wars of conquest 46 and ensures that the influence of Homers depiction
44 J. Barbour, Homer among the Classics, 71.
45 J. Lauber, Don Juan as Anti-epic, Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900,
8.4, (Texas: Rice University, 1968), 610. Accessed via:
http://doi.org/10.2307/449468
46 M. Miller, Thematic Imagery in Lord Byrons Don Juan (MA Thesis, Texas: Rice
University: 1964), 54.

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of battle, not in glory but in suffering, is abundantly apparent to the reader of Don Juan.
The Homeric echo
of warfare is once again drawn through the comparison between the modern and ancient.
Byron understood conflict was not only an inevitable trope of mankind but war itself had
adapted and become more efficient in brutality than war in Homers Iliad. As exemplified in
the direct comparison to Homeric warfare in Canto VII. Don Juans narrator laments to the
reader having to, paint a siege and depict the battle being fought with deadlier engines and
a speedier blow than thy Greek gazette of that campaign (Byron, Don Juan VII.80.635636). The narrators protest of making poetry out of the impedimenta of modern warfare 47
disguises what Barbour claims as, Byron is in reality inviting us to compare Homers
treatment of war with his own.48 The evaluation found in Don Juans depiction of modern
warfares destructiveness, when compared to that of the Iliad, is bought to a conclusion with
wholesale decimation leaving corpses only ashes (Byron, Don Juan VIII.6.48). The fallen in
Don Juan are annihilated from existence, therefore removed from any similar pathos found in
Priams appeal to Achilles aidios, reverence, for the gods, eleos, pity, and the memory of his
own father.49

Byron

takes

Homers distinguishing ability to define what makes heroes heroic and transplants it into the
corrupted geography of modern war in Don Juan. Heroic warriors are morphed into
monstrosities like the disfigured and grotesque Human hydrawhose heads were heroes
(Byron, Don Juan VIII.2.13-15). Furthermore, Byron ensures the fallen heroes of Don Juan
are not even given distinction as each of the Hydras heads are severed and immediately in
others grew again (Byron, Don Juan VII.2.16). Through using the metaphor of the Hydra, an
47 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 69.
48 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 69.
49 M. Scott, Pity and Pathos in Homer, Acta Classica, 22, (1979), 7.

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iconic monster of Greek mythology, and the Homeric style simile of comparing the army
like a lion from his den (Byron, Don Juan VIII.2.11) Don Juans imagery is given
intertextual depth, whilst Byron repeatedly asserts his fellowship with Homer. 50 The use of
the lion simile is especially prominent since more than forty lion similes embellish the
Iliad51 and they are often employed by Homer at times of intense ferocity, bloodshed and
bravery. This is epitomised when Achilles rose like a lion and rouses himself to fury for the
fight (Homer, Iliad 20.164-171) bravely fighting whilst being outnumbered. Byron adopts
the emotional connotations Homer associated with the lion simile, retaining the violence but
sacrificing the bravery in place of futility. Byron not only draws on the popularity of the lion
simile in the Iliad to accentuate his own imagery, he also cuts the traditional form of the
Homeric simile short. Byron fails to develop his lion simile choosing instead to mutate the
lion halfway into a much uglier mythological beast. By deconstructing the traditional form of
the Homeric lion simile which is used by Homer to exemplify, moments of high heroic
action52 Byron is challenging what truly defines heroic.
A staple of Don Juan is the transformation of animal and beast imagery employed in
the Iliad, especially reoccurring well known motifs such as the lion. Byron misappropriates
the recognisable animal imagery of the Iliad and reinterprets it into strange, foreign and often
comical scenarios. As demonstrated after Juan, having been purchased as a slave for
Gulbeyaz, rejects her amorous advances and she is described as grieving like a tigress robbd
of her young, a lioness (Byron, Don Juan V.132.1049). This connection bears startling
similarities to the grief (Homer, Iliad 18.318) of Achilles as he laments the death of
Patroklos and is compared to some great bearded lion /when some manhas stolen his cubs
50 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 68.
51 D. Wilson, Lion Kings: Heroes in the Epic Mirror, Colby Review, vol. 38, 2
(Colby: 2002), 1.
52 D. Wilson, Colby Review, 1.

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away from him (Homer, Iliad 18.318-319). The influence of the Homeric is felt in the parody
of the Iliads fiercest warrior in his weakest moment being paralleled with Juans oriental
temptress failing to seduce. In essence, the violence of the lion in the Iliad is traded in for the
sex of the tigress in Don Juan. Byron further supplements the comparison between Gulbayez
and Achilles through manipulation of the fire imagery that Homer repeatedly ascribes
Achilles passion. Comically, Gulbeyaz is always impassioned and her eyes flashd always
fire (Byron, Don Juan V.134.1066) although the root of her passion is not heroic but sexual.
As Gulbeyazs fury increases so too does Byrons assimilation of Homeric imagery. Gulbeyaz
is described as a beautiful embodied storm (Byron, Don Juan V.135.1080) evocative of the
depiction of the Trojans like flame, like a storm cloud. (Homer, Odyssey 13.39) The
language that Byron employs around Gulbayez is also militaristic and violent, she makes a
threat (Byron, Don Juan V, 103, 818) and order[s] (Byron, Don Juan V.109.873) Juan and
her subordinates, just as the commanders of the Iliad do so on the battlefield. Byron also
plays on the bloodthirsty nature of Achilles but stops short of physical violence, instead
Gulbeyazs thirst of blood was quenchd in tears (Byron, Don Juan V.136.1088). The
comparison is also found in the similarities to social status between Gulbeyaz and Achilles.
Gulbayez is a ruler by birth (Byron, Don Juan V.112.889) just as Achilles is a king
(Homer, Iliad 1.180) and both suffer indignities in spite of their station. By transforming the
stereotypes based on Homeric imagery at the last moment, line 1088 in Canto V literally
ending the stanza, Byron is draws comedy through contrast and parody.
The subversion and reallocation of
heroic similes taken from the Iliad is another way for Byron to force his reader to consider
Juans behaviour more carefully.53 When Juan is isolated from his forces during the siege of
Ismail, his actions are amusingly narrated as, he stopped for a minutelike an ass (Byron,
53 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 126.

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Don Juan VIII.29.228-229) and Byron immediately bars the reader from drawing conclusions
through highlighting his Homeric source; Homer thought / this simile enough for Ajax
(Byron, Don Juan VIII.29.230-231). Byron unites the high grandeur of the Iliad with what
Solomou calls the conventional English expression of calling someone an ass 54 or put more
succinctly, low brow comedic wordplay. What this specifically goes on to draw attention to is
Byrons utilisation of the high standing of Homeric Epic and the overarching grand tone
which encapsulates the genre, to give Don Juans basest jokes an oppositional comedic
element. That said, there is a deeper distinction to be made with this particular reference, as it
gives an indication of how Byron wished Juan to be perceived as an epic hero. More
importantly, it also sheds light on how the Homeric influence is used to shape Juans
character, which is otherwise mostly defined by the events that transpire around him. If
Juans endurance is likened to Ajaxs through the simile, in that he has had many sticks
broken upon him (Homer, Iliad 11.558) then Byron may be inferring that Juan is much more
resilient then he has previously given credit for. By drawing on the simile that showcases
Ajax at a moment of weakness and fear (Homer, Iliad 11.543) Byron reduces any notion of
what may be termed the Homeric heroic in Juan, Byrons hero is simply human. 55 Solomou
goes on to build the idea that the donkey simile, is used by Byron to show his insight into
conditions of battle, yet to draw such a conclusion appears to distort Homeric influence
beyond its scope; the stubborn donkey of the Iliad is still an ass to Byron.That said, where
Byrons allusions to Homeric Epic are often in an attempt to create deeper intertextual
resonance, there are occasions where they look to be just merely asides. Byron appears to be
able to play on the readers anticipation of greater sub-textual connections between Don Juan

54 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 126.

55 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 126.

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and Homeric Epic. This false intertextuality is made most obvious when Byron directly
references the feast that Achilles orders for Odysseus in Book Nine:

They made a most superior mess of broth,

A thing that poesy but seldom mentions,
But the best dish that eer was cookd since Homers
Achilles orderd dinner for new comers.
-

(Byron, Don Juan II.123.981-984)

Although the irony of claiming that food is not often the topic of epic poetry is comical,
especially when compared to Homers attention to feasting, it is most likely as Solomou
suggests; This aside is almost gratuitous. It has no specific function in relation to the story of
Juan and Haidee.56 Byron appears to have such an extensive understanding of Homeric Epic
that the occasional allusion or reference is either obscure beyond recovery or simply a
flaunting of his poetic ability.

56 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 128.

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A Heavy Gale at Sea

Regarding narrative and structural similarity between Don Juan and the Odyssey, Solomou
states Don Juan cannot but remind the reader of the Odyssey since the general outline of the
plots are so similar.57 This is proved true with Haidees discovery of Juan shipwrecked on the
beach bearing direct reflections of how Nausikaa first encounters Odysseus. Byrons near
methodical reproduction of Homeric imagery, plot and characterisation give more than just a
surface texture of Homeric Epic,58 as each connection often transmits a greater sub-textual
significance when expanded upon. Alongside the similarity in plot, a moral correspondence is
arguably made evident, as both poems can be seen to embody an obfuscated form of
bildungsroman.

By

comparing Homers portrayal of Odysseus shipwrecking on the island of the Phaeacians to

Juan washing up on the Isle of Haidee, Byrons appropriation of Homeric source material can
be made clear. It is one of the few scenes in the Odyssey where Odysseus gives way to fear
(Homer, Odyssey 5.406), and through opposing the sea is momentarily disrobed of his heroic
persona. Juan in a similar fashion gives way to despair (Byron, Don Juan II.102.809) as he
is marooned out at sea. The narrative similarities in conjunction with the close textual
connection ensure that Byrons imitative intentions are made clear. 59 The thematic
replication of conflict between man and sea is abundantly apparent and suits Byrons agenda
of portraying a world devoid of heroism. More importantly, is Juans duplication of
Odysseus fearful emotional response when at seas mercy as it connects the two heroes on a

57 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 129.

58 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 12.
59 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 20.

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human rather than heroic level. Byron specifically picks up on Homers image of Odysseus
hands clinging onto the rocks for dear life, describing Juan as, with his digging nails he
clung (Byron, Don Juan II.108.857). Echoing its Homeric predecessor of Odysseus as he
frantically caught hold with both hands on the rock face / and clung to it (Homer, Odyssey
5.428). The image is gritty and filled with realism that is mimicked in Juans own struggle
ashore. Byron is able to bring parallels between sufferings of Juan and Odysseus by drawing
on the specific imagery Homer uses in rendering Odysseus fighting to survive against the
waves. The Homeric resonance is a way for Byron to show that even Homeric heroes are
fallible in the face of nature.

In Canto II, Byron plays heavily on the characteristic

weeping that Homer so acutely associates Odysseus with when he longs for his homecoming.
Where Odysseus sheds noble tears to be reunited with his family, Juan grieves for his
mother, and a mistress, and no wife (Byron, Don Juan II.15.114) and Byron suggests he is all
the better for it. Clearly, Byron is projecting his own ideas of what constitutes tragedy onto
Don Juan in a comical inversion of the Homeric stereotype. The narrator even offers
comment on the tradition of weeping, claiming, Id weep, but mine is not a weeping Muse
(Byron, Don Juan II.16.123), with the invocation of the Muse acting as a blunt indication
towards Don Juans Homeric source material. Byron further endeavours to subvert the pathos
of the Homeric weeping hero, by having Juan become seasick whilst reading the letter of
Donna Julia, to the extent that no doubt he would have been much more pathetic, / but the
sea acted as a strong emetic (Byron, Don Juan II.21.167-168). Poor Juan suffers the most
banal and un-heroic of ailments in Byrons pursuit of undercutting the Homeric heroic
stereotype.

Juan may fail in being the conventional Homeric

seafaring hero but Byron does allow him some Homeric heroic idiosyncrasies so that the
connection is not lost all together. As the storm incites his crew to mutiny and get drunk, Juan
with sense beyond his years (Byron, Don Juan II.35.274) goes on to defend the grog and

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attempts to inspire his crew to die like men (Byron, Don Juan II.36.281-284). Granted it is
not quite as daring or impressive as the trials of Odysseus but it does have some heroic merit
at least. Arguably, this small display of heroism is made more profound due to Juans lack of
being constantly heroic like Odysseus. Additionally, Juan displays intuition above those he
commands, a feature that defines Odysseus, and is willing to put his personal safety on the
line for his crew. The most similar scenario in the Odyssey is when Odysseus claims, I
myself took these men back weeping, by force (Homer, Odyssey 9.98) during the LotusEaters episode. The emphasis being on the I, Odysseus status as a hero makes him intuitive
enough to recognise the inherent danger of the situation and avoid calamity. For a man to
become truly a Homeric Hero he must surpass those around him in intelligence, bravery and
piety. Juan can be said to fit this mould as Byron makes him a figure to emulate and aspire to,
as Odysseus obviously is, exemplified in Pedrillos vow of reformation causing him to quit
his academic occupation and follow Juans wake like Sancha Pancha (Byron, Don Juan
II.37.292-296). Evidently, Juan is not completely devoid of the aspects which make Odysseus
heroic. It is also another subtle parallelism that the driving force of both crews mutiny is in
their intoxication. The sailors feeding on lotus (Homer, Odyssey 9.97) is allegorical to realworld addiction, the sailors must be tied and forget their way home (Homer, Odyssey 9.9799) in the midst of their intoxication. The adversity both Juan and Odysseus encounter is that
of their own mens incompetence and substance addiction, a flaw which only serves to better
highlight the heroism of the protagonists above those around them.
Where Byron seeks to
imitate Homer he also strives to surpass him through applying a more realistic examination to
the less heroic aspects of adventuring. Solomou even goes as far as to suggest the sufferings
of the survivors are [] detailed with realism closer to the novel than to any earlier poetry 60.
60 J. Lauber, Don Juan as Anti-Epic, 611.

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Where Homer part defines a hero by the supernatural adversities they overcome, Juans
heroism is firmly grounded in the real world. The grim truths Juan must face by being
isolated out at sea in Canto II, to some extent surpass Odysseus supernatural trials by being
innately more relatable for the reader. What Odysseus offhandedly dismisses as being at sea
for a great length of time, stating from there I was carried along nine days, and on the tenth
night (Homer, Odyssey 12.447) Byron, through Juans hardship at sea, portrays in all of its
grim minutiae. Unlike the traditions of Homeric Epic nothing is sacred in Don Juan and
much to shock the Muse the starving sailors use Julias letter (Byron, Don Juan II.74.590592) to decide whom they are going to eat to survive. The image is grubby, dark and a
forbidding portent for things to come. Odysseus heroism is never contaminated with such
base animalism and desperation and thus, provides the perfect contrast for Byron to set his
portraiture of mans imperfections. The violation of Julias love letter and the subsequent
portrayal of humanity it entailed merited singular disapproval from Percy Shelley (Byrons
long-term poetic acquaintance) who commented, I cannot say I equally approve of the
service to which this letter was appropriated.61 Shelleys observation being a common
complaint of Byrons capability to make a mockery of human nature and supposedly
inviolable literary traditions.
What makes Juan so palpable to relate to can be compared to that which divorces him
from the heroes he rubs shoulders against in Homeric Epic. As a consequence, every time
Juan shows an aptitude of strength, resilience or intuition above the standard as he does when
refusing (Byron, Don Juan II, 78, 620) to partake of Pedrillos slowly leaking blood, he
becomes heroic in a realm of mortals. Don Juan centres its heroic moments firmly in the
natural, human world; Odysseus heroism stems from his ability to be superhuman, in a world
populated with the divine and otherworldly. Odysseus is often addressed with the suitable
61 Shelley, Shelley to Byron, from Pisa, May 26th 1820 in: R. Cronin, Shelleys
Poetic Thoughts, (London: Macmillan Press, 1981), 56.

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epithet of godlike (Homer, Odyssey 1.21) whereas the closest Juan receives is the sobriquet
of bewilderd (Byron, Don Juan II.13.97). Homers influence can be felt in Byrons need
for Don Juan to be more realistic and for his epic to [illustrate] the nature of the world 62
with more human than divine attention.
Just as part of Juans character is drawn from that of Odysseus, so too does Lambros
portrayal entertain certain aspects of Odysseus character. Lambros role imitates Odysseus in
his sea-faring capabilities and as a leader of men; Lambro is described as a sea-solicitor
(Byron, Don Juan III.26.201) with a thousand scimitars, (Byron, Don Juan IV.37.295)
under his command. In addition, Byron replicates Homers nostos of Odysseus with
Lambros own homecoming stating, on seeing his own chimney-smoke, felt glad (Byron,
Don Juan III.26.203). This precise line echoes Athenes opening supplication to Zeus 63 of
Odysseus / straining to get sight of the very smoke uprising from his own country (Homer,
Odysseus 1.57-58). The replication of language is further matched by the narrative events of
Lambros homecoming and the eventual conflict with Juan. Lambro is unrecognised as he
returns, his house is full of un-wanted guests, all of which culminates in a violent finale with
blood running like a little brook (Byron, Don Juan IV.49.390). The narrative similarities bear
hallmarks of Odysseus homecoming when he finally arrives at Ithaca, with Byron attempting
to emulate Homers tactic of delaying the final confrontation with the suitors, to build
tension.64 Several stanzas before Lambro returns Byron includes what may be [a]
submerged reference to Ithaca65 with the tale of a terrier, too, which once had been a Britons
/ Who dying off the coast of Ithaca (Byron, Don Juan III.18.140-141). Byrons inclusion of
62 J. Griffin, Greek Epic in: C. Bates (ed.) The Cambridge Companion to the
Epic (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), 13.
63 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 23.
64 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 23.
65 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 23.

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Odysseus home and where he ultimately visits his retribution on the suitors acts as another
subtle hint to Lambros violent ending of Juan and Haidees love affair.
The crafty and composed nature which Odysseus employs when facing
his trials is also a trait Byron appropriates in the characterisation of Lambro. What may be
termed a heroic intelligence especially in martial matters is shown when Juan challenges
Lambro to an honourable swordfight. Lambro is calm in his voice, and calm within his eye
because he knows he has caught Juan asleep and off-guard, before drawing from his belt a
pistol (Byron, Don Juan IV.40.316). Furthermore, Byrons use of the singular eye in
describing Lambro is another subtle allusion to the Cyclops of the Odyssey. Lambros refusal
of a fair fight through drawing his pistol and sneaking upon Juan is comparable to how
Odysseus evens the odds in conflict. Odysseus craftiness is epitomised when he chooses to
blind the Cyclops when sleep had come over him (Homer, Odyssey 9.333). Although
muddled in Byronic fashion there are numerous allusions to the Cyclops of the Odyssey that
surround Lambro. The first is an explicit reference in Canto III where Lambros love for
Haidee is described as what will drive him like the Cyclops mad with blindness (Byron,
Don Juan III.57.6). Secondly, Byron repeatedly remarks on Lambros size calling him high
and inscrutable (Byron Don Juan IV.39.305) and there is a marked increase in language
associated with vision such as sight (Byron, Don Juan IV.41.323) and large dark eye
(Byron, Don Juan IV.44.348). Finally, the way in which Lambros pirates answer his call and
arrive rushing in disorderly (Byron, Don Juan IV.47.373) is an image which resonates when
the other Cyclopes swarming up from their various places (Homer, Odyssey 9.401) go to aid
Polyphemus. Byrons drawing on the monster Polyphemus in his portrayal of Lambro is
obscure but expected as it is characteristic of Byrons easy familiarity 66 with Homeric Epic.

66 K. Solomou, Byron and Greek Poetry, 125.

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Conclusion
What an examination of Don Juans relationship with the Iliad and the Odyssey illuminates is
the intensity of which Byron understood the true essence of Homeric Epic. Homers Odyssey
and Iliad explore the dichotomies between good and evil, love and war, life and death in an
attempt to answer the fundamental questions of humanity. To this extent Don Juan is more
the natural successor to Homeric Epic then it is given credit for. Don Juan is imbued with the
extensive knowledge Byron had of Homeric Epic and without this influence the work would
lack some of its most entertaining and most powerful lines.67

The

sustained parallels to narrative plot, characterisation and theme demonstrate this deep
connection disguised by Byrons hard-edged casualness.68 Moreover, Don Juans Homeric
loyalties are submerged in the textual evidence as an effect of Byrons attempt to polish up
Homers message and present it to his age.69 This reinvigoration of what Byron perceived as
an outmoded form was to materialize in Don Juan, an epic as much in the spirit of our day as
The Iliad was in Homer's.70 To expound on the metaphor, the spirit of Homeric Epic still
67 L. N. Jeffery, Homeric Echoes in Byrons Don Juan, The South Central
Bulletin, 31,4, (Texas: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1971), 192.
68 C. Rawson, Mock-Heroic and English poetry, 184.
69 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 9.
70 T. Medwin, Journal of Conversations of Lord Byron: Noted during a Residence
with his Lordship at Pisa, in the years 1821 and 1822, (Henry Colburn, 1824),
164.

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thrives within the body of Don Juan.

In

Don

Juans extensive approximation of love in all its guises, Byron shamelessly appropriates
sections of his narrative from Homer. The romantic, true and fragile love of Juan and Haidee
is immersed in imagery from Homeric Epic, and is set against the backdrop of the Greek
Cyclades conceivably in homage to its source. There are moments of Homeric imitation such
as when Haidees beauty appeard distinct, and tall, and fair (Byron, Don Juan II.115.920)
being a pictorial reincarnation of Nausikaas beauty, figure, stature (Homer Odyssey
VI.152). Furthermore, Byron is unafraid of inverting the Homeric sources he adopts to
provide explicit contrast. In Nausikaas dream she is told your marriage is not far off
(Homer, Odyssey VI.26-27) and is filled with joyful (Homer, Odyssey VI.66) expectation.
Antithetically, Haidees dream is saturated with portents of despair as she is chaind to a
rock and repeatedly drowns yet she could not die (Byron, Don Juan IV.31.241-248). The
contrast continues as Byron underscores her emotional distress with pathetic fallacy, the
temperature freezing Haidees tears described as, each drop they caught / Which froze to
marble (Byron, Don Juan IV.33.263-264) occurs moments before she finds Juan lifeless at
her feet (Byron, Don Juan IV.34.265). Nausikaa on the other hand encounters Odysseus out
in the sunshine where the water is glorious (Homer, Odyssey VI.86-98) rather than
intimidating. Although Haidees dream can remain in textual isolation and as is Byrons
usual practice, the imagery used is self-contained, but gains resonance from its Homeric
associations.71

The textual similarities between Homeric Epic and Don Juan

under the theme of love are matched by the affinity Homer and Byron share in their realistic
portrayal of war. In light of every allusion, reference and sub-textual nod to war in Homeric
Epic that permeates Don Juan, Byron maintains his authorial intention to debase glory and is

71 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 26.

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ensured swiftly dispel any illusions we might harbour about the glamour of war. 72 The
influence of Homeric Epics glory in honour and battle is transformed into the base by which
Byron launches his scathing attacks on warfares claim to grandeur.
It is clear Don Juans share in the inheritance of
Homeric Epic is more informal than those with more refined epic integrity. Yet it was never
Byrons modus vivendi to share and much preferred recreating a genre rather than attempting
to confine himself within one. What Don Juan lacks in epic high style it makes up for in its
ambition, charm, self-exploration, individuality and relentless pursuit of honesty in
portraying humanity. The immortality of Homeric Epic and Don Juan alike can be surmised
in the universality of their subject matter, which as Byron quoted in a letter to Moore, its
life, though, damme its life!73

72 J. Barbour, Byron among the Classics, 68.

73 Byron, Selected Letters, 176.

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