Lord Byron died before he was able to finish writing Don Juan, which is too bad because although it did kind of drag in the middle, it started to get good again towards the end. Byron kind of just made Don Juan up as he went, but in a letter, he did indicate that he had a vague overall plan: Continue reading →

Well, this is it. We’ve finally reached the final canto of Lord Byron’s Don Juan. (He did get a few stanzas into Canto 17 before dying, but there’s not much there to comment upon.) I’ll do one more wrap-up post after this, but we’ve pretty much reached the end. Continue reading →

So, as Canto 15 opens, Don Juan is still staying with some wealthy friends in the English countryside. Some of the married ladies are interested in Juan, including his host, Lady Adeline. As in the cantos before, not much happens in this canto either, but we do get more of Byron’s famous digressions. Continue reading →

We last left Don Juan staying as a guest at an estate in the English countryside. Not much plot occurred in the last canto, and not much happens in this one either, but we do get more of Byron’s famous digressions.

He starts this canto with a discussion of suicidal tendencies. Continue reading →

When we last left Don Juan, he had become quite popular in English society. What happens next? He’s invited to spend some time at the country estate of Lord Henry and his wife Lady Adeline Amundeville who is the queen bee of London society. They pass the time leisurely doing things like hunting, fishing, boating, writing letters, and having conversations over dinner. That’s about all that happens plot-wise, but we do get some more delightful digressions from Byron. Continue reading →

When we last left Don Juan, he had become the toast of the town in London. So what happens next? Well, as usual, Byron starts with some general musings. I liked this bit in which he points out that there isn’t that much difference between a saint who lives a life of poverty and a miser: Continue reading →

When we last left Don Juan, he had just arrived in England where he will remain for the remainder of the poem. Byron starts, as we’ve come to expect, by writing whatever he happens to be thinking about at the time. This time, it’s death. Continue reading →