Byronism

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

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Defined variously as a lifestyle, “a set of traits supposedly characterising Byron's texts” (Elfenbein 9) or his hallmark hero, or the “developments that allowed Byron to become a celebrity in Britain” (ibid.), Byronism is a nineteenth-century cultural phenomenon that changed significantly the relationship between author, text and audience and whose echoes resonated well beyond the customary sphere of influence of British culture. It originated in the deliberate creation by George Gordon, Lord Byron, of a distinctive and visible poetic subjectivity, and it relied on a carefully sustained current of opinion according to which Byron's poetry was in effect the expression of his innermost obsessions and tribulations, and his heroes were masks behind which the poet himself only…

907 words

Citation: Schneider, Ana-Karina. "Byronism". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 25 February 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=1295, accessed 19 March 2024.]

1295 Byronism 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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