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Quote by Lord Byron

“But at sixteen the conscience rarely gnaws So much, as when we call our old debts in At sixty years, and draw the accounts of evil, And find a deuced balance with the devil.”

Quote by Lord Byron

Work

Lord Byron's Don Juan is a sprawling epic poem written in ottava rima, composed over several years until the author's death. Unlike traditional portrayals of Don Juan as a predatory seducer, Byron's protagonist is depicted as a handsome but largely unwitting figure who is seduced by others and drifts through a variety of amorous and picaresque encounters. The poem blends comedy, romance, and sharp social satire, targeting hypocrisy in politics, religion, and society. It ranges across settings from Spain to Greece, Turkey, Russia, and England, offering a panoramic view of early 19th-century European mores. The work is noted for its digressive style, witty narrator, and irreverent tone, and it remains one of the most celebrated examples of Romantic satire. more

Author

Lord Byron, born on January 22, 1788, and died on April 19, 1824, was a prominent English Romantic poet. His poetry is characterized by its strong personality and passion, and has had a profound impact on literature. more

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“Yet smelt roast meat, beheld a huge fire shine, And cooks in motion with their clean arms bared.”

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Book:DON JUAN

Source: DON JUAN

“Such is your cold coquette, who can't say "No," And won't say "Yes," and keeps you on and off-ing On a lee-shore, till it begins to blow, Then sees your heart wreck'd, with an inward scoffing.”

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Book:DON JUAN

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“Nor all that heralds rake from coffin'd clay, Nor florid prose, nor honied lies of rhyme, Can blazon evil deeds, or consecrate a crime.”

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Author:Lord Byron

“And Doubt and Discord step 'twixt thine and thee.”

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Book:Delphi Complete Works of Lord Byron (Illustrated)

Source: Delphi Complete Works of Lord Byron (Illustrated)

“And dreams in their development have breath, And tears, and tortures, and the touch of joy; They have a weight upon our waking thoughts, They take a weight from off our waking toils, They do divide our being.”

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Book:Delphi Complete Works of Lord Byron (Illustrated)

Source: Delphi Complete Works of Lord Byron (Illustrated)

“Man is a carnivorous production, And must have meals, at least one meal a day; He cannot live, like woodcocks, upon suction, But, like the shark and tiger, must have prey; Although his anatomical construction Bears vegetables, in a grumbling way, Your laboring people think beyond all question, Beef, veal, and mutton better for digestion.”

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Book:DON JUAN

Source: DON JUAN

“The simple Wordsworth . . . / Who, both by precept and example, shows / That prose is verse, and verse is merely prose.”

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Author:Lord Byron

“What is the end of Fame? 'tis but to fill A certain portion of uncertain paper: Some liken it to climbing up a hill, Whose summit, like all hills, is lost in vapour: For this men write, speak, preach, and heroes kill, And bards burn what they call their "midnight taper," To have, when the original is dust, A name, a wretched picture, and worse bust.”

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Book:DON JUAN

Source: DON JUAN

“Admire, exult, despise, laugh, weep for here There is such matter for all feelings: Man! Thou pendulum betwixt a smile and tear.”

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Book:Delphi Complete Works of Lord Byron (Illustrated)

Source: Delphi Complete Works of Lord Byron (Illustrated)

“To what gulfs A single deviation from the track Of human duties leads even those who claim The homage of mankind as their born due, And find it, till they forfeit it themselves!”

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Book:Delphi Complete Works of Lord Byron (Illustrated)

Source: Delphi Complete Works of Lord Byron (Illustrated)