Childe Harold's Pilgrimage

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1899. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... INTRODUCTION. Before reading the verse of a poet we often desire to know what manner of man he was: after a first reading this desire is frequently strengthened. Some poets have protested that the public ought not to desire to know their histories, that what they have published belongs to the world, but that the details of their lives do not. Their readers and admirers, however, have seldom respected this protest, especially in modern times, but crave still to know more and more about all great poets. Many readers indeed find literary history the most fascinating kind of reading. Even if in other cases this claim for privacy be allowed, it need not hold in the case of Byron, for Byron, so far from being among the poets that wish to keep their lives private and hidden, tried to interest his readers in his most intimate, domestic griefs. He never separated his poetry from his own private history. The critics have often pointed out that in his various poems he is generally himself the subject, though under various disguises. The object of this Introduction is, first, to sketch the story of Byron's life, and to show the manner of man he was; secondly to give an account of Childe Harold; and vii finally to set forth the nature and characteristics, the merits and defects, of Byron's poetry in general. But as it is of course impossible here to make a complete study of so large a mass of poetry, many of his poems are not even named. LIFE. George Gordon Byron was born in London on January 22nd, 1788. He is one of the long list of poets who by their birth have made England's capital the place in the world most prolific of poets. Here is a list of their names:--Chaucer, Spenser, Ben Jonson, Milton, Herrick, Pope, Gray, Blake, Keats, Browning, D. G. Rossetti, W. Morris. Add...