On The Art Of Satire In Byron’s Epics: Don Juan

George Gordon Byron was a remarkable English poet and a leading figure in the Romantic Movement in the beginning of the 20th century. During his short life which lasted only 36 years, Byron left innumerable immortal masterpieces for later generations. Undoubtedly, the most famous one is the magnum opus Don Juan, a lengthy narrative poem spanning 17 cantos. The poem ranks as one of the most monumental works in English and world literature, and is widely acclaimed among the readers around the world. Don Juan, whose art of satire reaching an unprecedented new level, is a resplendent pearl among the literature of satire. Byron himself also called it an "Epic Satire". The profundity and scope of Don Juan can be rarely seen in the works of other poets. From practical issues like economic monopoly, political despotism, evil backstage behind wars, the hypocrisy and voluptuous life of the upper class, to metaphysical pursuit of some important questions like the meaning of life, Don Juan presents a panorama of the English society and the world in the 19th century.This thesis aims at analyzing the art of satire in Don Juan in a more thorough way. Nowadays, most research concerning this field is limited to a sketch and is quite separated from examples in the poem. Besides, research concerning the satirical techniques used in Don Juan is not comprehensive. Satirical literature traces its origin in Greek and Roman classic literature, and occupies a decisive position in the history of western literature. Being hailed as the "Tenth Muse", satire is one of the most creative, militant literary forms. Besides, satire has been viewed as the most effective source to understand a society and the oldest form of social study. Some scholars even regarded satire as superior to non-comic disciplines like history or anthropology, since the former one debunk many social problems in the realms like politics, economy and ideology by presenting a deep insight into many serious problems in a light-hearted manner. The art of satire is a notable symbol which differentiates Byron from the other English romantic poets. That’s why Byron is unparalleled among the poets in Romantic Movement. Thus, this thesis will provide a detailed analysis of the art of satire in Don Juan, hoping to enrich the research in this realm.This thesis consists of introduction, main body and conclusion. Its main contents are as follows:The first part is introduction, which gives a brief account of the poet’s life and works. Then the synopsis and influence of Don Juan will be introduced. Then a brief summary of the researches on Don Juan’s art of satire at home and abroad, the unique perspective and significance of this study will be presented.The body of the thesis is composed of three chapters:Chapter One states the concept of satire. In this chapter, the classification of satire, the main function of satire in Don Juan, the origin and influence of the art of satire in Don Juan are presented. Satire can be divided into two categories:Horatian satire and Juvenalian satire. The function of satire in Don Juan is, by debunking the authority and exposing various social problems, to arouse the public awareness to these social issues. The art of satire in Don Juan can be traced in many satirical masterpieces in western literature, and its influence is extremely significant.Chapter Two gives a detailed analysis of the art of satire in Don Juan from the perspective of rhetorical devices by combining the examples in the poem. This chapter is composed of three parts. In the fist part, an in-depth study of how semantic rhetoric devices of satire such as sarcasm, irony, innuendo, ridicule, analogy and comparison are interwoven in Don Juan to strengthen the satirical effect will be presented. Sarcasm, irony, ridicule and innuendo, whose force of satire decrease one after another, differs from each other:Sarcasm is the most pungent form of satire; Irony is a literary technique in which what appears on the surface differs radically from what is actually the case; The intention of ridicule is to unkindly make fun of something; Innuendo is an allusive remark concerning a person or thing, especially of a depreciatory kind; Comparing the object to be satirized to another object is capable of making the satirical effect more vivid; Through a flagrant contrast, the two things in discussion will have a strong satirical flavor. In the second part, an analysis of how lexical rhetoric devices of satire such as alliteration, oxymoron and Latinism are used in Don Juan to strengthen the satirical effect will be showed. Don Juan is studded with alliteration, whose sound is similar while meaning is opposite, thus strengthening the satirical effect; Oxymoron, which is a phrase combing two words that seem to be the opposite of each other, can also be seen in Don Juan. The verbal polarity of oxymoron extremely increases the satirical tension of the poem; In addition, satirical Latinism or Latin epigrams can be seen in many places of the poem, endowing the satire of Don Juan a classic tint. In the third part, other rhetoric devices of satire such as anti-climax, allusion, juxtaposition and parody in Don Juan are analyzed. Anti-climax, whose sudden shift from a serious tone to a less exalted one, has usually been used exclusively to strengthen satirical effect; Byron sometimes alludes to some figures in the ancient Greek or Roman mythology to make his satire livelier and loaded with cultural connotation; Byron is also good at using the technique of juxtaposition to create a strong satire between two things which seem to have no relation; Byron also makes a parody of "Let there be light" in the Bible into "Let there be blood" in order to satirize the ridiculousness of human warfare.Chapter Three illustrates the satirical theme of Don Juan. In the first part, the theme of satire against despotism will be analyzed, Byron declares that he has a "downright detestation of every despotism in every nation"; in the second part, the theme of satire against the bloody war will be presented. Byron pungently calls the warfare "the brain-spattering, windpipe-slitting art"; in the third part, the theme of satire against the hypocrisy and philistinism of the so-called "civilized people" plus the inanity of the extravagant life in upper class will be discussed. Byron acidly calls their life "the royal game of goose"; in the fourth part, the theme of satire against the nihility of earthly fame, ambition and wealth will be analyzed. He uses the phrase of Shakespeare "life’s a poor player" to expose that all the earthly pursuit is in vein.The last part is the conclusion, which gives a summary of the preceding discussion. Byron’s epic is broad and profound, and Don Juan is an inexhaustible treasure-house among which the art of satire is the most dazzling pearl. Byron brilliantly inherited and largely enriches the art of satire. The perpetual artistic glamour of Don Juan not only transcends age but also transcends the national boundary, and the truth Don Juan reveals is still suitable for the world today. Nowadays, readers around the world can still feel the thrilling power of the art of satire in Don Juan. Through analyzing the exquisite satirical techniques used in Don Juan, it is hoped that the study concerning the art of satire in Byron’s epic will be enriched, and propel the creation of the contemporary Chinese literature to draw more quintessence from Bryon’s art of satire.