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Byron: Child of Passion, Fool of Fame
In this masterful portrait of the poet who dazzled an era and prefigured the modern age of celebrity, noted biographer Benita Eisler offers a fuller and more complex vision than we have yet been afforded of George Gordon, Lord Byron.Eisler reexamines his poetic achievement in the context of his extraordinary the shameful and traumatic childhood; the swashbuckling adventures in the East; the instant stardom achieved with the publication ofChilde Harold's Pilgrimage; his passionate and destructive love affairs, including an incestuous liaison with his half-sister; and finally his tragic death in the cause of Greek independence. This magnificent record of a towering figure is sure to become the new standard biography of Byron.
1162 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 12, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
February 21, 2012
Utterly, utterly comprehensive. At one point I was going to knock off a star for being OVER-detailed but because Byron has been so heavily biographised, its important for any new tome (and this is definitely a tome) to be completely and extensively researched. Also, as the author herself mentions in the endface, many Byron bios barely mention his poetry, so the liberal textual analysis was a very welcome addition.
December 26, 2017
Good grief, but Byron was a horror. A fascinating one, a colourful one, a truly and utterly promiscuous one and an incestuous. In fact the word rake should have been invented for him. What on earth did women (and men) see in him? That's the one question that isn't answered in this very thorough biography. Colourful, at times verging on the hagiographic but only a bit, and at times a little too much analysis of the poetry too, but on the whole, a great, rumbustious, toe-curling read.
August 29, 2012
“Fantasies are not harmless escapes from reality; they are dress rehearsals.” So writes Benita Eisler in her sweeping account of Lord Byron, the Romantic poet and much lionized English nobleman. The statement, at once as informed as it is troublesome, comes well into Byron: Child of Passion, Fool of Fame—p. 732 to be exact, when Byron is waiting in Metaxas for what will become the last act of his life: his martyrdom, at the age of thirty-six, for the cause of Greek freedom—an act which, if Don Juan, Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage, "Darkness," “She Walks in Beauty Like the Night” and a myriad other works were not enough, forever sealed the poet in the annals of romantic history and in the hearts and minds of idealists worldwide.
Eisler presents a narrative arc of Byron’s life that is at once compelling, astute and deeply engaging, and yet at the same time, perhaps for its very completeness and reliance on psychoanalytic theory and storytelling methods, may be as problematic as it is satisfying. It is neither the range of scholarship nor its certitude that trouble me, but rather the book's all-too-perfect arc. By presenting Byron’s life in heroic, near-fatalistic, almost fairy tale-like terms, and doing so through the archetype-creating lens of psychoanalysis and the smoothing balm of storytelling tricks*, the biography manages to operate at the level of a kind of dream or self-fulfilling prophesy, substituting Byron the life and man with Byron the explication of mythic hero and quest.
What's missing from this is Byron the poet: his aesthetics, his training, his belief systems, what he felt about inspiration and order and words, who and what influenced him, how and when and why he wrote, his feelings about other poets or poetic systems, and most important, how he assimilated and distilled these various influences and interests into the genius of his poesy. Despite more than 780 pages of extraordinarily well-researched and magisterially written prose about the poet, it is amazing that more space is not dedicated to his genius, talents and work habits. Indeed, hardly an image of Byron writing poetry is included in the biography, and yet what pages to each and every one of his purchases and scrapes!
Don't get me wrong: this is a *wonderful* book for background on Lord Byron. It would make a terrific gift for a poet if one is so fortunate to know or have one in the family who has not already read Eisler's biography cover to cover. Her readings of Byron's life and work are sympathetic and mostly convincing. I was especially intrigued by her positioning of the poet as first chronicler of modern warfare and a modernist. The biography, although it leaves something to be desired for explaining Byron's poetics, is still a first-rate primer on his life. I recommend it with qualifications.
*I mean this in a good way: Eisler is a master storyteller.
Eisler presents a narrative arc of Byron’s life that is at once compelling, astute and deeply engaging, and yet at the same time, perhaps for its very completeness and reliance on psychoanalytic theory and storytelling methods, may be as problematic as it is satisfying. It is neither the range of scholarship nor its certitude that trouble me, but rather the book's all-too-perfect arc. By presenting Byron’s life in heroic, near-fatalistic, almost fairy tale-like terms, and doing so through the archetype-creating lens of psychoanalysis and the smoothing balm of storytelling tricks*, the biography manages to operate at the level of a kind of dream or self-fulfilling prophesy, substituting Byron the life and man with Byron the explication of mythic hero and quest.
What's missing from this is Byron the poet: his aesthetics, his training, his belief systems, what he felt about inspiration and order and words, who and what influenced him, how and when and why he wrote, his feelings about other poets or poetic systems, and most important, how he assimilated and distilled these various influences and interests into the genius of his poesy. Despite more than 780 pages of extraordinarily well-researched and magisterially written prose about the poet, it is amazing that more space is not dedicated to his genius, talents and work habits. Indeed, hardly an image of Byron writing poetry is included in the biography, and yet what pages to each and every one of his purchases and scrapes!
Don't get me wrong: this is a *wonderful* book for background on Lord Byron. It would make a terrific gift for a poet if one is so fortunate to know or have one in the family who has not already read Eisler's biography cover to cover. Her readings of Byron's life and work are sympathetic and mostly convincing. I was especially intrigued by her positioning of the poet as first chronicler of modern warfare and a modernist. The biography, although it leaves something to be desired for explaining Byron's poetics, is still a first-rate primer on his life. I recommend it with qualifications.
*I mean this in a good way: Eisler is a master storyteller.
May 29, 2015
This is an excellent biography of a fascinating person. Rich with sympathy and empathy for both Byron and all the major figures in his life, it gives due weight to the importance of Byron's writings in his personal life without becoming primarily literary criticism. Benita Eisler is a sure and capable guide through all of Byron's thiry-six years, and I, for one, was quite happy to follow her for eight hundred pages.
October 19, 2024
Poet, peer, pervert, pederast.
June 9, 2016
This is a good biography of Byron and makes full use of all the modern scholarship, as well as being able to be straightforward about the homosexual affairs of his youth, and incest with his half-sister that some of the earlier classic biographies (i.e. Marchand's) had to gloss over.
Having said that, it lacks any passion for the subject, and so while it tells an interesting story, you don't feel any clear fascination with the characters perhaps because the author doesn't either.
It's very good on the social environment, especially with regards to Caroline Lamb and her connections, but does it really get to the heart of the man? Sadly not.
Much better in my view is the classic Leslie Marchand biography, together with his edited collections of Byron's letters and journals. Those really reveal the man in all his awkward, glamorous, ironic, enigmatic glory.
Having said that, it lacks any passion for the subject, and so while it tells an interesting story, you don't feel any clear fascination with the characters perhaps because the author doesn't either.
It's very good on the social environment, especially with regards to Caroline Lamb and her connections, but does it really get to the heart of the man? Sadly not.
Much better in my view is the classic Leslie Marchand biography, together with his edited collections of Byron's letters and journals. Those really reveal the man in all his awkward, glamorous, ironic, enigmatic glory.
November 28, 2016
Fascinating biography, exposing both the brilliant artist and the sometime heinous man. The scholarship present is great and it, through the majority, is as captivating as a novel. The history and facts are hardly dry recitations and I have no doubt some artistic license was taken, but by the end, I thought I had a good understanding of this man and how his life inspired his work and his work tormented his life. The only thing keeping this from being a 5 star biography is that it gets a tad repetitive near the end and that drags the pace down. But otherwise this kept me pretty much captivated.
March 29, 2010
Colorful rendition of a well-examined life. Eisler quotes from a myriad of Byron's poems and covers his life from birth to death. Her treatment is lively and intensely researched. Byron was a popular idol and highly flamboyant. He flaunted his affairs, had a histrionic personality and would have scorned the pedantic studies of his work. The work itself has, in modern times, been overshadowed by the life,yet his poems particularly his masterpiece Don Juan document his importance as a poet and how contemporary his views and language were.
October 6, 2008
A riveting account of Byron's life. And what a life it was. I think you probably have to be a fan of historical biography to be gripped like I was, because this is a long book. That sounded dumb, I know. Whatever you've been up to, you will feel better about yourself if you read this book. Unless you have been really bad.
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August 24, 2015Nota:: Corte que después de mi bimestre con Dickens, se viene mi mes con los ROMÁNTICOS, así que a full con Byron, Blake, Keats y los que entren...
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May 3, 2021DNF. 400+ pages of Byron's sex life was more than enough.
December 30, 2018
Byron is probably one of the most obnoxious human beings to also be a great poet. There is no denying his power as a poet, both for wit and romantic lyrics (especially the small r type - romance and beauty). Yet, the guy was a complete scoundrel and a man child. His procession - nay, obsession - of lovers and broken hearts is exasperating as read here in the best single volume of his complete life.
Leslie Marchand's biography previously stood as the benchmark. However, Marchand wrote at a different time and had to censor the details. I'm positive that Byron would be completely even more scandalous in our time than in his. He carried on a number of affairs - often with the acquiescence of the husband! - as well as multiple homosexual affairs primarily in his young adulthood. That in itself is nothing extraordinarily scandalous. At least it would not be quite as scandalous today. What is disturbing in Eisler is that we can be certain that he committed pedophilia, incest, and probably marital rape. It can even be argued that his half sister was the love of his life!
This is a hard life to read. There is very little ground for sympathy of Byron at least in his personal life. You will get all the details here without too much explicit description. However, I would also like to note that Byron's behavior did not evolve in a vacuum. His father was a noted philanderer who died early. His mother was hideously overbearing and cruel to his disability. His club foot clearly left him with psychological scars all of his life. But to explain his sexual precocity, it is important to remember that he was sexually abused by a maid in his own childhood. Without the support of modern psychological therapy, Byron was left to cope as best he could. Of course, the above behavior was completely inappropriate, but he would have been able to realize that he was stuck in infantile behavior and an inability to commit to adult behavior throughout his life. It was only when he lost his child Allegra that he finally began to mature and stand up for the cause that would ultimately take his life.
I make no excuses, but Byron was an extremely damaged human being. Nonetheless, he was capable of puncturing humanity's most hypocritical instincts with devastating wit. The poetry is immortal; the poet was deeply and humanely flawed. The scholarship here is admirable and exhaustive. The complete life for those interested in Byron.
Leslie Marchand's biography previously stood as the benchmark. However, Marchand wrote at a different time and had to censor the details. I'm positive that Byron would be completely even more scandalous in our time than in his. He carried on a number of affairs - often with the acquiescence of the husband! - as well as multiple homosexual affairs primarily in his young adulthood. That in itself is nothing extraordinarily scandalous. At least it would not be quite as scandalous today. What is disturbing in Eisler is that we can be certain that he committed pedophilia, incest, and probably marital rape. It can even be argued that his half sister was the love of his life!
This is a hard life to read. There is very little ground for sympathy of Byron at least in his personal life. You will get all the details here without too much explicit description. However, I would also like to note that Byron's behavior did not evolve in a vacuum. His father was a noted philanderer who died early. His mother was hideously overbearing and cruel to his disability. His club foot clearly left him with psychological scars all of his life. But to explain his sexual precocity, it is important to remember that he was sexually abused by a maid in his own childhood. Without the support of modern psychological therapy, Byron was left to cope as best he could. Of course, the above behavior was completely inappropriate, but he would have been able to realize that he was stuck in infantile behavior and an inability to commit to adult behavior throughout his life. It was only when he lost his child Allegra that he finally began to mature and stand up for the cause that would ultimately take his life.
I make no excuses, but Byron was an extremely damaged human being. Nonetheless, he was capable of puncturing humanity's most hypocritical instincts with devastating wit. The poetry is immortal; the poet was deeply and humanely flawed. The scholarship here is admirable and exhaustive. The complete life for those interested in Byron.
December 26, 2016
I will admit that I'm not finished this book yet! It's taken me many months and I am still not done reading it. I'm not a big fan of historical biographies which is why I think this book is taking me so long to read. It's a very long read in general. I promise you I will finish it someday but now that I am about halfway through I think it's time to talk about how I feel when it comes to this book. Maybe when I finish reading I'll update my thoughts.
So, basically, I really like this book! It is super extensive, almost too extensive at times for my taste. I have known little facts about Byron and his life for awhile now but the amount of detail and knowledge this book brings is mind-blowing. I have learned so much about my favorite poet, things I never thought I would be able to learn about him. Byron is so tortured and yet so fantastic at the same time. That's why we hate/love him, and Eisler's portrayal captures his spirit very well. I do think the author's voice is disconnected from Byron's story most of the time but perhaps that's what all historical biographies are supposed to do, disconnect the author from the subject to enhance the subject more. I don't really know but I do wish there was just a little bit more of a connection there, more of an excited commentary from Eisler. I think it would make me feel more apart of his story. But, anyway, as I have learned from this book his life is so complicated and sad that you honestly should not want any part in it. Overall, this book has taught me so much about Byron and I am really grateful for that.
So, basically, I really like this book! It is super extensive, almost too extensive at times for my taste. I have known little facts about Byron and his life for awhile now but the amount of detail and knowledge this book brings is mind-blowing. I have learned so much about my favorite poet, things I never thought I would be able to learn about him. Byron is so tortured and yet so fantastic at the same time. That's why we hate/love him, and Eisler's portrayal captures his spirit very well. I do think the author's voice is disconnected from Byron's story most of the time but perhaps that's what all historical biographies are supposed to do, disconnect the author from the subject to enhance the subject more. I don't really know but I do wish there was just a little bit more of a connection there, more of an excited commentary from Eisler. I think it would make me feel more apart of his story. But, anyway, as I have learned from this book his life is so complicated and sad that you honestly should not want any part in it. Overall, this book has taught me so much about Byron and I am really grateful for that.
April 20, 2013
Byron's poetry has long-been eclipsed in critical regard by the work of contemporaries such as Keats and Blake. But if he has faded as a poet, as a biographical subject he’ll always shine, mainly because his life reads like an X-rated Jane Austen novel.
Utilising previously unseen letters, Eisler reveals a complex and twisted man, a carnal wit who was as proud of his long-distance swimming as his verses.
Here Eisler seeks to revive Byron’s poetic reputation by examining his verse in the context of his life. His creativity drew heavily on personal experience and he sneered at poets whom he accused of straying from earthy reality. Keats, for example, was derided for ‘frigging his imagination’.
Like many a rock star, Byron was a libertine but no radical. He wanted to break rules, not change them. Although his international jaunts frequently reduce Led Zeppelin tours to nuns’ picnics by comparison, his sense of humour and gift for the apt phrase have a tendency to save the day. And if they don’t, well, at least it can be said he never bores.
Utilising previously unseen letters, Eisler reveals a complex and twisted man, a carnal wit who was as proud of his long-distance swimming as his verses.
Here Eisler seeks to revive Byron’s poetic reputation by examining his verse in the context of his life. His creativity drew heavily on personal experience and he sneered at poets whom he accused of straying from earthy reality. Keats, for example, was derided for ‘frigging his imagination’.
Like many a rock star, Byron was a libertine but no radical. He wanted to break rules, not change them. Although his international jaunts frequently reduce Led Zeppelin tours to nuns’ picnics by comparison, his sense of humour and gift for the apt phrase have a tendency to save the day. And if they don’t, well, at least it can be said he never bores.
July 6, 2021
Mad, bad and dangerous to know!
The guy was a mass of contradictions. Wild, cruel, rapacious etc. But loving, generous, deeply intelligent and insightful. And a brilliant transformative revolutionary poet. He was just huge.
This is a very good biography. The story is so incredible and so much is known about Byron through letters snd memoirs. It seems that he was the object of intense interest and, in some cases, obsession, that he was written about by hundreds. A real superstar of his time. He was of course a deeply flawed individual-- a poseur, liar, libertine, abuser, etc etc -- it seems like just about all the bad stuff said about him is likely true. But he remains this fascinating character because he was also a miraculous writer. It is the strangest of juxtapositions.
The guy was a mass of contradictions. Wild, cruel, rapacious etc. But loving, generous, deeply intelligent and insightful. And a brilliant transformative revolutionary poet. He was just huge.
This is a very good biography. The story is so incredible and so much is known about Byron through letters snd memoirs. It seems that he was the object of intense interest and, in some cases, obsession, that he was written about by hundreds. A real superstar of his time. He was of course a deeply flawed individual-- a poseur, liar, libertine, abuser, etc etc -- it seems like just about all the bad stuff said about him is likely true. But he remains this fascinating character because he was also a miraculous writer. It is the strangest of juxtapositions.
September 21, 2008
Again, I'm always "currently reading" this book- but this time mainly because it's so long. I'll probably finish it one day - maybe when I'm 80. :-)
But it is a good book - very well researched and Benita Eisler is a very engaging, conversational writer, so it's not a difficult read from that perspective. I'm just a very slow and easily distracted reader. And I do get a bit confused between all of his friends, lovers, family members and how they all relate to each other. Maybe a flow chart is in order?
I kid, of course...mostly.
But it is a good book - very well researched and Benita Eisler is a very engaging, conversational writer, so it's not a difficult read from that perspective. I'm just a very slow and easily distracted reader. And I do get a bit confused between all of his friends, lovers, family members and how they all relate to each other. Maybe a flow chart is in order?
I kid, of course...mostly.
August 17, 2019
A huge, well-written, detailed and acidic retelling of Lord Byron's life. Definitely no white-washing or romanticizing him - the poet is shown as he was, warts and all. Benita Eisler refuses to propagate the Byronic myth, and it is one of the reasons I enjoyed her work so much, even though the man shown in it was really quite distasteful. She made me despise Byron-the-man, but love Byron-the-poet. I especially enjoyed how Ms. Eisler tied the analysis of Byron's principal works to the events of his life, making the context of his creative efforts so very clear. A definite must-read!
September 8, 2008
The main impression this book left me with was what a bastard Byron was to his young daughter. His disappointing behavior lasted for years, but I think one example will illustrate. In the book is a reproduction of a letter by his daughter sweetly asking him to take her to the fair. He didn't. He apparently didn't even reply to her letter. She died months later.
It makes the wit of Don Juan seem that much less funny to me.
It makes the wit of Don Juan seem that much less funny to me.
February 6, 2011
I stopped reading this because it got really boring. How do you make Byron boring? He's one of the most salacious and dynamic poets in the history of the entire universe. But the biography is boring. I'm going to power through it eventually, but for now it's going to be on the back burner. Therefore, I'm putting it on my "read" list.
December 12, 2008
About as tidy an exposition as one could hope for of this incomparably messy life. Eisler dishes all the dirt without wallowing in it while almost making one see in Byron what his contemporaries did.
December 5, 2017
"Mad, bad and dangerous to know." Lady Caroline Lamb's pithy description of her infamous lover summed him up very well.
September 5, 2025
Criminy but Lord Byron was born in the wrong century. If he'd come of age in the 21st century instead of the 19th he would've been a blazing star in our current galaxy of outrageously behaved celebrity artists. Although it's doubtful he would've survived the Me Too awareness movement, given his propensity for documenting his sexual conquests which were, let's be honest, predatory. (He was, as Lady Caroline Lamb described him: "mad, bad, and dangerous to know.")
At 760 pages "Child of Passion" is a tome, but the level of detail is not only impressive but insightful. We get lots and lots of direct quotes from letters as well as contemporary accounts of Lord Byron's world, lifestyle, and relationships; which is fascinating, frequently perverse and even grotesque, but captivating all the same. It doesn't take long to imagine yourself accompanying Byron as he travels to various country estates, carouses cities, spends lavishly, lives recklessly, and seduces (or corrupts) nearly everyone he meets.
It's also impossible not to notice the vile disparity between members of the peerage and everyday folk. The entire British system, at the time, was designed to benefit the lords and ladies of the land while others were left to scrape by as best they could.
There's less poetry in "Child of Passion" than I expected to find. And in spite of the overly decorative stylings of romantic-era language (at times overwrought to modern ears) I found Lord Byron's work to be engaging. The man was brilliant, not to mention physically beautiful; thus, the legend. It's easy to understand why both Lord Byron and his work have remained famous for more than 200 years. He may have been a debauched narcissist, but innate talent and charm he possessed by the carriage load.
"Child of Passion" did hold one disappointment. The section of the book that covered "the summer of Frankenstein," (1816) was, imo, a bit slight. After all, the brief interlude at the Villa Diodati by Lake Geneva in Switzerland ultimately led directly to the writing of both "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley, as well as "The Vampyre," generally considered to be the OG of vampire genre literature. Whether "The Vampyre" was penned by Lord Byron or his hypochondriac of a doctor, John Polidori, or a combination of both, is still a matter of debate.
If you're an Anglophile and enjoy a deep dive into the life and times of an undeservedly talented poet/peer who led a life of depraved decadence in a far flung century then this book could be for you.
SIDE NOTE: I read "Child of Passion" at roughly the same time I read a biography of Lou Reed. I never would've guessed that between Lord Byron and Lou Reed that Byron was the truly depraved one; in a contest of debauchery Lou wouldn't've stood a chance against this guy.
At 760 pages "Child of Passion" is a tome, but the level of detail is not only impressive but insightful. We get lots and lots of direct quotes from letters as well as contemporary accounts of Lord Byron's world, lifestyle, and relationships; which is fascinating, frequently perverse and even grotesque, but captivating all the same. It doesn't take long to imagine yourself accompanying Byron as he travels to various country estates, carouses cities, spends lavishly, lives recklessly, and seduces (or corrupts) nearly everyone he meets.
It's also impossible not to notice the vile disparity between members of the peerage and everyday folk. The entire British system, at the time, was designed to benefit the lords and ladies of the land while others were left to scrape by as best they could.
There's less poetry in "Child of Passion" than I expected to find. And in spite of the overly decorative stylings of romantic-era language (at times overwrought to modern ears) I found Lord Byron's work to be engaging. The man was brilliant, not to mention physically beautiful; thus, the legend. It's easy to understand why both Lord Byron and his work have remained famous for more than 200 years. He may have been a debauched narcissist, but innate talent and charm he possessed by the carriage load.
"Child of Passion" did hold one disappointment. The section of the book that covered "the summer of Frankenstein," (1816) was, imo, a bit slight. After all, the brief interlude at the Villa Diodati by Lake Geneva in Switzerland ultimately led directly to the writing of both "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley, as well as "The Vampyre," generally considered to be the OG of vampire genre literature. Whether "The Vampyre" was penned by Lord Byron or his hypochondriac of a doctor, John Polidori, or a combination of both, is still a matter of debate.
If you're an Anglophile and enjoy a deep dive into the life and times of an undeservedly talented poet/peer who led a life of depraved decadence in a far flung century then this book could be for you.
SIDE NOTE: I read "Child of Passion" at roughly the same time I read a biography of Lou Reed. I never would've guessed that between Lord Byron and Lou Reed that Byron was the truly depraved one; in a contest of debauchery Lou wouldn't've stood a chance against this guy.
September 6, 2023
By the end, I was utterly exhausted, and rather grateful that Byron didn't live longer. He was not pleasant company, and the book gave me an overwhelming sympathy for everyone unfortunate enough to be under his control. But much about him and his times was also fascinating. Despite the efforts of Eisler to convince me otherwise, I don't find his poetry modern at all, but extremely particular to its time-- which makes it interesting, but not transcendent in the way Keats is (to me, anyway). A biography worth reading, though make sure you truly want something this comprehensive.
March 16, 2021
Wow! Exhaustive, thorough and highly readable. Eisler leaves no stone untouched in this prodigiously researched bible of the life of the fascinating and dashing Lord Byron. Mad, bad and dangerous to know...Byron makes today’s rock stars wilt in comparison. Hot stuff.
November 19, 2022
Byron's life is almost excruciating to read about with modern eyes, but if this book loses a star for anything, it's that alone. Eisler presents the man, warts and all, in almost 900 pages of well-researched, well-presented writing. Excellently done, if you can handle that much of the madman.
October 25, 2019
I wrote some words on it here: https://correctivelenses.blogspot.com...
June 14, 2021
i now know more about byron than i know of myself
Want to read
November 30, 2021absolutely dripping with misogyny
January 19, 2022
Wow, what a ride.
May 31, 2022
DNF. Painfully weedy and Byron isn’t good company. Geesh. Snobby, whiny, and predatory.
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