Leslie Marchand and Hermione de Almeida discuss the life and poetry of Lord Byron (George Gordon). Aspects include his congenital clubfoot; revolutionary movements in Italy and Greece and Byron’s political identity as a radical aristocratic reformer with humanitarian instincts; and his satirical leanings within the literary atmosphere of the Romantic movement. At [20:48], Marchand reads excerpts from Byron’s letters and journals, including passages focusing on children, friendship, literature, and religion, and passages in defense of Don Juan, and his esteem for his friend Percy Bysshe Shelley.
At the time of this interview, Marchand was professor emeritus of English at Rutgers University; she is the author of a three-volume biography of Byron, and editor of the poet’s journals and letters. De Almeida, a Fellow at the National Humanities Center (1982-83), was professor of English at the University of Miami.
This edition of Soundings was conducted by Wayne J. Pond.
