The Meta-Narrator of "Don Juan"

            The poem “Don Juan” is notable for the characterization of its narrator.  The fact that “Don Juan” has such an active narrator is fitting because Byron had a conception of himself as a showman.  The telling of the narrative itself was created by the narrator’s own desire, for the narrator states, “I want a hero” (1).  Moreover, the narrator consistently interjects into the story itself.  “Don Juan” is therefore typical of Byron’s canon, because it is more a piece of performance than a sincere narrative.

            The narrator specifies how the poem is an art object, allowing the reader to understand his process in the creation of the narrative.  The narrator explains how he does not prefer to start his tale in medias res, instead expressing that, “My way is to begin with the beginning” (50).    The narrator states, “My poem’s epic, and is meant to be / Divided in twelve books” (1593-1594).  He feels the need to explain his preferences in writing, stating, “I’m fond of rhyme” (1605).  The narrator also ends the first Canto by saying “good-b’ye” (1764) to the reader.

            The poem functions as a meta-narrative, because it not only references the fact that it is a story, but also attempts to directly argue for its place in the canon.  The narrator puts himself in the context of other literary and historical figures, from Virgil to Milton to Coleridge.  Specifically, in the dedication Byron disparages his contemporaries in order to bolster his own work.  The narrator’s praise for himself is a running theme throughout the work.  He announces at the end of the poem, “I shall not try / Your patience further than by this short sample / ‘Twere well if others follow’d my example” (1766-1768).  This is one way in which Byron’s poem is a performance, for he is acting out a conflict with other poets in order to create interest for the reader.  Moreover, the implicit criticism of poets that is carried throughout the poem “Don Juan” is an example of a meta-narrative.  Finally, the narrator states “this story’s actually true” (1616), a blatant lie to the reader.  This represents part of Byron’s willingness to scandalize and acknowledge his performance, for the reader knows he or she is being manipulated but will accept it nonetheless.

            Byron’s narrator also functions as a performed version of Byron himself.  This is one way in which Byron imbues “Don Juan” with drama.  For example, the narrator asks, “What is the end of Fame?” (1737) and states with melancholy that “Ambition was my idol, which was broken” (1729).  This is clearly a question that many at the time assumed Byron was asking himself, given that he was one of the most popular poets of the time.  Byron continues to play on the audience’s perception of himself.  The narrator relates to the reader, “now all thirty years my hair is grey” (1697), which furthers the perception of Byron-as-narrator because Byron himself did not live past 36.  Overall, the poem “Don Juan” attempts to add to Byron’s mystique, conjuring a vision of a tortured artist.  This may be merely a guise that Byron adopts, but regardless it is a stylistic choice that is meant to advance the celebrity of Byron.

            Byron creates a narrator who almost overshadows his subject.  This is evidence of Byron’s focus on style over substance, for he considers the story to be less important than the way in which it is presented.  Of all the poets we have read, Byron is the most eager to entertain.  He is so eager that he drags his own persona into poems to create more drama than the story itself produces.