Don Juan (Canto 2) - Lord Byron
Shipwreck, Survival, and Satire on the High Seas
Original Poem (English), selected stanzas (due to length):
Note: Don Juan is a very long poem. Canto 2, first published in 1819, follows Don Juan after his exile from home. Below are several representative stanzas from Canto 2, illustrating Byron’s wit, the maritime setting, and the famous shipwreck episode. For a complete text, please consult a scholarly edition.
Stanza 1
Sir, if you’re anxious for a tragic scene,
I’ll give you many, but not now, no, no;
For why, the merry Autumn holidays
Are come—ours may be truly called so,
For we must roam along the watery ways,
And only frown when waves too rudely blow:
But calm’s the word—so let us sail the sea,
And talk of storms at anchor, after tea.
Stanza 15
Our ship had lain in Quarantine some days,
But we had found no plague in that same place,
Unless it were the long monotonous ways
Of tedium, and the sunshine on our face:
Still, slowly we departed on the stays
To plough the sea—though not at rapid pace;
Meanwhile, young Juan with a tranquil heart
Went forth, not dreaming soon that he must part.
Stanza 105
’Twas twilight, and the sunless day went down
Over the waste of waters; like a veil
Which, if withdrawn, would make the heaven frown,
But if continued, would the stars unveil,
And push back darkness with its sparkling crown—
So gloom’d the sea, by no fresh breeze made pale,
But hush’d as from a passing storm’s brief strife,
Or from the breathless hush that precedes life.
Stanza 171
The shipwreck came at last—the skies grew dark,
And wave on wave swift hurried to the deck;
Loud roared the winds, in strong chaotic bark,
And each mast quivered, tottering from the wreck;
All efforts vain, it parted with a shock,
And men, in dread, took to their scattered boat,
While Juan, trembling, strove his fate to mock,
Yet felt the fear that seized on every throat,
And prayed for rescue on that watery moat.
Stanza 216
But thus we parted in that dreadful hour,
When swirling waters claim’d their hapless prey;
Juan among the chosen few had power
To mount the boat, though harried by the spray,
And drifting from his known domestic bower,
Launch’d in the deep where Death around did play:
Yet Byron’s pen would keep him safe at large,
For destinies in verse must be in charge.
(…Canto 2 continues with many more stanzas describing their survival ordeal, comedic moments, and Byron’s satirical asides…)
Canto 2 of Lord Byron’s Don Juan finds our young hero embarking on his next misadventure: a sea voyage that culminates in a dramatic shipwreck. Having left behind the scandals of Canto 1 (his affair with Donna Julia and forced exile), Don Juan boards a vessel headed for new horizons. Byron seizes this opportunity to blend maritime drama with his signature humor and social commentary.
In these stanzas, Byron parodies both classical ‘epic’ conventions and the sentimental travel narrative, employing his ottava rima stanza form to bounce from comedic quips to serious reflection on human fragility at sea. The shipwreck, which is among the most memorable episodes in Don Juan, underscores Byron’s capacity to transition from witty banter to dire stakes in a single breath.
Characteristically, the poet breaks the ‘fourth wall’ to address the reader, delivering droll asides that remind us not to take the poem’s ‘heroics’ too seriously. At the same time, the maritime ordeal foreshadows how Don Juan’s youthfulness and luck persist in carrying him forward—he survives, but not without grappling with terror and humility in the face of nature’s power. This theme resonates throughout the poem, repeatedly testing Juan’s innocence against life’s harsh realities. (Approx. 200 words)
Key points
1. Canto 2 relocates Don Juan’s escapades to a perilous maritime journey.
2. Byron’s ottava rima balances humor, pathos, and satirical commentary.
3. The famous shipwreck scene exemplifies the poem’s mixture of suspense and comic irony.
4. Social norms and epic hero conventions are gently mocked through Byron’s playful voice.
5. Don Juan’s survival hints at both his enduring naivety and Byron’s narrative embrace of adventurous, if scandalous, twists.