Synthesized answer
The provided passages do not contain enough information to fully explain the broader cultural or literary trends of the early 19th century that might explain the intense and widespread public reaction to *The Corsair*.
However, the passages do indicate that the poem was met with unprecedented success [2]. On the day of its publication, 10,000 copies were sold, a phenomenon described as "perfectly unprecedented" [2]. This success was widespread, with "unlimited approbation" declared by many, including Mr. Moore, Mr. Hammond, Mr. Heber, D'Israeli, Mr. Ward, and Mr. Gifford [2]. The sensation caused by the publication was immense [2]. Between January and March 1814, 25,000 copies of *The Corsair* were sold [3]. The poem was considered a "great literary triumph" [4].
Synthesized from the book passages below. Chat with the book on Feynman for follow-up.
From the book
r some time before and after the poem appeared, Byron was, as he told Leigh Hunt (February 9, 1814; Letters , 1899, iii. 27), "snow-bound and thaw-swamped in 'the valley of the shadow' of Newstead Abbey," and it was not till he had returned to town that he resumed his journal, and bethought him of placing on record some dark sayings with regard to the story of the Corsair and the personality of Conrad. Under date February 18, 1814, he writes— "The Corsair has been conceived, written, published, etc., since I last took up this journal [? last day but one]. They tell me it has great success; it…
een unwilling to write until I had something to say . . . . I am most happy to tell you that your last poem is —what Mr. Southey's is called —a Carmen Triumphale . Never in my recollection has any work . . . excited such a ferment . . . I sold on the day of publication—a thing perfectly unprecedented—10,000 copies . . . . Mr. Moore says it is masterly—a wonderful performance. Mr. Hammond, Mr. Heber, D'Israeli, every one who comes . . . declare their unlimited approbation. Mr. Ward was here with Mr. Gifford yesterday, and mingled his admiration with the rest . . . and Gifford did, what I never…
mbered) to line 226, in defence of the vraisemblance of the Corsair's misanthropy. The Ninth Edition numbered 112 pages. The additional matter consists of a long note to the last line of the poem ("Linked with one virtue, and a thousand crimes") on the pirates of Barataria. Twenty-five thousand copies of the Corsair were sold between January and March, 1814. An Eighth Edition of fifteen hundred copies was printed in March, and sold before the end of the year. A Ninth Edition of three thousand copies was printed in the beginning of 1815. TO THOMAS MOORE, ESQ. My dear Moore , I dedicate to…
For other versions of this work, see The Corsair (Byron) . ← The Bride of Abydos The Works of Lord Byron by George Gordon Byron The Corsair Canto I → 1314889 The Works of Lord Byron — The Corsair George Gordon Byron THE CORSAIR: A TALE. ——"I suoi pensieri in lui dormir non ponno." Tasso , Gerusalemme Liberata , Canto X. [stanza lxxviii. line 8]. INTRODUCTION TO THE CORSAIR . A seventh edition of the Giaour , including the final additions, and the first edition of the Bride of Abydos , were published on the twenty-ninth of November, 1813. In less than three weeks (December 18) Byron began…
· · · · · · Sigh he did often, as if inward grief And melancholy at that instant would Choke up his vital spirits. . . . When from the maintop A sail's descried, all thoughts that do concern Himself laid by, no lion pinched with hunger Rouses himself more fiercely from his den, Then he comes on the deck; and then how wisely He gives directions," etc. The Corsair , together with the Bride of Abydos , was reviewed by Jeffrey in the Edinburgh Review of April, 1814, vol. xxiii. p. 198; and together with Lara , by George Agar Ellis in the Quarterly Review of July, 1814, vol. ii. p. 428. …
More questions about this book
- Given Byron completed *The Corsair* in less than three weeks, how might this rapid creation process have impacted the poem's quality or reception, leading to the "unprecedented" success described by John Murray?
- Byron noted *The Corsair* was written "con amore" and "much from existence." Explain how these personal inspirations might have manifested in the poem's themes or characters, and why such personal connections could evoke the "warm feeling" Murray observed in critics like Gifford.
- John Murray highlights Gifford repeating stanzas from memory. What specific qualities of Byron's poetry, as implied by this detail, would prompt such a deep, personal response from a critic, moving beyond mere intellectual approval?
- If you were to explain the overall significance of *The Corsair* based solely on this introduction, what key arguments would you make regarding its place in literary history or its author's career, and what textual evidence would you use to support them?