Burning the Book

By A C Clarke

Picture the scene: the sheaf of paper spidered
with words to trap the unsuspecting fly
in sticky quandaries, the friends divided
whether to give the world what might imply
worse vices than the ones all had decided
his copybook already blotted by:
incest was one thing but graphic description
of sex with men required instant proscription,

or so said some. It seems to have depended
which bits they’d read – or what they’d understood
They to’d and fro’d for ages; some contended
that cutting out the racier details could
allay the qualms of those who recommended
these ‘scabrous’ memoirs should be ditched for good
to save the ‘mad, bad’ poet’s reputation
and keep his legacy bright for the nation,

Regency poster boy, overnight star
who shone so briefly but to such effect,
self-proclaimed debauchee who’d gone too far
for his admirers, rake with intellect
whose mother’s cruel scorn had left its scar.
Was Byron’s name what they wished to protect,
Murray’s set, Lady Byron’s claque - or theirs?
Careers for one lot, for the other, heirs.

Feelings ran high – the two sides at swords drawn,
literally when Moore to clinch the matter
for good and all proposed pistols at dawn
(if that did happen). But the end was flatter –
George Gordon’s champions at last backed down,
Murray stoked up his fire and with a clatter
of tongs and poker, to his lasting shame,
consigned Don Juan’s sparky life to flame.



Inspiration behind the poem:

Byron's memoirs were burned after his death by his publisher John Murray, after some argument, as described in the poem. Byron himself had wanted them published. I am one of many who regret this act of censorship. Burning books has ominous overtones and the world is the poorer for the loss of Byron's own take on his life. The poem is written in ottava rima, the stanza form of Byron’s masterwork Don Juan.


A C Clarke has published five full collections and six pamphlets, two of the latter, Owersettin and Drochaid, in collaboration. A Natural Curiosity was shortlisted for the Callum Macdonald Memorial Award. She was one of four winners in the Cinnamon Press 2017 pamphlet competition with War Baby and was commended in the 2005 National Poetry Competition, and longlisted in the same competition in 2014. She has twice won the Second Light long poem competition. She lives in Glasgow.