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The Myth of the Commendatore in the Don Juan Legend and Its Reinterpretation in Byron's “Don Juan”

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The Myth of the Commendatore in the Don Juan Legend and Its Reinterpretation in Byron's “Don Juan” 168 Social-Behavioural Sciences THE MYTH OF THE COMMENDATORE IN THE DON JUAN LEGEND AND ITS REINTERPRETATION IN BYRON’S “DON JUAN” Roxana Diana CRUCEANU [email protected] “Alma Mater” University, Sibiu, Romania ABSTRACT Centred on the myth of the Commendatore in the Don Juan legend and Byron’s interpretation of this symbol in his “Don Juan”, the present analysis aims at demonstrating how the author reformed, yet did not abandon one of the most emblematic figures in literature. The Stone Guest, a commander returned from the dead to perform divine justice and castigate the sinner is turned upside down by Byron’s dandy genius. In traditional versions, the Commendatore, a knight and gentleman, is a righteous man who has the spiritual competence of judging the libertine. In his poem, Byron decides to tell Don Juan’s story from the perspective of a seducer and fashionable, unlike traditional creators, who remain neutral and prefer the deus ex machine sort of sentence. Thus, he chooses to operate not with one, but with three commanders, who partially play the role of the traditional punisher, but are unable to reinstitute morality in the world because they are themselves flawed. KEYWORDS: ethics, dandy mockery, commander, tradition, Don Juanism 1. Introduction and elsewhere, there is no doubt that this Although even nowadays – almost Don Juan appears to resemble very little – two centuries after its author died, leaving if at all – Tirso’s Molière’s or Mozart’s, the denouement of his Don a mystery – the three pillars of Don Juanism we will there is still much controversy in criticis m refer to here. whether Byron’s Don Juan should be However, whereas the addition of the considered within the coordinates of the main character and his life style to the legend or excluded completely, we believe canon of libertinism would be farfetched, that the poem can be interpreted as a non- the reading of the final Byronic conventional rewriting of the Don masterpiece in a Don Juanesque key is not Juanesque topos. Starting with the profile untenable. In other words, there is scarcely of the hero, continuing with the feminine any Don Juanism at the level of the hero, typologies and ending with the course of but the presence of the myth is felt at the events occurring in the amorous sphere level of the themes. Byron’s text REVISTA ACADEMIEI FORŢELOR TERESTRE NR. 2 (74)/2014 Social-Behavioural Sciences 169 encompasses more legendary elements opening the poem with the announcement than many researchers acknowledge. If of the ultimate punishment, reversing the these motifs are not remarked, it is because conventional order of the progress of action. of the package in which they are wrapped The simplest explanation for this poetic and delivered, a package with a sonorous device would be that he did not consider it name: dandyism combined with libertinism. necessary to keep the suspense of a story Recycling a scenario with the same which was no longer an enigma for the duels, the same es capades, the same public. Secondly, he may have altered the dialogue patterns between master and classic sequence so as to suggest that a butler, the same deus ex machina sort of different finale for Don Juan should be punishment, would have been against expected with this version, because if ‘we all Byron’s dandy nature, irrespective of the have seen him in the pantomime sent to the geniality of the rewriting. The kernel of devil’, then variation is required to avoid dandyism is after all modifying monotony. Thirdly, and perhaps most conventions in an original, striking significantly, Byron realized the importance manner. That is exactly Byron’s approach of a backward reading of the legend for the to the Don Juanesque invariants, which are clarification of the global sense and distorted heavily, satirized but not proposed a similar process for the proper abandoned. The proof that this Don Juan understanding of his own fiction. And, will be dandified is given by the author indeed, the last scenes are decisive for the himself, who declares ironically, with the circularity of the epic poem, for the zero dandiest talent for diminishing serious evolution of the hero, which is truly questions: “I’ll therefor e take our ancient ascertained only when the meeting with the friend Don Juan, / We all have seen him in ghost sends him back to infancy and the Pantomim e / Sent to the devil, imprisonment by women, canceling the somewhat ere his time” [1]. Reading these glamorous surface. A fourth motivation may lines means almost visualizing Byron in a be perceived as the auctorial desire to most impeccable dandy pose, with a remind the crucial moment of the play, sarcastic smile on the face, choosing Don which in his Don Juan will occur not merely Juan as a protagonist – not because he is once, but several times in different forms. To the best, but because there is such crisis of accomplish that, Byron does not operate heroes – while commenting on the most with a single commander, but with three, powerful message of the play and reducing who intervene more or less violently on it to the ambiguous expression ‘sent to the Juan, at essential turning points in his devil’. And to the devil he sends Don Juan existence. again, not in the concrete sense imposed The first is Alfonso, whose main by tradition, but in the other sense, the function, we opine, is his incapacity of abstract one, by demolishing him, along imposing the paternal authority upon the with one of the most powerful icons of the son and shattering the primal mother-son classic variants: the Commendatore. union. Yet, Alfonso’s task is double: he also interprets the commander, a role that 2. Byron’s Triad of Commanders cannot be doubted, although he plays it as Any approach to the legend’s badly as that of father to Juan. We argue invariants as perceived by Byron should that Alfonso cannot be contested in this perhaps start with the motif of the quality, because the essence of his problem commander, which normally emerges at is the same: an aristocrat, with an age the end to intermediate divine justice. suited for the Commendatore of tradition, Byron himself dictates this twist by is wronged by the seducer, deeply hurt in REVISTA ACADEMIEI FORŢELOR TERESTRE NR. 2 (74)/2014 170 Social-Behavioural Sciences his honour and morally obliged to fight a then that person is Julia, who after having duel with the insulter. By keeping thes e “so viciously deceived herself with so central elements, the narrator is aw are of much talk about spiritual love should be the parallel that is impossible not to appear sent in a convent, where presumably she in the mind of his readers. Except that, the may contemplate the spiritual for ever” [5]. teller decides to laugh at the commander Again, consciously or not, Byron makes a and his intransigence, by demystifying a new allusion to and switch from tradition. serious figure with great dandy mockery. Julia’s living in a convent reminds an Alfonso is not Ana’s father, as it is the Elvira turned upside down, for, if case with Tirso and Mozart, but the Molière’s heroine is corrupted by Don husband of the less virtuous Julia. He does Juan to renounce monastic existence for not have to repair a rape, but an adultery, worldly pleasures, Julia is taken there to which was fully accepted by the unfaithful learn to be pious after having experienced wife, turned into the pursuer and sexual earthly corruption. Alfonso is permanently initiator of virgin Juan. Alfonso, on the removed from the plot, probably left to other hand, is very far from what the continue his romance with Dona Inez. Statue should represent. A knight and Thus, like Mozart, Byron precipitates gentleman, the Commmendatore is the the entrance of the commander and the embodiment of ethics and dignity, a consummation of the duel. And because this righteous man who has the spiritual Commendatore “in his dressing-gown” [6] competence of judging the sinner. Julia’s escapes death, Byron repeats the scene in husband is not surrounded by the same Canto IV with Lambro, who is much fitter degree of respectability. Quite the for the part than Alfonso. As Haslett [7] opposite, he is rather flawed, guilty of the notices, this time the rake – commander same violation of the laws of marriage, encounter mirrors the legend more exactly through his rumoured affair with Inez: because Lambro is the offended father “some people whisper […] / That Inez coming back from the dead. Indeed, his had, ere Don Alfonso’s marriage, / Forgot motivation is to annihilate Juan in the name with him the very prudent carriage” [2]. of his daughter’s lost virginity, which is a Ironically, Byron makes the progress from Alfonso’s rage of betrayed prosecutor as culpable as the condemned consort. And, it is also true that the pirate and consequently incapable of performing appears as if resurrected. What was not the revenge correctly. In this equation, remarked, and we find this aspect husband and wife, cheater and cheated are particularly revolutionary, is that, within the quits: “Julia in fact had tolerable same episode, he interprets the living grounds,/ Alfonso’s loves with Inez were Commendatore and the Stone Guest at once. well known” [3], comments the narrative Byron merged two distinct moments in a voice. That is why nobody is slain in this single unit through a clever Odyssean duel. A dead Alfonso, deprived of punitive artifice. After a delay on the sea, “a report potential, would not have been able to […] / Avouched his death […] / And put his return from the dead and drag the roué to house in mourning several weeks” [8], Hell.
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