When We Two Parted: Context: Love and Relationships: Poetry: Literature AQA: GCSE (9:1)

Author's name

Lord Byron

1788-1824

when Lord Byron was born and when he died

How Lord Byron is known

an English poet and one of the most famous members of the Romantic movement

what 'When We Two Parted' is said to be about

This poem is said to be about his affair with Lady Frances Webster

debauched definition

indulging in or characterised by excessive indulgence in hedonistic activities such as alcohol or drugs.

How people knew Lord Byron when he was alive

He was focused on being free; he did whatever he wanted to do; lived a very dramatic life; reveled in a debauched lifestyle; was once labelled as 'mad, bad and dangerous to know'

publishing date of 'When We Two Parted'

1816

why Byron falsely attributed its writing to 1808

Byron falsely attributed its writing to 1808 in order to protect the identity of its subject, Lady Frances Wedderburn Webster; many scholars believe the poem to have actually been written in 1816, when Lady Frances was linked to the Duke of Wellington in a scandalous relationship.

Byron's affairs with married women

It is popular belief that the poem is about Lady Francis Webster; it was not unusual for him to get together with married women

the scandal with Lady Webster

He met Lady Webster and was attracted to her but the love was unrequited as she was married to one of his friends and was believed to be involved in an affair with Lord Wellington who had just defeated Napoleon; Lord Wellington's profile was even bigger than Lord Byron's

hiding Lady Webster's identity

When Bryon wrote the poem, it appears as though he didn't want anyone to know it was about her and he said he had published it 5 years earlier

why Byron fled London

In the end, Byron fled London to the Continent in order to escape scandal, fame, debts and the media; he never came back

The Industrial Revolution

marked a shift from country life to city life; machines were invented, which could complete work quicker than humans had done in the past, bringing about big changes in agriculture, manufacturing and transport.

1760

the beginning ot the Industrial Revolution

the human effect of the Industrial Revolution

conditions in industrial factories were often terrible; children were often used as workers because they could fit in and around the machinery, so it wasn't uncommon for six-year-olds to be working nineteen hour days in these factories.

the effect of the Industrial Revolution on nature and the landscape

London became a smoke ridden city; nature was being ruined - one of the important contextual factors explored in the poem.

The Romantic Period

Generally believed to be the period between 1789, the date of the French Revolution, and 1832, the year which saw the passing of the Great Reform Act

Romantic literature

Literature written during the Romantic Period which featured a change of values from rationalism, realism and empiricism to originality, and expression of the individual

Typical characteristics of Romantic literature

experimenting with traditional forms, focus on nature, self-expressive rather than repressive and often criticising social issues, politics, traditional institutions and the industrial revolution