The Prisoner of Chillon
by Lord Byron
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1816
- Form
- Lyric poetry
- Language
- English
- Length
- Short · 15 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Approachable1 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendLord Byron, The Major WorksOxford World's Classics, 2008McGann's selection has the poem with the shorter lyrics the Harvard Classics print beside it.
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A narrative poem in the voice of François Bonivard, a Genevan prior imprisoned in the castle of Chillon on Lake Geneva in the 1530s. Chained to a pillar with his two brothers, he watches them sicken and die, and buries them in the dungeon floor. Left alone, he loses count of the years, is briefly consoled by a bird at his window, and grows so used to his chains that when freedom comes he regains it with a sigh. Byron wrote it after visiting the castle with Shelley in 1816.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns The Prisoner of Chillon are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.