Throwing the Scabbard Away: Byron's Battle Against the Censors of Don Juan: 126 (American University Studies Series 4: English Language and Literature) - Hardcover

-A masterful work of thorough historical-literary research on a previously unexplored subject in the Romantic Era.- (Floyd C. Watkins, Emory University)
-Blann is appropriately cautious with his history in this work and is meticulously diffident in drawing conclusions - but attention to scholarly canons does not interfere with the liveliness, often the wryness, of a study which brings things together about Byron and 'Don Juan' that have not been brought together before.- (William R. Wolfe, Middle Tennessee State University)"

"Throwing the Scabbard Away" is an intriguing study of the writing of "Don Juan" (1818-1824) by self-exiled Lord Byron and particularly his managing to get the provocative masterpiece into print despite the forces determined to censor its satiric truth-telling. Thoroughly researched, the book explains historically why the publication of "Don Juan" was so controversial and why it met with such fervid resistance. Chronologically following the 6-part publication of the 16 completed cantos, the author investigates the material that was considered for censorship and Byron's fiery epistolary responses to those structures. In its broadest context, this work shows that Byron's battle with the censors was not just so much "braggadocio" from the world-famous poet but an integral part of his lifelong struggle for freedom.