1)
In Don Juan by Byron, the character of Don Juan is a womanizer for much more complex and negative reasons than are normally attributed to the characterization of the figure in popular culture. Instead of his womanizing simply coming from a place of playfulness and hedonism, it comes from a place of nihilism - Juan has little respect or faith in life and its potential, as well as himself, so he merely hides himself in the comfort of empty relationships with women in order to make up for not having an overall 'mission' in life. As Byron sees no end in sight to meaninglessness, he searches for meaning in material pleasures of the flesh; since even relationships with women are without meaning, Juan treats them like trifles to be played with until he is done. He wishes to maximize his pleasure, but holds contempt for the optimism women have: "Alas! They were so young, so beautiful, so lonely, loving, helpless, and the hour was that in which the heart is always full, and, having o'er itself no further power, prompts deeds eternity cannot annul" (Byron).
In the poem, there are many instances where Byron himself speaks about his own doubts about Christianity and the idea of faith in general; here, he is completely serious, ceasing to mask his contempt with any sort of wit and simply stating his disdain. When talking about prayer in Canto 3, Byron says: "But set those persons down with me to play And you shall see who has the properest notion Of getting into Heaven the shortest way" (Byron). Here, Byron notes that he hates those who simply pray in order to get in good with God, and to enter Heaven without having to do any real work or feel anything genuine ("the shortest way"). Byron truly believes that the idea of faith in and of itself is an illusion, an artifice that keeps us from realizing the truth: "The illusion's gone for ever All things that have been born were born to die" (Cantos 15,20). In noting death as an inescapable and permanent part of life, Byron is noting his complete and utter lack of faith through his words.
At the same time, there is a brief glimmer of hope in Byron's work, as he simply wishes to point out the problems of society while leaving the solutions up to the reader. When he discusses prayer in Canto 3, he is only talking about false prayer; Byron has a very specific idea of who he wants to satirize and make fun of - those who are inauthentic and merely pretend to be righteous. He fails to truly satirize genuine belief or hope, and seems to note that the present state of society itself is the only thing that needs fixing, not that the world cannot be fixed at all. As for the state of religion and marriage, as well as sexual relationships, Byron merely shows us the worst to show us how bad things could get (and are), not that they always have to be this way.
The Don Juan archetype is something that has found itself in many corners of modern fiction, and there are several contemporary examples that could be likened to the character. The character of James Bond, for instance, is noted for his extravagant lifestyle and his predilection toward starting purely sexual and materialistic relationships with women. However, this is often noted (particularly in the more reflexive Daniel Craig years) to be part of a way to note his nihilism; he cannot get close to anyone because there is no point. He is a secret agent, and the very nature of his profession keeps him in constant danger, constantly moving. Therefore, he has quite the pessimistic view on life that he takes out on the women he has flings with (who are always gone by the next film). Another example is the character of Don Draper from the AMC series Mad Men; in order to mask the unhappiness of his secret past, as well as the ennui that comes from having it all in New York City, he often finds himself sleeping with many different women, tearing his marriage apart in the process. He needs to find something different in each woman - from someone to take care of him to someone who will just listen - and drops them whenever his mood changes. This is not presented as virtuous or sought after, though many other characters envy him; Don hates himself and hates what he does, but simply feels a compulsion to do so because he sees no other point to life.
2)
Percy Bysshe Shelley's mastery of a variety of poetic and literary techniques is evident in his works, with many of them having a mastery of the sonnet, terza rima, and Spenserian stanza forms. "Ozymandias" shows his command of the sonnet, "Ode to the West Wind" demonstrates terza rima techniques quite well, and "The Revolt of Islam" demonstrates Spenserian stanzas at their best.
With "Ozymandias," we see a sonnet, which is a romantic poem written in 14 lines. In this poem, the sonnet is used in an intriguing way, with interesting and interweaving rhymes being used to demonstrate how all leaders inevitably fall into decline, as do their mighty empires. The work is in iambic pentameter, but the rhyming itself is not in a Petrarchan pattern; instead, a new rhyme is occasionally snuck in a stanza early. For example, once Shelley states "Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things," the rhyme does not occur until four lines later - "My name is Ozymandias, king of kings," (Shelley). This allows for an unconventional rhyming scheme that does not follow the standard formula, thus surprising the audience and catching them off guard at just the right moments.
The sonnet, overall, tells the story of a traveler who regales the reader with the current state of the Ozymandias statue; by placing the onus of the storytelling on the part of a traveler, this again adds another layer of interpretation; we are not hearing the story itself, but the story of a story. In this way, the sonnet form is used to lend the tale yet another layer of unreality. Furthermore, the grandiose language of the words on the pedestal, combined with the lyrical description of the decrepit remains of the statue, lends an interesting juxtaposition of stateliness and decay. Shelley uses the sonnet to lend a tragic tale a sense of deliberately underwhelming sadness, as this boastful empire and king are both no more.
"Ode to the West Wind" utilizes a terza rima format for its five cantos of text - terza rima is an interconnected three-line rhyming scheme used greatly in Italian poetry. Here, it is used to describe the qualities of the West Wind itself, each canto noting just how wonderful the wind is, and the last two cantos relating the Wind to the speaker himself. The terza rima format is one that is strictly controlled, and capable of incredible power in and of itself - this allows the poem to flow strongly and with purpose, an attribute they attempt to identify with the wind. By using terza rima, the pattern of threes is very strongly alluded to - the first description of the titular subject in the first line is three alliterated words: "Wild West Wind" (1.1).
Finally, "The Revolt of Islam" provides excellent examples of Spenserian stanzas, in which stanzas have a total of nine lines. These lines consist of eight lines in iambic pentameter, with each stanza ending with one Alexandrine line, which is in iambic hexameter. Here, Shelley tells a very personal story of the nature of mankind and the spirit of Good, using the Spenserian stanza to show the virtuousness of Laon and Cythna's journeys. The use of the hexameter for the last line of each stanza (e.g. "A sense of loneliness, a thirst with which I pined" (5.45)) lends each new stanza a sense of finality, as well as provides a summary of the stanza it is ending. The allegorical nature of the poem - in which the French Revolution is conveyed through the Arab rebellion against the tyrant Othman. Using these Spenserian stanzas to provide musical yet stately descriptions of even the most horrific events ("To the hyena lust, who, among graves, Over his loathed meal, laughing in agony, raves"), Shelley wishes to show the repetitive yet darkly beautiful world of man and all its evils. This results in one of Shelley's longest yet loveliest works; the mythic nature of this journey is cemented through this use of technique and rhyme.
