# Don Juan — Don Juan character guide > Don Juan in Don Juan by Lord Byron. **Role:** major **Also known as:** Juan, Don Juan Tenorio, young Don Juan, Juanna **First appearance:** 0005-don-juan ## Snapshot A Spanish youth of innocent air and inconvenient beauty, whose education in love begins in Seville and never quite concludes anywhere. ## Who they are Juan is the poem's wandering center, a boy whose good looks and passive charm draw other people's desires toward him before he has any plan of his own. His early affair with Donna Julia ends in scandal and a sea voyage, teaching him that innocence is itself a kind of temptation. Byron uses him as a mirror for whatever society he lands in — Spanish, Greek, Turkish, Russian, English — so his story becomes a tour of love, appetite, and hypocrisy rather than a single moral progress. ## Relationships ### [Haidée](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/haidee) _romantic_ Don Juan and Haidée share a passionate, idyllic love affair on her Greek island, ending tragically with her death. ### [Donna Julia](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/donna_julia) _romantic_ Don Juan has a scandalous romantic affair with the married Donna Julia in Seville, leading to her disgrace. ### [Baba](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/baba) _psychological_ Baba manipulates and forces Don Juan into cross-dressing to be presented to Gulbeyaz, acting as a cunning intermediary. ### [Gulbeyaz](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/gulbeyaz) _romantic_ Gulbeyaz, the Sultana, desires Don Juan as a lover, but he resists her advances, creating a tense power dynamic. ### [Aurora Raby](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/aurora_raby) _romantic_ Aurora Raby is a pure, Catholic heiress who attracts Don Juan with her beauty and virtue, representing a potential spiritual love. ### [Dudù](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/dudu) _romantic_ Don Juan shares a brief, sensual encounter with Dudù, one of the odalisques in the harem, after being placed in her bed. ### [John Johnson](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/john_johnson) _friendship_ John Johnson is a fellow English traveler and soldier who befriends Don Juan during his adventures in Russia. ### [Suwarrow](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/suwarrow) _professional_ Suwarrow is the Russian general under whom Don Juan serves as a soldier during the siege of Ismail. ### [Catherine the Great](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/catherine_the_great) _romantic_ Catherine the Great takes Don Juan as her lover and favorite after he impresses her in Russia, using him for pleasure. ### [Katinka](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/katinka) _romantic_ Don Juan has a brief romantic fling with Katinka, a Russian girl, during his time in the army. ### [Zoe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/zoe) _friendship_ Zoe is Haidée's loyal maid who helps facilitate Don Juan and Haidée's romance and cares for him after his shipwreck. ### [Pedrillo](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/pedrillo) _friendship_ Pedrillo is Don Juan's loyal tutor and companion who accompanies him on his journey, but is tragically eaten by starving sailors. ## In the story ### [Preface to Cantos VI, VII, and VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/preface-to-cantos-vi-vii-and-viii) Mentioned as the protagonist to whom some real incidents (like saving an infant) are attributed in the poem. ### [Dedication](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/dedication) The poem is dedicated to Southey, but Don Juan is the titular hero of the work being introduced. ### [Don Juan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/don-juan) The titular hero, introduced as a child born to Donna Inez and Don José. ### [Canto I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-i) Introduced as a child, raised strictly by his mother, and at sixteen described as tall, handsome, and active. ### [Canto II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-ii) Departs Spain, suffers seasickness, survives shipwreck, and begins a love affair with Haidée. ### [Canto III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-iii) Sleeping peacefully on Haidée's breast, unaware of the impending danger. ### [Canto IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-iv) Juan is in a blissful love affair with Haidée, but experiences a foreboding sense of doom. He prepares to fight Lambro to defend Haidée. ### [Canto V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-v) Juan is a slave in the market, youthful and handsome, mourning his lost love and recent hardships. ### [Canto VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-vi) Disguised as Juanna, placed in the harem, assigned to sleep with Dudù. ### [Canto VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-vii) Mentioned in passing as part of the narrative; not directly active in this canto. ### [Canto VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-viii) Fights in his first battle, displaying impulsive bravery and a lack of malice, though he is bewildered by the chaos. ### [Canto IX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-ix) Juan is on his way to St. Petersburg and becomes the object of Catherine the Great's affection. ### [Canto X](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-x) Grows dissipated in the Russian court, favored by the Empress, and later sent to England. ### [Canto XI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-xi) Presented at court, admired for his dress and mien; navigates English society as a bachelor. ### [Canto XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-xii) Now a young man of the world, somewhat blasé, observing English society and Parliament. ### [Canto XIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-xiii) Becomes acquainted with Lord Henry through diplomatic business; praised for his gravity, docility, and talent. ### [Canto XIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-xiv) The young foreigner whose inexperience and youth make him vulnerable to the Duchess's charms. ### [Canto XV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-xv) His manner is sincere and unaffected; he adapts easily to English society and is observed by Lady Adeline with growing interest. ### [Canto XVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-xvi) Visibly disturbed by talk of the Black Friar; later encounters the ghost in the gallery. ### [Canto XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/canto-xvii) Juan appears wan and worn, with eyes that hardly brooked the light, suggesting he had a troubling encounter during the night. ### [Endnotes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/chapters/endnotes) Referenced indirectly through editorial notes on the poem's composition and reception. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters/don_juan - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/don_juan_se/characters