What is a Byronic hero?

The Byronic hero is a term for a character type first introduced by Lord Byron in his poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage. Known to be intelligent, gloomy, disappointed with life, not part of any crowd, mysterious, and (partly because of all of the above) an irresistibly attractive man. Byron's work has influenced literature in the 19th and 20th-centuries, and the character has become an established archetype in contemporary novels and movies. Scholars believe that Childe Harold's Pilgrimage is partly autobiographical and that Byron modeled the character after himself. Byron had a reputation for being controversial and unconventional; in addition, much of the plot is inspired by his travels in the Mediterranean.