| The mass of people has always waited to see the way the opinion leaders move before following. In Burton's case these leaders expressed generally quiet and ominous disapproval and remained for the most part silent. Such silence implied the possibility of things too awful to speak about and was the most cutting form of censure for Burton. His reaction was, of course, to sink into bitterness and pour scorn and blame upon the society which had rejected him. Today we would recognize his "black dog" (as he called the fits of depression from which he often suffered) as a potentially treatable condition - we might also discern a redirection of self-hatred. As to Blunt's caustic comments on Burton's character, I think these are significant clues towards understanding him better. I do not believe that Blunt's apparent dislike of Burton and his criticism of him were motivated by spite over some remarks which Burton had made, critical of Blunt (as has been suggested). I find Blunt to be a strong and self-assured character and he was in a position to compare Burton with his contemporaries among the elite of that time: Blunt knew them all personally. The then 28-year-old Blunt was probably quite astonished by Burton's reliance on the supernatural to intercede in philosophies which would otherwise be carried to "thought's ultimate conclusions". We know that Burton was a superstitious man and we may here detect the influence of Isabel - how profound, in fact, was that influence? How strong was Burton really? Were the bluster and the monologues he inflicted upon Blunt and many others really a cover for weakness in the man himself? Does not alcoholism also suggest this possibility? And, if a fellow cultivates a ferocious facade; through dress, grotesque beard, demeanor and expressed savagery, does that not imply that he has something to hide from the gaze of the world? Blunt is not alone in suggesting that Burton exaggerated the dangers of his "pilgrimage" to the Holy Places of Islam: Burton's vainglory would further explain a deep need to conceal self-doubt and inherent weakness. Blunt called him "a sheep in wolf's clothing". Roger Tichborne "the Claimant" figures in Burton's life in Argentina. Blunt says the two were close companions. From what is known of Arthur Orton, a butcher's son; the uneducated impostor who presented himself as the missing Sir Roger Tichborne, presumed drowned; he would be a dull companion indeed for someone of Richard Burton's intellect. I cannot therefore begin to imagine Burton's motivation in befriending him - though his implausible explanation was that he believed the claim. That aside, Blunt does not appear here in a very good light either. He willingly sits long into the night with Burton, the "grim being", in talks "of the most intimate kind" yet later suggests he might have "turned a paragraph" in the local newspaper lampooning him. One wonders what Blunt would have replied if Burton had asked him: "Did YOU write that about me?" You would think that Blunt would have had other people with whom to spend "much of his time" while in Argentina. He must have found this man very entertaining. Copyright Richard Leveson 2001 The Tichborne Impostor by Geddes MacGregor J.B. Lippincott Company Philadelphia & New York 1957 Blunt, in describing Burton, likens him to the character Vautrin ( the ex "gallerien" or galley slave) who appears in, I think, three of Honore de Balzac's series of novels "The Human Comedy". He is particularly to be remembered in "Father Goriot". Balzac is not fashionably read today, which is a pity because I personally love the clarity and humour of his writing and his memorable characters. He is a treasure to be discovered by anybody with the literary inclination, and although dating from the 1830s is still most readable; more of a Dostoyevski than a Dickens. HOME |