Edmund Spenser's "Faerie Queen"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, although rooted firmly in the Christian religion, E. Spenser's "Faerie Queen" nevertheless contains frequent positive references, both explicit and implicit, to the pagan Goddess religions, which Christianity worked so hard to replace in the British Isles. The author points out that this assertion is supported not only by the actual imagery, metaphor and other poetic devices but also by Spenser's brilliant conception of time as something nonlinear, a dimension in which past and present mingle to create an imagined reality. The paper illustrates that the first two lines of stanza 46 incorporate a combination of pagan and Christian references: The word "goodly" was closely related to the word "godly"; the reader must think that this is a reference to a tree in the Garden of Eden, which is supported by the next line, which describes the fruit upon this tree as "apples, rosie red".

From the Paper:

"First, however, it is necessary to give a very brief synopsis of the events that have transpired to this point. Redcrosse Knight has come through a series of terrible ordeals on his quest to free Una's parents from the prison of the evil dragon. (Una is the woman he loves.) Along the way, both she and he have come to death's door many times. What is striking about each of their rescues, however, is that although for the most part the savior comes in godly form (as in the Lion who protected Una until he himself was killed in for his efforts), the presence of Una -- who, at one point, is taken for a goddess by a group of "nature dwellers" (i.e. pagans) as she makes her way back to the Redcrosse Knight -- is a repeating theme of the old pagan religions. Put simply, Una is a goddess-figure who weaves through the text alongside other Christian themes (as well as other, more ambiguous, themes such as the "three sisters" who heal the Redcrosse Knight through resentence so he can continue on his quest to kill the dragon and free Una's parents)."

More papers on Edmund Spenser's "Faerie Queen":

• Analytical Essay # 46029 : "Edmund Spenser and "The Faerie Queene"
• Analytical Essay # 42219 : "The Faerie Queen"
• Analytical Essay # 131904 : "Comic Effects in "The Faerie Queene"

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