{"id":241,"date":"2021-02-14T00:40:41","date_gmt":"2021-02-14T00:40:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/?p=241"},"modified":"2021-02-14T00:40:41","modified_gmt":"2021-02-14T00:40:41","slug":"a-brief-exploration-of-spencers-the-faerie-queene-book-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/?p=241","title":{"rendered":"A Brief Exploration of Spencer’s The Faerie Queene, Book I"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Among the many layers of allegorical content within Edmund Spencer\u2019s The Faerie Queene, <\/em>there is a particular and striking emphasis placed on the two stanzas describing the character of Una, the Redcrosse Knight\u2019s companion. They are the fourth and fifth stanzas of the first book, possessing also a locational importance as they are a part of the introductory material for the rest of the work. Una\u2019s character is widely known to be the representation of truth, or of the one true faith. In the New Testament of the Bible, Jesus Christ is known for saying \u201cI am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me,\u201d implying that He is the one <\/em>and only way to salvation\u2014the one and only truth (John 14:6). Thus, it appears that not only is Una a representation of truth, but is also a symbol of the Christ figure himself. To communicate this, Spencer invokes reverent emotion within these stanzas through his use of symbolic imagery and epic tone, which ultimately underscores the Christ-like divinity of Una\u2019s character.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just before the opening of the fourth stanza, the tone of the preceding text is harsh and rugged as it speaks of the knight\u2019s foe, \u201ca Dragon horrible and stearne\u201d (Spencer, Book I, Canto I, Stanza III). The contrast between this and the soft, gentle start of Una\u2019s depiction in the following stanza is the first sign of an emotional pull toward her divinity, \u201cA lovely Ladie rode him faire beside\u201d (Stanza IV). The antithesis of the \u201cDragon\u201d, or Satan as it implies, is Christ. Therefore, such a sudden change in tone at this moment draws the reader\u2019s attention to Christ and his goodness, and leads them to a reverent state of mind for the following seventeen lines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Spencer continues with the description, he includes and highlights several biblically significant symbols. The first is the \u201clowly Asse\u201d on which Una rides alongside the knight. This is a direct reference to Christ\u2019s triumphant entry into Jerusalem before his crucifixion, in which he too rode on the humble place of the donkey\u2019s back–an act which declared to the Jews that he was the true Messiah. The diction in this section emphasizes her purity and gentleness, along with her legitimacy, which again evokes emotion from Spencer’s contemporary readers as they would relate this innocent character to their savior, Christ. This stanza also portrays Una as mournful, \u201cas one that inly mournd: so was she sad\u201d (IV). This seems to reference Christ\u2019s sentiments just before his crucifixion, during which he mourned the eminent verdict, and bore significant heaviness on his shoulders because of the painful cup before him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, there is the symbol of the lamb. She is portrayed as leading a lamb on a leash beside her; \u201cBy her in a line a milke white lambe she lad\u201d (IV). One of the strongest biblical references to Christ is the pure, white lamb, which represents the perfect sacrifice in atonement for sins because of its spotlessness and innocence.\u00a0 There is an Old Testament prophecy about Jesus that explains, \u201clike a lamb led to the slaughter, he openened not his mouth\u201d (Isaiah 53:7). Jesus, when he was crucified, became the pure white sacrificial lamb. The fact that the lamb is walking beside Una and that it matches her divine and pure color demonstrates that they are equal, and mirror one another. This, too, is a depiction of Christ just before his execution, an image which again appears intended to evoke emotion within the reader, remembering the pains that he endured through his unjust death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fifth stanza centers on defining the royal status of Una and the greatness of the kingdom from which she came: \u201cand by decent of royal linage came\u2026their scepters streatcht from East to Westerne shore\u201d (V). After portraying the truth, innocence and sentiment of Christ before death, here Spencer balances the emotion with that of a reverent recognition of his power through the character of Una. Not only is Christ the one and only way and truth, humble and innocent, but he is also powerful, sovereign with a kingdom whose rule reaches every corner of the world. Through this symbolic and sentimental depiction of Una, Spencer reaches the heart of the matter of the Christian faith, as well as that of his reader\u2014truth is found in Christ alone, he is the one and only way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 1, 2018<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Works Cited:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spencer, Edmund. \u201cThe Faerie Queene: Book I, Canto I.\u201dEdited by Stephen Greenblatt. The<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Norton Anthology of English Literature, 9th<\/sup> Ed. Vol. B. <\/em>W.W Norton & Company, New York, 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ryrie Study Bible. Isaiah; John.<\/em> King James Version, Moody Publishers, 1994.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Among the many layers of allegorical content within Edmund Spencer\u2019s The Faerie Queene, there is a particular and striking emphasis placed on the two stanzas describing the character of Una, the Redcrosse Knight\u2019s companion. They are the fourth and fifth stanzas of the first book, possessing also a locational importance as they are a part…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[73,74],"class_list":["post-241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-critical-analyses","tag-edmund-spencer","tag-the-faerie-queene"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=241"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":242,"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241\/revisions\/242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bexroden.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}