The Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene is a poem by Edmund Spenser written during the 1580s.
The poem found political favour with Elizabeth I and was consequently very successful, to the extent of far overshadowing Spenser's other poetry. A measure of the favour which the poem found with the monarch is that Spenser was granted a pension for life on account of it.
The poem celebrates the Tudor dynasty (of which Elizabeth was a part), and links the dynasty with the Arthurian tradition. The poem is deeply allegorical and allusive: many prominent Elizabethans may readily be discerned skulking amongst the dramatis personae.
Many modern readers find this poem (as much of Spenser's poetry) both difficult to read and even more difficult to comprehend. Its sources are both rich and complex, its language both archaic and arcane. Moreover, the structure of the story is not conventionally episodic narrative, but involves fluid and unpredictable transitions in events both forwards and backwards in time. Nevertheless it is a beautifully crafted epic which richly rewards those patient enough to take it on.
External links:
- Online edition of The Faerie Queene: http://www.uoregon.edu/~rbear/fqintro.html
Referenced By
1501 in literature | 1502 in literature | 1503 in literature | 1504 in literature | 1505 in literature | 1506 in literature | 1507 in literature | 1508 in literature | 1509 in literature | 1510 in literature | 1511 in literature | 1512 in literature | 1513 in literature | 1514 in literature | 1515 in literature | 1516 in literature | 1517 in literature | 1518 in literature | 1519 in literature | 1520 in literature | 1521 in literature | 1522 in literature | 1523 in literature | 1524 in literature | 1525 in literature | 1526 in literature | 1527 in literature | 1528 in literature | 1529 in literature | 1530 in literature | 1531 in literature | 1532 in literature | 1533 in literature | 1534 in literature | 1535 in literature | 1536 in literature | 1537 in literature | 1538 in literature | 1539 in literature | 1540 in literature | 1541 in literature | 1542 in literature | 1543 in literature | 1544 in literature | 1545 in literature | 1546 in literature | 1547 in literature | 1548 in literature | 1549 in literature | 1550 in literature | 1551 in literature | 1552 in literature | 1553 in literature | 1554 in literature | 1555 in literature | 1556 in literature | 1557 in literature | 1558 in literature | 1559 in literature | 1560 in literature | 1561 in literature | 1562 in literature | 1563 in literature | 1564 in literature | 1565 in literature | 1566 in literature | 1567 in literature | 1568 in literature | 1569 in literature | 1570 in literature | 1571 in literature | 1572 in literature | 1573 in literature | 1574 in literature | 1575 in literature | 1576 in literature | 1577 in literature | 1578 in literature | 1579 in literature | 1580 in literature | 1581 in literature | 1582 in literature | 1583 in literature | 1584 in literature | 1585 in literature | 1586 in literature | 1587 in literature | 1588 in literature | 1589 in literature | 1590 in literature | 1591 in literature | 1592 in literature | 1593 in literature | 1594 in literature | 1595 in literature | 1596 in literature | 1597 in literature | 1598 in literature | 1599 in literature | 1600 in literature ...
|
