SexViolHist Bib: Representations: Literary Texts: Edmund Spenser

»Edmund Spenser (/ˈspɛnsər/; 1552/1553 – 13 January 1599 O.S.) was an English poet best known for The Faerie Queene, an epic poem and fantastical allegory celebrating the Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is recognized as one of the premier craftsmen of nascent Modern English verse, and he is considered one of the great poets in the English language.« -- More information: Wikipedia

The Faerie Queene

I n f o r m a t i o n

»The Faerie Queene is an English epic poem by Edmund Spenser. Books I–III were first published in 1590, then republished in 1596 together with books IV–VI. The Faerie Queene is notable for its form: at over 36,000 lines and over 4,000 stanzas, it is one of the longest poems in the English language; it is also the work in which Spenser invented the verse form known as the Spenserian stanza. On a literal level, the poem follows several knights as a means to examine different virtues. The poem is also an allegorical work. As such, it can be read on several levels, including as praise (or, later, criticism) of Queen Elizabeth I. In Spenser's "Letter of the Authors", he states that the entire epic poem is "cloudily enwrapped in Allegorical devices", and that the aim of publishing The Faerie Queene was to "fashion a gentleman or noble person in virtuous and gentle discipline".« -- More information: Wikipedia

K e y w o r d s

I. Chronological Index: Modern History: 16^th Century | II. Geographical Index: European History: English History | III. Topical Index: Types: General: Rape

B i b l i o g r a p h y

I. Author Index

[Info] Bahr, Stephanie. »"Ne spared they to strip her naked all": Reading, Rape, and Reformation in Spenser's Faerie Queene.« Studies in Philology 117 (2020): 285-312.

[Info] Carvajal, Cheryl J. "And from thy wombe a famous progenie". Rape and motherhood in Arthurian legend, Spenser’s Faerie Queene, and early modern drama. Ann Arbor 2002.

[Info] Eggert, Katherine. »Spenser’s ravishment. Rape and rapture in The Faerie Queene.« Representations No. 70 (2000): 1-26.

[Info] Eggert, Katherine. »Spenser’s ravishment. Rape and rapture in The Faerie Queene.« Representing rape in medieval and early modern literature. Edited by Elizabeth Robertson et al. New York 2001: 381-410.

[Info] Frye, Susan. »Of chastity and violence. Elizabeth I and Edmund Spenser in the House of Busirane.« Signs 20 (1994): 49-78.

[Info] Frye, Susan. »Of chastity and rape. Edmund Spenser confronts Elizabeth I in The Faerie Queene.« Representing rape in medieval and early modern literature. Edited by Elizabeth Robertson et al. New York 2001: 353-380.

[Info] Hyden, Sage. Violent Masculinities of The Faerie Queene. M.A. Thesis, McMaster University, 2013.

[Info] Slater, Michael. »Spenser's Poetics of "Transfixion" in the Allegory of Chastity.« SEL 54 (2014): 41-58.

II. Speaker Index

[Info] Christian, Margaret. »"Love My Lewd Pilot": Rape Afloat in The Faerie Queene.« Sixteenth Century Studies Conference. St. Louis 1993.