1. Welcome to the early modern period –Literary Division Anglo-Saxon or Old English Literature Middle English Literature The Early Modern Period, aka The Renaissance »The Elizabethan Age: reign of Elizabeth I (1558- 1603) »Jacobean Age: Reign of James I (1603-25) »Caroline Age: Charles I (1625-49) »Commonwealth period (1649-1660)

2. Early Modern Period Humanism Reformation

3. Spenser

5. The Fairie Queene Not a poem to “solve,” but rather to experience Exploration of abstract ideas –Red Cross and Una are characters and concepts

6. Fairie Queene The genres of the FQ--overview –Epic –Romance –Allegory

7. Genre--epic Long narrative poem Serious and formal style Heroic, perhaps quasi-divine central figure Tells the story of a nation, a tribe or even all of humanity

8. Genre epic Spenser’s epic elements –Begins in medias res –Use of epic simile 1.2.16

9. Genre--Romance –We’ve already seen some romance –Auerbach’s definition –Romance—The Letter to Raleigh ”To Fashion a Gentleman” –P. 716 –Archaic language

10. Fairie Queene Proem –The Poetic “I” (stanza one) –Gloriana (stanza four)

11. Genre: Allegory A darke conceit Allegory and levels of meaning

12. Fairie Queene Canto One—Den of Error Red Cross Knight I.1.1 Una I.1.4 Wandering Wood I.1.7 and I.1.10 The Den of Error I.1.11 line 96 ff The Monster Error I.1.14 line 123

13. Fairie Queene Canto One—Den of Error Red Cross Knight I.1.1 Una I.1.4 Wandering Wood I.1.7 and I.1.10 The Den of Error I.1.11 line 96 ff The Monster Error I.1.14 line 123

14. Error From the Latin, errare (to wander) What is the nature of this error? How does this monster represent this? Epic simile, Nile: I.1.21

15. Archimago Episode Archimago introduced I.1. 29 Hypocrisy Connections to Catholicism I. 1. 35 The creation of the false Una I.1.45 Una and RCK separated RCK’s anger: 1.1.4 and 5

16. Una and RCK separated Allegory of the English Church Allegory of Truth and Holiness

17. Duessa (I.2.13 ff) What she signifies—some critical views –Falsity –Church of Rome –Mary Queen of Scots –Whore of Babylon –Sans Foy—Saracen I.2.12

18. Duessa Episode Combat with Sans Foy (I.2.16) Fradubbio (I.2.31) Duessa Revealed (I.2.41)

19. Book II Guyon—Knight of Temperance –Temperance as Moderation OED: “practice or habit of restraining oneself in provocation, passion, desire etc. Rational self-restraint –Accompanied by Palmer--Reason

20. The Bower of Bliss Location in an artificial Garden (st. 42) –Enclosed, but how: st. 43 Genius and the Self (st. 47) Sexual Temptation Acrasia in the Bower

21. Guyon Reactions –St. 55 –St. 66 –Guidance from the Palmer (69)

22. Acrasia Her name means “intemperance”’ –Allegory: temperance conquers intemperance Witch with her lover (st. 72) –Temptress who turns men into beasts (Circe) Sensual temptation (st. 77) Loss of masculine strength (st. 80)

24. Possible contexts New World Ireland The Elizabethan court itself

25. Bower destroyed Guyon’s destruction of the Bower 83