The Faerie Queene: Encyclopedia II - The Faerie Queene - Allegorical characters

The Faerie Queene - Allegorical characters

Important allegorical figures include Una, who symbolizes the true Protestant religion; the evil Duessa, who represents Roman Catholicism; Britomart and Belphoebe, warrior maidens who symbolize English virtue, and Gloriana the Faerie Queene, a nickname often found to refer to Queen Elizabeth I. The Redcrosse Knight introduced in the first canto of the poem bears the emblem of Saint George, patron saint of England; a red cross still features in the Union Jack as a symbol of England. The Redcross Knight is, in fact, early on declared to be the real Saint George.

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 conventional episodic narrative, but involves fluid and unpredictable transitions in events both forward and backward in time. Nevertheless it is a beautifully crafted epic which richly rewards those patient enough to take it on. The poem becomes much simpler to read once one gets used to the interchangeable nature of some letters and learns to recognize words from their general sound as opposed to strict spelling. The poem contains some terms that are no longer in popular use (such as "whylome" and "wonne"), but these are repeated often enough so that the reader can familiarly read the rest of the poem if he took the time to learn the meaning of these words, which some editions provide definitions of to supplement the poem itself.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Allegorical characters", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki