Edmund Spenser - The Faerie Queene

Spenser's masterpiece is an extensive poem The Faerie Queene. The first three books of The Faerie Queene were published in 1590, and a second set of three books were published in 1596. This extended epic poem deals with the adventures of knights, dragons, ladies in distress, etc. yet it is also an extended allegory about the moral life and what makes for a life of virtue. Spenser originally indicated that he intended the poem to be twelve books long, so the version of the poem we have today is incomplete.

Spenser refers to aspects of religion and tyranny in his works. His work The Fairie Queene is an example of where he has characters and messages that allude to tyranny and religion. One of Spenser's characters, Lucifera, has the connotation of Satan just by the name (Croft 560). Spenser also mentions how Lucifera is a queen that seized power “without right,” meaning she crowned herself a leader. The essay also mentions that Spenser compared her counselors to the six deadly sins, bringing another religious comparison and element to his work (Croft 561). Spenser uses elements of history in his epic poem, and uses Lucifera to represent Mary Tudor, Elizabeth I sister (Croft 562). Book 1 and 5 of The Fairie Queene establish suggestive links between the devil and tyrant (Croft 558). This is shown through comparing Lucifera, or really Mary Tudor, to a tyrant who is essentially evil and is the devil as well. There is a dragon in Spenser's book that is meant to remind the reader that the original tyrannical power holder was the devil (Croft 562). Spenser's works use tyranny as a comparison to the devil by using allegory to convey his message.