Spenser's Narrative Figuration of Women in The Faerie Queene (Studies in Medieval and Early Modern Culture) (English and Latin Edition) (Research in Medieval and Early Modern Culture)

Concentrating on major figures of women in The Faerie Queene , together with the figures constellated around them, Anderson's Narrative Figuration explores the contribution of Spenser's epic romance to an appreciation of women's plights and possibilities in the age of Elizabeth. The figures she highlights encompass the idealization of Una, humanized by parody; the historicized fixation of Belphoebe; the cross-dressed complexity of Britomart; and the psychological misery of Serena, a throwback to Amoret. They range from cartoons to a fullness sharing numerous features with the Shakespearean women salient in recent debates about character. The critical lens most revealing for each important figure is markedly different, even while their interwoven experiences resonate and intersect across this culturally encyclopedic poem. Taken together, their stories have a meaningful tale to tell about the function of narrative, which proves central to figuration in the still moving, metamorphic poem that Spenser created. Anderson-Figuration_Front Cover 1 9781580443180_ebook 3 Halftitle 3 Series Page 4 Ttitle Page 5 Copyright 6 Dedication 7 Contents 9 Acknowledgments 11 Introduction 13 Spenser’s NarrativeFiguration of Women 13 Parody and Perfection 25 Spenser’s Una 25 Belphoebe’s “mirrours more then one” 61 History’s Interlude 61 Britomart 87 Inside and Outside the Armor 87 Phantasies, Pains, and Punishments 133 A Still-Moving Coda 133 Notes 161 Index 201 Acknowledgments ix Introduction: Spenser’s Narrative Figuration of Women 1 1. Parody and Perfection: Spenser’s Una 13 2. Belphoebe’s “mirrours more then one”: History’s Interlude 49 3. Britomart: Inside and Outside the Armor 75 4. Phantasies, Pains, and Punishments: A Still-Moving Coda 121 Notes 149 Index 189 Introduction: Spenser's narrative figuration of women Parody and perfection: Spenser's Una Belphoebe's "mirrours more than one": history's interlude Britomart: inside and outside the armor - Phantasies, pains, and punishments: a still-moving coda. This study interrogates the figuration of women within the narrative of Spenser's culturally encyclopedic romance-epic, "The Faerie Queene."