poetry-1 (eng403) lecture – 13. edmund spenser greatest poet of the english renaissance humanist...
TRANSCRIPT
POETRY-1 (ENG403)
LECTURE – 13
Edmund Spenser
• Greatest poet of The English Renaissance• Humanist• Patriotic• Skillful• Lover of Physical Beauty
SPENSER’S INDIVIDUALITY
• Spensarian Stanza• Archaic Language• Original Spelling• Punctuation• Rhymes• Etymologies• Musical effects
The Faerie Queene
Purpose of Writing The Faerie Queene• How a Virtuous Man should Live
• Six books (1599)• It is an allegory
THE FAERIE QUEENE AS AN ALLEGORY
• The Red Cross Knight: Holliness• Lady Una: Truth, True Religion• Portrayal of Roman Catholic Church as a
Villain
INVOCATION
• Introduction
• Clio, the Goddess of History• Cupid, God of Love• Venus, the Goddess of Beauty• Mars, the God of War• The Queen
EPIC• An epic is long narrative poem about a hero
containing the following elements: o “in media res”o an invocation to the museo Battleso Supernatural elementso Journeyso Descent to the Underworldo Epic Similes
LONG NARRATIVE POEM
• Long• Narration• Story• Contains Books & Parts
ABOUT A GREAT SOLDIER/HERO
• a great leader who is identified strongly with a particular people or society.
• “larger-than-life”
• and embodies loyalty, valor/ courage, sense of justice, dignity, persistence, and many other traits of his culture and time.
• Prince Arthur
“IN MEDIA RES”
• literally meaning
“in the middle of things”
• The epic begins in media res and then flashes back to events that took place before the narrator’s current time setting
• The Faerie Queene begins in the middle.
INVOCATION TO THE MUSE
• Seek help from god or goddesses
• Spenser invokes the Muse
BATTLE/ DEEDS OF VALOUR
• does great deeds in battle or undertakes an extraordinary journey or quest.
• The knight undertakes the journey and has to fight against the monster, the magician.
SUPERNATURAL ELEMENTS
• gods or other supernatural or fantastic beings take part in the action of the story.
• Inclusion of spirits
JOURNEYS
• The setting is broad and often includes supernatural realms, especially the land of the dead.
• Journey
• Underworld journey
EPIC SIMILES
• Elaborately extended comparisons relating heroic events to simple, everyday events using like, as, so, and just as
• The Simile of the river Nile.
LITERARY DEVICE
• Epithet: a descriptive phrase that presents a particular trait of a person or thing. It can be a quick aid to characterization.
• Transferred Epithet: when the characteristic feature of one thing is attributed to the other.
• Weary night
EPIC & ROMANCE
• Difference between Epic and Romanceo Heroo Importance of Heroo Structure
EPIC & ROMANCE
• The Epic Action• Epic Similes• Supernatural Machinery• The Hero• A Hybrid Epic• A Romantic Epic
ELEMENTS OF THE RENAISSANCE
• Spirit of Adventure• Love for Beauty• Love for Richness & Magnificence• Revival of Old Classical Literature
o Aristotle, Plato, Virgil, Ariosto & Tasso • Classical mythology• Seriousness, moral earnestness• Tradition to Write in Epic form
ELEMENTS OF THE REFORMATION
• Religious Movement• Revolt Against the Authority of Church• Protestants rose against Roman Catholic Church• Platonic, Epicurean but Protestant
RECAP OF LECTURE 13
• The Faerie Queene• Invocation• Epic• Epic Conventions• Romance & Epic• Elements of the Renaissance• Elements of the Reformation