The Faerie Queene, the magnum opus of Edmund Spenser, is the most important epic poem of the Elizabethan age. Its first three books were published in 1590, and the second three in 1596. Of the planned seventh book, only the two Mutabilitie Cantos are extant. Following its very own logic, The Faerie Queene, written in allegorical mode and consisting of multiple Arthurian plots and characters, is a glorification of Queen Elizabeth I and England and a manifestation of the beauty and power of the English language. In this seminar, we will get to know The Faerie Queene both through some contextualising and through extended close readings.
Text: Edmund Spenser. The Faerie Queene. Ed. A. C. Hamilton, Hiroshi Yamashita, Toshiyuki Suzuki and Shohachi Fukada. 2nd edition. Longman, 2006. ISBN 9781405832816
- DozentIn: Nadja Freier
- DozentIn: Joachim Frenk
- DozentIn: Marie-Claire Steinkraus