Question- Elaborate the moral and spiritual allegory in Book I of the Faerie Queene.

Or
Examine "The Faerie Queene' as a moral and religious allegory.
Or
Examine 'The Faerie Queene', Book I, as a political allegory.

Related Short Answer Questions
1. Analyse allegorical significance of Spenser's 'Faerie Queene'
2. What is the real the name of Spenser's "The Faerie Queene'?
3. Spenser's "The Faerie Queene' as an allegory.

Answer -

Allegory is the expression of one thing by means of another. It helps the narrator to provide more than one meaning to his narration. It has a didactic or spiritual aim. By use of allegory a literary artist is able to preach the doctrine of good and noble life. Spenser was a moralist. He did not believe in literature for the sake of literature or a means of entertainments. Therefore he laid the plan of his poem Faeric Queene upon an ethical conception or moral ground. Apparently the poem is a story of adventures but Spenser being a great poet and moralist presents his characters as symbols of some vices and virtues. Underlying the fairy tale there is deep underlying moral and spiritual allegory.

Symbols of Virtue: The Red Cross Knight is symbol of Holiness or Piety. Una represents truth. Holiness is love of God and truth is knowledge of God. The Knight of the Red Cross and Una go together to release Unna's parents from the dungeon of the dragon. They have to face the serpent monster who is horrible enough to terrify them. The Red Cross Knight fights against it and is successful in killing it. It means love of God and knowledge of God go together. Holiness is tested by presenting errors in its way but Holiness crushes error by its purity of character. It means that so long as truth and holiness (Unna and red cross knight) are united error (serpent Error in universal form) cannot stand against them. Holiness must be grounded in truth to remain pure. The force of truth provides strength to holiness. This is the first truth of moral and spiritual life.

Archimego appears before them in the disguise of the holyman and deceives both. The Red Cross Knight and Una are separated because of Archimego. Archimego represents hypocrisy. It means that hypocrisy comes undisguised and succeeds in deceiving holiness. Archimego with his seemingly holy looks causes separation between truth and holiness.

Red Cross Knight meets Sansjoy and has a fight with him. Red Cross knight defeats him but Duessa as disguised as Fidessa arrests him. Sans joy and Duessa as disguised as Fidessa arrests him. Sans joy and Duessa represent infidelity and falsehood respectively. Infidelity is a want of belief in God. It means that even after separation from Una the Knight has the strength to defeat Sans joy. Holiness after separation from truth still retains strength to challenge infidelity. But separation from truth weakens the holiness which falls a prey to the power of falsehood (Duessa). The truth of moral and spiritual like is that holiness without the fortifying force of truth is likely to fall a prey to the power of falsehood because of lack of discerning ability which only truth can provide.

Una meets a lion. They follow Abessa and enter the cottage of Coreca, blind old woman, mother of Abessa. The lion kills Kirkarpine. Archimego appears in disguise of Red Cross knight and befools Una. Lion stands for primitive courage, defender of faith, Abessa stand for superstitution, Coreca for blind faith and Kirkarpine represents greed and corruption in church with the help of the lion Una overcomes Abessa. It shows truth and reason follows superstition and attain devotion. Kirkarpine is killed by lion. It means reason destroys those who harm church. The truth triumphs over superstition and blind faith.

Lady Una remains a helpless captive of Sanjoy. But mysterious are the ways of God. He helps when no other help is possible. Sir Satyrane comes to help her. They both slip out of the wood. Sanjoy is defeated by Sir Satyrane. This means that truth cannot remain suppressed for a long time and lawlessness comes to an end at the hands of a stronger force is nature (Sir Satyrane symolises Nature). It allegorically means that the chaos (suppression of truth) was not the order of Universe. Nature plays its role and make truth free from the forces of lawlessness.

Red Cross Knight and Duessa enter the palace of queen of pride who had six councellors namely idleness, gluttony, lechery, averis, envy and wrath. It means holiness cannot maintain its purity for long when it is accompanied with falsehood and is assailed by seven deadly sins i.e., pride and its councellors. Sanjoy finds Red Cross knight. It means lawlessness discovers holiness. Sanjoy is born of knight's servant a dwarf who challenges the knight. It means wisdom challenges holiness (knight) for closeness with lawlessness and (Sanjoy) and falsehood (Duessa).

The Knight has a fight with Orgoglio, representing pride and is defeated and thrown into a dungeon. It means that pride and tyranny of false religion destroy holiness.

Prince Arthur, who represents perfection of all virtue, defeats Orgoglio and rescues Red Cross Knight from the dark dungeon and banishes Duessa to outer darkness Una meets the knight. It means truth with the help of magnificence (Prince Arthur) is united with holiness and falsehood, pride and tyranny of false religion an exposed.

Red Cross Knight feels weakness and becomes disheartend. Una encourages him and saves him from despair. Una leads the knight to the hues of Coelia who represents Heavenly Grace. She has three daughters faith, Hope and Charity. It means truth saves true holiness. It guides holiness to heavenly wisdom inspiring faith and hope. Truth directs holiness to charity.

Later Red Cross Knight fights with the dragon. The dragon throws him into a well. Next morning the knight again fights with the dragon. The tree of life produces a stream. It gives new strength to the knight and he kills the dragon. Una's parents are released and she and Knight are married. In the beginning holiness struggles and is defeated by the evil. Later on, holiness succeeds in destroying evil. Hypocrisy and falsehood are exposed. Truth and holiness are ultimately united. Such is the underlying basis of moral and spiritual allegory of the Faeric Queen, which is regarded as a great work of art.

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