A Year in Faerie Land

Welcome back faery travellers! It has been a while back I am so excited to be back with you all for our read-along. Today we meet Britomart, our female knight and the knight of chastity. She is a key image of Elizabeth I, the body politic that can act like a king in conquest while also being a woman. Spenser is very deliberate in his use of images within the first cantos, not only aligning Britoma...

My deepest apologies all for the delay in getting this voice to you all, and especially for the long listen as we wrap up Book 2. Our last few cantos take us from the House of Temperance through to the Bower of Bliss, from Arthur’s deep dive into British history, to the overlap of images of Circe and Eve in the Garden of Eden. We wrap up the book with Guyon’s capture of Acrasia and reveal in the f...

My sincere apologies for the delay in getting this update to you all, I have a feeling that as I approach confirmation in May, this might happen more often than not (take this as a warning now, lol). But today we accompany Guyon and Mammon, the God of money, through hell where Mammon attempts to tempt Guyon off the path of temperance with money, health and lust and with each attempt failing as Guy...

In much of the same way that Error foreshadowed the Dragon that Redcrosse would defeat, so too does Phaedrra foreshadow Acrasia and Guyon’s strength against temptation This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit caitmurphyhurrell.substack.com/subscribe

I will be honest that I find the upcoming parade of knights that fight in the next couple of cantos rather dull - all the knights seem to do is fight each other, rather than going on their merry way to complete their quests. But, perhaps that is a personal opinion. The purpose of this parade of unworthy opponents is to highlight how Guyon, as the knight of temperance, has the strength of character...

We get to meet Braggadachio, the braging, proud and very cowardly man, who has stolen Sir Guyon’s horse and threatened his squire to serve him. Braggadachio is meant to be that antithesis here. Guyon, as temperance, encounters a number of characters that are meant to be the opposite of what he is meant to represent to the readers. This includes Braggadachio, especially when he meets Belpheobe, one...

Welcome to our next book of The Faerie Queene, the book of temperance. Temperance is the virtue of moderation, acting rationally and with self-restraint. Throughout this book we will encounter instances where our knight, Sir Guyon, is exposed to extremes and it is in the extremes that his journey finds the median. We encounter some of our previous enemies here too, Archimago and Duessa, as well as...

Hello everyone and welcome to our final installment of Book 1! Thank you so much for those that have been listening along for the last two months. I hope you have enjoyed your own journey through the Book of Holiness! The battle with the dragon takes three days and Redcrosse Knight is tested! Note in particular the imagery that is repeated from Redcrosse’s battle with Errour. He is knocked back on...

During this canto we accompany Redcrosse as he enters the house of Holiness. He recovers here from his imprisonment and also embarks on the religious path to redemption. Filled with images and allegories, Canto 10 is rich in its imagery, I would love to know which image really stuck out to you This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus epi...

Arthur has defeated the giant Orgoglio and Duessa is captured. Redcrosse is discovered in the depths of a dungeon, weak and frail and Arthur rescues him and returns him to Una. Una does not want to kill Duessa, but instead strips her naked for her real form to be perceived. Duessa is an old, bald, scaly hag in comparison to the purity of Una and this comparison is key for Redcrosse to see how he h...

Hello all and welcome to our February segment of our slow read of The Faerie Queene. For the first week we are looking at Canto 7 and the first half a canto 8 which shows Redcrosse being captured and held prisoner by the Giant, Orgoglio and Duessa. Una meets Arthur who fights and defeats Orgoglio to rescue Redcrosse and reunite him with Una. While the driving plot of these cantos is coming to reso...

Probably has been my least favourite canto so far but I think its purpose it quite clear, Una’s embodiment of goodness and virtue can turn even the most beastly creature/man into someone good and virtuous. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit caitmurphyhurrell.substack.com/subscribe

This canto fills like a bit of a plot-filler to eventually get Redcrosse to leave the House of Pride and confirm Duessa’s deceit. However I wonder about Duessa’s journey into the underworld and the parallels it draws to Dante’s Inferno . What do you all think about this canto? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cait...

Hello all, I am so sorry to have fallen behind on our schedule but I have planned to provide 3 voice notes for cantos 4, 5 & 6 to catch up with our schedule and finish off January at the end of canto 6. Canto 4 is one of the richest cantos for imagery with the pageant of sins and the order of procession is a fascinating exhibit of Spenser’s skill in creating images with his language. * Lucifera (P...

My deepest apologies for being late with the uploading of this voicenote, as penitence we have an extra long voice note for the whole of canto 3 and the beginning of canto 4. We join Una in canto 3 as she looks for Redcrosse when a lion happens upon her and becomes her protector and companion. Archimago, disguised as Redcrosse, captures Una and her squire is killed. We then switch back to Redcross...

Welcome back all! I hope you are enjoying these little snippets of reading. I have to say that it is really helping me to digest The Faerie Queene in a lovely way! We find ourselves with Redcrosse and Fidessa who are travelling together and have taken shelter under a set of trees. Redcrosse is creating a crown-type thing for Fidessa from the branches of the near by tree when a cry of pain draws hi...

Hello all, I hope you are loving this read-a-long as much as I am! We are now getting into the meat of the adventures of book 1. Our heroes have been divided, Redcrosse and Una go off on their own paths and Redcrosse is confronted with Sans foy and his lady, who we will discover is Fidessa (Duessa). As you read the language of the stanzas I hope you are sensing the beauty of the poetry in Spenser’...

*I don’t know why I suddenly shifted to verses rather than stanzas Reading our second half of canto I where we met the hermit which is actually the magician/sorcerer Archimago. Archimago represents hypocrisy and calls on the spirits to deceive Redcrosse, doubting Una’s love for her and her virginity. Una is represented as a lustful woman which will ultimately drive Redcrosse away from her and achi...

These are my initial thoughts as I read the first part of book 1. This book is all about ‘holiness’ and the central figure is Redcrosse Knight. His symbolism is a key element of Spenser’s intention which is to educate his readers. As readers, we are embarking on a journey of holiness alongside the characters and it is interesting to try and make light of what Spenser is trying to teach us here. A...