for the better understanding is hereunto annexed,”
addressed to SIR WALTER RALEIGH); and the seventh
book, which is often merely referred to as the Muta-
bilitie Cantos. Critics typically separate Book 7 from
the other six books because it differs in many ways
from its precursors. Read as the last published book of
the epic and viewed as another stage on the way to the
12th book (promised in Spenser’s “Letter to Raleigh”),
its relation to the previous books is problematic, largely
because its composition seems to have been an after-
thought and largely unfi nished. Though poetically the
Mutabilitie Cantos recall other parts of The Faerie
Queene, they are almost always read apart from the rest
of the poem.
Commendatory and dedicatory verses were com-
mon in early modern works: Both types of verse served
to advertise the work through praise and strategic
“name-dropping.” Commendatory verses were usually
contributed by friends or colleagues of the author who
would write short poems of tribute for the work. Their
commendations acted as seals of approval and as rec-
ommendations for future discriminating readers. Dedi-
catory verses were submitted by the author, who
offered his or her work for the approval of an actual or
prospective patron in the hopes of being suitably
rewarded; in return, the writer provided the patron a
degree of fame—a tribute to the patron’s munifi cence
that would always be connected to the work. Normally
works were dedicated to one person, and though
Spenser’s epic is dedicated principally to Queen Eliza-
beth I, his poem is remarkable for its number of sub-
sidiary dedications—16 of them to both infl uential
political fi gures such as Lord Burghley and Sir Francis
Walsingham, and to poets such as Edward de Vere and
MARY SIDNEY HERBERT, countess of Pembroke, and one
to all the ladies of the court. In his dedicatory verses,
Spenser appeals to those who might be expected to
favor a work like The Faerie Queene, but their relation-
ship to Elizabeth was also an important factor; most of
the addressees were those who could advance Spens-
er’s cause with her. Though he needed the support of
lesser patrons, he clearly hoped also to impress the
queen and win some recompense for glorifying her in
his poem, a factor that should always inform one’s
reading of the epic.
In his “Letter to Raleigh,” Spenser identifi es the pri-
mary goal of his work: “the generall end therefore of all
the booke is to fashion a gentleman or noble person in
virtuous and gentle discipline.” To achieve this end, he
notes his choice of King ARTHUR as his model for per-
sonal excellence: “I labour to pourtraict in Arthure,
before he was king, the image of a brave knight, per-
fected in the twelve private morall vertues, as Aristotle
hath devised, the which is the purpose of these fi rst
twelve bookes.” Critics have often wondered what
became of Spenser’s original plan to write 12 books,
and whether the fi nal result was caused by his early
death or by a change of heart. Moreover, from the
beginning, Spenser seems to have neglected his origi-
nal intention of basing each book on an Aristotelian
virtue. In the end, each of The Faerie Queen’s six com-
plete books focuses on a religious and/or chivalric vir-
tue. Book 1 is the book of Holiness, Book 2 is the book
of Temperance, Book 3 is the book of Chastity, Book 4
is the book of Friendship, Book 5 is the book of Jus-
tice, and Book 6 is the book of Courtesy.
The poem is classifi ed as an epic; Spenser explicitly
remarks that he is following in the footsteps of Homer
with his Odyssey and Illiad, and of Virgil with his Aeneid
(Letter to Raleigh). However, The Faerie Queene con-
tains a number of artistic elements that make its genre
classifi cation problematic.
Spenser’s incorporation of romantic elements drawn
from medieval, biblical, and classical sources is one
point of contention. Primarily evident in his use of
motifs—quest patterns, fi ghting for the honor of a
lady, the supernatural—but also in his inclusion of
certain characters such as the dragon and especially
Arthur, Spenser’s blending of epic and ROMANCE has
led a number of critics to describe The Faerie Queene as
a romantic epic. Another anomaly is that the poem’s
principal artistic device is ALLEGORY, which is not typi-
cally considered an epic convention. This device cor-
responds most appropriately with the poem’s didactic
intention to “fashion” a noble gentleman. Like FABLEs
and parables, the characters, setting, and other types of
symbols within allegories convey both literal and fi gu-
rative meanings; however, allegory differs from fables
and parables by including in its narrative conspicuous
directions for interpretation (for example, Spenser’s174 FAER IE QUEENE, THE