Spenser and the Sacred Booke: Biblical Allusion and Typology in Book I of The Faerie Queene

Abstract

<p>This thesis will examine Spenser's use of biblical allusion and typology in Book I of The Faerie Queene focusing on two major patterns the pattern in which the Legend of Holiness parallels the structure of the Bible as a whole, and the pattern drawn from the Book of Revelation. Chapter One will examine how the first part of the Legend of Holiness makes extensive use of the Old Testament, particularly the Fall story and the account of Israel's wandering. Chapter Two will explore Arthur's role as a redeemer figure, the Redcrosse knight's crisis of faith and his subsequent education in New Testament doctrine. The third chapter will concentrate on Spenser's use of the Book of Revelation, demonstrating how allusions to Revelation also contribute to the structure of Book I and then examining the relationship of the two concluding cantos to two of the great visions of St. John-- the triumph of the forces of good over the forces of evil and the marriage feast of the Lamb.</p>