The Faerie Queene

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Excerpt

Suggested Essay Topics, Introduction and Book 1, Cantos 1–4: 

1. The Redcrosse Knight and Una love each other, yet he abandons her because he suspects that she is not chaste. Further, the pair travel together not out of love but because Una has a task she wishes the Redcrosse Knight to complete. Describe the kind of love they have for each other. Also, the Knight is strong and brave, while Una is wise, careful and in need of protection. These are stereotypes of men and women. How does Spencer use these stereotypes to reinforce his ideas of their kind of love? 

2. Duessa deceives Fradubio and then the Redcrosse Knight because she is beautiful and acts as if she is chaste, yet...

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The following Suggested Essay Topics are some ideas for papers that may be written on The Faerie Queene by Edmund Spenser. The suggestions are designed to provide you with both a starting point and a general orientation from which you can write a substantial analytical paper. They are designed to showcase your understanding of major characters, themes, and details from this work as a whole.

Following the Suggested Essay Topics are Sample Essay Outlines you can use as organizational models or even as starting points for writing an analytical paper. Each outline begins with context and a prompt, followed by a thesis statement related to the work, and offers a basic sketch of how an analytical paper could be structured to argue that thesis. They do not, however, substitute for original thinking on your part. In order to fill in the outlines, you will have to think about the themes and draw your own conclusions. In some cases, you may also have to do further research, though this is not necessary with every suggestion. You should not use the exact words of this or any other resource without giving credit to the source.

The ideas, prompts, and suggestions that follow represent many different levels of difficulty, and some of the outlines are more complete than others. If you wish to use one, you should not make a selection at random. Look through several until you find one that seems right. Do not then begin writing immediately. It is best to think things over carefully before putting words on paper. Writing is a highly individual activity, and you should never feel bound to any of the outlines. On the contrary, you should feel free to modify or adapt any outline toward your purposes. Further guidance can be found in the “How to Write” guides of the eNotes Essay Lab or by asking one of our tutors a question about your essay.