One of the most significant depictions of physical suffering in The Faerie Queene is accompanied by a narrative promoting healing. The character of Aescalpius is compelled to help suffering people or gods recover from damages inflicted on them, but he incurs the wrath of the gods when he does so. Although he hesitates to apply his skill because he is afraid of divine retribution, his commitment to healing is ultimately greater than his fear. Through these passages, Edmund Spenser promotes the value of compassion, especially in the face of opposition. He further reminds the reader of the arbitrary nature of affliction. Although we cannot avoid pain and suffering—here inflicted in personified form by XX and other classical gods—we carry within ourselves the power to ease it for others.

Spenser begins with the case of Hippolytus, condemned to live in a deep, dark cave. This handsome son of the sea ended up there after initially resisting having sex with his stepmother, but getting punished anyway. His father smashed him against the rocks so hard that he broke into pieces, but then regretted his action. The great healer Aescalpius, whom the sea brought in, put him back together and restored him to life. However, this action displeased Jove, king of the gods, who saw it as transgressing the natural course of things. He hit Hippolytus with a thunderbolt, so hard that it pushed him into hell’s darkest recesses. As his companion there, Aescalpius incessantly endeavored to heal Hippolytus’s wounds.