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Arthur's Quest For Holiness In The Faerie Queene

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In Book One of The Faerie Queene, the character of Gloriana is used as a vehicle for holiness, and Arthur’s search for her is allegorical to a quest for holiness. Arthur’s encounter with Gloriana in his dream reveals that he not yet reached holiness, therefore taking the same path as Redcrosse in order to achieve this moral state. Whereas both knights are meant to represent holiness, their continued search for it exemplifies Spenser’s point: holiness is an unperceivable, ongoing, and unattainable goal, even for the most exemplary knights. When Arthur recounts the events leading up to his dream of Gloriana, he has an experience similar to Redcrosse’s upcoming spiritual rebirth, as Elizabeth Spiller suggests (Spiller 70). Therefore, before …show more content…

Juxtaposed with saving Redcrosse and with Redcrosse’s climb up the highest mount to seek Contemplation in “Canto 10,” Arthur’s quest for Gloriana is also equivalent to transcendental fulfillment. He wins his fight with Orgoglio by the blessing of divine grace (Spenser 1.8.19), which is a sign that he is on the right path to obtain holiness, or Gloriana. This path is not easy, as Redcrosse explains knowingly. In his farewell to Arthur, Redcrosse wishes him luck seeking Gloriana “out with labour, and long tyne” (Spenser 1.9.15). The necessity of suffering in his quest is a Christian one, solidifying Gloriana’s significance as holiness. Despite having earned divine blessing during his defeat of Orgoglio, Arthur has not yet achieved a state where he can be deemed holy and receive the reward of being reunited with Gloriana. Shortly after Arthur’s departure, Redcrosse experiences a similar version of Arthur’s quest. After a suicide attempt, Una saves Redcrosse (1.9.52), parallel to Gloriana’s appearance to Arthur, as Una represents truth and beauty (Spenser 1.8.1). Redcrosse is further challenged by his climb up the mountain to reach Contemplation (1.8.46) and experience his vision of the New Testament (1.10.55), which is parallel to Arthur’s fight with Orgoglio and subsequent success. As Arthur, the perfect knight, struggles with the same ongoing quest to holiness as Redcrosse, the knight of holiness, their mutual suffering indicates that holiness is the quest itself rather than their final

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