Taking A Look At Queen Elizabeth I

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Queen Elizabeth, daughter of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, came to the throne in 1558. She ruled England for almost 45 years. Throughout those 45 years, England entered a new era, the Elizabethan Era. With the new queen, religious reformation was reintroduced from where her father left off. Protestant England returned from the ashes. Elizabeth’s reign had also been known as The Golden Age, a time that saw the birth of Shakespeare, along with the flourishing of the Arts. Religious reformation and artistic freedom ushered in new influences towards literature. During Henry VIII’s reign over England, he separated from the Catholic Church when they refused him the right to divorce his wife. This is where Protestant England began, when Henry …show more content…

This epic poem paid homage to Elizabeth I by Spenser, who wanted to stay within the queen’s inner circle. In “The Faerie Queene”, Queen Gloriana represents Elizabeth I. “To thinke of that true glorious type of thine” (Spenser 371). Spenser addresses Gloriana, Elizabeth I, as glorious, speaking very highly of her to appease the queen. Spenser even repeats “That greatest Gloriana…That greatest Gloriana” (Spenser 371). Throughout the epic poem, Red Crosse, the protagonist, falls in love with Gloriana and wishes to do whatever he can to appease her. Una as well represents the “one true faith”, which at the time would be the Protestant religion. Spenser further goes about Una’s representation with addressing her as a “chaste flower” (Spenser 381). Where religion plays into all of this is within the main antagonists. Duessa, who represents falsehood within the Catholic Church, constantly tries to make Red Crosse lose faith in Una and go down the wrong path. Representing the rest of the Catholic Church is the Dragon, the embodiment of evil. The Dragon is described as “The hell-bred beast” with “uneven wings” (Spenser 420). Spenser chooses these specific symbols for the Catholic Church because most people already have a preconceived notion of Dragons and temptresses. That they are the root of evil and in comparison to the Catholic Church, show