Previous
Metaphors
Definition of Mood
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes in the reader. Every aspect of a piece of writing... read full definition
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes in the reader. Every aspect... read full definition
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes... read full definition
Book I: Canto I
Explanation and Analysis:
The mood of the poem is both adventurous and didactic. Many of Spenser’s most important influences, including classical epics and medieval romances, center upon the exciting and heroic deeds of a protagonist who has been sent on a grueling quest. Each book of The Faerie Queene introduces a new hero whose quest leads them through fierce battles and perilous encounters with monsters. Nevertheless, Spenser’s aim is both to entertain and to instruct, and even the poem’s most exciting moments convey a moral lesson. In Book I, for example, the Redcross Knight ignores the advice of his companion Una and journeys into a dark cave:
But full of fire and greedy hardiment,
The youthfull knight could not for ought be staide,
But forth vnto the darksome hole he went,
And looked in: his glistring armor made
A litle glooming light, much like a shade,
By which he saw the vgly monster plaine,
Halfe like a serpent horribly displaide,
But th’other halfe did womans shape retaine,
Most lothsom, filthie, foule, and full of vile disdaine.
