A study of theme and style in Edmund Spenser's Shepheardes Calender
Gandy, Thomas Jack
Gandy, Thomas Jack
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1976
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Abstract
This work focuses on the artistic aspects of the Calender by examining prosody, diction, metaphor, and structure in terms of the Renaissance concept of decorum. In his introductory letter to the work, E.K. praises Spenser for his "dewe observing of Decorum." In Spenser's hands, however, the traditional concept of decorum is modified by the additional principle of experimental variety. Within the context of the structural and thematic framework of the poem, the prosodic and verbal complexities are quite in keeping with the principle of decorum. The traditional view of the meter of "Februarie," "Maye," and "September," has been that this meter consists of regular iambic pentameter varied by irregular tetrameter lines. Chapter Two analyzes this meter as tetrameter, with three iambic feet varied by an anapest which shifts its position from line to line. Other prosodically interesting sections of the work are also analyzed in this chapter. Chapter Three is concerned with diction. Despite E.K. 's assertion that Spenser was attempting to restore archaisms to the language, Spenser almost certainly had more important considerations in mind. The artistic effect of the Calender's diction, with its many archaisms and dialect terms, is to lend the poem a nostalgic tone befitting a pastoral poem. A detailed examination of the "Maye" eclogue and briefer analysis of other pertinent sections illustrates the nature and function of Spenser's diction. Spenser believed strongly in historically sound English diction, but he does not restrict himself temporally or geographically to London speech. The fourth chapter analyzes Spenser's use of metaphors to develop his intricate thematic motifs. Using the traditional pastoral device of contrasting the present with the past, Spenser adds another dimension to his Calender by giving such contrasts a metaphorical depth not readily apparent. What on the surface is an allegorical comparison of two religious positions, or two artistic theories, for example, is invariably in the Calender a representation of a more universally human problem. Chapter five begins with a concise survey of criticism related to the Calender's structure, which has been a widely debated aspect of the Calender. The remainder of the chapter analyzes the Calender as a structurally unified work. Elements contributing to the Calender's unity include tone, prosody, and diction, but of greater importance is the thematic unity arising from Colin Clout's progress through the seasons until the "December" eclogue, in which he has finally come to understand the fragile and transient nature of his existence.
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Subject
Subject(s)
Spenser, Edmund, 1552?-1599. Shepheardes calender
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Dissertation
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iv, 113 leaves,bound
Department
English