In reading Edmund Spenser’s The Fairie Queene, I was immediately struck by the metaphor of Redcrosse’s shield. Elaborating on the physical presence of a shield as a last line of defense when a knight’s physical prowess is rendered useless, Spenser wisely creates the image of God as the true last bastion of righteousness through a red cross placed on the appropriately-named Redcrosse’s shield. Therefore, can the metaphor of faith in God serve as the true hero of the epic?
In the words of Medieval Philosophy, no love is held in higher regard than that of God’s love (181). It is wholeheartedly impossible to truly receive and understand love until one rectifies a belief and further devotion to God. And this idea is repeated in the Bible. Psalm 23 places devotion to God as the pinnacle of human safety, a figurative force-field against the perils of evil. Countless other verses offer the idea of giving all glory to God, allowing all human action to be a reflection of divine will. Redcrosse shows that he a devoted servant of God in the immediate lines before commencing his duel with the Dragon, offering “That I this man of God his godly armes may blaze” (Line 2921). Had Spenser taken a secular approach and offered a line such as “I shall raise my sword against this mighty demon”, the story likely would not have changed. Spenser still would have offered a lengthy and vivid description of the Dragon, elaborating on the enormity of the Dragon, both in physical stature and reputation as a diabolical beast before Redcrosse sauntered in, slaying the Dragon, winning the girl and living happily ever after.
But in giving a religious bent to Redcrosse, Spenser allows for a greater impact in the story, creating a dual savior through his shield. In offering a shield simile to describe the Dragon’s eyes, Spenser explains the difference between a shield wrought with God’s protection and one inherently used for nefarious purposes as the Dragon’s ‘shields’, ‘burne with wrath, and sparked liuing fyre;’ (Lines 2957-2958). While Spenser frames the Dragon’s shields as something of a protectorate, it is used to prevent challenges to its empire and frighten any comers rather than allow the beholder to fight for honor. Redcrosse’s faith in God elevates his shield to something that truly protects him from all danger, against Error early in the epic and against the Dragon later in the story.