The Analogy of the Faerie Queen by James Nornberg

This monograph contends that The Faerie Queen's complex and self-reflexive structure is best accounted for in a criticism that understands the work as a whole. Books are connected reflexively (so the private virtues of books I-III [holiness, temperance, and chastity] are reflected in the public virtues of books IV-VI [friendship, justice and courtesy]). Norhnberg contends that whatever the original plan (Spenser originally meant to write twelve books), the poem as it stands is complete to itself. The monograph is quite erudite, as Norhnberg first situates The Faerie Queen in an epic and romance tradition, and is continually contextualizing it with other works of literature, especially the Bible (there's a nice reflexivity in his reading of Book I as the word of God and Book VI as the words of men). There's not much analysis of the formal features of the poetry, but as a guide through the allegory (a mode, not a genre) and narrative structure of the poem, this book excels.