Wicked and Virtuous Feminine Magic in The Faerie Queene Anonymous College

In Elizabethan England it became increasingly difficult to decide what could be deemed magic. Everyday occurrences such as folk medicine, a common practice by women, were considered to be magical. As a result, it is no surprise that magic worked its way into the writing of Edmund Spenser. The women that Spenser gives magic to in The Faerie Queene must contend within a strict set of characteristics that they must meet in order to be considered virtuous. Not only are they judged on their virtuosity, but so too is their magic and the ways in which they use it. In Spenser’s poem, female magic is either deemed selfish or selfless. Wicked women, like Duessa, who chose to use female magic for selfish purposes do so to alter themselves, entice lust in their knightly male counterparts, and punish people that they believe have wronged them. On the other hand, virtuous women who use female magic for selfless purposes, like Glauce, do so to help others and in connection with their religion. Glauce’s attempted, but failed, usage of the magic of folk remedies in the poem is attempted with pure intentions. Regardless of the fact that Glauce’s magic has ineffective results, it is still a step towards beneficial female magic.

During the...