Journal of Taibah University the first issue

8
Haitham Abdulaziz Saab
frequently), and a blend of the spiritual and worldly dimensions.
Whereas the Gawain-poet confines his use of mythology to the moral
dimension exclusively, Spenser reflects his broad knowledge of
Classicism by presenting multiple dimensions of classical allusions.
As we mentioned earlier, Spenser was also keeping in mind the
spiritual and religious attitudes through which he was capable of
exposing clear and beautiful visual images of his bride. Spenser’s
visual images, emphasizing the physical beauty of his bride, no doubt
enhances the poem and adds to its splendor. A good example, or
illustration of such a task is when Spenser describes his wife as she
stands in calmness and beauty before the alter of the temple, which
instantly give the notion of a religious atmosphere:
Behold while she before the altar stands
Hearing the holy priests that to her speakes
And blesseth her with his two happy hands,
How the red roses flush up in her cheeks,
And the pure snow with godly vermill stayne,
Like crimson dyde in grayne,
That even th’Angles which continually,
About the sacred Altar doe remaine,
Forget their service and about her fly,
Ofte peeping in her face that seemes more fayre,
The more they on it stare (223-33).
While Spenser’s visual images are closely connected with the
physical beauty of his bride, such focus would have been a taboo, or
rather far too worldly, for any medieval writer. Unlike Spenser, the
Gawain-poet, in accordance with the medieval dogmatic viewpoint,
makes his romance free from any physical description. For example,
he shows no interest in the physical beauty of the lady of the castle,
yet, elaborates on the moral plight of the hero and his resistance of any
sinful act, as he becomes the subject of a great test.
Another major aspect in which the two poems differ is the
treatment of religion. While Sir Gawain strictly adheres to the
medieval, Christian perspective, Epithalamion explores both the
secular and the sacred worlds. Spenser’s pagan and Christian
references, however, are established within the, basically, social
context of the wedding, as illustrated above. The Renaissance poet, as