Spenserian

American  

[spen-seer-ee-uhn] / spɛnˈsɪər i ən /

adjective

1. of or characteristic of Spenser or his work.

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noun

1. an imitator of Spenser.

2. Spenserian stanza.

3. verse in Spenserian stanzas.

Spenserian British  

/ spɛnˈsɪərɪən /

adjective

1. relating to, in the style of, or characteristic of Edmund Spenser, the English poet (?1552–99), or his poetry

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noun

1. a student or imitator of Edmund Spenser

Etymology

Origin of Spenserian

First recorded in 1810–20; Spenser + -ian

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Spenserian

She has been painted as the defiant Gloriana of Spenserian epic, uniting the land in religion and peace, and the mercurial crone lusting after her younger courtiers.

From Economist ● Apr. 28, 2016

He didn’t espouse modernism or the avant garde, favoring instead American vernacular styles, Spenserian scripts and a sort of hybrid modernism.

From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2012

As with a Spenserian sonnet, there's a uniformity to the open letters to Lucas.

From Time Magazine Archive

See also the chapters on the Spenserian stanza in Corson's Primer of English Verse, where its use for pictorial effects is interestingly discussed.

From English Verse Specimens Illustrating its Principles and History by Alden, Raymond MacDonald

He gave the world in 1861 a translation of the Odyssey in the Gregorian stanza—one of the most pleasing hitherto produced—and in 1865 published a translation of the Iliad in the Spenserian stanza.

From Memoir of John Howe Peyton in sketches by his contemporaries, together with some of his public and private letters, etc., also a sketch of Ann M. Peyton by Various