Hellenore Character Analysis in The Faerie Queene

Hellenore is the wife of Malbecco. He is a stingy and jealous man who tries to hide his wife from visitors. Resenting her husband, Hellenore runs off with the visiting knight Paridell, but he soon abandons her. Left all alone, Hellenore eventually gets taken in by some satyrs in the woods and decides to stay with them.

Hellenore Character Timeline in The Faerie Queene

The timeline below shows where the character Hellenore appears in The Faerie Queene. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...allowed into the castle. The owner of the castle is Malbecco, and his wife is Hellenore. Malbecco is a withered old man who hoards wealth that he’s stolen. He is afraid... (full context)

At dinner, Malbecco makes excuses about why his lady Hellenore can’t come to dinner, but eventually he runs out of them, and she comes to... (full context)

After dinner, Hellenore suggests that such brave knights should tell a story about their deeds. Paridell agrees and... (full context)

While Paridell is telling the story, Hellenore listens to every word and watches his lips. After the stories, the knights begin talking... (full context)

Though Malbecco keeps an eye on Paridell and on his wife Hellenore, Paridell keeps an even sharper eye. When Hellenore is away from Malbecco, Paridell gives her... (full context)

On one dark evening, Malbecco happens to be busy elsewhere. Hellenore goes to the closet where Malbecco keeps his wealth and steals some of it, then... (full context)

Paridell and Hellenore make it out of the castle. Having put out the flames on his money, Malbecco... (full context)

...he sees a knight next to a lady and believes they must be Paridell and Hellenore. In fact, however, it is Braggadochio and Trompart. (full context)

Braggadochio says he’ll help Malbecco get his wife, Hellenore, back (really he just wants the money), and Malbecco is overjoyed. Soon after, just by... (full context)

...Malbecco decides that rather than chase him, they’ll head into the forest to look for Hellenore. Tricky Trompart warns Malbecco that the forest could contain many dangerous monsters. He says it... (full context)

...hides his money, then he, Braggadochio, and Trompart head into the forest to look for Hellenore. In the woods, they hear the bagpipes of the satyrs. Braggadochio gets frightened and flees,... (full context)

Malbecco sneaks his way into the edge of the satyr settlement and sees Hellenore garlanded with flowers, with satyrs dancing all around her. He gets out of his hiding... (full context)

Malbecco wakes Hellenore up and tries to persuade her to come back, but she refuses, preferring to stay... (full context)

British Identity and Nationalism Theme Icon

...unreliable. The other knight, with Duessa, is Paridell (who carried off and then unceremoniously abandoned Hellenore in the previous book). Britomart, however, doesn’t know about Paridell’s falseness, so she greets him... (full context)