World Mythology 101
Celtic Mythology
Mesopotamian Mythology
African Mythology
Hindu Mythology
Slavic Mythology
Chinese Mythology
Polynesian Mythology
Native American Mythology
Mesoamerican Mythology
Abrahamic Mythology
Arthurian Legends
Mythology Book Lists
Home » Content » Article Types » Characters » Scudamore: The Helpless Lover of Amoret
Scudamore: The Helpless Lover of Amoret
By Jason Hamilton
Sir Scudamore is a knight who is in love with Amoret in book 3 of Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene.
When he and Amoret first meet, their relationship does not start off well. Scudamore carries her off, after storming into the Temple of Venus to grab her.
Nevertheless, the two seem to have a, mostly, amiable relationship, that is until Busirane comes and steals Amoret away.
Busirane becomes the embodiment of forced rape, and Scudamore is left helpless, unable to do anything to help.
Paralized by Guilt
Indeed, this seems to be the role that Scudamore plays: a man paralyzed by feelings of helplessness and guilt. These emotions immobilize him, nearly killing him, and it becomes a staple of his character that he is unable to do anything. It takes a knight like Britomart to actually make a difference and save Amoret.
In the original ending of book 3, Spencer appeared to have a happy ending in mind for Amoret and Scudamore, as the two are reunited and become like a single being.
However, when Spenser published the next three books of The Faerie Queene, he changed the ending for book 3, where Scudamore has left after Britomart saves Amoret, and two remain separated.
See our complete list of Arthurian characters for more entries like this one.
Arthurian Bibliography
Norris Lacy, Geoffrey Ashe, Debra Mancoff – The Arthurian Handbook (Second Edition)
Alan Lupack – The Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend
Ronan Coghlan – The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Arthurian Legends
Anonymous – Lancelot-Grail, the French Vulgate
Sir Thomas Malory – Le Morte d'Arthur
See also my ever-expanding list of primary and secondary sources.
Jason Hamilton
Jason is a Mythic Fantasy Author and creator of MythBank. He loves mythology, history, and geek culture. When he's not writing, his favorite hobbies include hiking, chilling with his wife, spouting nonsense words at his baby daughter, and developing this (and other) websites.
Did you know I also write mythic fiction?
You can access my version of the King Arthur sword-in-the-stone legend for FREE!
Get Your FREE Book
Please consider Helping Me Out on Patreon
I'm Jason, and I run the site. A lot of people think we have a whole team behind this. But most of the time it's just me.
In order to keep this site running, I would greatly appreciate it if you would donate just $1 a month.
If everyone who saw this were to donate that much, I could do this full time! And wouldn't that be the dream??
If times are tough, I completely understand. But if you like the site, anything you can contribute makes a huge difference. Thanks!
Visit Patreon
Keep in mind that I may receive commissions when you click my links and make purchases. However, this does not impact my reviews or comparisons. I try my best to keep things fair and balanced, in order to help you make the best choice for you.
Kindlepreneur
© 2023 Myth HQ LLC. All Rights Reserved.