One of the most appealing characters in the first book of The Faerie Queene is Satyrane, the bastard child of a lady who was ravished by a satyre. He grows up in the forest outside of all law and culture, learning nothing but how to cultivate and exercise his will to power. He tyrannizes over the forest creatures with his arbitrary whims, ripping nursing bear cubs away from their mother and other acts which make all the animals tremble in fear of him.

Then, one day, he comes upon Una teaching the satyres. He is dazzled by the radiance of the truth that she reveals to him. He puts his power in the service of Una, helping her escape from the forest while the satyres are off performing their services to Sylvanus. Una and Satyrane emerge from the wilderness onto a plain, where they see a man from whom they hope to get tidings of the Red Cross knight. The man tells them that the Red Cross knight has been killed by another knight. Satyrane catches up with the knight said to have killed the Red Cross knight. The two males fight, much to the satisfaction of Archimago, while Una leaves the scene.

This could be regarded as a complex interplay of forces that can be found in the psyche and in society. Spenser gives everything its due; he does not short-change what later writers will call the unconscious and the Greeks conceptualized as the Dionysian side of human nature. At the same time, he does not lose sight of the values of the best of human culture, or, even more importantly to him, the capacity for the divine. Nature and culture, passion and reason, etc., are presented as forces which should be in a harmonious relationship to each other.

Thus, the satyres, who represent the animal side of human nature, are not bad. They are in an improper relationship to Una, or truth, when they hold her more or less captive. They are also the creatures who rescued truth from being violated by the absence of love, or Una from being raped by Sansloy. The Dionysian side of human nature is neither good nor bad; it is amoral and unpredictable. When it has too much power over the mind, truthful insight can result, but the mind is kept from seeking holiness. Thus, Una has to escape from the satyres so she can get to the Red Cross knight.

She can not do it by herself. She needs the help of Satyrane, the bastard child of a human and a satyre, will power incarnate. Again, the force of will is not good or bad; it is just important for it to be in a harmonious relationship with the other forces in the psyche and in society. With will power serving truth, truth is free to meet holiness. Also, long-term will can help truth break free from short-term desire, which is the dominant trait of the satyres. Will can only go so far, however, in its service to truth. It is not enough; even it has to be left behind. That’s why Una has to abandon Satyrane after he gets her out of the forest. Will is left locking with will, oblivious to the larger scheme of things, as Satyrane fights the knight accused of killing the Red Cross knight. Poor Satyrane is forgotten by Spencer.