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Description
FastnessPoetry. Translation. The Mutability Cantos have long been recognized as Edmund Spenser's crowning achievement, and along with his unfinished Faerie Queene, of which they appear to be an isolated fragment, they constitute a founding text of English poetry, and of the entire Romantic movement. In FASTNESS, Trevor Joyce gives us a poem which his subtitle describes as "A Translation from the English" of the Mutability Cantos. His introduction justifies
Poetry. Translation. The Mutability Cantos have long been recognized as Edmund Spenser's crowning achievement, and along with his unfinished Faerie Queene, of which they appear to be an isolated fragment, they constitute a founding text of English poetry, and of the entire Romantic movement. In FASTNESS, Trevor Joyce gives us a poem which his subtitle describes as "A Translation from the English" of the Mutability Cantos. His introduction justifies this provocation on historical and poetic grounds. Spenser migrated to Ireland in 1580 and, as administrator and settler colonist, he served as an intrinsic part of England's colonial enterprise, and a participant in its barbarities. It was in his castle at Kilcolman in north County Cork that he wrote most of the Faerie Queene, including the Mutability Cantos, and it was in that Irish landscape that he situated many of the idylls of his epic poem. It was there too that he composed his "View of the Present State of Ireland," a prose tract which advocated the conquest of Ireland through a savage policy of scorched earth and induced famine, which provided a model for Cromwell's campaign fifty years after Spenser's death. It is the break made by Cromwell's conquest, and the massacres and ethnic cleansing which accompanied it, that radically alters the meaning of Spenser's text viewed in historical retrospect, and justifies calling FASTNESS a translation. Joyce's poem turns allegory inside out, foregrounding the political narrative which underlies the mythological surface of Spenser's text. The Mutability Cantos grafted Elizabethan colonial politics onto a base of classical mythology. In FASTNESS, Joyce strips out Spenser's poetic dialect, and refits the narrative with modern poetic vernacular, viewing this monument of English culture through four centuries of British imperial and colonial history."Trevor Joyce's superb introduction to his translation of Spenser's English into our English tells us what we need to know about Spenser's time, his method, his politics, Ireland then, and the making of a poetry that is twined around sound, syntax, and sense. This is a bracing book held fast by multitudinous events spinning in unison. We see how the gods behaved towards Earth (a clod of turf in space) savaging her with bad weather. Wild Irish weather from mountains to sea, season to season, day to day: ever mutable. The held-fastness of the words together give indigenous a new poetic meaning."— Fanny Howe
"Part of a series of oversettings of Edmund Spenser's work that commenced with Joyce's Rome's Wreck (2014), a monosyllabic 'translation into English' of the sonnet sequence The Ruines of Rome, this new rendering of Spenser's The Mutability Cantos is nothing less than a radical postcolonial Irish poem. In FASTNESS, Joyce gives us back Spenser's language both ruined and revived, as Spenser, the settler colonial official and land- grabber of Kilcolman Castle, Cork, plotted the ruin of Irish culture, language and people. Like Blake's Milton, FASTNESS is Spenser's poetry with sympathy for the devil, a language of Mutability, fast in its vernacular and in its rollicking narrative, and holding fast, as Joyce always does, to the ample resources of the language that its ruination reveals. Read, and enjoy the ride."—David Lloyd
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4.5 ★★★★★
Based on 28 reviews
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Product Reviews
★★★★★ 3
Good tug toy
Size: 15 in, Color: Retriever
I have a doberman that shready everything in 2.5 seconds. This lasted a few days so was impressed for the cost. Would buy again as he really liked it.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2025
★★★★★ 5
My dog’s new favorite
Size: 8 in, Color: Squirrel
didn’t expect much for the price but my dog actually loves this thing. It’s tough enough to hold up to regular chewing and the leather gives it a nice texture that’s different from the usual plush toys. He carries it around like it’s his prize. It’s not indestructible and if your dog is a heavy shredder it probably won’t last forever but for moderate chewers it holds up way better than a lot of toys I’ve tried. Definitely worth grabbing again.
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Reviewed in the United States on July 19, 2025
★★★★★ 4
Not for gnawers
Size: 11.5 in, Color: Bear
I was hoping this would work for my teenage ACD and save my leather goods from being chewed on.
He gnawed on it quietly I was thrilled. But I had to take it from him within a few minutes. Gnawing apparently equals chewing pieces off.
Not made for chewers or gnawers.
It seemed to be well made, was soft, was actually a fairly good size and didn’t get gross when it got spitty. Just didn’t work out for Captain chaos destructor of all.
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Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2026
★★★★★ 5
Durable & Leather. For Small-Medium Dogs
Size: 15 in, Color: Retriever, Size: 15 in, Color: Retriever
This is a great dog toy! My Pomeranian is a small guy at only 8lbs. but he sure knows how to chew and he does it as often as he can. I was throwing out toy after toy because he was tearing them to pieces after only a half hour or so. After putting my money in the garbage so many times, I decided to search for toys that would hold up to his destructive mouth. I found a lot that claimed they wouldn't fall apart but they were all more than I wanted to spend. I came across this toy and a rabbit shaped one just like this. I bought both months ago and both are still in tact after all this time. Sure the edges are a little frayed but other than that, no damage whatsoever! I'm not sure what dura fused means but that seemed promising to me when I was reading the description, also the fact that they're leather made them seem more durable to me. Both have squeakers inside and some sort of stuffing as well. I throw all of my dogs toys in the laundry or hand wash them once a week, except for these. When these toys get wet with my dogs saliva, they look like they're not meant to get wet. Even without washing, these seem fine. This toy is probably about 9" long or so if I had to guess. In my opinion, it'd be perfect for a medium sized dog. It's a tiny bit big for my little guy but he manages just fine! If you're looking for a durable toy that your small to medium dog can chew on constantly, look no further!
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Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2020
★★★★★ 5
Always looking for less destructible dog toys
Size: 8 in, Color: Squirrel, Size: 8 in, Color: Squirrel
I am constantly searching for aggressive chewer dog toys. So many claim to be and one look and you know they haven’t met your dog!! Our golden retriever is so sweet until he gets his claws and teeth into a new toy. We nicknamed him the shredder, as he rips his new toys to pieces. I accidentally stumbled across this toy. We have never owned a leather dog toy. The squirrel is going to give Maverick a run for his money. The edges are double sewn closed. I am very impressed with the quality of this toy for $5.75 which includes the sales price and an additional 10% off coupon. Even without those two incentives the toy is less than $8 prime. The other shapes are similar or cheaper in price and now I see a 50% off 1 toy coupon when you buy 2. What a deal and the squirrel has a squeaker inside. What I like about the squirrel is that there’s less limbs or appendages for Maverick to shred off. The bunny has ears, the raccoon has hands, the buffalo has legs, the bone and retriever stick have a rope, the bear has a neck and head that could be chewed off, similar to the fox who has a tail and snout. The squirrel looks like it would be harder to destroy! The squeaker was hard to push at first but is easier now. Maverick has a black lab sister who loves squirrels, more so than she loves toys, and I found this toy searching for squirrel toys for her. It is offered in 8 other shapes. The squirrel measures almost 8” tall by 5” wide. It’s perfect for a medium or large size dog. Based on the construction of this squirrel dog toy it looks acceptable for an aggressive chewer and won’t break the bank. It’s very affordable. Always supervise! Updates to follow at Christmas:). BTW, the squirrel did not smell bad upon opening.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 3, 2024