Falstaff's Role in Henry IV, Part One
Henry IV, Part One, has always been one of the most popular of
Shakespeare's plays, maybe because of Falstaff. Much of the early criticism
I found concentrated on Falstaff and so will I. This may begin in the
eighteenth century with Samuel Johnson. For Johnson, the Prince is a "young
man of great abilities and violent passions," and Hotspur is a "rugged
soldier," but "Falstaff, unimitated, unimitable Falstaff, how shall I
describe thee? Thou compound of sense and vice . . . a character loaded
with faults, and with faults which produce contempt . . . a thief, a
glutton, a coward, and a boaster, always ready to cheat the weak and prey
upon the poor; to
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No one can deny that he is
in fact a glutton and a thief. A coward is debatable. I choose to think he
is. He is self centered and cares only for his own profit and enjoyment. He
will protect himself at all costs including playing " possum" if necessary
to avoid injury. When he misuses the money intended to buy troops and
weapons, he turns it into profit for himself. Once again, with no concern
for anyone else, he potentially jeopardizes the troops, the battle and the
kingdom with substandard men and materials while making money for himself.
It makes the reader question, what kind of friend is he to Hal that he
would misuse the trust that has been given him. All the easier for Hal to
ultimately recognize that this is not the kind of person or people he wants
to associate himself with, let alone approve of.
Johnson's second assumption that you can detach Falstaff's frivolity
from the real drama is in fact true, but what would you have left? A less
interesting, less amusing drama with only one main plot. Falstaff is of
paramount importance to the sub-plot dealing with Hal's decision between
continuing his carefree life style or maturing into the role he is destined
to play as a respected prince and later king. This story would be pretty
dull if Hal didn't have to choose between an entertaining life like
Falstaff's or an honorable one as a gallant warrior and respected
When Henry hears Hal's promise to kill Percy as a display of his loyalty and ability to lead with valor, he again puts his responsibilities as king aside to assist his son in battling personal foes. Hal becomes the prodigal son; however, the
Henry V, written by William Shakespeare, is by far one of his more historically accurate plays. This play is the life of young King Henry V, who ascended to the throne after his father, Henry IV's death. These times were much different for England, as Henry V was a noble lord whom everyone loved, whereas angry factions haunted his father's reign. Shakespeare portrays a fairly accurate account of the historical Henry V, but certain parts are either inflated"deflated, or conflated to dramatize Henry V as a character suitable for a Renaissance audience.
Jack will not lose his power to Roger? and who would have been next after Roger?
In Henry IV Part 1, although Falstaff and King Henry act as father figures in Hal’s life and are both intelligent in their own right, the differences in their tone and diction showcase the major differences in their personalities and relationship with pride.
Hotspur and Hal both view honor as something to be strived for; however, Falstaff has completely lost sight of the meaning of the word. In his speech about honor fallstaff talks about how honor is just a word, just air coming out of someone's mouth. He believes that honor only comes in death and since the dead cannot see or hear it is useless. Because he has lost sight of the meaning of honor, he fails to act ethically and behaves in the manner of a criminal and a coward. We see Falstaff rob, not pay what he owes (specifically at the inn), and misuse his commission as an officer. Before
of using it to raise the pay of his workers or just share with the less fortunate. With all the
In a film full of metaphors and messages, one could refer to “2001: A Space Odyssey” as a key scene! But, to cherry pick, one key scene would be the story of Hal. "Incapable of error", Hal talks, plays, and fears, but the emotion 's authenticity are unknown. The astronauts do not suspect rebellion from their comrade until later. When Hal signals an error, Hal blames humans, but this makes Frank and Dave distrustful. Is Hal making errors, or plotting something? Dave and Frank meet in one of the most valuable soundproof pods to talk about disengaging
During the movie, Regarding Henry, Henry goes through a traumatic accident that alters his personality. Before the accident, Henry was very mean to everyone, including his own wife and daughter. After the accident, Henry forgot everything about normal human behavior. He could not move his arms, nor could he speak. Because of this, Henry had to learn how to accomplish tasks in the same manner as he once was able to. This goes to prove that Henry’s natural state is his id, and throughout the movie, it becomes clear that his superego is learned. Once Henry begins to learn how he used to act, he reverts back to his child-like id.
Shakespeare’s ‘King Henry IV Part I’ centres on a core theme of the conflict between order and disorder. Such conflict is brought to light by the use of many vehicles, including Hal’s inner conflict, the country’s political and social conflict, the conflict between the court world and the tavern world, and the conflicting moral values of characters from each of these worlds. This juxtaposition of certain values exists on many levels, and so is both a strikingly present and an underlying theme throughout the play. Through characterization Shakespeare explores moral conflict, and passage three is a prime example of Falstaff’s enduring moral disorder. By this stage in the play Hal has
King Henry V, is one of the only successful monarchs in Shakespeare’s plays. He displays great strength and intelligence. King Henry V is capable of uniting all of his people in his St. Crispin’s Day speech as they prepare to go to battle. The troops were greatly outnumbered and believed they had no chance at winning. But King Henry makes them feel like they are part of something important, and by doing this he motivates them to fight their hardest.
William Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1, composed during the last years of the 16th century, is as much as character study as it is a retelling of a moment in history. Though the play is titled for one king, it truly seems to revolve around the actions of the titular character's successor. Indeed, Henry IV is a story of the coming-of-age of Prince Hal and of the opposition that he must face in this evolution. This process gives narrative velocity to what is essentially a conflagration between two personality types. In Prince Hal, the audience is given a flawed but thoughtful individual. Equally flawed but more given over to action than thought is his former ally and now-nemesis, Hotspur. In the latter, Shakespeare offers a warrior and a man of action and in the former, the playwright shows a politician in his nascent stages of development. The contrast between them will drive the play's action.
"What is honor?" That question is one of the central themes from Shakespeare 's Henry IV. Throughout the play Shakespeare provides many different views of honor, but never directly states what honor is. Which makes sense because honor is a rather abstract concept that seems to vary depending on who states their opinion. There are some universal ideas of honorable deeds but the word itself is rarely defined by individuals. Two of the characters within the play have very different ideas of honor and vary greatly in their desire for it. They are Hotspur and Falstaff, Hotspur appears to have a very clear idea of what honor is and he pursues honor with great fervor. However, Falstaff questions the very existence of honor and has little to no desire for it. The ideas of Falstaff and Hotspur about honor are vastly different.
Though Hal freely associates with robbers, prostitutes, and highwaymen, he has plans to transform himself into a noble prince, which would consequently win back the praise and acceptance of his father. We see his plans to change when Hal states the following: “So when this
In Shakespeare's Henry IV Part One, the characters' many different conceptions of honor govern how they respond to situations. Each character's conception of honor has a great impact on the character's standing after the play. For instance, Falstaff survived because he dishonorably faked his own death, and his untrue claim that he was the one who killed Hotspur may get him a title and land. On the other hand, Hotspur lies dead after losing a duel for honor. Hotspur, who is in many ways the ideal man by the standards of his time, is killed by his lust for honor. In creating Hotspur, Shakespeare has created a variation on the tragic hero of other works: the stubborn tragic hero, who, dying
for you king". No promise of change, just an outward conformity to the king's request. Hal's comment is what the king asked for, as seen by the next speech by the king which picks up where he left off. It is almost as if the king did not really hear Hal. There is not a challenge to the shallowness of Hal's comments, no plea for intimacy with the son. After the king rehearses some of his problems about his enemies, he realizes the futility of it all: "But wherefore do I tell these news to thee?/ Why, Harry, do I tell thee of my foes,/ Which art my nearest and dearest enemy?"(121-123). The king makes the ultimate statement of separation of father and son: Why am I telling you this? You don't care!