William Shakespeare 's Henry V, The Victorious King Henry

In Henry V, Shakespeare clearly shows that powerful speech and eloquent rhetoric is more effective in times of war than threat of sharp swords and numerous soldiers. King Henry V - the young and bright king of England - establishes himself as a devout leader to his country and his people. Throughout the story he demonstrates his ability to articulate in order to manipulate his audience, whether it be commoners, enemies, or friends. After an argument with the Dauphin of France over land claims, Henry gathers an army to invade French territory. Following a surprising march through the country against all odds, the king and his soldiers find themselves in a five to one battle, destined to fall defeated. The character of King Henry is exemplified

Henry V, a play narrating King Henry V’s journey to invading the French throne and take what is ‘rightfully’ his. The five act drama had been written by William Shakespeare, whose work had consisted of unrivalled plays and poems. This play, acts as a sequel to Henry IV, viewing Henry’s drastic growth from a reckless Prince to an unforgettable King. Like many other plays, Henry V consists of many major themes that shape the story; one being betrayal. This essay will further discuss the theme of betrayal and its impact on the play.

         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.

Two of the important characters in Shakespeare’s Henry V are King Henry V, and the Dauphin. Henry V is the ruling monarch of England who, in the previous plays of the tetralogy, was presented as a riotous youth and troublemaker. This former life ultimately becomes a preparation for his sovereignty, and his earlier experiences of immaturity and unprincipled living allow him to understand his common subjects and to measure his own sense of worth by their lack of honorable qualities. With the ascension to the throne, the rowdiness of the king vanishes entirely and he promises his subjects that his life of wild living ended with his father’s death, and he is now a completely reformed person altogether. The main purpose of Henry V is to convey the idea that King Henry represents in all aspects the model of the ideal Christian ruler. Various scenes depict his religious nature, his mercy, pity, and compassion, his absolute sense of justice, his administrative skill, his fighting ability, his instinctive nobility, his ability to connect with the common class of soldiers and people, his self-discipline, evenness of temper, complete courtesy, and finally his role as a romantic lover in the suit of Princess Katharine’s hand in marriage.

Texts are shaped by their compositional context and thus offer new insights about the composer’s era. However, as there are ongoing concerns of humanity, key ideologies resonate over time and are affirmed between texts as shown in William Shakespeare’s play ‘King Richard III’ (1591) and Al Pacino’s docudrama ‘Looking For Richard’ (1996). King Richard III examines the irrational behaviours and moral ramifications of a power lust Richard to explore ideas of the relentless pursuit of power, betrayal and deceit, reflective of the theocentric context of the Elizabethan society. Centuries later, Looking For Richard explores Pacino’s journey to reshape a Shakespearean text that is representative of the changing contextual norms and values of a contemporary American audience who are confused and sceptical about the relevance of Shakespeare’s plays. Both texts provide an image of Richard’s deceit reflective of their distinctive contexts. However, despite the disparity of time, both texts display how key ideas such as deceit, endure and resonate over time.

Redemption often manifests itself in those who seek affirmation from those around them due to their own actions. During the 14th century, as the Christian influence continues to spread across Europe, self-awareness begins to increase among the population, and with it, the need for acceptance. When acceptance paired with self-awareness welds itself to the hearts of a nation, people increase the need of redemption, rather than forgiveness. Especially common in royalty, the need to prove one’s worth often guides the choices made in sporadic moments. Throughout Henry IV, written by William Shakespeare, the theme of redemption weaves itself into the life of Prince Hal as he seeks approval from his father as well as from himself, to demonstrate that redemption becomes necessary in order to truly be at peace with oneself.

To examine Shakespeare’s exploration of identity as a means of control, it is important to understand what all constitutes each character’s identity. In the case of Henry, for one, it is apparent that the actions of his past alter his perceived identity throughout the play. Before Henry speaks his first lines in the play, the Bishop of Ely calls Henry a “true lover of the holy Church,” to which the Archbishop of Canterbury replies, “The courses of [Henry’s] youth promised it not” (1.1.23-24). This reckless reputation follows Henry further into the play when an ambassador from France delivers a message to Henry from the Dauphin: “…the prince our master says that you savor too much of your youth and bids you to be advised there’s naught in France that can be with a nimble galliard won: you cannot revel into dukedoms there” (1.2.250-254). Along with this message, the Dauphin included a gift of tennis balls meant to further insult Henry. Even later in the play, after the English won the battle at Harfleur, the noble Frenchmen continue to underestimate Henry’s ability as a leader: “What a wretched and peevish fellow is this King of England, to mope with his fat-brained followers so far out of his knowledge” (3.8.120-122).

The movie The King’s Speech is about Prince Albert, Duke of York, who later becomes King George VI. The story focuses on the treatment of his speech impediment, a stammer, and the friendship he develops with his speech therapist, Lionel Logue. Throughout Prince Albert’s, or Bertie’s, treatment he unexpectedly finds himself on the throne. Bertie’s wife, Elizabeth, is another important character, who stands by his side through it all. It is a heartwarming story about friendship, loyalty, and trust. In this movie many interpersonal concepts are present, but three apparent and vital ones were perceptions, nonverbal messages, and relationship stages.

King Henry V is one of the greatest kings that ever ruled England and was a favorite among his people. One of the reasons behind this is the presence of two men in his life; his father, King Henry IV, and Sir John Falstaff, his lowlife friend and bar companion. Both men represent two opposite father - figures to the young prince. It is the Prince’s ability to take and acquire the best traits in each that makes him surpass both of them and become great. Prince Hal’s relationship with both men is one of conflict. On one hand, his relationship with his father is tumultuous, while on the other his relationship with Falstaff is confusing.

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.

supposed to be engaged to Nym at some point in time, but ran off with

King Henry the VIII was born in 1491 to Henry Tudor VII and Elizabeth of York, making him their third child, but second son. He was named after his father, Henry VII, and since he was the second son, he was not expected to be King. King Henry VII eldest son Arthur, Prince of Wales was to take the thrown and become King of England, that is until his death unexpected death. When little Henry was ten years old, he attended Arthur and his bride Catherine of Argon’s wedding. Four months after the marriage began, it ended, with Arthur 's death. There was a signed treaty that stated Catherine would be allow to marry the next heir to the throne – Prince Henry. It was considered necessary for a papal exemption to be issued permitting Henry to wed Catherine because she was his dead brother’s wife, and this marriage was restricted in Leviticus. At the time, and for the duration of her life, Catherine denied that her marriage to Arthur had even been fulfilled, so no agreement was required. In any case, both the gatherings in Spain and England needed to make certain of the authenticity of the marriage, so consent from the pope was looked for and got. The marriage did not take place however. Henry became King Henry the VIII of England when Henry VII passed on April 22, 1509, which changed his life forever.

In the play “Henry V”, William Shakespeare, to a strong extent, seeks to evoke nationalistic fervour. In the play, this patriotic sentiment is often used to display one’s sense of pride and belonging in what they may believe to be the best country and is often manipulated by the main characters to influence one’s emotions. This sense of patriotism is expressed through the Archbishop’s statement towards Henry to invade France, the prosecution of the three traitors who were set out to kill King Henry and the use of nationalistic fervour by King Henry to motivate the English soldiers into war against France,

The Renaissance was a time in which mankind was rediscovering itself. For ages, men were simply trying to exist, survive more than anything else. The Renaissance was a period in which men no longer had to just get by everyday, but could begin exploring morality. No other Renaissance author characterizes this more than William Shakespeare in the early 1600s. His plays highlight the internal moral struggle that every man goes through, the concept of what is right and what is wrong in a world that is full of gray areas. More specifically he deals with the concept of honor and morality in several of his plays. Julius Caesar, Hamlet, and Henry V, to a lesser extent, deal with how men handle these and can reconcile otherwise heinous acts. Now, being well aware that Shakespeare does not account for all the Renaissance writers, however his are the most prevalent still today and it can be argued that Shakespeare did not work alone. For the sake of organization, it is far easier to tackle these literary works in chronological order and analyze the individual pieces first and then view them all as one whole.

“And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. And the LORD said unto Satan, The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan; even the LORD that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?”