Richard III?

Question

Write about the language used in the first soliloquy in Richard III....

the soliloquy can be found at:
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/261500.html

Answer 1

GLOUCESTER:
Now is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of York;
And all the clouds that lour'd upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
Now are our brows bound with victorious wreaths;
Our bruised arms hung up for monuments;
Our stern alarums changed to merry meetings,
Our dreadful marches to delightful measures.
Grim-visaged war hath smooth'd his wrinkled front;
And now, instead of mounting barded steeds
To fright the souls of fearful adversaries,
He capers nimbly in a lady's chamber
To the lascivious pleasing of a lute.
But I, that am not shaped for sportive tricks,
Nor made to court an amorous looking-glass;
I, that am rudely stamp'd, and want love's majesty
To strut before a wanton ambling nymph;
I, that am curtail'd of this fair proportion,
Cheated of feature by dissembling nature,
Deformed, unfinish'd, sent before my time
Into this breathing world, scarce half made up,
And that so lamely and unfashionable
That dogs bark at me as I halt by them;
Why, I, in this weak piping time of peace,
Have no delight to pass away the time,
Unless to spy my shadow in the sun
And descant on mine own deformity:
And therefore, since I cannot prove a lover,
To entertain these fair well-spoken days,
I am determined to prove a villain
And hate the idle pleasures of these days.
Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous,
By drunken prophecies, libels and dreams,
To set my brother Clarence and the king
In deadly hate the one against the other:
And if King Edward be as true and just
As I am subtle, false and treacherous,
This day should Clarence closely be mew'd up,
About a prophecy, which says that 'G'
Of Edward's heirs the murderer shall be.
Dive, thoughts, down to my soul: here
Clarence comes.

The language used would be typical English of Shakespeare's era as heard in London society around 1500. This would be 'high' English as today we have 'Queen's English' and not the normal way of speaking for the normal workinmg classes. Also one must bear in mind that the soliloquy was written for the purpose of introducing a play and setting the scene of the type of charactyer that Shakespear wanted to portray. We know now that Richard III was nothing like the cruel hunchback that he was portrayed as, but rather a forward looking king who was good to his subjects. However it must be remembered that the play is set in the middle of the Wars of The Roses, the battle between the houses of Lancaster and York, and the plot seems to be to blame Richard for creating discord between Clarence, his brother and the king. Presumably this was to 'divide and rule' to enable him to become king. Many of Shakespear's plays containe flowery language like this and most of the plays were performed at the Globe Theatre in London where the audience surrounded the stage. It was thus important to have striking and strong speeches that would stir the audience and make them love or hate the characters.

Basically Richard is saying that he is too weak to seize power for himself so will do so by creating rivalry between those better suited to the throne in the hope that their mutual destruction will ease his path to the throne.

Answer 2

Henry VII. He took the throne on the conflict of Bosworth field. Henry replaced into in basic terms a much off cousin of richard. Richard replaced into area of the york kin, which replaced into Descended from the third son of Edward III (1327 - 1377). Henry replaced into area of the Lancastrian kin, descended from the fourth son of Edward III. Richard replaced into the super-super-super-super grandson of Edward III. Henry replaced into the super-super Grandson of Edward III. subsequently Henry replaced into Richard's 4th Cousin two times bumped off. (which no longer often counts as a relation) The york and Lancaster households have been combating for a while over whose declare to the throne replaced into extra perfect. Technically, the York kin had a extra perfect declare because it replaced into descended from Edward III's 2d Son, while the Lancastrians have been Descended from his third son. subsequently Richard technically had a extra perfect declare to the throne than Henry, yet the two claims have been so distant that persons did no longer particularly take observe of who could have been king, they accompanied whoever gained the wars (subsequently Henry)