Richard III is
the first Shakespeare historical themed play I‘ve ever read, and I can say now
that I prefer politics-with-tragedy theme more than any others. After Julius Caesar, I think Richard III has become my new favorite. I enjoyed the clever
speeches of Richard and the overall story.
The story
begins when England’s two royal Houses of Plantagenet dynasty, Lancaster and
York, have just put on a peace treaty after their long time war. It was now Richard’s
brother, Edward, who ruled as King of England. Richard seemed to be bored at
the idleness of peaceful time, and being encouraged by his high ambition, he
invented a bloody strategy to snatch the throne from Edward, and at the same
time thwarted the others whom he’s afraid would prevent his plan.
Helped by
his friends—Buckingham was his chief supporter—Richard sent murderer to kill a
lot of people, including his closest relatives. To highlight his cold heart,
even the murderer—who supposed to kill two little innocent princes Prince Edward
and Duke of York—felt remorse for a moment, before finally slain them; while
Richard took it very lightly. Richard knew that to legitimately take over the
throne he must make it desired by the citizens. He worked on it cleverly, and
it rewarded him the throne of England.
At this
stage he should have been invincible; however as he had reached the throne by
deceitful ways, Richard became paranoid of his friends. Small mistakes in
replying him could raise Richard’s suspicion; his Kingdom was built on the
fragile foundation of fear. Resentful friends betrayed him and supported Earl
of Richmond (Henry Tudor) in the Battle of Bosworth, where Richard was finally
defeated by Richmond, and England was peaceful once again under King Henry VII
(aka Richmond).
Despite of the
lack of conscience, Richard’s diplomacy skill deserves two thumbs up. Twice he had
had almost-impossible-to-win arguments. First, to propose Lady Anne—whose
husband he had just killed—to be his wife. Second is to propose to the Queen
(Elizabeth) to marry her daughter; while Richard knows how Elizabeth hates him
so much. I know it’s quite absurd how those two ladies could ever agree with
him; but nonetheless, Richard’s speeches are very clever and persuasive. And he
won both of them! He reminds me a bit of Petruchio in Taming of the Shrew.
Beyond that,
it is very hard to sympathize with Richard; he is just a true villain with
corrupted soul from the beginning of the play. Nonetheless, Richard is the most
interesting character in this play, and learning a bit of his history is quite
enjoyable. Here we have battle, murders, a bit of romance, ghost apparition and
superstitious, as always with Shakespeare tragedies. I have only one complaint.
In the version I read (ebook from feedbooks), the mentioning of the characters
are often inconsistent. One example, Lord Stanley is sometimes mentioned too as
Derby, which is often confusing.
Four and a
half stars for Richard III. You can read my further analysis on this play in my
WEM posts.
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Let’s Read Plays History theme
15th book for What's In a Name Reading Challenge 2013
4th book for Historical Fiction Challenge 2013-2015
8th book for Well-Educated Mind Self Project
47th book for The Classics Club Project
That opening speak is just brilliant.
ReplyDeleteAh yes, agree! It grasped me from the beginning.
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