How Does Shakespeare Use Of Power In King Henry Iv Part 1

Superior Essays
Powerful individuals represent themselves in manipulative ways, to create political situations that benefit them. King Henry IV Part 1, a history play by Shakespeare typifies this idea. Context has had an influential role in how shakespeare uses dramatic techniques to shape the characterisation of King Henry, Hal and Hotspur. The desired political situations manufactured by individuals in Henry IV Part 1 all stem from power, personal greed and pride.

Those who seek power and obtain it through unjust means often develop paranoia, which leads them to manipulate political situations in order to maintain that power. This idea is conveyed in act 1 scene 3 when Hotspur talks to King Henry about Mortimers capture. Shakespeare represents King Henry
…show more content…
Shakespeare illustrates King Henry’s developing anxiety through the use of religious allusion in ”To chase pagans in those holy field/Over whose acres walked those blessed feet/which fourteen hundred years ago were nailed/ for our advantage on the bitter cross” The reference to Jesus and the Holy Land shows us that King Henry is trying to repent for the sins he committed against God when he usurped King Richard. Using his power King Henry manipulates the situation so that his followers believe that the crusade is for the greater good of England and not for his personal repentance. The religious allusion of Jesus in “which fourteen hundred years ago were nailed/ for our advantage on the bitter cross” is shakespeare representation of the infighting between the protestant and catholic faction of England in the Elizabethan Era. In addition shakespeare representation of the crusades in the play is his claim that an attack from the Spanish Armada was imminent. This is reinforced in act 1 scene 3 when King Henry is talking to Blunt about Mortimers ransom. Shakespeare personifies King Henry’s need to maintain control of the situation through rhetorical questions in “Shall our coffers/ then be emptied to redeem a traitor home?/ Shall we by treason an indent with fears/” This reveals to the audience that because of King Henry 's paranoia he needs to ask constant questions to assure himself that his followers are still loyal to him furthermore the rhetorical questions in “Shall our coffers/ then be emptied to redeem a traitor home?” serves the purpose of manipulating blunt into thinking that Mortimer is a traitorous coward. Shakespeare 's use of intimidating tone, religious allusion and rhetorical questions shows how paranoia leads individuals to manipulate politician situations in order to maintain control over power and leadership

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The Infatuation with Power and the Destruction of Self in King Lear An ambitious nature is one of which is common within various characters in William Shakespeare’s plays. It describes an individual of whom holds earnest desires, be it for power, fame, wealth or honour. It is often that these characters are linked with destruction and it is particularly evident in William Shakespeare’s King Lear.…

    • 1401 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s well-renowned plays that centralizes on a king’s struggle with guilt and, ultimately, the road to his demise. Although Macbeth was known for being a man of bravery and honor, Shakespeare utilized a plethora of literary devices to showcase that his ambition had overcome his state of mind. In Macbeth, Shakespeare used strong dynamic characters, significant motifs, and powerful soliloquies to develop the theme that the ultimate desire for power has the capability to tempt even the most noble men to be driven to corruption. To begin with, Shakespeare uses a strong dynamic character to develop the theme that the desire for power can cause noble men to become corrupt. In Act 1, Macbeth concluded that the key to the…

    • 1173 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    William Shakespeare highlights enduring ideas about the human condition through the use of dramatic techniques in his tragedy plays. In his play Macbeth, Shakespeare effectively uses the dramatic techniques of character development, commentary by others and symbolism to reveal the enduring ideas of power, greed and ambition, along with its corruptive appeal; relationships and betrayal; and the common issues of loyalty leading to deception. These ideas are shown in exploring the tragic downfall of Macbeth. The enduring idea of corruptive ambition, including power and greed, is explored by the use of dramatic techniques of characterisation, symbolism and commentary by others.…

    • 1313 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The sickness of manipulation In Hamlet this playwright of “william shakespeare 's” ,Young Hamlet is a man surrounded by deceit and must choose to give into the manipulation or make it his own path. Shakespeare had a sun named Hamlet who passed away who theorist say this is the main point as to why he wrote this dramatic tragedy. In this play King Hamlet is murdered by his brother claudius and it is up to young prince hamlet to end cladiouse raine. Hamlet 's mother and Ophelia also experience the poisoned dagger of manipulation to act on what she believed is right.…

    • 1251 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Hamlet Spying Analysis

    • 1481 Words
    • 6 Pages

    In William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” there are many themes and motifs that are used such as suicide, murder, poison, betrayal, revenge, and spying. The motif of spying is utilized by William Shakespeare to display the uncertainty amongst characters and within the kingdom. SPying also leads to distrust amongst characters andalso reveals how characters such as Polonius turn to spying as a solution freguqently. When spying is seen in Hamlet typically the character who is using spying to their advantage is usually uncertain, scared, or trying to protect themselves. Spying appears very early in the play and starts to happen less and less as the play progresses.…

    • 1481 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The corruption of power prevails across time periods, as initiated by Shakespeare and confirmed by Pacino in Looking for Richard. Undoubtedly, the battle for authority overrules the natural order of a human being, hence the consequent result of destruction and loss. In Richard III, Shakespeare thoroughly examines the nature of power and authority, utilising Richard’s brutal actions to demonstrate that the ends do not justify the means. In the Elizabethan theocracy, power was conferred through hereditary, not merit, hence Richard as a clearly unworthy and unwanted heir to the throne. In granting Richard the opportunity to cement his ‘power’, Shakespeare depicts the protagonist exerting the Machiavellian influence, as seen seducing the young Princes in Act 3, Scene 3, “God keep you from such false friends”, and “Your grace attended to thy sugared words.”…

    • 1002 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Greed and jealousy can be effortlessly used to manipulate mankind and the decisions that are made. In Othello “Act V” by William Shakespeare the theme lectures about emotions, and at times, the free will of others that can be morphed to fit the needs of the antagonists. The manipulation of one’s perception can be warped and twisted to compensate for the truth and to suit the needs of the antagonists. William Shakespeare creates a detailed description of the misrepresentation through a characters usage of dialog.…

    • 1090 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    It is therefore crucial that they understand that Shakespeare’s use of manipulation not immoral but aims to position his audience to see a different aspect of a political figure. Shakespeare’s intention for positioning the audience to view Prince Hal as a heroic figure was to please Queen Elizabeth. She remained in control of any role-play which took place under her rule. The similarities between herself and Prince Hal exemplifies the many Elizabethan Shakespeare plays containing a reflection of herself. Thus, the heroic and lovable portrayal of Prince Hal hides his conflicting views on Queen Elizabeth, where the Queen was in a neutral position when it came to wars, and other times where she was able to consolidate stability in England.…

    • 1513 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    People with power abuse their privilege by putting people in a constant state of fear and concern. Power should be used for positive reasons but it always ends up being used in a negative manner. For example creon from the play antigone, he puts fear in others by having a temper. Also when heh says in the play that if you try to pay any sort of respects to the dead traidor polyneices that he will have you stoned to death or starved to death.…

    • 275 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Betrayal has been a tool used to gain power throughout history. It has been used to climb the corporate ladder, gain political power and even win wars. At any point in history someone has been stabbed in the back for someone else’s personal gain and Shakespeare’s time was no exception. In many plays by Shakespeare, the characters are involved in physical battles in order to gain power, however; in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the battles for power are fought through spying, lies and backstabbing. In Hamlet, Shakespeare demonstrates that betrayal leads to a radical development of Hamlet’s personality.…

    • 1737 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Sometimes the clearest method of defining what something should be is by juxtaposing it with something that is the opposite. In literature, authors often use the literary device of a foil to convey the central theme of the story. The foil is effective because it shows both the good and the bad versions of people that share the same status or position in life, yet they develop differently. Shakespeare uses foils in many of his plays to depict the theme, however, Henry V is one of the obvious plays that this is true of. Shakespeare communicates that humility is integral to a righteous leader through the use of the Dauphin as a foil to Henry in Henry V. The way that Henry and the prince of France interact with the men beneath them shows the quality of their leadership skills.…

    • 1030 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Macbeth: Astray From Morality The deepest principle in human nature is the unintentional desire to dominate each other. William Shakespeare 's play, Macbeth, illustrates the transformation of one 's morals when introduced to the opportunity for power. This is evident through the characterization of the protagonist, Macbeth, who drastically undergoes a significant change because of the potential of evil he possesses. Equally important is the everlasting relationship Macbeth had with the witches which built the foundation of Macbeth 's immorality.…

    • 1199 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    According to Businessdictionary.com the definition of abuse of power is, “The act of using one’s position of power in an abusive way. This can take many forms, such as taking advantage of someone, gaining access to information that shouldn’t be accessible to the public, or just manipulating someone with the ability to punish them if they don’t comply”(BusinessDictionary.com). Today we see this kind of behavior in North Korea with dictator Kim Jong-un and even in the past in Germany with Hitler. In William Golding 's ¨Lord of The Flies¨ and Shakespeare 's ¨Hamlet” the theme of abuse of power is present amongst few characters. Jack from “Lord of the Flies” and Hamlet and King Claudius from “Hamlet” all show signs of misuse of power, which will…

    • 1120 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Shakespearean plays it is a prominent technique to portray a character having ambition to obtain power, which leads to them making selfish decisions and committing evil actions. This was seen in Macbeth, as Macbeth killed King Duncan in order to achieve his goal of becoming King, and in this play, Hamlet, Claudius’ desire to become King of Denmark triggered him to kill his brother and start making decisions in order to sustain his power. The hunger to maintain authority motivates Claudius to make choices for personal benefit, and this puts the lives of others in jeopardy, thus evoking chaos. Also, the obsession to keep power causes Claudius to weaken the relationships between those around him, leading to the demise of several characters.…

    • 1266 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Role Of Evil In Hamlet

    • 1257 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Evil: To Be or Not to Be? “I think all villains have something in common: they have something that they need or want very, very badly. The stakes are very high and they are not bound by moral codes or being ethical, so they can do anything and will do anything to get what they want.’’ (Murphy, Donna). Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a melting pot of violent characters surrounded by tragic, turmoil-filled pasts.…

    • 1257 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays