
It is important in your study of Module B that you say something about these ideas, to show your personal, rich, interpretation of the text. Here are some of the ideas present in King Henry IV Part 1. Is the play a vessel for propaganda, or is Shakespeare actually challenging dominant narratives through complex characters? Key Ideas in King Henry IV Part 1 Ultimately, it is up to you to interpret the text. He was also influenced by the ideas of Machiavelli, who saw rulership not as something determined by providence, but by deception, scheming and manipulation. These are ideas highly influenced by renaissance humanism. The deposition scene of Richard II was even censored in Elizabethan England.Īt the same time, Shakespeare was interested in the subjective human experience, creating morally ambiguous characters. Many people have considered Shakespeare’s plays to be ‘Tudor propaganda’, arguing that King Henry IV is critiqued by Shakespeare for usurping King Richard II and creating civil unrest. The wars lasted between 14, leaving Shakespeare’s England with scars of a violent past.įor this reason, there was a significant fear of usurpation during the Elizabethan era.
#Henry iv part 1 series
The Wars of the Roses were a series of wars where the house of Lancaster and the House of York fought for the throne (sounding strangely familiar, GOT fans?) through a series of bloody civil wars. The story of King Henry IV plays a significant role in the civil wars that led up to the Wars of the Roses between 14. Hal heroically saves his fathers life and kills Hotspur, restoring his honour and becoming the prince he promised to become.Īccess ‘King Henry IV Part 1’ Downloadable Sample Band 6 Paragraph and Analysed Examples Here! The play culminates with the epic battle of Shrewsbury. Falstaff gives a speech about the meaningless of honour, and how it is not a thing worth dying for. He drafts his friends from the tavern as soldiers, and goes to battle against Hotspur’s army, who is attempting to usurp the King. Redeeming time when men think least I will.”Īfter being disciplined by his father, Hal finally decides it is time to reject his hedonistic life and become a hero. Than that which hath no foil to set it off. Shall show more goodly and attract more eyes My reformation, glittering o’er my fault, “And like bright metal on a sullen ground,

In the tavern, Hal gives an important speech about how his irresponsible lifestyle is a strategy to make him seem all the more glorious when he revokes this lifestyle and becomes the prince his father expects him to be. Meanwhile, King Henry’s son, Hal (AKA Prince Harry or Harry Monmouth) wastes his days away drinking and pulling pranks in a tavern with a group of commoners including a pretty important character called Falstaff. Hotspur therefore spends the remainder of the play plotting to usurp King Henry. He feels it is a betrayal of his family’s loyalty to the king when they helped King Henry seize the throne. The king refuses to ransom Mortimer, which makes Mortimer’s brother in Law, Hotspur (AKA Henry Percy or Harry) furious.

He is interrupted by the news that his cousin, Edmund Mortimer, was captured by Welshmen and a thousand of his people were killed. King Henry IV Part 1 starts with the King, Henry IV ( AKA Bolingbroke) planning a crusade.

#Henry iv part 1 how to
What is King Henry IV Part 1 about? Context of King Henry IV Part 1 Key Ideas in King Henry IV Part 1 Using Critical Quotes in Module B How to Analyse King Henry IV Part 1 in 4 Steps What is King Henry IV Part 1 about?
