History--> Richard III

A.) "The tyrannous bloody deed is done/ The most arch of piteous massacre/ ...Their lips were four roses on a stalk,/ Which in their summer beauty kiss'd each other/ A book of prayers on their pillow lay"

This passage was particularly catching because of Shakespeare's excellent use of imagery to evoke sadness and horror within the reader. This speech was given by Tyrrel after having Edward IV's children killed. Richard wanted the children killed to secure his position as king and summoned Tyrell, a lowlife, to get the job done. The fact that Tyrell, someone detached from the family, feels such guilt over the murders of the two princes adds to the overall wretchedness of Richard, who takes in the news with joy. These contrasting reactions to the deaths really relay Richard's indifference and lack of conscience. Tyrell feels remorse yet Richard is thoroughly pleased with the news.

The imagery of the passage effectively contributed to the characterizion of Richard as a brutally heartless egotist. The contrasting images of "a bloody deed" and "piteous massace" to the images of "roses on a stalk" and "summer beauty" signify the loss of innocence, a major theme in this play. The children are described with references to nature in this passage representing the fact that they are the innocent and honest heirs to the throne and Richard is disrupting the natural flow of power in order to get what he wants. One line in the passage, "We smothered the most replenished sweet work of nature", speaks to the loss of innocence theme. Nature symbolizes purity which is being destroyed by Richard's selfish motives.

In this passage, the murder of the two children is depicted as bloody to make it all the more horrific. Although the children were smothered with a pillow, their death is portrayed as brutal to further enforce Richard's cruelty and callousness. The fact that Richard could have two innocent children murdered is a realization of Richard's unbelievable and unstoppable ego. Even Richard's most faithful followers are taken aback by his lack of compassion. When ordering Buckingham to have the princes taken care of, for the first time, Buckingham hesitates to do as he is told. He starts to understand that Richard will literally stop at nothing to gain the kingship. This passage does a terrific job of eliciting repulsion of Richard from the reader by appealing to one's emotion with the description of the poor harmless princes clutching each other in death. It is somewhat of a turning point in the play as Richard's followers get a taste of his bitterness and start to understand that absolutley no one means anything to Richard and he will let no one get in his way of the throne.

B.) Shakespeare was able to create an intiguing play from a historical genre, something difficult for any author to achieve. Generally, history fails to be extremely interesting and captivating, at least in my opinion, and I give a lot of credit to Shakespeare's ability to tie the history and the facts in while still creating an entertaining play. Shakespeare dramatizes Richard III's cruelty and personalizes his wicked deeds to draw the audience to his work. Instead of just listing the facts and dryly running through each murder, Shakespeare sets the scene by portraying both sides of the situation. He personalizes the character of Richard by tying in his insecurities over being born deformed. This helped the reader to understand the historical context of the play in full by educating the reader on what most likely were Richard's inner motivations for his extreme egotism and desire for power.

The opening scene alone lays out Richard's feeling of worthlessness. In his opening monologue sketching out his evil plans, it is clear that Richard feels disempowered and extremely bitter about his physical appearance and he is determined to shatter that image of himself by gaining power and evoking fear and respect within the people around him. By adding this personal side of Richard, Shakespeare initially creates some element of pity and sympathy for Richard, which he later destroys as he describes Richard's callous and cold-hearted murders and utter lack of remorse. Shakespeare is able to get the reader involved in the history, taking away the boring aspect of the sheer facts and contributing emotion and attachment to the characters. The people become not just names but actual beings and the reader is able to relate to Queen Elizabeth's despair at the death of her sons and the Duchess of York's grief over her divided family.

C.) I personally enjoyed this play a lot which is something I definitely did not expect. I am not usually the type of person to enjoy reading nonfiction or historical works and assumed I would dislike Richard III based on the fact that it was a history. I was surprised by Shakespeare's capabilities as a writer because he excellently drew in his audience by appealing to the emotions of the reader. I actually felt sympathy and compassion toward the characters who lost their loved ones in Richard's ruthless campaign for the throne.

Shakespeare also provoked frustration from the reader as many of the characters were very niave to Richard's callousness and alterior motives. Richard's ability to win over LadyAnne, despite the fact that Richard killed both her husband and father-in-law, was beyond aggravating to me. Shakespeare incorporated the people's initial blindness to Richard's true- self to make the reader somewhat pity their inability to see the big picture. The frustration created by the people's ignorance added to the suspense and intensity of the play because the reader could foresee the misfortune ahead. Richard's clever way with words and power as a speaker, though frustrating in some circumstances, was an excellent device that he utilized well in getting what he wanted.

Shakespeare constructed the character of Richard in a very dynamic way. Even though I was repulsed by Richard's lack of remorse and conscience, I had to give him some credit for his slyness and way with words. He was able to turn even the worst situations in his favor and he used this to his great advantage in playing those around him to ultimately become king. Shakespeare presented a very complex character in Richard, portraying his inadequacies and feeling of worthlessness as the ultimate motives for his vengeful desire for power.