Richard II Criticism
William Shakespeare's Richard II, the first play in his second tetralogy of history plays, offers a profound exploration of power, kingship, and identity. Written around 1595, it captures the political and moral turmoil surrounding the deposition of King Richard II by his cousin Henry Bolingbroke, who becomes Henry IV. The play is notable for its purely verse composition and its focus on introspective and poetic dialogue, eschewing dramatic battle scenes for a more nuanced portrayal of political decline and personal tragedy. The intricate dynamics of monarchy and the divine right to rule are central themes, as Richard transforms from villainous ruler to tragic figure, raising questions about legitimacy and political strategy.
Critical scholarship on Richard II is diverse and expansive. William O. Scott examines Richard's misuse of power within an economic and political framework, while Tim Spiekerman and Allan Bloom explore the paradox of divine right and downfall. Louise Cowan describes Richard’s introspection and political failings, necessitating his abdication, while Raphael Falco frames Richard as a traditional figure against Bolingbroke's revolutionary persona. The contrasting speech styles of Richard and Bolingbroke highlight their differing approaches to leadership, with Richard's poetic nature juxtaposed against Bolingbroke's pragmatic rhetoric, as noted by Nicholas Potter and R. P. Draper.
The play's historical and political underpinnings resonate with Elizabethan audiences, reflecting the tensions between royal absolutism and parliamentary power. Critics like Derek Traversi view it as a depiction of declining monarchy, while C.W.R.D. Moseley underscores the personal tragedy of Richard. The play’s portrayal of royal deposition was contentious, with the abdication scene omitted from early editions, possibly due to its controversial nature, as suggested by Janet Clare and Cyndia Susan Clegg. Scholars such as David Norbrook connect the play's themes to contemporary political concerns, including the Essex rebellion.
Staging Richard II presents unique challenges and opportunities for interpretation. Productions such as Deborah Warner's 1995 version with Fiona Shaw and Tim Carroll's 2003 Globe Theatre presentation with Mark Rylance have been noted for their innovation. John Mullan and Charles Isherwood provide insights into these performances, highlighting their impact on modern audiences. Directors like Steven Pimlott and Jonathan Kent have used modern settings to draw parallels with contemporary politics, as noted by Michael Billington and Ben Brantley, revealing the play’s enduring relevance.
Mythological imagery and language further enrich the play. Donald M. Friedman and George D. Gopen analyze Gaunt’s rhetoric and its symbolic criticism of Richard, while Georges Lamoine and Clayton G. MacKenzie link the play's mythological dimensions to England’s spiritual and moral decline. The Phaëton myth, discussed by Robert P. Merrix, underscores the themes of identity and leadership failure, mirroring Richard's tragic arc.
Overall, Richard II offers a rich tapestry of themes and a complex portrayal of power dynamics, making it a fertile ground for critical exploration. The play's language, historical context, and political commentary provide a multifaceted lens through which to study Shakespeare's insight into the nature of kingship and its implications for both historical and contemporary audiences. Those intrigued by its intricate character studies and its reflection on the divine right of kings will find abundant opportunities for further exploration through its varied critical interpretations.
Contents
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Richard II (Vol. 52)
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Criticism: The Morality Of The King: Richard Ii Vs. Bolingbroke
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Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Reese examines the plot and characterization in Richard II to support the contention that although Bolingbroke's rebellion is wicked, the rebellion itself is a symptom of the kingdom's disease, a sickness that has generated from Richard's complicity in the death of Gloucester and his general inability to effectively rule his kingdom.
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Beggars and Kings: Cowardice and Courage in Shakespeare's Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Jensen studies the development of Richard and Bolingbroke throughout Richard II, arguing that Richard's political fall is paralleled by a personal rise marked by his self-redemption. At the same time, Jensen argues, Bolingbroke's political rise to the kingship is followed by an inward, moral decline.
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Richard II
(summary)
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Criticism: Relationship To Elizabethan England
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The Censorship of the Deposition Scene in Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Clare reviews the debate regarding the issue of the possible censorship of the deposition scene in Richard II, and maintains that strong and persuasive evidence exists to support the view that the scene was suppressed by the Master of the Revels due to its “explicit portrayal of deposition and usurpation.”
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'By the Choice and Inuitation of Al The Realm': Richard II and Elizabethan Press Censorship
(summary)
In the following essay, Clegg maintains that it is unlikely Richard II’s deposition scene was censored because of any parallels with Queen Elizabeth's reign, or because of a danger of dramatizing a rebellion during the 1590s. Rather, Clegg suggests the possibility that the scene was censored because of its implication that Parliament may act without the ruling monarch and can in fact dictate terms to the monarch.
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The Censorship of the Deposition Scene in Richard II
(summary)
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Criticism: Mythological Allusions
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Richard II and the Myth of the Fisher King
(summary)
In the following essay, Lamoine reviews the parallels between elements of the myth of the Fisher King and Richard II. Lamoine suggests that an understanding of such parallels can inform one's reading of the play by emphasizing the play's religious issues as well as the seriousness of the crime of deposing a king.
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Paradise and Paradise Lost in Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, MacKenzie explores the manner in which the language and figures of English mythology and “anti-mythology” are developed into the visions of England as paradise and as an “English paradise lost” in Richard II. MacKenzie observes that while Gaunt refers to England as a mythological and Biblical paradise, the play also refers to England as a “fallen paradise” in Biblical, iconographical, and classical terms.
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The Phaëton Allusion in Richard II: The Search for Identity
(summary)
In the following essay, Merrix investigates the implications of Richard's reference to the Phaëton myth, arguing that this allusion incorporates various themes appropriate to the characterization of Richard, including the search for self, pride and its fall, and the chaotic results of “ambivalent leadership.”
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Richard II and the Myth of the Fisher King
(summary)
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Criticism: Gaunt
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John of Gaunt and the Rhetoric of Frustration
(summary)
In the following essay, Friedman studies the form and content of Gaunt's dying speech and argues that the speech reveals Gaunt to be deeply frustrated with his inability to insure the existence and stability of his particular view of 'England's essence.' Friedman emphasizes that Gaunt's speech is more than the national panegyric it is often taken to be and that Gaunt does not simply serve as an objective commentator on England's glories.
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Private Grief into Public Action: The Rhetoric of John of Gaunt in Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Gopen analyzes the rhetorical structure of Gaunt's deathbed speech and discusses how this speech informs other issues in the play.
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John of Gaunt and the Rhetoric of Frustration
(summary)
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Criticism: The Morality Of The King: Richard Ii Vs. Bolingbroke
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Richard II (Vol. 58)
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Criticism: Overviews And General Studies
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The Genre of Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, originally published in 1972, Nevo assesses Richard II as a tragedy, rather than as a history play, and contends that despite some shortcomings, the play contains a movement approximating that of Shakespeare's great tragedies.
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Part One: Text
(summary)
In the following essay, Page reviews the themes, structure, and plot of Richard II and comments on issues related to the staging and performance of the play.
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The Genre of Richard II
(summary)
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Criticism: Character Studies
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The Antic Disposition of Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Potter contends that Richard is much less virtuous, and thus a more interesting dramatic character, than has been previously thought. Potter further states that Richard’s elaborate language, although powerful, signifies weakness because it replaces action.
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The ‘Parasitical’ Counselors in Shakespeare's Richard II: A Problem in Dramatic Interpretation
(summary)
In the following essay, Gaudet examines the discrepancy between Shakespeare's portrayal of Richard's advisors—Bushy, Bagot, and Greene—and the way the three are typically perceived (as “caterpillars of the commonwealth”). Gaudet demonstrates that Shakespeare presents the advisors as passive attendants in order to highlight Richard's own blameworthiness.
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Shakespeare's Richard II as Landlord and Wasting Tenant
(summary)
In the following essay, Klinck studies Shakespeare's portrayal of Richard as both the landlord of England and as a tenant who commits “waste” in the Elizabethan legal sense of the term, and maintains that the idea of Richard as a wasting tenant is a figurative notion.
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The Antic Disposition of Richard II
(summary)
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Criticism: Historical Realism And Elizabethan Reception
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Telling the Truth with Authority: From Richard II to Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Morse studies the way Shakespeare presents historical truth in Richard II, maintaining that for Shakespeare, and for the medieval historians from whose work he drew, 'truth' encompassed a range of possible representations.
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‘A Liberal Tongue’: Language and Rebellion in Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Norbrook considers the ways in which the original Elizabethan audience (in particular, those individuals involved in the Essex rebellion) might have responded to Richard II. Norbrook surveys the knowledge Elizabethans had of their country's past and asserts that the play reflected contemporary concerns regarding the necessity of a guaranteed forum for national debate and criticism (Parliament) and the danger of the growth of royal absolutism.
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Telling the Truth with Authority: From Richard II to Richard II
(summary)
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Criticism: Language
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Richard II: Metadrama and the Fall of Speech
(summary)
In the following essay, originally published in 1979, Calderwood maintains that Richard II represents not only the fall of a king, but the “fall of kingly speech” as well.
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The Language of Treason in Richard II
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In the following essay, Cavanagh observes that the topic of treachery plays a central role in the political exchanges in Richard II. Cavanagh explores the way the language associated with treachery is related to the dynamics of authority in the play.
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Richard II: Metadrama and the Fall of Speech
(summary)
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Criticism: Overviews And General Studies
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Richard II (Vol. 70)
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Criticism: Character Studies
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Richard of Bordeaux
(summary)
In the following essay, Palmer challenges critics who view Richard II as the tragedy of one man, and explores the fall of Richard as a king and political figure.
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The Function of York in Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Kelly studies the crucial role York plays in the dramatic and thematic developments of Richard II. Kelly contends that York's shift in attitude and loyalty, from Richard to Bolingbroke, encourages a parallel response in the audience.
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The Admirable Character of York
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In the following essay, Riddell defends the character of York against negative criticism, and asserts that York exemplifies the Christian ideal of magnanimity.
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Richard of Bordeaux
(summary)
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Criticism: Production Reviews
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The BBC Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Pilkington offers a detailed assessment of the highlights and deficiencies of the 1979 BBC production of Richard II, directed by David Giles and starring Derek Jacobi as Richard.
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Review of Richard II
(summary)
In the following review, King offers a positive assessment of the National Theatre's staging of Richard II, directed by Deborah Warner and starring Fiona Shaw as an impressive Richard.
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Here's Richardness
(summary)
In the following review, Feingold appraises two productions of Richard II, one by the Theatre for a New Audience at New York City's St. Clement's Theater, directed by Ron Daniels, and the other staged by the Pearl Theatre. Feingold observes that while both plays had their strengths as well as effective scenes, each seemed to lose something as it went on. Reviewing Pearl's production, directed by Shepard Sobel, Feingold states that while it was not as vivid as Daniels's production, it had a stronger grasp of the play as poetry.
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Fiennes Plays Politics at BAM
(summary)
In the following review, Isherwood comments on the Brooklyn Academy of Music production of Richard II, directed by Jonathan Kent and starring Ralph Fiennes as Richard. Isherwood focuses on Fiennes's performance, finding that while it was “compelling,” Fiennes's portrayal of the king was silly and pompous.
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The BBC Richard II.
(summary)
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Criticism: Themes
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The Theatrical Consistency of Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Barkin studies the emotional impact of Richard II, and claims that the play possesses inherent theatrical and logical unity in terms of the emotional responses displayed by the characters on stage and the emotional interaction between the characters and audience members.
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A New History for Shakespeare and His Time
(summary)
In the following essay, Barroll investigates the relationship between the Earl of Essex rebellion and Richard II.
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The Betrayal of the Gaze: Theatricality and Power in Shakespeare's Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Pye analyzes the relationship between political power and theatricality in Richard II.
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A Question of Balance: The Problematic Structure of Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Shewring maintains that the language of Richard II, patterned and poetic in its nature, complements the play's purposefully and carefully balanced structure.
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The Theatrical Consistency of Richard II.
(summary)
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Criticism: Character Studies
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Richard II (Vol. 81)
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Criticism: Overviews And General Studies
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A World of Rhetoric in Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Hockey surveys the rhetorical effects and devices of Richard II, suggesting that the drama represents a significant development in Shakespeare's use of dramatic language.
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Climax and Anti-Climax in Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Bennett evaluates the dramatic structure of Richard II and contends that it depicts the two parallel tragedies of Richard and Bolingbroke.
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A World of Rhetoric in Richard II.
(summary)
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Criticism: Character Studies
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God Will Save the King: Shakespeare's Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Cowan characterizes Richard II as a dignified but brooding monarch whose political mistakes and personal disloyalty lead to his downfall.
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Charismas in Conflict: Richard II and Henry Bolingbroke
(summary)
In the following essay, Falco focuses on the concept of charisma in his comparative analysis of Richard II and Henry Bolingbroke.
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Unstable Identity in Shakespeare's Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Forker attributes Richard II's “unstable and mutable personality” to the tension between his position as king by divine right and his mortal fallibility.
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Introduction to The Arden Shakespeare: King Richard II
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Forker explores the complex, subtle, and ambivalent means by which Shakespeare renders the principal characters of Richard II.
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God Will Save the King: Shakespeare's Richard II.
(summary)
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Criticism: Production Reviews
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Fiona Shaw's Richard II: The Girl as Player-King as Comic
(summary)
In the following extended review of director Deborah Warner's 1995 production of Richard II starring Fiona Shaw in the title role, Rutter highlights the significance of this feminized, cross-gender, and comic stage interpretation of Shakespeare's play.
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Review of Shakespeare in Performance: King Richard II
(summary)
In the following review, Gajowski appraises Margaret Shewring's Shakespeare in Performance: King Richard II, praising the work's broad scope, including nineteen theatrical productions over four centuries, but faulting its limited attention to the theoretical aspects of contemporary performance.
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Uneasy Leaders Whose Downfall Lay Within Themselves
(summary)
In the following excerpted review of Jonathan Kent's 2000 productions of Richard II and Coriolanus in London and Brooklyn, Brantley concentrates on the performance of film star Ralph Fiennes in the role of Richard as a petulant, bombastic, and affected king.
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Review of Richard II
(summary)
In the following excerpted review, Hornby praises the performance of Ralph Fiennes in the title role of Richard II as directed by Jonathan Kent in 2000, but laments the substandard quality of his supporting cast.
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Review of Richard II
(summary)
In the following review, Mitchell finds little merit in director John Farrell's modern-dress, ninety-minute filmed version of Richard II, emphasizing weak individual performances and a lack of directorial vision.
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Review of Richard II
(summary)
In the following review of director Tim Carroll's 2003 production of Richard II at the Globe in London, Morley congratulates Mark Rylance's outstanding Richard, a performance regrettably unmatched by those of the remaining cast members.
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Fiona Shaw's Richard II: The Girl as Player-King as Comic
(summary)
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Criticism: Themes
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This Royal Throne Unkinged
(summary)
In the following essay, originally published in 1973, Mack outlines the antiquated notions of sovereignty professed by the major figures in Richard II, from the ordered, traditionalist views of York and Gaunt to Richard's divinely authorized and idealized, but irrevocably weakened, ruling ideal.
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Prophecy and Ideology in Shakespeare's Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Jacobs traces Shakespeare's shift from medieval to Renaissance political ideologies in Richard II.
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Banishing Cain: The Gardening Metaphor in Richard II and the Genesis Myth of the Origin of History
(summary)
In the following essay, Berninghausen views the metaphorical relationship between gardening and kingship dramatized in Act III, scene iv of Richard II as the thematic touchstone of the drama.
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Theories of History in Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Coursen examines the competing views of history associated with Gaunt, Richard, and Bolingbroke in Richard II.
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This Royal Throne Unkinged
(summary)
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Criticism: Overviews And General Studies
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Richard II (Vol. 91)
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Criticism: Overviews And General Studies
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‘Like to a tenement or pelting farm’—Richard II and the Idea of the Nation
(summary)
In the following essay, Potter likens England under Richard II to a present-day emerging nation with the choice of two competing ideologies: the masculine “shrewd steel” of Bolingbroke or the feminine “golden crown” of Richard. Neither metaphor, Potter argues, speaks to the middle ground and the plight of the common man.
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King Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Spiekerman maintains that Shakespeare questioned the institution of hereditary monarchy in Richard II, positing that Bolingbroke represents a rational and politically superior—if not entirely legitimate—alternative to a tyrannical hereditary ruler.
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‘Like to a tenement or pelting farm’—Richard II and the Idea of the Nation
(summary)
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Criticism: Character Studies
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Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Bloom traces Richard's downfall from divine-right king and discusses its political consequence for him and his successor, Bolingbroke.
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The Tragedy of Richard II
(summary)
In the following essay, Berry comments on role-playing in Richard II, noting that Richard embraces the role of martyr-king while Bolingbroke accepts the complementary role of guilty usurper.
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Richard II.
(summary)
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Criticism: Production Reviews
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Privilege of Gender
(summary)
In the following review, Mullan commends Deborah Warner's 1995 Cottesloe Theatre production of Richard II, which, the critic contends, emphasized the ritualistic ceremony of Shakespeare's drama. In addition, Mullan praises Fiona Shaw's Richard as “always interesting” and “sometimes brilliant.”
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From Tyrant to Martyr
(summary)
In the following review, Billington appraises Steven Pimlott's 2000 Royal Shakespeare Company production of Richard II, focusing on how its stark setting created a contemporary mood that underscored the universal relevance of the play.
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With an Eye to the Present
(summary)
In the following review, Saul compares Steven Pimlott's 2000 Royal Shakespeare Company production of Richard II with Jonathan Kent's 2000 staging at the Almeida Theatre. The critic views both productions as problematic in that Pimlott's modern-dress interpretation obscured Shakespeare's view of monarchy and Kent's staging was marred by Ralph Fiennes's one-dimensional portrayal of Richard.
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An Eloquent Examination of Kingship
(summary)
In the following review of Steven Pimlott's 2000 Royal Shakespeare Company staging of Richard II, Macaulay applauds the stark production for its arresting investigation of existential themes.
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Power to the Scapegoat
(summary)
In the following review, Wilson evaluates Tim Carroll's 2003 all-male, Elizabethan staging of Richard II at London's Globe Theatre, focusing on Mark Rylance's illuminating performance of Richard as a “pouting toy-king.”
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Review of Richard II
(summary)
In the following review, Isherwood presents a favorable review of Tim Carroll's 2003 Globe Theatre staging of Richard II, particularly admiring the intimate rapport that Mark Rylance's Richard established with the audience.
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Privilege of Gender
(summary)
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Criticism: Themes
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‘Mock Not’: The Problem of Laughter in Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Kurtz discusses how the element of laughter corresponds to the personalities of Richard and Bolingbroke. According to the critic, Richard's laughter, laced with arrogant elitism and mockery, signifies an aristocratic insecurity which culminates in his deposition; by contrast, Bolingbroke embraces the carnivalesque, popular laughter of the common man to establish political order after usurping the crown.
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Landholding, Leasing, and Inheritance in Richard II.
(summary)
In the following essay, Scott contends that Shakespeare situated Richard II's divine right position within a complicated economic system of landholding and leasing, concluding that Richard's misuse of the realm compromises his hereditary claim to the monarchy.
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Shakespeare's Religious Background Revisited: Richard II in a New Context
(summary)
In the following essay, Mayer demonstrates how Shakespeare's Richard II exacerbated the volatile and ideologically unstable climate of the late Elizabethan period. The critic details how different political and religious factions manipulated the play's themes of loyalty and betrayal to serve as propaganda for their own causes, culminating in an alleged staging of the play the night before the ill-fated Essex Rebellion.
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‘Awhile To Work, And After Holiday’: Richard II and the Roots of a Festive History
(summary)
In the following essay, Ruiter maintains that festivity is a central theme in Richard II that becomes more fully developed in the succeeding plays of the second tetralogy. According to the critic, the common masses support Richard's deposal and Bolingbroke's subsequent ascension to the throne because the king dismisses community festivity whereas his challenger recognizes its importance to social stability.
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‘Mock Not’: The Problem of Laughter in Richard II.
(summary)
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Criticism: Overviews And General Studies
- The Lamentable Comedy of Richard II
- The Crown, the Mirror and the Clock: Shakespeare's Richard II
- Loyal Fathers and Treacherous Sons: Familial Politics in Richard II
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Richard II (Vol. 39)
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Kingship
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Richard II
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Richmond demonstrates a shift from the medieval notion of kingship represented by Richard to the early modern idea of kingship represented by Bolingbroke.
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Richard II: 'Let Not Tomorrow Then Ensue Today'
(summary)
In the essay below, Jones discusses how Richard's neglect of the heroic past of his father contributes to his failure as king.
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Richard II
(summary)
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Politics And Power
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"Richard II" and Carnival Politics
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In the following essay, Bergeron argues that the carnivalesque language and rituals in Richard II account for the Elizabethan perception of the play as a politically subversive drama.
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Loyal Fathers and Treacherous Sons: Familial Politics in Richard II
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In this essay, Seelig examines two scenes from Act V of Richard II, which illustrate that the play's familial conflicts serve to underscore political and moral conflicts.
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"Richard II" and Carnival Politics
(summary)
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Language And Imagery
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Wasted Time in Richard II
(summary)
In the essay below, Draper demonstrates the ways in which Richard's use of language reflects the downward spiral of his career as king.
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Queen of Sorrow, King of Grief: Reflections and Perspectives in Richard II
(summary)
Here, Moore highlights the metaphoric role of Queen Isabel, arguing that she—like the central image of the mirror—provides a perspective on the character of Richard.
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Wasted Time in Richard II
(summary)
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Kingship
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Marlowe's Edward II: Penetrating Language in Shakespeare's Richard II
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Introduction
(summary)
Shakespeare's Richard II is often compared with Marlowe's Edward II, particularly regarding the theme of royal abdication. While Charles Lamb remarked that Shakespeare scarcely improved on Marlowe's depiction of a reluctant ruler, Richard II offers a more complex interplay of themes and influences from Marlowe's work. Meredith Skura suggests that Shakespeare's approach was not merely an attempt to improve upon Marlowe but to engage with his predecessor's themes in a nuanced manner. Brecht's adaptation of Edward II in 1922 emphasizes personal over political elements, highlighting the intense bond between characters, which Brecht explored in his own works.
In contrast, Shakespeare's focus in Richard II is on political dynamics rather than the personal passions prevalent in Marlowe's play. Where Edward II is rife with sexuality and visceral violence, Richard II downplays these aspects, instead offering a moral and political narrative. This distinction marks Shakespeare's work as a transcendent piece that contextualizes personal struggles within a broader political framework. However, as Skura notes, the influence of Marlowe's themes of male friendship and rivalry subtly permeates Shakespeare's language, contributing to the play’s exploration of Richard's subjectivity and motivations.
Skura further argues that the seemingly minimized presence of erotic passion and violence in Richard II is nonetheless significant, manifesting through Shakespeare's evocative language. These elements fill the narrative gaps left by a sparse plot and enrich our understanding of Richard's character. This reflects not only on the play itself but also offers insights into the collaborative nature of early modern drama, demonstrating how themes traverse playwrights and their works.
- What Shakespeare saw in Marlowe's Edward II: Twins and rival twins
- Edward II: In Richard II
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Introduction
(summary)
- Speaking Freely about Richard II
- Further Reading