Richard III Good Vs Evil Essay

In Richard III Shakespeare creates a man who seems to be the embodiment of evil. This character, Richard, who is the namesake of the play, commits many heinous crimes to those around him during his quest for power; however, the play is also includes examples of the royal family or anyone involved in his quest standing up to and fighting against Richard. Through analyzing both examples of Richard’s atrocities and the courageous acts of those fighting against him, Shakespeare suggests that life has a way of bringing justice to those people, either good or evil, who deserve it. Shakespeare shows this both by punishing Richard in his final battle for all his atrocities, but also by rewarding those who are willing to stand up to him.
Richard

Before the final battle with Richmond, Stanley is determined to help Richmond defeat Richard; however, Richard threatens to behead Stanley’s son, George, if he refuses to “bring his power” to the aid of Richard (5.3.19). While this prevents Stanley from joining Richmond in battle, he still “[denies] to come” to Richard’s aid, gives information to Richmond, and wishes Richmond “Fortune and victory” (5.3.78, 341). By refusing to fight Richmond with his army, Stanley knowingly provokes Richard to “let George Stanley die,” but he is unable to kill him because the battle begins too quickly (5.3.344). Stanley is one of the few characters in the entire play that directly stands up to Richard; however, he is also one of the few characters not killed by him. Furthermore, Richard’s threat to kill his son is perhaps the only threat that Richard does not actually carry out during the entire play. As a result of his courage, Stanley is rewarded by his son being spared and being able to live in a post-Richard England. The uniqueness of Stanley’s situation shows that justice does not only level the wicked in the world but it also rewards those who are brave enough to stand against