The Function of the Chorus in Henry V
"O for a muse of fire," The Chorus introduces the start of Henry V
with imagery of flames and war. Shakespeare uses the Chorus to
initiate the play and summarise each act to the audience before the
next one begins. He is merely a tool to avoid the audience getting too
confused. The function for the chorus is merely a practical one, by
summarising the plot at every available opportunity; there is little
chance for confusion, even if the audience do have to use their
imagination.
But, we must ask ourselves, if this was Shakespeare's only reason for
including the Chorus, why does he not use a similar device in his
other plays? Surely in all of his plays the audience have to imagine
the setting (the stage of the globe was set in the round, and so had
no room for large props and scenery), and many of his plays have more
complex plots than this one, so why do we need the Chorus?
The answer is the Chorus puts across a very clear view of warfare and
Henry's kingship. It is a very romantic, idealised view, which uses
over-zealous language, such as "two mighty monarchies" to create a
strong glorified impact on the audience. They are building up the
audience's expectations of this to be a mighty, glorious play.
The use of the imagery of flames and fire repeats itself throughout
the Chorus's scenes. "O for a muse of fire" is the very first line,
which immediately conjures up a grand image. Flames represent war, but
are also a typical representation of courage and bravery. When the
Chorus says, "the youth of England are on fire," it imposes upon the
audience the idea of keen anticipation and excit...
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...nch of salt and are not really
to be trusted. Certain productions of Henry V do glorify war, for
example Laurence Olivier's production in the 1940's painted a
beautiful, majestic picture of war, However after analysing the role
of the Chorus in the play, I do not believe this play is a
glorification of warfare. Henry's leadership is romanticised in the
play considerably more than the idea of warfare. Productions such as
Kenneth Brannagh's creation paint a far more realistic view of war, as
a bloody, filthy affair. This is more what I feel the subtext of the
play is. War is not really idealised in this play, it can be taken as
being glorified, but because of Shakespeare's use of the structure of
the play, and the Chorus's propaganda fabrications, the character of
the Chorus does not in any way add to this glorification.
Passage Analysis - Act 5 Scene 1, lines 115-138. Shakespeare’s ‘King Henry IV Part I’ centres on a core theme: the conflict between order and disorder. Such conflict is brought to light by the use of many vehicles, including Hal’s inner conflict, the country’s political and social conflict, the conflict between the court world and the tavern world, and the conflicting moral values of characters from each of these worlds. This juxtaposition of certain values exists on many levels, and so is both a strikingly present and an underlying theme throughout the play.
At first sight one might expect that in Antony and Cleopatra war would be the predominant theme, for the Romans are well-known as warriors throughout their early history. It may therefore be surprising to find that Shakespeare’s play focuses less on detailed battle scenes than Antz, especially since the latter is a children’s movie. But maybe the emphasis on war in the movie is not a contradiction to the fact that it is primarily intended for a very young audience. Are not the children of today the voters and politicians of tomorrow and would it not be beneficiary for the future of mankind if before agreeing to a war those voters and politicians reminded themselves of Barbados’ last words “Think for yourself”?
As we know, the pretext of the play is the aftermath of a war, so I
Also it is comparing the war to a game, which is a euphemism as well as a metaphor. It is a euphemism because war is a very serious, dangerous matter; whereas a game is something that people enjoy and never get seriously injured in. By using this euphemism, Jessie Pope - the poet – lessens the severity of war, and makes her readers’ think of it as enjoyable, and something that they want to do.
In the soliloquy from Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part II, King Henry is restless and loathes those who are able to take advantage of the “O gentle sleep” that he is unable to partake in. Shakespeare is able to imply diction, imagery, and syntax throughout this soliloquy to convey Henry’s state of mind. The envious and confused state of mind is carried out through literary devices, exposing the situation of King Henry’s restless night.
and not that he did this by his own choice. With this metaphor of a
The film uses various techniques to present a particular view of the war against France. What is that interpretation and how does the film convey it?Although the Branagh version of Shakespeare's Henry V remains very close to the text, with only a few lines left out of the film, the movie portrays a very clear and distinct message about war and Branagh's opinion on the matter. Henry V is fundamentally a play about war, and it would have been very easy for Branagh to make his version of the play into a film that glorified war. Instead, Branagh took the opportunity to make a statement about what he felt was the true essence of wars - both medieval and modern.It is clear through Henry V that Branagh thinks that wars are a waste of precious human life, and in the end are fruitless, causing more loss than gain.
He states, "The myth of war is essential to justify the horrible sacrifices required in war, the destruction and death of innocents. It can be formed only by denying the reality of war, by turning the lies, the manipulation, the inhumanness of war into the heroic ideal" (26). Chris Hedges tries to get the point across that in war nothing is as it seems.... ... middle of paper ...
This war involves a human side, including the admission of fear and scenes of domestic life, not in a sentimentalized version. This more complete and responsible depiction shows that there's not one single center to the war, just as there's not one single god for the Greeks.
Leadership in William Shakespeare's Henry V. At the time when "Henry V" was written in 1599, England was in chaos. facing many dilemmas and challenges. The country was coming to the end of the Elizabethan era. Queen Elizabeth was in the final years of her reign. and she was getting old, which must be taken into consideration.
The simple definition of war is a state of armed competition, conflict, or hostility between different nations or groups; however war differs drastically in the eyes of naive children or experienced soldiers. Whether one is a young boy or a soldier, war is never as easy to understand as the definition. comprehend. There will inevitably be an event or circumstance where one is befuddled by the horror of war. For a young boy, it may occur when war first breaks out in his country, such as in “Song of Becoming.” Yet, in “Dulce et Decorum Est” it took a man dying in front of a soldier's face for the soldier to realize how awful war truly is. Both “Song of Becoming” and “Dulce et Decorum Est” are poems about people experiencing the monstrosity of war for the first time. One is told from the perspective of young boys who were stripped of their joyful innocence and forced to experience war first hand. The other is from the perspective of a soldier, reflecting on the death of one of his fellow soldiers and realizing that there is nothing he can do to save him. While “Song of Becoming” and “Dulce et Decorum Est” both focus on the theme of the loss of innocence, “Song of Becoming” illustrates how war affects the lives of young boys, whereas “Dulce et Decorum Est” depicts the affect on an experienced soldier.
Henry V by William Shakespeare is a play showing King Henry V of England and his goal of obtaining the French crown for himself. After the English learned of their severe disadvantage and their small chance of getting back to home safely, Henry V’s true leadership abilities were seen. Henry’s ability to make the smart, but less courageous decision; his ability to step down from his position as king, and join his soldiers in the camp; and his ability to be ruthless and heartless towards those who were stopping him from reaching his goals all helped his army and him reach England safely even though they were facing numerous different problems. King Henry’s admirable and intelligent leadership ability is what makes him a great king, and allowed him to save the English troops from their almost certain demise against the French.
Even though this play is focused on the evil in human nature and portrays human nature at its worst, the audience is left with some hope of good triumphing over evil.
As I mentioned before, this play was written shortly after World War II ended. There were also many other events going on in the world at this time. For example, just six years before this play was written, the Korean and Vietnam Wars took place (“Literary”). In 1951, Carl Sandburg and Conrad Richter received the Pulitzer Prize for their work in poetry and fiction (“Literary”). Also in 1951 Paer Lagerkvist won received the Nobel Prize for Literature, color TV was released in the United States, and Libya became and independent nation (“Literary”). Just one year later in 1952, Elizabeth II rose to the throne in Britain and Dr. Jonas Stark discovered a vaccine...
Although the Globe Theater has since burned down and is gone, her legacy remains. The beauty and grandeur vanished. The intricate work valiant effort put into it to build it unseeable. The feeling one would undergo upon walking through the doors, ready to experience a show now unattainable. However the name “The Globe Theater” holds the same glory it held back it’s greatest days. People know of the Globe because of the incredible works performed there and for it’ ability to provide people with an escape from their daily lives and become enamored by a world unlike their own. Shakespeare took advantage of the Globe and found great success. Both Shakespeare and the Globe have legacy’s that remain strong to this day.