Richard III (23 page)

Lines 1–41:
The play opens with a soliloquy by Richard, revealing his skillful use of language. He outlines recent history, emphasizing that the action of this play is part of a wider series of events. The civil war between the royal Houses of York and Lancaster has ended, and Yorkist Edward IV is king, creating a “glorious summer” of peace in contrast to the previous “winter” of “discontent.” Richard’s speech moves away from matters of state toward himself, creating links and tensions between political and personal. Richard describes how men who were soldiers are now lovers. He claims that his own physical deformities prevent him from courting, describing himself bitterly as “Deformed” and “unfinished.” His apparent preoccupation with his looks establishes the play’s interest in appearance and identity (genuine and feigned). He declares that since he “cannot prove a lover” he will “prove a villain” and outlines his plans against his brothers, the king and the Duke of Clarence. He has set abroad rumors of a prophecy, “which says that ‘G’ / Of Edward’s heirs the murderer shall be,” the first in a series of references to prophecies, dreams, and omens. Richard sees Clarence being led in, guarded, and cuts short his soliloquy, urging his thoughts to “Dive” down to his “soul,” emphasizing his ability to conceal his true self and the disparity between appearance and reality.

Lines 42–147:
Richard asks why Clarence is being taken to the Tower. Clarence reveals that it is because his name “is George,” showing that Richard’s false prophecy has had effect on Edward, who “hearkens after prophesies and dreams” (although, ironically, being Duke of Gloucester, Richard himself is also “G”). Richard feigns sympathy and suggests that Clarence’s downfall is the result of the influence of the queen. Various political undercurrents are revealed: we also learn that the Lord Chamberlain, Hastings, has
been freed from the Tower, apparently due to the influence of the king’s mistress, Jane Shore. Lord Brackenbury claims that he has been charged with ensuring that “no man shall have private conference” with Clarence, but Richard argues that they are discussing “no treason” and assures Clarence that he will speak to the king. Clarence is led away as Hastings arrives, vowing revenge on the “kites and buzzards” who have had him arrested, establishing the animal imagery that recurs through the play. Hastings reports that the king is “sickly, weak and melancholy.” Richard feigns sadness, saying that he will follow Hastings to see the king.

Lines 148–165:
Richard fears that Edward will die before Clarence has been executed. He plans to see that Clarence is “packed with post-horse up to heaven” by stirring up Edward’s hatred. Once Clarence and Edward are dead, he will “bustle in.” He reveals his plan to marry Lady Anne Neville. Although the specific reasons for this remain a “secret close intent,” it is clearly a political move. Despite acknowledging that he killed both Anne’s husband and Henry VI (her father-in-law), Richard seems confident that he will achieve this, suggesting a confidence with the opposite sex that his earlier speech denied and illustrating the complexities of his characterization.

Lines 1–233:
The guarded coffin of Henry VI is brought on, attended by Anne. She laments the fall of the House of Lancaster and the death of Henry, and curses Richard. She wishes him a worse fate than “spiders” and “toads,” reinforcing the animal imagery introduced in the previous scene. She instructs the men carrying Henry’s coffin to carry him to Chertsey Monastery. Richard enters and commands the men to put the coffin down. Anne compares his entrance to that of a “fiend” conjured up by a “black magician,” introducing a series of images associating Richard with hell. She uncovers Henry’s body and invites everyone look at “dead Henry’s wounds,” calling on God to revenge his death. Richard appeals to be allowed to explain. He describes Anne as an angel and “divine perfec
tion,” which aims at flattery but also contrasts with the hellish images she uses for him, establishing them as opposing representatives of good and evil. The balance of imagery is reflected in the stichomythic structure of their argument. Initially, Anne seems to be a worthy opponent in what Richard calls their “keen encounter of … wits.” Richard’s mastery over language and ability to manipulate become evident, however, as he overcomes Anne’s anger. He claims that he killed Anne’s husband because he loves her. He praises her beauty and offers her his sword, saying that if her “vengeful heart cannot forgive” she must kill him. She cannot, and, despite fearing that both Richard’s tongue and heart are false, she softens. He places a ring on her finger, claiming his heart is hers, and begs to be allowed to take Henry’s body to Chertsey so that he may “wet his grave” with “repentant tears.” Pleased that he has “become so penitent,” she agrees.

Lines 234–272:
Richard instructs the men to take Henry to White-friars, not Chertsey. Any vicarious belief the audience may have had in his sincerity is destroyed as he marvels at his ability to manipulate Anne (and, perhaps, us) and comments that he has her, but “will not keep her long.” He appears surprised that Anne finds him “a marv’llous proper man,” despite his physical appearance, and resolves to employ “a score or two of tailors / To study fashions to adorn my body.” The clothing imagery reinforces the obsession with appearance and identity, as do repeated references to looking glasses.

Lines 1–109:
Lord Rivers and Lord Grey try to reassure Queen Elizabeth, who worries about what will “betide” her after Edward’s death. They remind her that her son, Prince Edward, will be her “comforter,” but she is concerned that his youth means that he will be under the protection of Richard. Derby and Buckingham report that the king wishes to make peace between Richard and the queen’s brothers, and between the queen’s brothers and Hastings, and has summoned them all. Richard arrives with Hastings and Dorset, complaining that people have been telling the king “dissentious
rumours” about him. He argues, ironically, that he “cannot flatter and look fair” and asks the assembled company to tell him how he has “injured” them and caused them to trouble the king “with lewd complaints.” The queen retorts that it is his own behavior that has caused the king to send for him. Richard accuses the queen of using her power to achieve status and positions in court for her family, and complains that his brother Clarence is imprisoned by Elizabeth’s “means.” She denies this and their argument escalates, with Elizabeth declaring that she has “Small joy” in being queen and being constantly “bated, scorned and stormed at.” Queen Margaret, the widow of Henry VI, enters unnoticed.

Lines 110–324:
Elizabeth and Richard argue as Margaret watches, making comments aside. Her presence as an “audience” reinforces our sense of Richard as an actor. Margaret’s observations show her hatred of Richard and Elizabeth: she wishes Elizabeth that even her “Small joy” be lessened and observes that Richard is a “cacodemon” (evil spirit) whose kingdom is hell, reinforcing Anne’s previous imagery. She steps forward and accuses them of being “wrangling pirates” who argue over what has been “pilled” from her. The following exchange, which centers on past struggles for the kingdom, reminds us that the events of the play are part of wider history, and of the violent nature of the struggle for power. Margaret invokes a series of prophetic curses, as Richard calls her “witch” and “withered hag.” Margaret hopes that Elizabeth’s son, Edward, will “Die in his youth” by “untimely violence,” as her own son did, and that Elizabeth will “Die neither mother, wife, nor England’s queen.” Elizabeth remains silent during Margaret’s outburst, but Richard argues. Margaret warns that Richard will soon suspect his friends “for traitors” and “take deep traitors” for his “dearest friends.” She abuses Richard’s appearance, invoking the images of animals and hell that have previously been associated with him. Her comparison of Richard to a “bottled spider” with a “deadly web” shows her awareness of his manipulative nature. Buckingham urges Margaret to “have done” and she warns him against Richard and his “venom tooth” before leaving, saying that they will remember her words and think of her as a “prophetess.” Richard assumes an air of forgiveness
and says that Margaret “hath had too much wrong” and that he repents of any part he has had in this. He adds that he hopes God will pardon those who have wronged Clarence. Rivers comments that this is “virtuous and … Christian-like.” Catesby summons them to the king’s presence.

Lines 325–357:
Richard stays and considers how he has convinced Derby, Hastings, and Buckingham that the queen and her family are plotting against himself and Clarence. He is pleased with the effectiveness of his “piece of scripture,” saying that he uses “old ends stol’n forth of holy writ” to “clothe” his villainy, so that he can “seem a saint” when in reality he “play[s] the devil.” Once again we see opposing images of heaven and hell, and of clothing, suggesting Richard’s ability to disguise his true self. Two murderers enter and Richard gives them a warrant to be admitted to Clarence. Richard warns them to be “sudden in the execution” and not to let Clarence plead with them, as he is “well-spoken,” showing the play’s concern with the power of language.

Lines 1–97:
Clarence describes a dream to his keeper in vivid and poetic language, demonstrating that Richard was right: he is “well-spoken.” Clarence recounts how, in his dream, he had escaped and was sailing to Burgundy with Richard. As they stood on deck, looking back at England, Richard stumbled and knocked Clarence overboard. He describes the sights and sounds as he drowned, including “gold,” “pearls,” and “jewels” all “scattered in the bottom of the sea” “in dead men’s skulls,” a reminder of the link between death and the desire for wealth and power. He goes on to describe nightmarish visions of the afterlife and acknowledges his own guilt for past deeds before asking the keeper to sit by him “awhile” as he goes to sleep. As Clarence sleeps, Brackenbury, the Lieutenant of the Tower, arrives. He watches Clarence and considers how all men are the same, regardless of rank. The Murderers bring Brackenbury the warrant, ordering him to leave them. Brackenbury does so, observing that he will not “reason what is meant hereby, / Because I will be guiltless
from the meaning,” lines symptomatic of a recurrent exploration of guilt and innocence.

Lines 98–280:
In a darkly humorous exchange, the Murderers contemplate what they are about to do, weighing spiritual consequences against monetary reward. Clarence wakes and stalls them with powerful speeches, but they insist that they have been commanded to kill him by the king. Clarence asks them to go to Richard, but they reveal that Richard actually sent them. Clarence refuses to believe this, describing how Richard loves him and how he “hugged [him] in his arms, and swore, with sobs” to gain his “delivery,” a testament to Richard’s acting skills and ambiguity in language. Clarence shows his own powers of persuasion as the Second Murderer decides that he cannot go through with the deed. The First Murderer, however, stabs Clarence and takes his body to be drowned in a butt of malmsey wine. He returns and threatens to tell Richard how “slack” his companion was, but the Second Murderer says he can tell Richard and take the entire fee, as he repents.

The king expresses satisfaction that, although he is very ill, he has achieved peace among the quarreling factions and so his soul “shall part to heaven” in peace. Hastings and Rivers shake hands and Edward warns that they must mean it or God will “Confound” their “hidden falsehood,” emphasizing the recurring deceptions of the play but also suggesting a justice beyond the human court. Richard arrives and praises Edward for his “blessed labor” and begs to be reconciled in “friendly peace” with everyone. The queen asks her husband to pardon Clarence, but Richard accuses her of mocking him, saying, “Who knows not that the gentle duke is dead?” Edward, shocked, claims that he reversed the order to execute Clarence. Richard explains that the “countermand” was not delivered in time. Derby enters and kneels before Edward, asking that Edward will spare the life of his servant. Edward grows angry, bitter that he can “give pardon to a slave,” but could not do so for his own brother. He blames the assembled company for not pleading hard enough on
Clarence’s behalf and has to be helped away. Richard takes the opportunity to provoke dissent, observing to the remaining courtiers that “the guilty kindred of the queen” had obviously urged Edward to execute Clarence.

Lines 1–33:
Clarence’s children question the Duchess of York about the death of their father. Despite her denials, Clarence’s son tells her that “good uncle Gloucester” has told them that King Edward was responsible for their father’s death, “provoked to it by the queen.” He describes how Richard wept as he told him the news and asked the boy “to rely on him.” The duchess observes that Richard hides his “deep vice” “with a virtuous visor,” another image of clothing and concealment. Once more, it is a woman who appears to have insight into Richard’s true character: so far only Anne, Elizabeth, and the duchess have directly expressed their distrust.

Lines 34–100:
The queen arrives, clearly distressed, and announces that King Edward has died. The duchess sympathizes: she too has lost a husband. Sustaining the association between images of mirrors and the theme of identity, she adds that until now she had comfort in two of her sons, “two mirrors” of their father’s “princely semblance.” Now, however, she claims that she only has “but one false glass,” Richard. Clarence’s children declare that they cannot share in their aunt’s grief, as she “wept not” for their father, another example of events of the past reinforcing divisions in the present. Both of the women and the children then exclaim in grief over their losses. In contrast to these personal emotions, Rivers and Dorset focus on the political circumstances, urging Elizabeth to send for the young Prince Edward and “Let him be crowned.”