Riccardo II Shakespeare riassunto atto per atto, Sintesi del corso di Letteratura Inglese

Scarica Riccardo II Shakespeare riassunto atto per atto e più Sintesi del corso in PDF di Letteratura Inglese solo su Docsity! RICHARD II ACT I SCENE I: Richard II is seated on his throne preparing to judge two noblemen, Henry Bolingbroke and Mowbray, accusing each other of treason. Richard orders both men to be brought before the throne. They hurl accusations at each other, each man throws down his gage, which is a challenge to a duel. Richard tries to re-establish order by asking Bolingbroke to tell him the exact charges of treason, AND he says he’s impartial. Bolingbroke accuses Mowbray of stealing money which was designated for army purposes. He accuses Mowbray of killing the Duke of Gloucester, one of Richard's uncles. Mowbray tells Richard that the money was his because it paid off a loan he had previously made to the king. Mowbray admits to having once plotted against Richard, but claims to regret it. John of Gaunt pleads with Bolingbroke to give up the challenge to a duel, and Richard tries to make Mowbray listen to him, but in vain. Richard is forced to allow them a duel in the ancient medieval manner. ACT I SCENE II John of Gaunt laments the fact that his son is starting a new quarrel over the Duke of Gloucester's death. The Duchess of Gloucester does not agree with his sentiments, saying that her husband's death should be revenged. Gaunt informs her that he must leave for Coventry where the fight will take place, but that she should pray to God for her revenge. Tension between individual and divine order ACT I SCENE III Bolingbroke, before the fight begins, asks if he may have permission to kiss Richard's ring. Richard instead chooses to break with the usual ceremony, saying, "We will descend and fold him in our arms". King Richard allows his warder, the staff that the king traditionally carries, to fall. Just as the trumpet sounds, Richard decides that he would prefer to banish the two. Mowbray is forever banned from England, and Bolingbroke receives a banishment of ten years. Mowbray departs in exile. Richard, seeing how sad John of Gaunt appears over the banishment of his son, reduces the time to only six years. Richard tries to reassure Gaunt, that now regrets his decision. Gaunt notices that Bolingbroke refuses to speak to anyone and tries to cheer him up. ACT I SCENE IV Richard asks Aumerle how Bolingbroke reacted after the sentencing. Richard tells the assembled men that Bolingbroke was becoming dangerous because of his popularity among the common people. "Observed his courtship to the common people, / How he did seem to dive into their hearts" (1.4.23-24). Now that Bolingbroke is gone, Richard starts to prepare for a war with Ireland, which is in revolt. He makes the decision to go to Ireland himself, and tries to get money for the war. Richard is informed that John of Gaunt has fallen ill. Richard expresses his will to confiscate Gaunt's estate. Analysis One of the great ironies of Richard II is that Richard is unable to arbitrate the dispute since he is himself guilty of the crime. The Duke of Gloucester had been entrusted to Mowbray, but it is likely that Richard ordered Mowbray to kill the duke. The opening scene serves as a direct challenge to Richard's power, a challenge which will build throughout the play. Mowbray and Bolingbroke become so impassioned that Richard orders them, "Wrath kindled gentlemen, be ruled by me" (1.1.152). He then commands the two men to forget the entire affair and to return home. They, however, refuse to be ruled by Richard. The result is the trial by combat, as well as the view of Richard as being an impotent king. Richard sees this quite clearly himself, saying "We were not born to sue, but to command; / Which since we cannot do..." The use of language: Richard controls language, but has no authority, whereas Bolingbroke rejects language and relies on material possessions to win his wars. Language quickly is seen as something which belongs to ceremony, but not necessarily to rule. Thus Mowbray, when banished, says "The language I have learnt these forty years, / My native English, now I must forgo, / And now my tongue's use is to me no more". This represents the fact that without language Mowbray is unable to rule. Bolingbroke harbours no such illusions, though, since he rejects the arbitrariness of language and ceremony. When Richard dismisses four year of his banishment, he comments, "How long a time lies in one little word! / End in a word: such is the breath of kings" (1.3.206-208). Bolingbroke's preference for material control rather than language is offered in stark contrast to not only Richard and Mowbray, but also to his father. Bolingbroke represents the newer model of monarchy, (words rules not sufficient to rule). Richard II is in many ways a tragedy, and follows the traditional pattern of a hero who will fall. Thus throughout the play we are given images of Richard descending from his throne. This is first brought out in 1.3, where Richard tells Bolingbroke that, "We will descend and fold him in our arms" (1.3.54). The act of descending for Bolingbroke is foreshadowing the actual plot, since later in the play Richard will be forced to descend the throne for Bolingbroke, who will ascend it. Bolingbroke, instead:*courtship to the common people, reverence towards slaves; smiled at craftsmen, the Machiavellian qualities of the Prince. “craft, craft” he’s fake. ACT II ACT II SCENE I: JOHN OF GAUNT’S SPEECH about England John of Gaunt, close to dying, is speaking with the Duke of York. He wishes that Richard would arrive because he wants to advise Richard on becoming a better king. York informs Gaunt that it is unlikely Richard will ever listen to him, since the king has surrounded himself with flatterers, listens to the fashion…. Gaunt predicts that Richard's, "rash, fierce blaze of riot cannot last" (2.1.33). In his speech (re-styled by Shakespeare from the original chronicle) he speaks of the glorious past he has seen England live through, with emphasis on England’s old power “this throne, this isle, this stone in the silver sea… this is now leashed out, now bound with SHAME”. Richard asks Gaunt how he is feeling. Gaunt lectures him on how Richard is destroying England with his mismanagement (flatteners, your grandfather would be ashamed). Richard tells Gaunt that if he were not a sick old man he would be dead. Gaunt dies, and Richard orders his men to prepare to seize the estate left behind as a means of paying for the war in Ireland. York tells Richard that if he ignores the hereditary rights of the nobles then he will make a great deal of enemies. Richard ignores this. Bolingbroke is sailing to the northern shore with an entire army, as well as the support of many of the nobles. ACT II SCENE II The Queen is upset that Richard has been forced to go to Ireland, and misses his presence. News that Bolingbroke has landed in the north. York, left behind to manage the kingdom in Richard's absence, arrives dressed in battle garments. He is so old that he is not sure he can defend the throne. York, completely distraught by so many problems at once, tries to muster an army with the few forces he has at his disposal. Green and Bushy decide to run away to Bristol Castle and seek refuge there, for they know that they will be killed if captured by Bolingbroke. ACT II SCENE III Northumberland has joined Bolingbroke, who is leading his army towards Berkeley where several other nobles have gathered. Bolingbroke instead claims the name Lancaster, which is the title Richard stole from him. Berkeley informs him that the Duke of York has arrived to speak with him. York chastises Bolingbroke for illegally entering England, Bolingbroke claims that he has only returned in order to reclaim his hereditary lands of Lancaster, which he has a right to do. The other nobles concur and support him against York's arguments and accusations of treason. York chooses to remain a neutral person. ACT II SCENE IV The Earl of Salisbury pleads with a Welsh captain to remain with his army rather than return to Wales. The men are waiting for the arrival of Richard's army so that they can attack Ireland together. The captain tells Salisbury that there have been omens indicating that the king will soon fall or die, and that he is therefore not needed anymore. “these signs forerun the death of fall of kings”. Salisbury tries to convince the captain to remain, but finally gives up and remarks that for Richard, "Thy sun sets weeping in the lonely west" (2.4.21). The sun represents the emblem of the King of England, and thus this is a direct allusion to the fact that Richard will presently lose the throne. Analysis The issue of hereditary rights. In Richard's absence, York alludes to the fact that he represents the king, which is intended to be enough to demand loyalty from Bolingbroke. This relates to the theme of "the king is dead, long live the king," the political aspect of the king rather than the physical. Shakespeare uses this phrase not with Richard, but with Bolingbroke. After Gaunt's death, Northumberland, "Well, lords, the Duke of Lancaster is dead." Ross, "And living too, for now his son is Duke" (Bolingbroke will become king.) Bolingbroke gradually becomes more eloquent as the play progresses, a necessary attribute if he is to become king. Bolingbroke has no pretensions that a name, even one given by God, is sufficient allow a man to rule. Instead, he believes in using materials and men to defend his name. Thus Bolingbroke denies his title of Hereford and instead demands to be called Lancaster in Act Two. It is this use of a name that Richard completely fails to understand. The noblemen cannot allow Richard to confiscate Gaunt's property, because it is the property which gives the name. Thus for Richard, it is God who grants his title, but for Bolingbroke it is his property. ACT III ACT III SCENE I Act Three, Scene One *Bolingbroke’s speech Bolingbroke succeeds in capturing Green and Bushy at Bristol Castle. He informs the men that they are traitors because of the way they misled the king and divided the King from the Queen. His speech is clear and straight- forward, because he wants people to know his reasons (his true aim is becoming king, though). They are both sentenced to death.