His most recent, captivating speech occurs at the end of Act III scene ii, where he is expressing his feelings of death to Aumerle. It states, "For God's sake, let us sit upon the ground,/ And tell sad stories of the death of kings -/ How some have been deposed, some slain in war,/ Some haunted by the ghosts they have disposed,/ Some poisoned by their wives, some sleeping killed,/ All murdered" (ln. 151-156). His sorrow is articulated very poetically, and it makes me wonder why he makes some horrible decisions yet can recollect on his mistakes in a profound way.
Perhaps is it simply to show what truly makes a good person and a good king. Simple articulation doesn't equate to good kingship. It could also be a critique on kings by Shakespeare, the opinion that politicians and kings speak poetically to create a facade; under all these flowery language lies dimwitted decision making and ill-favored fortunes. I'm assuming that this trend continues through the end of the play, and the two concluding acts may serve as more evidence for this particular aspect of the play.
3 comments:
I think what you're saying here relates back to the old saying, "Actions speak louder than words." I definitely get the same sense from these kinds of speeches that Richard keeps giving. It's almost as if he's trying to make up for the fact that he is such a bad king by talking about the greatness and divine right of kings, but it seems like he's just enhancing the fact that he is a bad ruler rather than supporting himself in doing so.
This is a great insight, Pete, as the characters in Shakespeare who speak well always draw our attention. And yes, I agree that we can be attracted to (seduced by?) language. In thinking about why one might feel sympathetic toward Richard, this is one way of understanding it. Bolingbroke never speaks so well in this play.
I like how you point out the irony that Shakespeare creates by making Richard II such an eloquent speaker. I believe this is a way to show that had Richard II had better guidance from his advisors, he might have grown up to be a better ruler. Something else that is curious is also the fact that Bolingbroke is no where near as well spoken as Richard II is, which can be a sign of the fact that he may not be the ruler the country needs.
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