Falstaff

John Falstaff was the character that interested me the most while reading Henry the Fourth. There is just something about the character that appeals to people.
Falstaff is the exact opposite of the type of character you would think a prince should be associating with. He is a fat, sloppy, drunk. He is a thief and a liar, who will do whatever he can to make an extra buck. Normally Shakespeare would encourage the crowd to hate a character like this, but you just can't help but love him. He is the embodiment of Dionysus. I just want to sit in a tavern buying him drinks and listen to his puns. It is clear why Hal would choose him to be one of his closest associates. He demonstrates to Hal a different type of life then he would ever have seen with other members of the court.
Falstaff also seems to play a father figure to Hal. He is his partner in crime while dwelling in the taverns, and even plays Hal while Hal pretends to be his father at the end of act. 2. Here Hal seems to act out a conversation he has had with his father a number of times. Hal lists a number of reasons why he should not be associated with Falstaff. He says, "Wherein is he good, but to taste sack and drink? Wherein neat and cleanly, but to carve a capon and eat it? Wherein cunning, but in craft? Wherein crafty, but in villainy? Wherein villainous, but in all things? Wherein worthy, but in nothing?" (act. 2 scene line 414). Hal taunts Falstaff by stating all his faults, but also seems to reveal his fathers true feelings about the people his son associates himself with. Falstaff defends himself from these accusations, flipping the accusations by associating them with different sorts of people and biblical events. This interaction demonstrates Falstaff's wit, but also what Hal has gained from spending time with people form the lower class. It demonstrates that Hal has a sense of humor, and how he relied upon his past to make him a better ruler. As we talked about in class, Shakespeare wanted to use this plan to show how Hal's redemption from a tavern dweller to a great king, but also how he used his experience from his past to be a better king.