The archers of Agincourt
Schema: Quiz
We reviewed conflict, the struggle between the protagonist and the opposing force, and five types of conflict:
Person vs. Self (Internal conflict)
Person vs. Person (Interpersonal conflict)
Person vs. Society
Person vs. Nature
Person vs. Fate
The protagonist is the central character of the story (person, animal, thing) and the antagonist is in opposition.
We see a lot of internal conflict in modern work (remember modern for me goes back to Dante), and we see person vs. fate more often in ancient works of the polytheistic era. Person vs., Society is also a recent, popular conflict with text such as 1984, Animal Farm, and Brave New World. In Henry V, we see Henry in conflict with himself, especially over his legitimacy as king because of his father’s “compassing the crown!” (IV.I 287) There is also interpersonal conflict with Henry representing England while the Dauphin represents France.
In Act IV, we see yet another side of Henry, the reflective, thoughtful man, who would be king. Shakespeare beautifully develops Henry’s complex, contradictory character through his speech and action (indirect characterization). Remember that a soliloquy is a dramatic dialogue, when the character speaking to him or herself reveals their inner thoughts to the audience. Henry has two back to back soliloquies: one about the burden of kingship (probably directed toward Elizabeth I) and the other asking God not to exact punishment for Richard’s death on Henry and his troops.
The scene with Williams and Bates is a continuation of the God and Justification theme in the play. It highlights the issue, which climaxes and finally reveals Henry’s ultimate concern, his legitimacy in the eyes of God, with the final soliloquy.
So the scene is set for the Battle of Agincourt. Read the link about the battle as it will help you understand the next section of the play. Henry’s St. Crispin Speech is a classic. He will rally the troops, destroy the French, and move onto Act V.
We reviewed conflict, the struggle between the protagonist and the opposing force, and five types of conflict:
Person vs. Self (Internal conflict)
Person vs. Person (Interpersonal conflict)
Person vs. Society
Person vs. Nature
Person vs. Fate
The protagonist is the central character of the story (person, animal, thing) and the antagonist is in opposition.
We see a lot of internal conflict in modern work (remember modern for me goes back to Dante), and we see person vs. fate more often in ancient works of the polytheistic era. Person vs., Society is also a recent, popular conflict with text such as 1984, Animal Farm, and Brave New World. In Henry V, we see Henry in conflict with himself, especially over his legitimacy as king because of his father’s “compassing the crown!” (IV.I 287) There is also interpersonal conflict with Henry representing England while the Dauphin represents France.
In Act IV, we see yet another side of Henry, the reflective, thoughtful man, who would be king. Shakespeare beautifully develops Henry’s complex, contradictory character through his speech and action (indirect characterization). Remember that a soliloquy is a dramatic dialogue, when the character speaking to him or herself reveals their inner thoughts to the audience. Henry has two back to back soliloquies: one about the burden of kingship (probably directed toward Elizabeth I) and the other asking God not to exact punishment for Richard’s death on Henry and his troops.
The scene with Williams and Bates is a continuation of the God and Justification theme in the play. It highlights the issue, which climaxes and finally reveals Henry’s ultimate concern, his legitimacy in the eyes of God, with the final soliloquy.
So the scene is set for the Battle of Agincourt. Read the link about the battle as it will help you understand the next section of the play. Henry’s St. Crispin Speech is a classic. He will rally the troops, destroy the French, and move onto Act V.
The Agincourt cross over the graves of unnamed French deadHomework: read the Crispin speech, the Agincourt website, and be prepared for the quiz
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