'Henry V is a study in what it means to be king' to what extent do you agree with this statement?

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AS English Coursework-Henry V

‘Henry V is a study in what it means to be king’ to what extent do you agree with this statement?

Henry V is a Shakespearian play which discusses through its contents of the theme in what it actually means to be king. I agree with this statement as through the play it can be seen that Shakespeare has idolised Henry, all of his qualities are emphasized throughout the play and great significant impact is given to the readers from the qualities of the other characters in the play. Shakespeare somewhat uses these other characters to show how flawless and infallible of a king Henry makes. Shakespeare shows us this perfected kingship of Henry’s by using characters such as the Dauphin (son of the French king) to draw an immensely effective comparison showing the superiority of Henry’s reign in relation to the lacking charge of the Dauphin’s reign. This is done through their differed styles in speech, their actions, general human nature, and most importantly the way in which they each treat their troops.

When the play begins, King Henry is already praised upon and shown respect towards as the conversation progressing between the archbishop of Canterbury and Ely reveal some of Henry’s admirable qualities. In this conversation the audience are acknowledged of King Henry’s past life, of how much of a different person he was; it is told that Henry was somewhat of an adventurous and free soul, he is described as a gushing river full of outbursts ‘never came reformation in a flood, with such a heady currance scouring faults’. It is then notified that as soon as his father died Henry had gone through a dramatic change ‘the breath no sooner left his fathers body, but that wildness, mortified in him, seemed to die too’ through this sentence Shakespeare exemplifies that King Henry is a man who well understands his own responsibilities, which is a key factor in what it means to be King. A good King knows and appreciates his roles and responsibilities, someone who should be aware of when and how he should act. What makes this increasingly effective is that Henry was at first a mischievous youth, however was able to control himself at his own will and show the people of England his determination that he is worthy to be an excellent King. ‘Nor never hyra-headed wilfulness so soon did lose his seat, and all at once, as in this king’ Shakespeare illustrates that Henry is different from all the other Kings which came before him, by being able to shut off his own youth demonstrates his self-control and firmness.

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Shakespeare makes it clear to us that Henry takes his position as the King of England as no joke, even though once he was humorous and playful, Henry does not joke when it concerns the well being of his people. On the other hand Shakespeare uses the Dauphin to show the audience the brilliance of Henry’s reign. This is ironic in the sense that Henry was the one who was spontaneous in the past whereas now the Dolphin is the one with the greater sense of humour, through this it is shown that the Dolphin does not value his ...

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