Have decided to explore how Bolt uses the Common Man to emphasise the features of the major characters

The significance of the Common Man in ‘A Man For All Seasons.’

I have decided to explore how Bolt uses the Common Man to emphasise the features of the major characters and to illustrate the main themes of the play. I will also explore the role the common man plays in the structure of the play and his effect on the audience.

The Common Man is the only character who speaks directly to the audience, which I think is important as it means they can feel part of the play: there is interaction between the audience and actors. This communication may increase the enjoyment of the audience as they are more involved with the production and is different to watching a drama or film on television. As Bolt says in the preface, ‘The Common Man is intended to draw the audience into the play, not thrust them off it.’

The fact that he is the only character that speaks to the audience means he can introduce them to the characters. (Eg: when the audience first sees More, he says 'that’s Sir Thomas More') Although this is a very simple function it is important to eliminate any confusion the audience may have. This direct communication also means that he can make judgements on other characters. In the first scene as the steward, for example he observes that Rich will ‘come to nothing’ and that Thomas More ‘will be out of practice’ when someone asks him for something he wants to keep. These judgements provoke the audience to agree or disagree with him and therefore increase their involvement in the play. In this case, both the Common Man’s judgements are proved wrong: as the play progresses we learn that Rich eventually becomes Lord Chancellor and when Thomas More is asked to give up his sense of right and wrong, he is not out ‘of practice’ at keeping what he wants, as he chooses not to accept the King’s divorce and give up his

conscience. The Common Man’s comments on the characters may also raise moral issues amongst the audience. For example, the Common Man remarks on More’s ‘wilful indifference to realities.’ In one sense the audience may agree with this as they may feel More does not take a very realistic approach to government. This is illustrated in scene two, when More and Wosley are discussing the divorce, they may feel that Thomas’s ideal to ‘govern the country by prayer’ is not very practical.

Wosley: you’d like that wouldn’t you? To govern the country by prayer?’

More: ‘Yes I should’

However, others may disagree with the Common Man and think that More is realistic in judgement. For example, he ensures his family does not know any information they could be asked about in court, to make sure they stay out of danger. Therefore the common man is significant in the sense that his commentary has an effect on the audience: his judgements may cause the audience to ask themselves if Thomas More deserves the title ‘A Man For All Seasons?’

Because this play deals with events that actually occurred (eg: the reformation of the church) and people who actually lived, the common man plays a significant role in telling us the real events of the time, which relate to the plot. For example, in Act two scene 4, he tells us what happened to the characters in the play: Cromwell, Nolfolk and Cramner were all executed and Rich lived a long life, dying in bed. This historical speech is not out of place, however, as it connects to the plot: if Cromwell is executed for treason is the dishonesty he shows during the play worth it? These speeches are often presented in a shocking, which keep the audience interested. For example, when the Common Man tells us of Wosley’s execution, the red robe of the cardinal is

thrown into the spotlight. The Common Man then ‘roughly piles them into his basket.’ This rough treatment of the cardinal’s garments emphasises the harshness of society at the time that the play was set: Wosley was condemned of treason because he could not get a divorce for the king. If he had not died, he would have almost certainly been beheaded. These factual speeches allow the common man to make predictions, adding anticipation. For example in act 2 scene 2: ‘imprisonment without trail and even examination under torture were common practice.’ This foretells the problems that More may face by living in such a society. It also reminds the audience that we live in a world similar to this one described by the common man- he highlights the point that the world is still an unfair place and people are still imprisoned unfairly.

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When the Common Man is involved in the acting, I think nearly every role the common man plays is important in terms of theme and character. I will therefore only discuss the scenes that I think are particularly important. Bolt presents the Common Man as someone the audience can relate to, he is described as ‘late middle age. He wears from head to foot black tights which delineate his pot-bellied figure.’ His age, figure and the fact that Bolt has dressed him in black shows that he wants him to appear as an average person who has an appearance the audience can relate to. In contrast, the king is dressed in gold and the Cardinal in red, suggesting they have a higher social status than the Common Man does. As well as having a familiar appearance, the Common Man has a character that the audience can relate to: he doesn’t always do what is morally right and experiences recognisable feelings such as guilt and intimidation. He seems to be therefore, a symbol of human nature and his actions become typical of how most people act in their daily lives. I think this symbolism becomes more significant in the later scenes of the play, as the Common Man becomes more involved in the

downfall of Thomas More. However, this does not mean he doesn’t also play a significant role in the scenes he is involved in beginning of the play. I think the earlier scenes, involving the Common Man are an important way to show

the qualities of the characters. For example, The first role is plays is the Matthew the steward and his short conversation with Thomas More after tasting the wine tells about More’s character.

More: The wine please, Matthew? Is it good?

Steward: ‘Bless you sir! I don’t know!’

More: (mildly) ‘Bless you too Matthew.

Matthew’s dishonesty is quite humorous, as there is no need to lie: as a steward he would be expected to taste the wine. However, showing this dishonesty is important in the early scenes of the play because the if common man is supposed to represent ordinary ideas and reactions, dishonesty is a common characteristic the audience would share. More’s mild tone suggests that he knows that Matthew is lying but chooses not to oppose him, telling us More does not create unnecessary arguments. This judgement is reinforced later in the play when he chooses not to cause excessive conflict between him and William Roper and gives him a horse to go home. This quality could be emphasised in this scene by the staging. For example, Matthew could have a rim of wine around his mouth, from the glass, showing More that he is being dishonest. I thought that More could enter the room and catch Matthew drinking the wine without Matthew knowing, making it very clear to the audience that he knows Matthew is lying. However the detailed stage directions prevent this as they instruct that More enters after Matthew has drank the wine. I can see that these directions could be useful when performing this play as they tell the production team exactly how Bolt intended the play to be acted. However, I feel that in this scene particularly they are a disadvantage as if they are carried out, they prevent different ideas and interpretations of the play being performed.

I feel the Common Man has a particularly significant role in scene three, when he plays the boatman. His ‘ordinary’ characteristics, shown in scene one are reinforced here.

More: Take me home

Boatman: I expect you’ll make it worth my while.

The fact that he expects to be rewarded for his job is a common expectation amongst most people and contrasts with More’s character, who is rewarded with self-satisfaction, which we see later in the play when he doesn’t agree to the kings demands for ‘respect of his own soul.’

Just as in scene one, the common man’s conversation tells us about Thomas More, we find out about Cromwell’s character in the same way in this scene.

Cromwell: Boatman, have you a licence? You know that the fares are fixed.’

This attitude towards the boatman shows Cromwell lacks respect for others, particularly when they are of a lower social class: Cromwell is exercising his power over the boatman and seems to assume that because he is 'common’, he is breaking the law. In the early 1530s, when the play was set, it would have been illegal for boatmen to operate without a licence. The boatman’s comment that ‘whoever makes the regulations doesn’t row a boat’ seems to mirror Cromwell’s attitude: because he has authority, he does not have to sympathise with ‘ordinary people.’ The staging could emphasise this: Cromwell could point at the boatman to show his disrespect or say his lines in

an aggressive tone. Also, the fact that Bolt has instructed that he steps from behind the arch, shows that he is intended to be a sneaky character who is desperate for any information on More. This is backed up in the interrogation he imposes on More:

Cromwell: you have just left the Cardinal I think

More: Yes I have

Cromwell: you left him…in his laughing mood, I hope?

More: On the whole, I’d say, not. No, not laughing.

The language Cromwell uses emphasises his smarmy character: he implies he doesn’t know where More has been, when clearly he knows perfectly well as he expects More to tell him about his conversation with the cardinal.

Cromwell: I’m on my way to the Cardinal (he expects an answer)

This scene involving the boatman also shows that Cromwell changes his personality, depending on who he is with. Bolt makes this clear with the stage directions in this scene:

Cromwell: (turns to More. Exaggerated pleasure.) Why it’s Sir Thomas More!

In contrast, More treats the boatman in the same way he treats Cromwell- there are no indications of any changes in character.

The boatman’s language in this scene is especially significant to the major themes and plot:

‘People seem to think boats stay afloat on their own sir but they don’t, they cost money’.

I think this is a metaphor for the situations in More’s life. From the outside it may seem he lives a comfortable life just as it seems the boats stay afloat on their own. However, the play shows that More faces problems, which ordinary people did not always see. For example, in the previous scene, the audience would have witnessed the private conversation between More and Wosley, where they expressed conflicting opinions of the political situation of the time. In the1530s people were intent in ensuring the Tudors stayed in power as they had ended the wars of the roses and brought peace, this is Wosley’s argument for the divorce of king Henry and Catherine of Aragon. More , however comments that Anne Boleyn ‘is not his wife.’

The boatman also makes the comment that the river is ‘silting up’, but with a ‘deep channel’ in the middle. The ‘silting’ seems to represent the fact that at that time in England, things were not running smoothly and mirrors the major problem Thomas More faces: Catholic king henry wanted a divorce from his wife, who was too old to have children, to produce a male heir. However, the Pope would not allow the divorce, which Henry was intent on receiving. The deep channel could represent the fact that Thomas More is ‘getting out of his depth’ by opposing the divorce, predicting disastrous consequences. This image of deep water is repeated in scene six, when the common man bribes Chapuys and Cromwell: ‘The great thing’s not to get out of your depth.’

The boatman also talks of his wife, which also seems symbolic of the situations involved in the play:

Boatman: she’s losing her shape, sir, losing it fast

More: well, so we all are

Boatman: oh yes sir, it’s common

This conversation is ambiguous. In one sense, the wife ‘loosing her shape’ could be symbolic of people ‘loosing their consciences,’ which is shown in nearly all the characters in the play. In fact, in the final scenes of the play, More accuses Cromwell of not possessing a conscience. In another sense it could show the changing shape of politics at that time: historically the reformation of the church is one of the most extreme changes that England experienced. These significant language features that Bolt uses the Common Man to reveal, may not be noticed when being performed on a stage. In this sense a reader has an advantage over an audience as they can take their time re-reading certain scenes. Bolt comments on this in the preface, saying ‘certainly no-one noticed’ his frequent metaphors.

The Common Man is a significant contribution to the humour of the play and Bolt uses this humour to tell the audience more about character and theme. One example is in scene six, where dramatic irony is used while the Common Man is bribing Chapuys:

Chapuys: No man can serve two masters, steward.

Steward: no, indeed sir! I serve one. (He pulls to the front an enormous cross until then hanging at his back on a length of string- a caricature of the ebony cross worn by Chapuys.)

This would make the audience laugh as he is telling Chapuys he is religious when clearly he is making fun of him. This humour highlights the common man’s dishonesty and also tell us about Chapuys: he wears a large cross and appears to be religious when he actually is prepared to be dishonest and bribe people. The Common Man highlights this to the audience by ironically stating: ‘that’s a very religious man.’

In the scenes I have discussed so far, the Common Man shows universal qualities such as dishonesty and therefore seems to become a symbol of human nature: he acts in a way, which is not unusual for most people. In the later scenes he shows another familiar opinion many people share, that ordinary people are not morally important. This view becomes apparent in the common man in Act 2, scene 7, when as the innkeeper; he provides the premises for Cromwell and Rich’s conspiracies. Here, he recognises that he is doing wrong but tries to cover his guilt by saying ‘he cannot be expected to follow a man like Thomas More, can he?’ By asking ‘can he?’, he highlights the moral issue of whether we should all try to copy More’s attitude to morality and listen to our consciences. The name of the pub ‘The loyal subject’ is clearly ironic, as the innkeeper is staying loyal to Cromwell and Rich, even though he recognises it is wrong. The Common Man is letting the powerful get away with creating evil, which is what most people would do in his situation. However, as Act 2 develops, we realise that it is only because the common man does this that the powerful people, such as Cromwell have the opportunity to create evil. The common man does not speak out against Cromwell and Rich because he has the power to change anything. This judgement is reinforced again in the following scene, when More is forced to ask his steward to accept a wage cut and the steward decides to leave his job, instead. The steward to asks himself ‘what else could I have done?’ it is a major incident where the common man thinks he does not have moral worth. He begins the play by stating that ‘it is perverse to start a play made up with kings and cardinals’ with him. However we can see in this incident that he does have significance and a choice: he could have stayed in his job and he did not necessarily have to be a ‘loyal subject’ to Cromwell and Rich. If he had decided not to keep quiet about their conspiracies, Thomas More may not have been killed at the end of the play.

His moral value develops, throughout act 2 as he becomes more involved with the downfall of Thomas More and in act two scene 4 for example, the Common Man plays the jailer. He is obviously in much greater contact to More’s downfall than any of his other roles. However, even when playing this role, he still underestimates his importance: ‘it’s just a job’. However, by ‘just doing his job’ he is causing More’s death as he is allowing people like Cromwell to abuse their power. His conversation with More highlights this idea.

Jailer: ‘I am a plain and simple man and I just want to keep out of trouble.’

More: ‘O sweet Jesus, these plain and simple men!

More is obviously condemning people who do what they are told to do and do not question their own consciences. More’s tone of voice, here, could emphasise this - he could say these lines in a desperate way, as a plea to the audience to not be like the common man and simply agree to ‘do their jobs.’

As jailer, the Common Man also highlights the important idea, which is a common belief in us all:

‘It is better to be a live rat than a dead lion.’

He is illustrating the message that it is easier to follow what the authorities say, rather than get into trouble. AN Jefferes, author of the study guide of ‘A man for all seasons’ makes the worthwhile point that this quote from the Common Man is a mis-reading of the Bible passage, ‘better a live dog than a dead lion - showing how the common man deceives himself. I agree that this is significant, as self-deceit is a characteristic the audience can relate to so they can identify with the common man and it reinforce the idea that he is symbolic of their reactions. I also feel that this quote highlights the inner strength of the other characters. When More is saying goodbye to Alice, he

calls her ‘ a lion’- therefore she is an ‘alive lion’ which is superior to a ‘live rat.’ Alice shows she is strong like a lion as she accepts that More must die for his conscience, even if she does have to live her life without him.

The common man’s involvement in the death of More increases even further in the final scenes when he becomes a member of the jury. This is an

important scene in the sense that it shows how easily common men (humanity) accepts the decisions the people with authority make:

Cromwell: you’re the foreman of the jury

Common man: (gloomy) yes sir.

The gloomy tone of the common man highlights the fact that ordinary people don’t speak out against the powerful, even when they don’t agree with their opinions. The staging of this scene could highlight how difficult it is for people to do so. Cromwell could speak in an autocratic tone or make direct eye contact with the common man to intimidate him. An important device in this scene to reinforce this idea is the box full of costumes. The common man indicates to Cromwell that he has no costume and therefore can not take part in the acting. This illustrates the fact that many people have to be told what to do, instead of following their own consciences as Thomas More does. Another device used by Bolt in this scene is the sticks, which represent the members of the jury. The sticks support hats which represent the roles the common man has played so far in the play: steward, boatman, innkeeper and jailer. This reminds the audience that the jury is made up of common men, who are given the power to condemn Thomas More and highlights the overall message of the final roles the common man plays: for people with authority to create evil, all ordinary people have to do is nothing. In these final scenes, the

Common Man is given plenty of opportunities to protest against the killing of Thomas More but doesn’t because he doesn’t realise his own significance. He could have spoken out about Cromwell’s conspiracies, he could have refused to be the jury, he could have delivered an innocent verdict and yet he chooses not to. In one ending of ‘A man for all seasons’, the idea that evil is allowed to thrive is highlighted by the fact that Cromwell and Chapuys link hands and laugh at the end. Even though they were not friends throughout the play, their laughter here illustrates that the common man has allowed their

evil to flourish, making it easier for them to create it- (rather rueful laughter of men who know what the world is and how to be comfortable in it)

In the alternative ending, the Common Man ends the play by saying, ‘if we should bump into each other, recognise me.’ This quote is ironic, as it would be impossible to recognise him as he has played so many different roles. However, in most of these roles he has shown fundamental features such as dishonesty and has allowed evil to prosper. If the Common Man represents ‘what is common in us all’ then I think Bolt is trying to tell us we should recognise our own and other people’s moral weaknesses. This is why it is important that that the Common Man shows familiar characteristics during the first scenes of the play. The Common Man also states in this final scene that it isn’t difficult to keep alive, perhaps suggesting that staying alive isn’t worth the guilty consequences?

Overall, the Common Man is significant in terms of emphasising character and theme within the plot. His major role in the final scenes of the play is to show the audience that they are morally significant in their daily lives. He reminds the audience to stand up to people who have power and listen to their consciences, as they see the consequences of not doing so, after watching Cromwell and Chapyus succeed. It is ironic that the Common man begins the play by stating he is not significant as he plays a direct involvement in More’s death, along with the powerful people such as Cromwell. He mirrors the belief that Alice has: ‘Colds affect great men and common men alike,’ ordinary people are just as significant as the powerful.