"All Things are ready if our minds be so" Explore the dramatic techniques used by Henry V to inspire his men before the battle of Agincourt.

Authors Avatar

Matthew Warren                   GCSE English

“All Things are ready if our minds be so”

Explore the dramatic techniques used by Henry V to inspire his men before the battle of Agincourt.

William Shakespeare’s play “Henry V” is set in 1415, when Henry becomes King Henry V of England.  As a young man Henry enjoyed drinking and the company of women.  When he became King Henry changed, he wanted to be taken seriously and to be treated like an adult, so he gave up drinking.

Henry was angry and insulted by a birthday present of a box of tennis balls from the King of France, Henry thought the King of France was suggesting that he was still a boy and not a man capable of ruling England.  To prove he was a man Henry ordered the invasion of France.

Henry’s first battle was the Siege of Horfieur Henry V where he inspired his troops with a speech before leading them into battle. Henry said they had to behave like tigers and show no fear only strength.

The next battle was the Battle of Agincourt, Henry’s troops were exhausted after their last battle and were out numbered five to one.  But Henry tries to inspire them again for the last time he starts off talking dramatically about death, “if we are marked to die, we are enough to do our country loss.” I think he is saying that if the English are meant to lose the battle then it is better that they die, than thousands more if they wait for help. Then he goes on to say, “if to live, the fewer men, the greater the share of honour” if they fight there is a chance that only a few will survive and these few men will have gained honour.

Join now!

After this he stops talking about death and attempts to be more positive and tries to get his troops off the subject of death and to think about the honour that will achieve. Henry attempts to make them closer and tries to unite them as a family, by saying, “I who doth feed upon my cost” and “It yearns me not if mean my garments wear” which means that he does not mind paying for them all to eat and he also is not bothered if they wear his clothes.

Henry also made it clear that any one ...

This is a preview of the whole essay