who in your opinion is the true hero of Henry the fourth part 1

Who in your opinion is the true hero of the play? Explore the ways in which it is fair to say Hal is the true hero of the play.

In Henry IV debatably the main character of the play is Hal, the son of Henry IV. Hal is disliked by his father but earns back his right to the crown through the events of the play. Hotspur could also be viewed as the plays true hero; he is the leader of the rebellion and the enemy of the king. However my view is that Hal is the true hero of the play because he ultimately wins over Hotspur and corrects his flaws.

Traditionally a hero is defined as mighty, filled with positive attributes, but also flawed, examples of this derive from Greek mythology, men such as Achilles, who’s flaw was his heel. And Hercules who’s flaw was the love for his girlfriend. Both Hal and Hotspur are worthy of the label of the traditional hero. However because Hal recognises his flaws and conquers them, ‘so when this loose behaviour I throw off’, (Act 1 Scene 3, line196) he sporns a new, modern breed of heroic character. Hotspur is better suited to the traditional hero. This is why I believe that Hal is the true hero of the play, the audience also link success with heroism and this boosts Hal’s popularity.

To begin with Hal suffers from an abundant amount of criticism from his father, ‘see riot and dishonor stain the brow of my young Harry’, (Act 1 Scene 1, line 84) consequently the audience views him negatively. These criticisms are confirmed to be correct when in Act 1 Scene 2 Hal displays all of his negative qualities, asking ‘Where shall we take a purse tomorrow, Jack?’(Act 1 Scene 2 line 95). However because Shakespeare cleverly synthesises comedy into this scene, he disguises and plays down the extent of Hal’s crimes. The audience’s mind is more greatly influenced by the comedic aspects of Hal’s character. And consequently creates a positive bond with Hal.

Hal then uses a soliloquy to convince the audience that he will change. The soliloquy shows that Hal, unlike the traditional hero, recognises his flaws saying that, ‘my reformation, glitt’ring o’er my fault’ (Act 1 Scene 2 line 201). However after this speech we are still not completely convinced that Hal will change. Because he is a criminal, his promises seem invalid, however the audience feels an element of trust because Shakespeare portrays Hal as the exciting loveable rogue. Shakespeare uses the soliloquy as an opportunity to allow the audience an insight into Hal’s redemption plan. Hal claims that he is only elevating the severity of his crimes in order to make his comeback seem even more dramatic, ‘By how much better than my word I am’, (Act 1 Scene 2 line 198). Shakespeare’s plan is to contrast the characters of Hal and Hotspur, and then to exchange their attributes. Hotspur quickly reverts to childish behaviour whereas by comparison Hal becomes mighty and noble. Having won the favor of the audience he is positioned perfectly to rise into the plays hero.

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From the beginning of the play the audience perceive Hal as a villain, in Act 1 Scene 1, the king rains abuse upon Hal’s name. He wishes that Hal was not his son pleading that ‘it could be proved that some night-tripping fairy had exchanged in cradle-clothes our children where they lay’, (Act 1 Scene 1 line 85). This abuse fills the audiences expectations with bias opinions. When Hal appears he is displayed as exactly what his father claims. However the soliloquy shows Hal’s true thoughts, this shows the audience Hal’s real personality covered by the mischievous rogue exterior. Because Hal is given abuse by his father, this promise to redeem himself becomes more prominent because the audience is inclined not to believe him. However when Hal fulfills his promise and redeems his bad behaviour, the audience is shocked and forgives him for his crimes.

In Act 2 Scene 4, the audience observes Hal at the height of his criminal activity, deceiving his friends and stealing from them. However he continues to persuade the audience of his true intentions, to be ‘a lad of mettle, a good boy’ (Act 2 Scene 4 line 11). Hal has now recognised his flaws, this event is marked by the soliloquy, and he is now attempting to convince the audience that he is pure of heart. Hal and Falstaff now practice what Hal has to say to his father. They try to create a speech that will urge forgiveness. Falstaff ends pleading with ‘the king’ to not be banished from the princes company. Hal responds with a double vowel, ‘I do, I will’ (Act 2 Scene 4 line 463), this is a significant moment because, the power of Hal’s reply, emphasized by the double vowel suggest that he is going to change. This use of language shows Hal’s sheer determination to succeed; the audience can now see him for who he is, a determined, noble, charismatic young prince. Hal has now accepted that he has been wrong previously, but is very eager to restore his reputation, and become more suited to the job of the Prince of England.

Hal is not only the plays main character but he is the star of the subplot as well. The main story line shows the battle between the King’s forces and the forces of Hotspur’s rebellion. These two forces are both fighting to control England. However there is an underlining story that emerges throughout the play, this is the story of how Hal reconstructs his fiendish behaviour into a positive more noble character, one that will become a mighty king in years to come. The audience now has become familiar with Hal, he is the main character in both aspects of the play, and he is looked upon as the ‘good guy’, this means that when Hal makes a sincere promise ‘I do, I will’. The audience prefers to believe Hal, because subconsciously we want him to succeed. We want Hal to succeed because he has many good qualities and he can detect when to be serious and when to be humorous, he is the opposite of Hotspur in many ways and the audience admires him.

During the play Shakespeare switches from a scene involving Hotspur to a scene involving Hal. The two characters have a near equal balance of time with the audience, Shakespeare is creating the illusion that this is fair and that we have the free-will to decide which character we prefer. However Shakespeare uses comedy to attract the audience to Hal, and then he changes Hal, making him sincere and serious at the right time so that the audience has no choice but want Hal to succeed. Because generally success is linked with heroism, the audience wants Hal to be the true hero of the play.

Falstaff is a major influence in Hal’s life; he is arguably the cause of Hal’s criminal conscience. Shakespeare uses Falstaff as a contrast, in order to exemplify Hal’s heroic qualities. When Falstaff is around Hal often seems even more heroic. For example whilst Hal fights and defeats Hotspur, Falstaff pretends to be dead, only to resurrect and claim credit for Hotspur’s defeat, ‘I look to be either Earl or Duke, I can assure you’ (Act 5 Scene 4 line 139).

When Hal finally goes to apologise for his reckless behaviour, all of his previous promises are confirmed and the audience now believes fully in his character revival. The king first compares Hal to king Richard calling him common, like a ‘cuckoo is in June’ (Act 3 Scene 2 line 75). The king then says that ‘even as I was then is Percy now’ (Act 3 Scene 2 line 97), making a comparison between himself and Hotspur because they both cannot recognise their flaws. When the king finally accepts Hal, it is almost like he is recognising his flaws and forgiving him, the king now leads the country ‘with him my son’ (Act 3 Scene 2 line 171), they both cannot fail, as they have both admitted their flaws. They immediately begin stratagising, ‘You shall set forward’ (Act 3 Scene 2 line 173). This talk shows the difference between Hal and Hotspur, how when serious behaviour is vital Hal is able to present, but Hotspur is not. Before this scene the audience did not fully accept Hal’s promises, however because the king has forgiven him, he grows in our estimation, he is not viewed as a criminal anymore and therefore his promises can be accepted.

Hal now promises to ‘tear the reckoning from’ Hotspur’s ‘heart’ (Act 3 Scene 2 line 152). This promise would prevent the rebellion and save the Kingdom, if Hal was to fulfill it. The audience can now believe Hal will live up to his word because he has done exactly that previously, Hal makes failing sound inevitable using an exaggerated metaphor or a hyperbole. If he were to fail in killing Hotspur the pain would make him feel like he ‘died a hundred thousand deaths’ (Act 3 Scene 2 line 158). Hal now seems unstoppable; he has reached a climax of heroic behavior and is now ready to face Hotspur.

When Hal defeats Hotspur this is sufficient enough to prove to the audience, for any remaining sceptics to change their loyalty to Hal as the plays true hero. Hal has now lived up to expectations and he joins his father as the rightful heir to the throne. Hal has finally achieved full forgiveness, ‘myself and you, son Harry, will towards Wales’ (Act 5 Scene 5 line 39). The audience views Hal as being honourable as he tells the dead Hotspur to ‘take thy praise with thee to heaven’ (Act 5 Scene 4 line 98), this shows that he does not hate Hotspur for his bad qualities but admires him for his good ones. And because Hotspur was seen as such a mighty warrior, Hal is seen now as even mightier because he has beaten him and has been awarded with a heroic reputation.

Although Hal fits the role of the play’s hero, it could also be argued that Hotspur is the real hero of the play, in the opening scene the king praises the ‘gallant Hotspur’ (Act 1 Scene 1 line 52) portraying him to the audience as a mighty warrior. And because the king is Hotspur’s rival, this makes the praise sound even more correct, because even though the king despises Hotspur, he still has respect for him.

In Act 1 Scene 3 Hotspur meets with the king about Mortimer’s treachery and the prisoners. In this scene Hotspur is depicted as a stubborn fool. He cannot come to a suitable agreement with the king, so he immediately without thought commences a war. Hotspur voles to ‘revenge the jeering and disdained contempt of this proud king’ (Act 1 Scene 3 line 183), I believe that this statement is made to show how he is stubborn and unwilling to compromise. He does not see his flaws and so he can only suit the role of the traditional hero.

On the other hand, it could be argued that this quote chows how Hotspur’s ruthless behaviour makes him heroic, he has no concern for his own life and charges into battle to defend his beliefs, his only desire is justice and the rightful king.

During the play Shakespeare portrays Hotspur as the serious character, and so the audience predict Hotspur to be a strategic mastermind, this judgement is based upon the kings praise, although the same could be said of Glendower. So when the two meet the audience is expecting a strategically influenced debate. However the two just boast about whom is the greater fighter. Glendower even claims that ‘the Earth did shake when I was born’ (Act 3 Scene 1 line 19), this use of satirical comedy shows how Hotspur has changed role with Hal and is now taking on the plays comical aspects. This means that any readers that admired Hotspur for being a serious hard-working leader will convert their loyalties to Hal.

Towards the end of the play, the king offers Hotspur an exit from the rebellion, Hotspur knows he is going to lose and he continues despite of this, even though his own life is at risk. This could be considered as honourable, Hotspur sticks to his believes throughout, and will even sacrifice his own life for his views. However it could also be argued that this is a stubborn choice, Hotspur is unable to identify his flaws and this is the reason why he cannot be the plays true hero and the reason why he could not win the rebellion. His pride was his flaw and it eventually destroys him. However it could be concluded that Hotspur is the plays true hero as he sticks to his beliefs throughout but is destroyed by his flaws.

In conclusion I believe that Hal is the true hero of the play, he recognises and conquers his flaws, he defeats his enemies and he achieves forgiveness for his wrong doings. Hal fits the label of the new modern hero who overcomes their flaws.

Written by Jamie Skinner!