5. Subject

Subject

Shakespeare wrote His play on a popular subject too so it would be purchased by the theater and be performed. The three plays are considered to be Tudor propaganda. The house of Tudor was a European royal house that allied themselves with the house of Lancaster. After the fall of the house of Lancaster the Tudor family rose to power because of their discontented supporters of the House of York.  Elizabeth I was the queen of England in 1590 and she was also the last monarch in the house of Tudor. (Encyclopedia Britannica, house of Tudor) In the plays it shows the danger of civil wars and celebrates the leaders within the Tudor dynasty.  The plays show the dangers of civil war on many different levels. We can see many different levels of showing civil war in a bad light.  One level is showing how Prince Harry’s rebellion to his father is contrary to how royalty should act. When Prince Hal finally comes to power he has to imprison all the thieves and rouges because they think Prince Hal is the King of thieves which is not becoming of a King.

                Another level of the many levels of Henry IV Tudor propaganda is that in the play King Henry’s plans to lead a crusade is interrupted by the Percy’s. A crusade is a military expedition undertaken by Christians. Crusades were thought to be undertaken to build up the power of God and disrupt the power of Satin. When the Percy’s interrupt Henry IV crusade it was showing that they were in direct contrast to the will of God because they interrupted a leader of Gods war to disrupt satin. By showing Henry IV as the leader of the crusade, the play is showing that Henry IV is consecrated by God thus one way Shakespeare celebrates the house of Tudor leadership.

                The last level that will be shown is that when Percy tries to overthrow England he does it for his own self interests of gaining power for himself and he allies himself with the enemies of England to overthrow King Henry IV.  At the end of Henry IV part 1we see that King Henry has to waste time, money, and the life of the English in order to finally beat the rebellion back.

                Shakespeare included other subjects in His plays that appealed to diverse audiences. One example is that in the plays Henry IV, Prince Hal is depicted as less intelligent than his friend Falstaff. Falstaff represents lower class. By Shakespeare depicting Prince Hal as less intelligent than Falstaff, He is saying the middle class are brighter than Kings. Prince Hal later becomes a great King in part two of Henry IV plays but it is in part because of his lower class education from the influence they had on him because of his experience with them. By showing that Prince Hal becomes a great King at the experience of the lower class, Shakespeare would appeal to the lower class who would attend the play.    

                In Henry IV part one Shakespeare uses subject to appeal to his diverse audiences with the contrasts of the different cultures. He discusses and analyzes accents, folk traditions, stereotypes, and geographies through the Welsh and Scottish characters such as Glyndwr and Douglas.

                In Henry IV part 1, King Henry attained his place as King as a result of rebellion. However He is troubled because later in life he sees his act of rebellion as dishonorable.   

                Perhaps the most evident evidence of subject that appeals to his audience is the idea of land in England. England is a small island and land is a symbol for honor, power, and always is an issue that comes up, especially during the time the plays were written in 1590. When the plays were written the monarchy in England had recently enacted a law that there was to be no more public land for grassing animals (Bevington). Many farmers in England couldn’t afford land for their animals to graze on so they needed that public land; the new law negatively affected how the lower class was to support their families. This change upset many of the lower class in England. In the plays Shakespeare identifies many ideas of the view of honor and end the end honor is simply defined less by guidelines but more by personal values and goals. Hotspur feels honor has to do with glory on the battlefield and with defending ones reputation. King Henry's view of honor is the well-being of the nation and retaining his title as King.