We will look closely at Henry IV, Part I, perhaps the greatest of all English history plays, seeing how Shakespeare transformed his story's sources in chronicle and legend into a triumph of brilliant plot construction and memorable characterisation. We will also consider how this great play yokes freewheeling historical fiction to thought-provoking exploration of real historical issues.
A usurper-king is in peril from the imminent rebellion of his powerful former allies; but meanwhile his son and heir, seemingly careless of the fact that the fate of the kingdom hangs in the balance, is absent from his father’s court, leading a profligate life with debauched and criminal companions. But is all as it seems? In the first place, will the prince reform his life in time to help his father save his throne? Secondly and more deeply, what suspicions will be raised regarding this superficially simple narrative of moral reformation – and will the high world of the nobility to which the prince is summoned prove any more ‘honourable’ than the lowly world of thieves which he must renounce?
Shakespeare creates this compelling story by combining two distinct narrative strands: on the one hand, the key political events of the reign of Henry IV as recorded in Holinshed’s Chronicles, and on the other, the popular legend that the king’s son (the future Henry V) led a riotous youth before finally reforming, a legend which had figured centrally in an earlier, anonymous play, The Famous Victories of Henry V. We will examine what Shakespeare takes from each source, the dramatic craftsmanship by which he modifies and combines the two stories, and the extraordinary new life he breathes into the hybrid tale, not least by populating it with some of the most memorable and ambivalent characters he had yet created, including the enigmatic Prince Hal, his rival the valiant but naive Hotspur, and (last but not least) the irrepressible ‘tutor of his riots’, Sir John Falstaff.
In looking at how Shakespeare constructs his play, we will gain insight not only into some of the means by which he creates enduringly entertaining drama, but also into how, in the process, he enriches and complicates at every turn our perspective on the story he retells, provoking deep questions by means of historical fiction about the meaning and interpretation of historical fact.
The course will involve extensive close reading of the set text, so students must bring a copy with them to every class, and should also become as familiar as possible with the play in advance. It is also strongly recommended that students read in advance the play’s sequel, Henry IV, Part II.
