Henry VIII and Pericles

Henry VIII

by William Shakespeare

★★★☆

Henry VIII is the final play in the histories series. Although it’s frequently challenged as being written solely by Shakespeare, I'm accepting it as part of the canon.  The histories begin, chronologically, with Richard II and take us all the way through the Wars of the Roses.

The plot covers the execution of Buckingham, the rise and fall of Cardinal Wolsey, the divorce of Henry VIII and Queen Katherine, his marriage to Anne Boleyn, the birth of Elizabeth, and more. The play itself is rarely produces and not well known, but  pieces of it will be familiar to anyone who has read Wolf Hall or The Other Boleyn Girl.

There's a lot crammed into this one, but a few of the characters truly shine. Your heart breaks for the neglected Katherine. She’s tossed aside by her husband of 20 years when someone younger catches his eye. She has some fantastic moments when she challenges Cardinal Wolsey.

“Y’ are meek and humble-mouth’d,

You sign your place and calling, in full seeming, with meekness and humility;

but your heart is cramm’d with arrogance, spleen, and pride.”

Buckingham is also a sympathetic character with some great speeches. Overall the play doesn't flow as well as many of his others. It's too scattered, too many moving pieces, but it's still got some beautiful language.

“Yet I am richer than my base accusers,

That never knew what truth meant.”

“Heat not a furnace for your foe so hot

That it do singe yourself.”

“Love thyself last: cherish those hearts that hate thee;

Corruption wins not more than honesty.

Still in thy right hand carry gentle peace,

To silence envious tongues. Be just, and fear not:

Let all the ends thou aim'st at be thy country's,

Thy God's, and truth's.”

Pericles, Prince of Tyre 

by William Shakespeare

★★★☆

In only a few minutes we’re in the midst of incest and attempted murder. There’s soap opera level drama from the start. There’s a storm at sea, shipwreck, a lost infant, lost wife, prostitutes, pirates, and so much more. Pericles escapes a dangerous situation, on the run for his life. He ends up in a new kingdom and falls in love with a princess there. In a plot straight out of The Tempest, Shakespeare has the princess’ father pretends to be against the pairing to encourage the two to fall even faster in love. There is a narrator who helps the reader navigate the many location and time changes in each act. Pericles’ lost wife plot is reminiscent of Winter’s Tale.

This is one of Shakespeare’s “romance” plays. Though the ending might be happy, the story is full of tragedy. Redemption doesn’t come until the characters are heartbroken by loss. The play is interesting, but it does feel like a pieced together effort that combines some of his better work. It was the very last of his plays that I read and I feel a huge sense of accomplishment that I've finally read ALL of his plays!

“Few love to hear the sins they love to act.”

“Tis time to fear when tyrants seem to kiss.”

Henry IV Part 1 and 2 and King John

Henry IV Part 1 and 2

By William Shakespeare

★★★★☆

Before he was urging on his troops with words like “band of brothers”, Henry V was just Hal. He liked to drink and carouse and ignore his father’s wishes. He was not yet the warrior king he would become. I loved watching him start to transform in this play. These plays are part of the eight that make up Shakespeare’s War of the Roses histories.

There are a few stand out characters including the clever and charismatic Hotspur (Henry Percy). Although he is technically our hero’s foe, this plot actually makes him a more sympathetic character than Hal. He fights for what he wants. He’s quick to anger, but he’s also willing to put himself in danger to protect what he loves. While Hal is leisurely screwing around in taverns, Hotspur is taking things seriously. 

Sir John Falstaff is another great one. He is the epitome of the classic fool. He is constantly looking for a new way to get out of work and cheat someone. He is the butt of Hal’s jokes and his drinking buddy, but nothing ever seems to faze the corpulent coward. He reminds me of Thénardier in Les Misérables

In Part 2 Hal finally decides to embrace his role as king he must choose a different life than the one he's been living. That includes distancing himself from the crowd he's grown so fond of.

“Presume not that I am the thing I was;

For God doth know, so shall the world perceive,

That I have turn'd away my former self;

So will I those that kept me company.”

There were moments in this play that felt much too familiar. They glorify the past while bemoaning their present situation.

“The commonwealth is sick of their own choice;

Their over-greedy love has surfeited.

An habitation giddy and unsure

Hath he that buildeth on the vulgar heart.”

“Past and to come seems best; things present, worst.”

BOTTOM LINE: I particularly loved part 1 of this pair of plays, but they are both excellent. They show that one person can rise above and choose a more noble life. They give hope for personal transformation while at the same time they highlight the sacrifices that come with power and leadership. Someone Shakespeare marries those lessons with battle scenes, bawdy comedy, and even quiet moments of romance in a way that only he seems able to do.

I would highly recommend watching the Hollow Crown series either first or in conjunction with reading the plays. They are beautifully done and helped bring the work alive for me.

Part 1 Quotes:

“But thought’s the slave of life, and life time’s fool;

And time, that takes survey of all the world,

Must have a stop. O, I could prophesy,

But that the earthy and cold hand of death

Lies on my tongue.”

“Youth, the more it is wasted, the sooner it wears.”

“O, while you live, tell truth, and shame the Devil!”

“The better part of valor, is discretion.”

Part 2 Quotes:

“Rumour is a pipe

Blown by surmises, jealousies, conjectures,

And of so easy and so plain a stop

That the blunt monster with uncounted heads,

The still-discordant wavering multitude,

Can play upon it.”

“O sleep, O gentle sleep, Nature's soft nurse, how have I frightened thee. That thou no more will weigh my eyelids down, And steep my senses in forgetfulness?”

“Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.”

“How quickly nature falls into revolt

When gold becomes her object!”

King John 

By William Shakespeare

★★★☆

King John's right to the throne is being challenged by the king of France. He believe's John's nephew, Arthur, should be the king. Conflict ensues and alliances shift as they struggle for power. 

King John was less memorable than some of the other histories, but it still held some powerful moments. There's one scene where a mother grieves for her child and no matter the context, it's a heartbreaker: 

“Grief fills the room up of my absent child, Lies in his bed, walks up and down with me... My life, my joy, my food, my all the world!”

Lady Constance was a melodramatic character that I would love to see portrayed on the stage. Like all of Shakespeare's plays, this one had beautiful lines, but overall it's not a new favorite. 

“Grow great by your example, and put on the dauntless spirit of resolution.

Away, and glister like the god of war

When he intendeth to become the field. 

Show boldness and aspiring confidence.”

“Mad world, mad kings, mad composition (agreement)!”

The Two Noble Kinsmen

The Two Noble Kinsmen

by William Shakespeare

★★★

As I work my way through the complete list ofShakespeare's plays, I'm stumbling upon many of his lesser-known works with little to no knowledge going into them. It's an interesting way to approach Shakespeare, because so many of the plays we read of his are ones we already familiar with before we ever reach the actual text. Shows like Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet are woven into the tapestry of pop culture in so many different ways that we learn the story even if we haven't read the book.

Unlike those shows, I had no previous knowledge of The Two Noble Kinsmen before I started it. In my head I kept confusing it with The Two Gentlemen of Verona, and there's good reason for that. Both plays take a pair of best friends and then pit them against each other for the love of a woman. I can't help but wonder if this ever happened to Shakespeare, because he seems to bring it up a lot. Did he have some friend who was kind of a jerk and kept going after whoever his buddy Bill had a crush on?

In The Two Noble Kinsmen we meet Palamon and Arcite. They are devoted friends… until they see Emilia. After that it’s every man for himself. Unfortunately another woman, the daughter of a jailer, falls for one of the two men, Palamon. So now she’s trapped in this horrible cycle too. In the end, one kinsman ends up with the girl and everyone is “happy”. It’s all tied up a bit too neatly to be believable.

It’s also one of Shakespeare’s more frustrating plays when it comes to the women. No one seems to care what Emilia or the jailer’s daughter actually wants. I felt like the women in The Two Gentlemen of Verona, particularly Silvia, are much stronger characters.

BOTTOM LINE: It’s Shakespeare’s final play, but not his strongest. A tidy ending and weak female characters don’t leave a great lasting impression, but it still holds some beautiful language from Shakespeare. 

“This world's a city full of straying streets, and death's the market-place where each one meets.”

The Shakespeare Project

  

For years I've slowly been working my way through the complete works of William Shakespeare. In addition to reading his plays, my goal is to see a live performance and a film version (when available) of each one. I'm going to keep track of what I've seen in this post and I'll link to reviews of the plays here as well. If you want to join me please do and feel free to grab the button above!

COMEDIES
The Comedy of Errors: Book / Play / Movie
The Taming of the Shrew: Book / Play (2) / Movie (2 and 3)
The Two Gentlemen of Verona: Book / Play (2) / Movie
Love's Labour's Lost: Book / Play / Movie
A Midsummer Night's Dream: Book / Play (2) / Movie (2)
The Merchant of Venice: Book / Play / Movie
The Merry Wives of Windsor: Book / Play  2/ Movie
Much Ado about Nothing: Book / Play / Movie (2 and 3)
As You Like It: Book / Play  2/ Movie
Twelfth Night: Book / Play (2, 3, and 4) / Movie 2
The History of Troilus and Cressida: Book / Play / Movie
All's Well That Ends Well: Book / Play / Movie
Measure for Measure: Book / Play / Movie

HISTORIES
Richard II: Book / Play (2)/ Movie
Henry IV, Part I: Book / Play / Movie (2)
Henry IV, Part II: Book / Play / Movie
Henry V: Book / Play (2) / Movie (2)
Henry VI, Part I: Book / Play / Movie
Henry VI, Part II: Book / Play / Movie
Henry VI, Part III: Book / Play / Movie
Richard III: Book / Play / Movie
King John: Book / Play / Movie
Henry VIII: Book / Play / Movie

TRAGEDIES
Titus Andronicus: Book / Play / Movie
Romeo and Juliet: Book / Play (2, 3 and 4) / Movie (2)
Julius Caesar: Book / Play (2) / Movie
Hamlet: Book / Play (2 and 3) / Movie (2, 3, 4, and 5)
Othello: Book / Play 2/ Movie
King Lear: Book / Play / Movie 2
Macbeth: Book / Play (2) / Movie
Antony and Cleopatra: Book / Play / Movie
Coriolanus: Book / Play (2) / Movie 2
Timon of Athens: Book / Play / Movie

ROMANCES
Pericles, Prince of Tyre: Book / Play / Movie (2)
Cymbeline: Book / Play / Movie
The Winter's Tale: Book / Play / Movie
The Tempest: Book / Play (2 and 3) / Movie
The Two Noble Kinsmen: Book / Play / Movie

*I've listed the plays in the order and category that they are listed in the Riverside Shakespeare. I only cross completely through the title when I've completed all three categories.

Photo by moi.