William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare: Richard III Richard III. is a historical play written by William Shakespeare. It has been written in approximately 1591 and belongs to forst group of plays he wrote. This play is result of the defeat of King Richard at the battle of Bosworth field in 1485. The victor Henry Tudor – Henry VII. who belonged to the house of Lancaster and his marriege with the Princess Elizabeth of the York, brought the end of the Wars of Roses. This historical fact is demonstrated in the last act of Richard the Third, when The Lord Stanley, earl of Derby crowned Richmond´s head and he becomes King Henry VII., establisher the Tudor dynasty. With the dead of King Richard III. the dynasty of York died out. Historiographers still debate how monstrous Richard III. really was and in particular whether he really ordered the liquidation of the princess in the Tower. Out of these questions is mater of fact that it was very suitable for supporters of Tudors to depict him as a beast. And it was made for purpose of his rival look like an angel and national hero. The style of history play is characterised as a tragedy. The language is frequentely noble and highly rhetorical. The line of the story is divided into 5 acts. Almost all play is written in verse. Usage of prose is rarity. The combination of formal language and the sense of reflection in the events – action leading to reaction, bloody acts of violence to avenge and many others – places the play in the tradition of the Roman tragedian Seneca. The Seneca reflection is extremely taken in the role of Queen Margaret, the widow of King Henry VI., who had been very powerful during the Wars of Roses. In first act she officially imprecates characters like Rivers, Dorset, After all of the curses have become and each person dies, he realises that this is a mater. Narration: it is the third person narration. An author not even makes any explicit comments attributes of his characters, nor does he come into their inner thoughts and feelings. The main figures are: Richard III - feels sorry for himself: “I, that am curtailed of this fair proportion, cheated of feature by dissembling Nature, deformed, unfinished, sent before my time into this breathing world, scarce half made up...” As he is unhappy he hates everybody including his own brothers. He intrigues against people around him: “Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous, by drunken rophecies, libels, and dreams, to set my brother Clarence and the King in deadly hate the one against the other...” King Edward IV – he believed to Richard’s lies and realized the love of his brother,Clarence, only after Clarence’s death. Edward, Prince of Wales,

afterwards King Edward V – the young Prince shows himself to be clever behind his years and so after the meeting with Richard, the later says: “So wise so young, they say, do never live long.” George, Duke of Clarence – brother of King Edward IV and Richard III. He is well-spoken. He loves his brothers, but he is mistaken when he thinks that Richard loves him, too. When one of his murders told him, that they were sent by Richard he does not want to believe him: “O, no, he loves me and he holds me dear!”