Close Reading Essay On Richard II, Shakespeare

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Close Reading Essay On Richard II, Shakespeare
Act I, Scene II
The main issue with Richard II is an inter-related focus on kingship, and as to whether Richard is disposed by Bolingbroke, or he disposes himself. It revolves around the characterization of these two principle characters - Richard and Bolingbroke, examining the underlying conflict between the legal and divine right to rule, as well as the effectiveness of the ruler. Richard is portrayed as the legal and rightful ruler of the land, who had been ordained by God, however, he is also shown to have a soft underbelly, and ineffective who focuses more on the cosmetics, rather than the responsibilities. Bolingbroke action could be justified that it was the morally right thing to do. Scene III of this first act, begins as a highly formal and ritualistic display in the chivalric tradition. At this scene, the accused party and their accusers are announced; they spell out their case, make their farewells and then prepare to fight it out. It all ends with the compelling goodbye between a father and a son; Bolingbroke and Gaunt, in a separation that would take six years, and considering the age of Gaunt, it could as well be the last time in their lives (Shakespeare, 79). The scene progresses from a state affair in a public ceremony to a personal and intimate narrative of familial relationships. This was also a familiar pattern as displayed in scene I and II. In this scene, it is repeated with a continuous emphasis on the principals in the drama. The two men here are Bolingbroke and Mowbray who accuse each other of being traitor to the king in front of King Richard.
The themes in Richard II: language, symbolism and image are used to bring out a rich and complex meaning. Some critics have contended that these elements are used to deliberately reflect the theme of the fall of Richard, and the corresponding rise to the throne of Bolingbroke. Words and images that denote that sense of rising and falling have been consistently used throughout the whole play, in word pairs like "ascend" and "descend", "sky" and "earth", "high" and "low". The same context of theme has been used this time in images like ladders, scales, buckets ill a well, and one rising and one falling. The other set of images that has been used heavily relates to the elements of nature: fire, earth, water, and air. The initial reference of Richard is: as the sun-king, with fire, and Bolingbroke with water, as a flood, this was until the fortunes change (Shakespeare, 85). There is a shift in the elementary imagery, where power is transferred from Richard to Bolingbroke.
Imagery is also used as some critics would argue, in relation to vegetation and growth signifying the passage of power from an old, sterile ruler King Richard, to a young and fertile Bolingbroke. There are also biblical imageries as well as parallels suggesting the fall of humanity as played out in the characters of these t...