Falstaff's Influence on Prince Hal in I Henry IV
In Shakespearean histories, there is always one individual who
influences the major character and considerably advances the plot. In I Henry
IV by William Shakespeare, Falstaff is such a character. Sir John Falstaff is
perhaps the most complex comic character ever invented. He carries a dignified
presence in the mind's eye; and in him, we recognize our internal admiration
and jealousy of the rebellious dual personality that we all secretly wish for.
The multi-faceted Falstaff, in comic revolt against law and order, in his role
as father figure to Prince Hal, and ultimately, in his natural ability to
discern and adapt to any situation, emerges as the most complex and paradoxical
character in drama.
Frequently, in literature, the sun represents royalty, or in this case
the king, who strives to uphold law and order. Rhetorically, the moon,
symbolizes instability, not only because it does not remain the same size to
one's eyes as time passes, but because it reigns the ebb and flow of the tides.
Therefore, as a knight guided by moonlight, Falstaff is a dissenter against law
and order. This conclusion finds support in his witty tautologies and epithets.
Falstaff is invariably aware that Hal will one day become king, and when that
happens, robbers will be honored in England by "Let[ting] us be indulgence
Diana's foresters, gentlemen of the shade, monions of the moon; and let[ting]
men say we be men of good government, being governed as the sea is, by our novle
and chaste mistress the moon, under whose countenance we steal" (I, ii, 25-30).
Falstaff's final dismissal of law and order culminates with a comic plea to the
prince, urging him to have nothing to do with "old father antic the law? Do not
thou, when thou art King, hang a thief" (I, ii, 62-63). We see a similar
epithet in the next act, "send him packing" (II, iv, 301), in which Falstaff
again denounces responsibility, law, and order. Despite his lack of care for
order and responsibility, the rebel dormant in readers applauds Falstaff's
defiance of the establishment of his defense. Falstaff seems to appeal to the
average reader, for he relates to them, just as a twentieth-century American
The Cinderella Man accurately portrays James J. Braddock’s family life. During the Great Depression, Braddock underwent many struggles including feeding his family. The film notes Braddock’s care and concern for his children influencing him to give them his food (The Man 1). Braddock’s publicized self-sacrificing nature awes audiences at his genuine character. The Cinderella Man also correctly shows Mae Braddock’s participation, or lack thereof, in her husbands boxing career. The film correctly demonstrates Mae’s fear for her husband’s well-being influences her absence from Braddock’s boxing matches (Historical Accuracies 2). Mae’s support and concern for her husband is accurately portrayed throughout the film. Braddock’s family values were accurately portrayed throughout the film. He put his family first by sacrificing meals, working, and supporting them. The film accurately portrayed Braddock’s family values and emphasized how family should come first. The Cinderella Man demonstrates Braddock’s family values throu...
insist on our right of and capacity for being self-governing individuals. But we find ourselves again under the rule of a king - an authority exterior to the self. This time, however, we cannot as easily identify the king and declare our independence." Despite
“This, by his voice, should be a Montague. Fetch me my rapier, boy. What dares the slave come hither, cover’d with an antic face, To fleer and scorn at our solemnity? Now, by the stock and honour of my kin, To strike him dead I hold it not a sin.” (Shakespeare, page 54).
rebellion within the tavern setting as he becomes an adult with the political prowess to
...hey were not deliberately included but included by the definition of men. It also states that a government is formed to promote the life, liberty, and happiness of the people and when so stopped the people may replace it. Some trace this idea back to John Locke's Second treatise on Government.
A longstanding debate in human history is what to do with power and what is the best way to rule. Who should have power, how should one rule, and what its purpose should government serve have always been questions at the fore in civilization, and more than once have sparked controversy and conflict. The essential elements of rule have placed the human need for order and structure against the human desire for freedom, and compromising between the two has never been easy. It is a question that is still considered and argued to this day. However, the argument has not rested solely with military powers or politicians, but philosophers as well. Two prominent voices in this debate are Plato and Machiavelli, both of whom had very different ideas of government's role in the lives of its people. For Plato, the essential service of government is to allow its citizens to live in their proper places and to do the things that they are best at. In short, Plato's government reinforces the need for order while giving the illusion of freedom. On the other hand, Machiavelli proposes that government's primary concern is to remain intact, thereby preserving stability for the people who live under it. The feature that both philosophers share is that they attempt to compromise between stability and freedom, and in the process admit that neither can be totally had.
The first verse paragraph of Coleridge's "Kubla Khan" is the most ornately patterned part of the poem. Coleridge gives us end-rhymes that are repetitive and yet slightly "off": "Khan" is not an exact match with "man" or "ran." End-rhymes will be carried throughout the poem, but within these lines, we discover similar sounds, the "Xan-" and "Khan," again; the "Xan-" and "a" sound of "Alph" get picked up again in "sacred" and "cav-," before being played out, finally, in "ran" and "man." The intricacy of sounds being repeated and modulated and repeated again creates the poem's energy, playful here, but also exceedingly musical and incantatory.
Aristotle stated, “From the hour of their birth, some men are for subjection, others for rule.” Not so, thought Declaration of Independence author Thomas Jefferson, young and idealistic lawyer.
“There are some who lack confidence in the integrity and capacity of the people to govern themselves. To all who entertain such fears I will most respectfully say that I entertain none… If man is not capable, and it not to be trusted with the government of himself, is he to be trusted with the government of others… Who, then, will govern? The answer must be, man – for we have no angels in the shape of men, as yet, who are willing to take charge...
Mohandas Gandhi is an Indian lawyer and a spiritual leader that led a successful nonviolent resistance movement against the British colonial power. “The tactic of nonviolence civil disobedience in the Civil Rights Movement was deeply influenced by the model of Mohandas Gandhi, (...) Gandhi 's approach of non-violent civil disobedience involved provoking authorities by breaking the law peacefully, to force those in power to acknowledge existing injustice and bring it to an end”. (1) “Provoking authorities by breaking the law peacefully” this is an example of how nonviolent disobedience allows the message to stay focused and reach the point where people in power cannot ignore. Violent actions draw the media away from the message and fuels the rich and powerful; those who hide behind barriers in order to mute the underprivileged. An example of underprivileged people is African American’s during the 1950s who were treated like second class citizens. “Laws separated people of color from whites in schools, housing, jobs, and public gathering places”. (3) The types of methods used to fight against segregation are, “One of the ways African American communities fought legal segregation was through direct action protests, such as boycotts, sit-ins, and mass civil disobedience”. (1) This is how nonviolent disobedience is fought
One of the most famous scenes in Henry IV: Part I is the scene in which Prince Hal and Falstaff put on a play extempore. This is often cited as the most famous scene because it is Hal’s turning point in the play. However, the scene is much more than that. The play extempore is a moment of prophecy, not epiphany because is cues the reader in to the play’s major themes, and allows readers to explore the possibilities of the play’s continuance.
For a thousand years in Your sight Are like yesterday when it passes by, Or as a watch in the night.
Hobbes’ Leviathan and Locke’s Second Treatise of Government comprise critical works in the lexicon of political science theory. Both works expound on the origins and purpose of civil society and government. Hobbes’ and Locke’s writings center on the definition of the “state of nature” and the best means by which a society develops a systemic format from this beginning. The authors hold opposing views as to how man fits into the state of nature and the means by which a government should be formed and what type of government constitutes the best. This difference arises from different conceptions about human nature and “the state of nature”, a condition in which the human race finds itself prior to uniting into civil society. Hobbes’ Leviathan goes on to propose a system of power that rests with an absolute or omnipotent sovereign, while Locke, in his Treatise, provides for a government responsible to its citizenry with limitations on the ruler’s powers.
analogy for the Mariner's symbolic killing of the albatross” (156). Other critics do not concur with this view and according to them the punishment does not really justify the deed. According to them there is no redemption or restitution, but the punishment only aims to a world of chaos. Warren however argues, that this crucial part of the poem can not be just blatantly read without understanding, but must be seen as a crime made by mankind against the nature. He states:
Coleridge successfully illustrates the qualities of imagination in his poem, Kubla Khan, through the sound of words, the creative content and his ability to create and recreate. Coleridge turns the words of the poem into a system of symbols that are suspended in the reader’s mind. Coleridge uses creative powers to establish the infinite I AM, a quality of the primary imagination. Coleridge mirrors his primary and secondary imagination in the poem by taking apart and recreating images. The qualities of imagination discussed in the poem exist independently but also work together to create an imaginative world. It is important to understand how the poem works to achieve these qualities, but also how the poem works to bring the reader back to reality. The powers and qualities of imagination are present in Kubla Khan and it is through Coleridge’s extraordinary writing that the reader is able to experience an imaginative world, in which we alternate between reality and imagination.