Henry the Fifth

Charisma is a trait many great leaders possess because it is what allows them to lead nations and bond with citizens. Henry, in WIlliam Shakespeare's “Henry V,” exudes charisma. Henry has numerous archetypical subsets of his own personality, and using situational awareness Henry exposes these sides of himself. Henry’s three major facets, his personableness, facetiousness, and leadership, show that he is a multi-dimensional figure in the story. Henry does not act just as one man, but manipulates his own personality, showing specific character types that he formulates to best suit his situations.

Henry’s personable nature is formed to enhance his ability to connect to his men. He uses this side of himself when he pretends to be a commoner before the battle of Agincourt. From his earlier vagabond years, Henry understands the psyche of the common man, and he uses this experience to make himself accessible as a person. Henry understands morale is low, and that his troops need to feel support so they do not give up. To do this, Henry disguises himself and speaks as a friend to his men to understand their opinions of the battle ahead. This persona differs so greatly from what most men see of Henry that his men can not even recognize their own king. Henry even drops the name “Harry le Roy,” with le roi being French for the king. The goal of this encounter is to retrieve unbiased intelligence about how his men feel without the intimidation that is associated with talking to the king. With this persona, Henry gets such candid results that he is insulted by a man named Williams. By disguising himself and changing his persona, Henry manipulates his own personality. He uses experiences from his previous lifestyle, builds on them, and then uses...

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... he is jocular, and if he needs to connect with someone he is personable. His ability to do this appears to be innate and Henry’s personality changes flow seamlessly. Despite the composure and ability of Henry to cycle through his personalities and choose the one best suited for certain situations, he is still taken aback sometimes. This is interesting because his composure is never lost. Level-headedness is a characteristic seen throughout all Henry’s and is what aids his cycling of personalities. These characteristics can provide insight on the leaders of today. People with the ability to draw upon their past experiences to connect with and manipulate those around them are described as being charismatic. Numerous eminent people in modern society have been described as possessing this characteristic. These people are men like Martin Luther King Jr and Barack Obama.