Essays on Henry V

Collecting the French Crown When a war ends, the victor or victors claim the spoils of war—land, resources, and future alliances with other countries. In Shakespeare’s Henry V, one of the spoils of war is the hand of French princess Katherine. To win the hand and heart of Katherine, King Henry transforms himself into a common soldier. In addition, he uses Katherine’s lady in waiting, Alice, to translate his words as Katherine speaks little English only to speak French to…

Shakespeare’s plays, Henry V (1599) and Macbeth (1623) have similar, yet different, plots. The play Henry V revolves around a young man (Henry V) who has recently been crowned King of England following his father’s (King Henry the IV) death. The issue is that the townspeople know him as reckless and carefree; however, he has much more to offer. The prince of France, the Dauphin, sends Henry a gift ( a chest filled with tennis balls) which Henry finds insulting.…

The character of Hal is a fascinating character in this play because of how he transforms from being a conniving and cruel youth to Shakespeare’s ideal king. Hal as a young boy was very wayward. His choice of friends was not necessarily the best. He was always amid commoners, low-lives and bad company causing him to reflect such characters of theirs, involving him in terrible acts like stealing, heavy drinking, prostituting and doing most things that break the law. It…

Analysis of Henry’s speech of Harfleur showing his role as a leader and an inspiration Henry’s speech to his men before the battle of Harfleur is one of the most powerful, inspirational speeches of all time. The speech defines Henry as not only a friend unto his men, but also a powerful leader; ‘Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more’, literally meaning to the break in the walls my friends, referring to the walls of Harfleur. Henry is…