Spring

King Henry IV

2012
English Complimentary Notes for King Henry IV

This document contains notes to compliment the context of King Henry IV. It contains plot summaries and additional quiz material. It can be used alone to quickly get the main ideas, or it could be used as an additional study helper.

Connor Hibbs 4/26/2012

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012 About this guide:

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012

Characters:
King Henry IV The ruling King of England; also known as Henry Bolingbroke. When the play opens, King Henry is anxious about the legitimacy and stability of his position. He nurses guilty feelings about having deposed the former King, Richard II, through a civil war (depicted in Shakespeares Richard II). In addition, his reign has not brought an end to internal strife in England, which has now erupted into an even larger, more violent civil war. Finally, the King is vexed by the irresponsible antics of his eldest son, Prince Henry. Regal, proud, and somewhat aloof, King Henry is not the protagonist of the play that bears his name, but he is its historical focus. He gives the play a center of power, though his actions and emotions are largely secondary to the plot. Henry, Prince of Wales King Henry IVs son, who will eventually become King Henry V. Prince Henry is sometimes called Harry Monmouth, after the town he was born in, and he is known as Hal to his friends in Eastcheap. Though Prince Henry freely associates with highwaymen, robbers, and whores, he has secret plans to transform himself into a noble prince, and his regal qualities emerge as the play unfolds. Complex and shrewd, Prince Henry is the closest character this play has to a protagonist. However, exactly how we should perceive this simultaneously deceitful and heroic young Prince remains an unresolved question. Hotspur The son and heir of the Earl of Northumberland and the nephew of the Earl of Worcester. Though Hotspurs real name is Henry Percy, he is usually referred to by his nickname, which he earned because of his fierceness in battle and hastiness of action. He is a member of the powerful Percy family of the North, which helped bring King Henry IV to power in Richard II. When Henry IV, Part One opens, the Percy family feels that the new King has forgotten his debt to them. In Shakespeares account, Hotspur is the same age as Prince Harry and becomes his archrival. Quick-tempered and impatient, Hotspur is preoccupied with the idea of honor and glory, to the exclusion of all other qualities. Sir John Falstaff A fat, lecherous, dishonorable old knight between the ages of fifty and sixty-five. Falstaff spends most of his time in the taverns of Eastcheap, a sordid area of London, and seems to make his living as a thief, highwayman, and mooch. He acts as a kind of mentor to Prince Henry, instructing him in the practices of criminals and vagabonds, and is the only member of the Eastcheap gang who can match Henrys sharp wit pun for pun. However, despite their repartee, there is an edge to Falstaff and Prince Henrys relationship. Though Falstaff seems to have real affection for the young Prince, Prince Henry continually insults and pulls pranks on Falstaff, and at the end of Henry IV, Part Two he dismisses his old friend completely. Earl of Westmoreland A nobleman and military leader, and a close companion and valuable ally to King Henry IV. Lord John of Lancaster The younger son of King Henry, and the younger brother of Prince Henry. Lancaster proves himself wise and valiant in battle, despite his youth. Sir Walter Blunt A loyal and trusted ally of King Henry IV, and a valuable warrior. Thomas Percy, Earl of Worcester Hotspurs uncle. Shrewd and manipulative, Worcester is the mastermind behind the Percy rebellion. Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland Hotspurs father. Northumberland conspires and raises troops on the Percy side, but he claims that he is sick before the Battle of Shrewsbury and does not actually bring his troops into the fray. Edmund Mortimer, called the Earl of March A brave warrior, and the brother of Hotspurs wife, Lady Percy. At the beginning of the play, Mortimer has been captured by the Welsh rebel Owen Glendower, and has converted to the rebel cause and married Glendowers daughter. Mortimer has a strong claim to the English throne through Richard II, who was deposed by King Henry IV.

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012
Owen Glendower The leader of the Welsh rebels and father of Lady Mortimer. Glendower joins with the Percys in their insurrection against King Henry. Well read, English-educated, and highly capable in battle, Glendower is also steeped in the traditional lore of Wales and claims to command great magic. He is mysterious and superstitious and sometimes acts according to prophecies and omens. Some editions refer to Glendower by his Welsh name, Owain Glyndwr. Lady Percy Hotspurs wife. A feisty match for her hot-tempered husband, Lady Percy disapproves of Hotspurs military plans. Lady Mortimer The daughter of Owen Glendower, and the new wife of Edmund Mortimer. Lady Mortimer only speaks Welsh, so she cannot fully communicate with her beloved husband. Archibald, Earl of Douglas The leader of the large Scottish faction rebelling against King Henry. Usually called simply the Douglas (a traditional way of referring to a Scottish clan chief), the deadly and fearless Douglas fights on the side of the Percys. Sir Richard Vernon A relative and ally of the Earl of Worcester. The Archbishop of York The Archbishop, whose given name is Richard Scroop. The Archbishop conspires on the side of the Percys, lending the rebellion his authority as a religious leader. Ned Poins, Bardolph, and Peto Criminals and highwaymen. Poins, Bardolph, and Peto are friends of Falstaff and Prince Henry, who drink with them at the Boars Head Tavern, assist them in highway robbery, and accompany them in war. Gadshill Another highwayman friend of Harry, Falstaff, and the rest. Gadshill seems to be nicknamed after the place on the London roadcalled Gads Hillwhere he has set up many robberies. Mistress Quickly Hostess of the Boars Head Tavern, a seedy dive in Eastcheap, London, where Falstaff and his friends go to drink. Francis An assistant drawer, or tavern servant, at the Boars Head.

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012

1.1
Plot Summary:
King Henry speaks with Westmorland about the fact that he has tried to lead a crusade to the Holy Land for over a year, but cannot due to the civil strife at home. He vows to end the civil wars within England. Westmorland, however, has news that Mortimer has been captured by the Welsh nobleman Glyndwr, and that he has married Glyndwr's daughter. This news is followed by positive news that Hotspur has defeated the Earl of Douglas up near Scotland and taken prisoners. King Henry, although overjoyed by the news of the victory, is sad that his own son Harry, known affectionately as Hal, is a prodigal, spending time in taverns rather than fighting. He compares Hotspur, the son of Northumberland, with his son, and wonders whether they were switched at birth. "Then would I have his Harry, and he mine" (1.1.89).

Important Quotes
1. Kings Opening Monologue So shaken as we are, so wan with care, Find we a time for frighted peace to pant And breathe short-winded accents of new broils To be commenced in strands afar remote. No more the thirsty entrance of this soil Shall daub her lips with her own childrens blood. Nor more shall trenching war channel her fields, Nor bruise her flowrets with the armed hoofs Of hostile paces. Those opposd eyes, Which, like the meteors of a troubled heaven, All of one nature, of one substance bred, Did lately meet in the intestine shock And furious close of civil butchery Shall now, in mutual well-beseeming ranks, March all one way and be no more opposed Against acquaintance, kindred, and allies. The edge of war, like an ill-sheathd knife, No more shall cut his master. Therefore, friends, As far as to the sepulcher of Christ Whose soldier now, under whose blessed cross We are impressd and engaged to fight Forthwith a power of English shall we levy, Whose arms were molded in their mothers' womb To chase these pagans in those holy fields Over whose acres walked those blessd feet Which fourteen hundred years ago were nailed For our advantage on the bitter cross. But this our purpose now is twelve month old, And bootless tis to tell you we will go. Therefor we meet not now. Then let me hear Of you, my gentle cousin Westmoreland, What yesternight our council did decree In forwarding this dear expedience. (1.1.1-33)

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012 2. Kings Envy for Hotspurs Actions Compared to His Son Yea, there thou makst me sad, and makst me sin In envy that my Lord Northumberland Should be the father to so blest a son, A son who is the theme of Honors tongue, Amongst a grove the very straightest plant, Who is sweet Fortunes minion and her pride; Whilst I, by looking on the praise of him, See riot and dishonor stain the brow Of my young Harry. O, that it could be proved That some night-tripping fairy had exchanged In cradle-clothes our children where they lay, And called mine Percy, his Plantagenet! Then would I have his Harry, and he mine. But let him from my thoughts. What think you, coz, Of this young Percys pride? The prisoners, Which he in this adventure hath surprised To his own use he keeps, and sends me word I shall have none but Mordake, Earl of Fife. (1.1.77-94)

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012

1.2
Plot Summary
Hal, who is the Prince of Wales, and his good friend Falstaff are in an apartment drinking and having fun. In dialogue laced with sexual innuendo, they speak about a tavern where both men like to flirt with the hostess. Their conversation turns to thieves, and Falstaff tells Hal that when he becomes the king he had better not hang a thief. Hal jokingly offers Falstaff the job of hangman for the thieves. A thief named Poins enters, and soon he and Falstaff try to coax Prince Harry to join them in thievery. Hal reluctantly agrees, saying, "Well then, once in my days I'll be a madcap" (1.2.127). After Falstaff leaves, Poins tells him that they will play a trick on Falstaff. They plot to allow the other men, including Falstaff, to rob their target. After the robbery is complete, Hal and Poins will descend upon the robbers and rob them in return. Hal finally agrees to this, mostly for the anticipated fun of seeing Falstaff try to explain how he got robbed after committing his own crime. Hal ends the scene with a brilliant soliloquy, saying, "I know you all, and will a while uphold / The unyoked humour of your idleness" (1.2.173-174). This soliloquy unmasks Hal, who tells the audience that he is only pretending to be a madcap prince. He claims that he is friends with the thieves in order to mask his true identity, which is that of a future king. "My reformation, glitt'ring o'er my fault, / Shall show more goodly and attract more eyes" (1.2.191-192). Thus Hal is hiding himself underground for now, but through his speech the audience knows that he will soon assume his rightful position as heir to the throne.

Important Quotes
1. Princes Description of Falstaff Thou art so fat-witted, with drinking of old sack, and unbuttoning thee after supper, and sleeping upon benches after noon, that thou hast forgotten to demand that truly which thou wouldst truly know. What a devil hast thou to do with the time of the day? Unless hours were cups of sack, and minutes capons, and clocks the tongues of bawds, and dials the signs of leaping-houses, and the blessed sun himself a fair hot wench in flame-colored taffeta, I see no reason why thou shouldst be so superfluous to demand the time of the day. (1.2.2-13) 2. Falstaff Marry, then, sweet wag, when thou art king, let not us that are squires of the nights body be called thieves of the days beauty. Let us be Dianas foresters, gentlemen of the shade, minions of the moon, and let men say we be men of good government, being governed, as the sea is, by our noble and chaste mistress the moon, under whose countenance we steal. (1.2.24-31) 3. Poins Plan for Fake Robbery Well, for two of them, I know them to be as true-bred cowards as ever turned back; and for the third, if he fight longer than he sees reason, Ill forswear arms. The virtue of this jest will be the incomprehensible lies that this same fat rogue will tell us when we meet at supper: how thirty at least he fought with, what wards, what blows, what extremities he endured; and in the reproof of this lies the jest. (1.2.189-197)

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012 4. Princes Soliloquy I know you all, and will awhile uphold The unyoked humor of your idleness. Yet herein will I imitate the sun, Who doth permit the base contagious clouds To smother up his beauty from the world, That, when he please again to be himself, Being wanted, he may be more wondered at By breaking through the foul and ugly mist Of vapors that did seem to strangle him. If all the year were playing holidays, To sport would be as tedious as to work, But when they seldom come, they wished for come, And nothing pleaseth but rare accidents. So when this loose behavior I throw off And pay the debt I never promisd, By how much better than my word I am, By so much shall I falsify mens hopes; And, like bright metal on a sullen ground, My reformation, glitt'ring o'er my fault, Shall show more goodly and attract more eyes Than that which hath no foil to set it off. Ill so offend to make offense a skill, Redeeming time when men think least I will. (1.2.202-224)

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012

1.3
Plot Summary
King Henry, Hotspur and Northumberland meet together. Henry is furious about the fact that Hotspur has refused to hand over the prisoners he captured in Scotland. Hotspur, in his defense, says that he previously refused to hand over the prisoners because he was still on the battlefield, and disliked the young man who demanded them in the king's name. King Henry does not accept Hotspur's argument concerning the prisoners, and is equally upset that Hotspur's brother-inlaw Mortimer lost the battle in Wales to Glyndwr. Henry believes that Mortimer is a traitor, a charge which Hotspur denies. However, there is a complication because Mortimer was also named by Richard II as his heir to the throne, which Henry IV usurped when he defeated Richard. After a final demand for Hotspur to release the prisoners into his custody, King Henry allows Hotspur and Northumberland to return home together. Hotspur and Northumberland remain on stage after everyone exits. Hotspur tells his father that he will never release the prisoners, and that he will die trying to defend Mortimer's reputation. He even refers to Bolingbroke, King Henry's family name, implying that he does not recognize the legitimacy of Henry's claim to the throne. Hotspur works himself into a frenzy about the injustices he is suffering, refusing to listen to Worcester or his father. Finally he calms down, and Worcester recommends that Hotspur deliver his prisoners to Henry, but make the son of Douglas his main ally in Scotland. He then tells Northumberland to make friends with the Archbishop of York, whose distant cousin Lord Scrope was killed by Henry. Together they plan to unite their armies in Scotland and York with Glyndwr's forces in Wales, and then overthrow the king by splitting England into three portions.

Important Quotes
1. Hotspurs Monologue for Why he Refused to Give Up Prisoners My liege, I did deny no prisoners. But I remember, when the fight was done, When I was dry with rage and extreme toil, Breathless and faint, leaning upon my sword, Came there a certain lord, neat, and trimly dressed, Fresh as a bridegroom, and his chin new reaped Showed like a stubble land at harvest home. He was perfumd like a milliner, And twixt his finger and his thumb he held A pouncet box, which ever and anon He gave his nose and took t away again, Who therewith angry, when it next came there, Took it in snuff; and still he smiled and talked. And as the soldiers bore dead bodies by, 9 He called them untaught knaves, unmannerly, To bring a slovenly unhandsome course Betwixt the wind and his nobility. With many holiday and lady terms He questioned me; amongst the rest demanded My prisoners in your Majestys behalf. I then, all smarting with my wounds being cold, To be so pestered with a popinjay, Out of my grief and my impatience Answered neglectingly I know not what He should, or he should not; for he made me mad To see him shine so brisk and smell so sweet And talk so like a waiting-gentlewoman

King Henry IV Study Guide

Of guns, and drums, and woundsGod save the mark! And telling me the sovereignest thing on earth Was parmacety for an inward bruise, And that it was great pity, so it was, This villanous saltpeter should be digged Out of the bowels of the harmless earth, Which many a good tall fellow had destroyed 2. Kings Opinion of Mortimer and Glendower Why, yet he doth deny his prisoners, But with proviso and exception That we at our own charge shall ransom straight His brother-in-law, the foolish Mortimer, Who, on my soul, hath willfully betrayed The lives of those that he did lead to fight Against that great magician, damned Glendower, Whose daughter, as we hear, the Earl of March Hath lately married. Shall our coffers then Be emptied to redeem a traitor home? Shall we buy treason and indent with fears When they have lost and forfeited themselves? No, on the barren mountains let him starve, For I shall never hold that man my friend Whose tongue shall ask me for one penny cost To ransom home revolted Mortimer. (1.3.79-94) Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012 So cowardly, and but for these vile guns He would himself have been a soldier. This bald unjointed chat of his, my lord, I answered indirectly, as I said, And I beseech you, let not his report Come current for an accusation Betwixt my love and your high Majesty. (1.3.30-71)

3. Worcester explaining plan of rebels to unite Then once more to your Scottish prisoners: Deliver them up without their ransom straight, And make the Douglas' son your only mean For powers in Scotland, which, for divers reasons Which I shall send you written, be assured Will easily be granted.(to NORTHUMBERLAND) You, my lord, Your son in Scotland being thus employed, Shall secretly into the bosom creep Of that same noble prelate, well beloved, The Archbishop. (1.3.269-278)

10

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012

Act 1 Review
Henry IV, Part One begins with King Henry trying to make England peaceful again. His words at the beginning allude to an England with no more civil wars. However, this utopian dream of his fails immediately, and within a few lines we receive reports of war in Wales and Scotland. The effort to rule England without civil war is a dream which must be left to Henry's son Hal. Hal is by far the most compelling character in terms of his depth. He is brilliant with language, having the ability to learn the language of others very quickly. He also has a gift for acting, and is therefore able to interact with the street ruffians in the taverns. Falstaff, his companion in crime, represents the base elements which Hal chooses to make friends with. However, Shakespeare gives a very different picture of Hal almost immediately. At the end of the second scene we are introduced to a new Hal, and unexpectedly devious and cunning Hal who is fully aware that he will someday rule England. Hal is not a madcap, for he tells us that he is fact merely acting the part of the prodigal son so that he may shine all the brighter later on. "I know you all, and will a while uphold / The unyoked humour of your idleness" (1.2.173-174). In fact, the street life is a form of education for Hal, a man who is able to speak a tinkerer's language within fifteen minutes (2.5.15) It is only with this inside knowledge of Hal's true character that we can understand his sarcastic allusions and comments differently from the other characters. For example, Hal remarks to Falstaff after his friend has ignored an older lord's advice that, "Thou didst well, for wisdom cries out in the streets, and no man regards it" (1.2.78). Hal clearly recognizes the old lord's wisdom, but is willing to pretend that it is of no regard. Even more interesting is when Hal tells Falstaff that, "Thou judgest false already" (1.2.57), alluding to Falstaff thinking he will be made a judge. This is not about being a judge though, it is really about Falstaff's knowledge of Hal. The interactions between Falstaff and Hal lead to several moments of intense foreshadowing. For example, Falstaff tells Hal that, "By the lord, I'll be a traitor then, when thou art king" (1.2.130). This is in fact the case in Henry IV, Part Two, when Hal has Falstaff banished as soon as he is the king. This occurs later on in Act Three as well. Hotspur, the young man whom King Henry wishes his son Hal would emulate, emerges as a central character in this act. What is most striking about Hotspur is the fact that he is a warrior, with a warrior's impulses. He belongs to the feudal times, with his hot temper and passions. His father Northumberland comments that often something "Drives [Hotspur] beyond the bounds of patience" (1.3.198). This impulsiveness will ultimately be what destroys Hotspur, who is an antiquated form of nobility. What becomes obvious is that Hotspur not only lacks Hal's manipulation of language, but also his ability to take over the best features of other men, something Hal does to Hotspur when he is able to take the words out of his dying mouth in Act Five.

11

King Henry IV Study Guide

Connor Hibbs Eng. 1H 4/26/2012

12