"richard 3" - читать интересную книгу автора (Cliff Notes)

Shakespeare wrote his plays for an acting company. Its leading man was Richard Burbage, who became so identified with the role of Richard III that for years afterwards, his delivery of the line, "A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!" (Act V, Scene iv) was famous.

Richard III ends with a spectacular dueling scene which must be done properly. Shakespeare's audience would have included men who carried swords and knew how to use them. They expected a good, realistic duel, so the actors had to be accomplished swordsmen.

Few props would have been needed for most of the play's action. King Henry's coffin, Edward IV's throne, the council table--these could easily have been taken on and off stage. There would be little need for the action to move off the main stage except for the "Petition Scene" when Richard appears aloft between two clergymen on the upper stage.

When you get to Bosworth Field in the last act, the tents for the two opponents would be set up on either side of the stage. Even though they might only be twenty feet apart, you would accept that they were out of sight of each other. The ghosts would emerge through the trap doors and disappear the same way. Instead of vast crowds of soldiers, the battle would be suggested by a series of small personal combats, with individual warriors racing across the stage.

The duel between Richmond and Richard would be fierce, with Richard being slain in full view. To highlight the final triumph, the corpse would be carried off by the victors.

^^^^^^^^^^RICHARD III: LINES 1-42

Dispensing with fanfare, a prologue or any other formal method of introduction, Shakespeare has Richard, Duke of Gloucester, enter the bare stage and set the scene.

NOTE: CHARACTER IDENTIFICATION The Elizabethan audience would have no trouble identifying the character. Whether or not it was historically accurate, Richard's crippled stance, one shoulder higher than the other, a slightly withered arm and a scowling face, was an accepted picture. It was as recognizable as Lincoln's stove-pipe hat and bearded face would be to an American audience today.

With his first words of the famous opening speech--"Now is the winter of our discontent"--he lets us know right off where matters stand. England is at peace. The Yorkist faction, identified by their family symbol, the sun, is in power. His brother, Edward IV, sits triumphantly on the throne, retired from the field of battle.

But is all really well? Has the change in government been for the better? Richard's contempt is obvious as he describes the king's immoral behavior. Instead of acting like a military leader, King Edward now passes his time in amorous pursuits.

None of that for Richard. As he continues, his displeasure spews forth. Listen as he draws the focus of attention to his own target:

But I, that am not shaped for sportive tricks
(line 14)

I, that am rudely stamped, and want love's majesty
(line 16)

I, that am curtailed of this fair proportion
(line 18)

With speed and emphasis, Richard draws attention from the king's wanton pursuits to his own position in the world. It reinforces his aloneness, his singular concern. Yes, there are the various warring factions to contend with, as well as the troubled country. Yes, there is the political and dynastic situation. But Richard's main concern is Richard.

Who is this Richard? His descriptive outburst is designed to stir the audience. Have you begun to feel sympathy for this deformed Duke? Is he the passive victim of a cruel fate, unable to transcend his physical handicaps? Or is he, as one critic has suggested, glorying his uniqueness? Is this his challenge, to see what he can do with such misshaped raw material? Here is reason to hate a world that puts him in his brother's shadow, outside the sunlight. Here are the first clues Shakespeare provides for the motive behind Richard's subsequent actions.

Since Richard, the outsider, cannot enter into the pleasure of these sunny days, he will deliberately choose darkness. The sun will be made to shine on that negative aspect, his villainy. If he cannot be appreciated for benevolence, he will be a model of evil. That will be the source of his pleasure.

There is no hesitation, just grim determination, expressed so clearly and candidly that there's no time to question it. As he continues to mull things over, Richard shares the first of his schemes with the audience. He has created a rift between the king and his older brother, George, the Duke of Clarence, by clever insinuation.

NOTE: DREAMS Keep in mind that the Elizabethans were great believers in dreams. To Shakespeare's audience, dreams would have great prophetic value, and the interpretation of dreams was as commonplace then as astrological chatter is today. Like those of us who identify our personal fortunes with our daily horoscopes, the Elizabethans praised the parts that fit and rationalized those that didn't.

Richard continues to share (intimately and generously) with the audience the pleasures he gets from his ability to act "subtle, false and treacherous." He has every hope that the king will believe the suggestion that his heirs will be murdered by someone whose name begins with the letter "G."

The choice of the letter "G" did not originate with Shakespeare, but came from one of his sources. In the context of this play, however, it's particularly ironic. The letter could easily represent that part of Richard's title--"Gloucester"--commonly used by intimates. But as Richard has set it up, the finger clearly points to George, the Duke of Clarence.

^^^^^^^^^^RICHARD III: LINES 43-121

As if on cue, Clarence enters, guarded by Brakenbury, the Lieutenant of the Tower. He is being taken there at the king's command.