Richard Iii Essay, Research Paper

Richard III

In Richard III, Shakespeare invites us on moral holiday. The early part of

the play draws its readres to identify with Richard and thereby to participate in a

fanatasy of total control of self and domination of others. We begin to be pulled

into the fanatasy in the play’s opening speech, where richard presents himself

as an enterprising, self made villian and offers an elabrote justification for this

self he renovation. The average reader is indulged in this fanatsy

He then confides to us his plans to dispose of the first victim, his brother

Clarence, who is already being taken to prison as a result of Richard’s plots.

Clarence’s imprisonment serves as immediate confirmation of Richard’s sure

power over others. Richard decieves Clarence into beliecving that Richard is his

ally; in case we were misled along with clarence, Richard achieves similiar

success in conquering the woman with whom he chooses to ally himself in

mariage. His utter mastery of the political arena continues long into the play

assassination and summary execution of this rivals.

but Richard’s advances is not wholly without resistance, which appears

most threatingly in the person of Queen Margaret, widow of Henry the VI, the

king whom Richard killed before this play begin. With a will as strong as

Richard’s and a keen appetite for vengeance, Margaret issues a stream of

curses, and manages, in spite of Richard’s efforts, to curse Richard too. The

Further we proceed into the play, the greater the number of characters who

recall how margret cursed them as they go to their deaths at Richard’s hands. As

this patterrn bulids, it begins to seem more and more inevitable that all curses

may come true-including her curse on Richard himself.

The more clear this pattern becomes, the more the play works to direct

our sympathies away from Richard. His supporters desert him: his victims pile

up. His fantasy of utter control of himself and domination of others crumbles. In

this world of moral holiday, audience fantasy may begin to sharein his desire for

vengeance voiced by Margaret as Richard is presented increasingly as the

monstrous and hideous villian that he is.