Henry IV, Act IV, scene 2
Rebels and Courtiers, please comment on Act 4, scene 2. For detailed directions, read the Act 4, scene 1 post. When you finish commenting on this blog, go to Mr. Kleeman's class blog and post a comment to someone in that class.
posted by T Sale at 10:19 AM
10 Comments:
Response to Act 4 Scene 2:
5.) After reading Act 4 Scene 2, Falstaff’s actions and statements struck me in a very strange way. Throughout my entire reading of this play so far, I have come to view Falstaff as a corrupt man, yet not intrinsically, who may just not be smart enough to understand the situation that he has found himself in. However, after reading this scene, a new thought occurred to me regarding the character of Falstaff that I had never thought of before. When he conscripted his soldier’s he did not randomly pick out men, creating a very poor unit of men, but acted upon a well designed plan intended to fill his ranks with those who matched his criteria. By asking the farmers, landowners, and manns, people who had money to pay him off, he could still look like he was helping out the King’s cause yet still get his way, thus guaranteeing that he will not press the best young men into military service, but the ones that will cost him the least (4.2.14-20). Granted he states that he should be ashamed of his troops, yet does nothing to fix that or stop it, making me question whether his apology should be considered authentic or not (4.2.11-12) The question then becomes why did he choose to take this course of action? This question led me to the idea that Falstaff was never an innocent man, but corrupt from birth, yet so skilled as to make people ask the question of whether he was or was not. His actions show that he might actually hold a great deal of intelligence, however he just puts his power to poor uses. This can be seen in his statement that “well, to the latter end of a fray and the beginning of a feast. Fits a dull fighter and a keen guest” (4.2.80-83). He seems to understand here the timing of his actions and how that plays into the events of his life. Did Falstaff intentionally choose a very bad group of young men to be in his unit that would hurt the King’s chances? I think very possibly so. His actions are too well-thought out to be accidentally problematic in relation to the King’s causes. Out of this line of thinking came the most striking thought that I had regarding Falstaff. I realized that every bad move Falstaff takes seems to be planned, leading to the thought that could Falstaff be a key player in sabotaging the King? Is it possible that Falstaff has some vendetta out for King Henry and that his punishment is an attempt to destroy the greatness of his son? Thus, could the support that Falstaff gives to Hal’s plans, only be a guise for the true motives behind the actions Falstaff in recruiting some very unqualified people to fight in the upcoming battle (4.2.59-60)? Could Falstaff be trying to destroy the King? Or is money simply more important to Falstaff that doing what is morally right (4.2.13-14)? The more I read into the play, the more I questioned the true motives of Falstaff because on one end he is an unethical man, yet on the other he leads with strong convictions. At the end of the day, Falstaff seems to be man without a life, hope, or a purpose causing him live within a very large scam that is led by the pursuit of money.
Chennery-
I think part of why Falstaff's army is so rag-tag is to show a more corrupt part of Falstaff. One line I noticed seemed to point to the fact that these weren't actually the men he is supposed to be leading: "Such have I to fill up the rooms of them that bought out their services." It seems like at least some of these guys are poor substitutes for other men who could afford to buy off Falstaff who is easily persuaded by anything that shines gold.
Chennery-
Your questions really made me start to think more about how Falstaff acted. Now that I think about it maybe he tryed his hardest to find a suitable army for Hal but all he got was a bunch of farmers and that was why he expressed his dissapointment so much in that soliloquy. And even though he said, "Tut, tut, good enough to toss." maybe he was just trying to hide that he really cared about failing Hal, and then, because he didn't express his true feelings to Hal, Hal thought he was pretty much worthless and decided he should stop associating with him...? Just a thought.
Chennery-
I was wondering some of the same things. I think that Falstaff's choice in troops shows his true character. Hal entrusted him with a great responsibility to see how he would handle it. And, typical Falstaff, did the bare minimum, just enough to pass the test. This shows the huge difference between Hal and Falstaff, and how Hal rose to the occasion when given responsibility and Falstaff barely scraped by.
Act IV, Scene ii, #3
Falstaff's long speech confused me as to his true intentions. He continues to use Hal as a source of money, as he says in line 8, as he says "I'll answer the coinage", and he is certainly still a pub crawler. However, he has now been forced to do some work by recruiting soldiers for the King. Instead of requiring the best and brightest men to fight, he allows them to bribe him to use a released prisoner in their place. Although each of these men give Falstaff money, it still seems illogical because it is contributing to the overall loss of the King's cause, and also the loss of Falstaff's main source of income. Also, why does he complain about these men as dishonorable, because Falstaff isn't fighting either, and he were in their position, he would bribe someone to get himself out of duty? What is the purpose of including this speech in the scene, other than to further establish Falstaff's lack of character and unreliability?
3)
Could this scene be one of the reasons why Hal banishes Falstaff when he becomes Henry V? Falstaff clearly states that he will not march to Coventry and that he selected a rag-tag army to save himself money. Is this some of the disloyalty that Hal refers to when he is Henry V? He gave Falstaff a chance to prove himself in battle with his own battalion, but Falstaff cannot handle responsibility and will not mature. This could be the final blunder of Falstaff that Hal will not put up with.
Response to Act 4 Scene 2
7)If I were an actor playing Falstaff, I would play the first part of the scene with Peto as the usual, big-bellied, prideful Falstaff. THen once Peto exits, I would probably sit down, as if I were telling the audience a secret. I would begin sitting, and as the monologue continues, I would pause in important parts, and stand up for emphasis. At the end of the monologue, I would sit back down. Then Falstaff is very surprised to see the Earl of Westmoreland and Prince Hal, so I would sort of jump out of my chair, but because Falstaff is so overweight, I would fall to the ground becuase of how flustered he becomes. This would of course make the audience laugh. Then to show the Prince's kindness, instead of making Falstaff attempt to get up, the Prince and the the Earl would some sit on the ground with me, where we would discuss the war until the end of the scene.
2.
What I want to know is why does Hal trust Falstaff to raise a trustworthy army when he knows how corrupt and lazy Falstaff is? Falstaff obviously will turn any situation into a method of swindling people. Does Hal allow this to happen so that he will seem even more noble than Falstaff? Is Hal secretly planning on ruining Falstaff by letting him have charge of these soldiers?
Act 4.2
7. Falstaff is a power-hungry, greedy manipulator in this scene. He figures, I have been given this duty to lead troops toward Bridgnorth to fight by the Prince of Wales, why shouldn’t I make the most of the power I have been given? Only of course, the power will be used to his advantage. After he sends Bardolph away to fetch him wine, Falstaff reveals his sneaky con to find foot soldiers. Rather than find the best soldiers to fight and win for the country and the King, he attempts to draft the wealthiest farmers and merchants who do not wish to fight, so they pay him to not draft them. He states, “…I have got, in exchange of a hundred and/fifty soldiers, three hundred and odd pounds” (4.2 13-14). The idea is genius, really; because now Falstaff can actually pay for everything he desires. However, in exchange for his profits, his troops consist of terrible, shabby soldiers who are undernourished, unreliable, and ill-prepared to fight the Rebel forces. Falstaff believes now that he has this power and ability to manipulate and control people, he is superior to the rascals that he himself once was. He ponders, “I’ll not march through Coventry with them, that’s flat. Nay, and the/villains march wide betwixt the legs, as if they had/gives on, for indeed I had the most of them out of/prison” (4.2 37-40). He is oblivious to the fact that he use to be one of the low-life’s that he recruited, now that he has money to blind him. His methods, however (robbing the wealthy and taking bribes so they don’t have to fight), still prove that Falstaff is the same rascal that he always was, even though he has been given a tremendous responsibility.
chennery-
I believe that Falstaff made it such a big deal to make it known the kind of men he was recruiting because he wanted to reassure himself of his power and abilities to manipulate given to him by Prince Hal. To him, they aren't an embarrassment, they are a reminder to him of how far he has come from the low-life, dog of a man that never had money or any dignity; when in fact, he still is one of them, because of the methods his is using to recruit these men.
As for Hal, I believe this scene shows Hal's caring nature for Falstaff--after all, he gave him this tremendous responsibility. I think that after seeing the men that Falstaff recruits, however, Hal will be thoroughly disappointed in his "friend" and maybe realize that he must detach himself from such people, because it could cost him the honor of the crown, and be a detrimental blow to the country if Falstaff's troops do not follow through and fight boldly in the name of the King.
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