The Little Corner of Shakespeare in My Life: Courtship as Richard III Sees it

Monday, January 24, 2011

Courtship as Richard III Sees it

One of the things that intrigues me most about this play is how Richard is received among the women. We know that he is deformed, so there must be a pity factor there. He is also eloquent, which is the bane of the female sex. We are so easily convinced... at least in this play we are.
In class, my group talked a little bit about Richard's smooth talking Lady Anne into marrying him, her husband's murderer. As I experience a tendency to veer back toward my main focus of perspective, I like to look at Lady Anne's character. What has she experienced that exposes her and makes her vulnerable to Richard's charms? She seems to be a passionate person, and as we know, passion can go both ways. Perhaps, for all her volatility, she is not as intelligent as she sounds.
I found this clip of the Ian McKellen version that shows one interpretation of Richard's abilities:

So tell me what you think? Is she stupid, or just overwhelmed with grief?
More on this later!

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dteeps 28p · 740 weeks ago

Something to be remembered is the historical context. At the time the play was written, and at the time the play is depicting, women had very little power, politically or otherwise, apart from who their husband was. Yes, Richard is a very smooth talker, very eloquent, but to posit that Anne agrees to marry him simply because he speaks well is to say that she can be easily swayed and convinced to forget her husband's death, like she is a simpleton. But, if one looks at Anne as a woman who has gotten used to being a Prince's wife, used to being at court with the luxuries and the opportunities that that has afforded her, then maybe her marriage to Richard is politically motivated. Maybe she is using Richard as much as she is using him. To be honest, the text itself provides little direction for her character, so any actress or director could play it either way.

1 reply · active 740 weeks ago

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mtee27 48p · 740 weeks ago

That is very true that Anne would be dependent on others. It makes sense that she would want a political alliance, but on the other hand, how would she be emotionally capable of making such a decision?

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Sara Castro 39p · 740 weeks ago

Thanks for posting that clip! As I was reading that scene I felt like the dialogue was not enough to convince me that she had been seduced, but rather the point David made that she might be using him. I've planned to watch this movie on Friday but I've been curious to see this clip. Having now seen the scene performed I wonder if fear was a motivator as well? Richard seems to be known as an evil man--Anne even calls him that herself. He also killed a Prince and a King, which would be a terrifying thing to any woman with little power. Lady Anne's reason for giving into Richard is an interesting thing to explore.

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mtee27 48p · 740 weeks ago

I'm really loving that point. That fear was a factor as well. That's one of the things that is ambiguous about this scene. There's so many different interpretations of Lady Anne's character because we don't know her motives. I think it's aggravating because we do know exactly what Richard is thinking from all of his monologues. But Lady Anne's dialogue is less illuminating.

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Monday, January 24, 2011

Courtship as Richard III Sees it

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