Richard III

In Shakespeare’s day, history was generally used to impart moral lessons and examples; chroniclers were less interested in historical realities than in didacticism. Shakespeare goes past this, though: he focuses on dramatic and psychological effect; he psychologizes the Machiavel. And while the psychology is sometimes a bit questionable, it was a novel and highly successful approach.

The play is also unusual in that it is essentially a star vehicle, in this case for Richard Burbage, one of the leading actors of the day.

The play is easy to read, though sometimes the plethora of characters can make things a bit confusing.

Why does Shakespeare make Richard a hunchback? What is Edward IV like? What is Margaret’s role? What is the role of prophecy in this play?