Episode 2

Kings and Princes: Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part One

We kick off our once-a-month Shakespeare series with one of my favorites from last year, Henry IV, Part One. The trilogy of Henry IV, Parts One and Two, and Henry V form The Henriad and are a great way to learn about the way England thinks about its own history.

I review my method of reading Shakespeare (see last season's Week 26 for more information), and then we move on to the actual history of the period these plays are about. It looked a lot like the world of Shakespeare, and his audience, with its tumultous succession issues.

Then we move on to the actual plot, and how the characters break down into pairs: of kings; of princes; of fathers and sons. There are so many pairs that in some way this play even feels like it has two storylines.

After a talk about the plot of the play, and its theme of "how to be a king," we move on to talk about how the play was perceived by the audience at the time.

As always, I give my opinions about this play--except you probably already know that I LOVE this one!

I highly recommend this BBC production to watch.

I love the Folger Shakespeare Library edition of this play!

Next Shakespeare: Henry IV, Part Two, on June 30.

Next week: Reading as a Superpower, my talk with Fr. Brian McGreevy.

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