Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Passage from HENRY VIII
In the speech from Shakespeare's play Henry VIII, Cardinal Wolsey considers his sudden downfall from his position as advisor to the king. Spokesmen for the king have just left Wolsey alone on stage. Read the speech carefully and analyze how Shakespeare uses elements such as allusion, figurative language, and tone to convey Wolsey''s complex response to his dismissal from court.
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Cardinal Wolsey utilizes a disgruntled and flabbergasted tone, metaphors, and allusions to convey his disappointment and stupefaction after learning that he has lost his position as adviser to the king.
ReplyDelete-When Wolsey describes "leaves of hope" that "blossoms" then dies on "the third day" it displays the suddenness of his downfall. The fact that the leaves are blossoming shows that Wolsey felt as though his position was secure and his situation was fixed. However, "a killing frost" comes and "nips his root", killing the blossom within three days, portraying the unexpected death of his hopes and the initiation of his downfall. I also feel that because his hopes die on "the third day" it implies a reference to Jesus Christ's death and resurrection. Any ideas regarding the meaning/importance of the use of this biblical allusion?
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ReplyDelete-That is a good point Daniel, this might be a biblical allusion. The fact that Wolsey might have compared himself to Jesus Christ would imply that he considers himself to be extremely important, a savior in fact. And if he was truly comparing himself to Christ, this would connect the fact the he believes the people will not be able to function without his help.
ReplyDeleteI would also like to look further into the final thought of Wolsey's speech; that the King will "fall like Lucifer" without Wolsey's help. Wolsey states that the King will "never hope again", compared to Lucifer. Although, to my knowledge, Lucifer did still have hope after he fell. That the Bible states that the reason there is trouble and evil on this world is because Lucifer still does have hope. Does anyone have any responses to what Wolsey is describing?
Jessica Martinez
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In the speech from Shakespeare’s play Henry VIII, Cardinal Wolsey faces an unexpected disappointment. He feels that he dedicated much of his time in this position as an advisor, and now it is worthless due to his dismissal. He describes himself as being “weary” and “wretched” meaning he is now exhausted which is also a sign of aging and he is now facing misery. He worked so hard, to be left with nothing to hope for.
By the background of King Henry VIII, he was ultimately known by the fact that he had six wives, indicating his indecisiveness and he would throw a few of his advisories from court. I believe that he did not really care for Wolsey and just dismissed him for no reason. This could be the reason why Wolsey is deeply angered with high society: “Vain pomp and glory of this world, I hate ye!” (Line16).
As Daniel mentioned, he uses the metaphor of a plant to describe his success to his downfall, which only lasts for three days. On his first day, Wolsey has high hopes; he was just a leaf on a tree. By the second day, he had “blossomed” and came to power as the advisor. On the third day, all his hard work, and power was gone. I think that Wolsey describing his downfall as a plant is trying to indicate that one day one can have power but, it all fall down quickly and you are left with nothing. He is trying to convey that power lasts for a short time and does not last for a long time. He also uses the “ripening” which also shows that Wolsey had only temporary power that would soon wither.
I also think that when he talks about “a rude stream” he is drowning. Drowning symbolizes rebirth (this stream could also be an allusion to the Styx River which divided the living from Hades). Due to his downfall, he has faced realization (rebirth). He also describe his heart being “open’d” which could mean rebirth as well, that he is now exposing his true self, or opening his emotions; it could also be a combination of all three.
“And when he falls, he falls like Lucifer"(line 22), when Satan fell from being the right hand man of God, he fell and became the most powerful person in the underworld. “Never to hope again” (Line 23): Wolsey can never imagine, dream, or hope of being at such a powerful position next to the king again and neither can Lucifer. Lucifer knows that he will never be back in the kingdom of God especially since he thinks he is more powerful in his own world. The contradiction seen here is that Lucifer still had hoped to rise again in power, while Wolsey has none left.
I agree that the comparison to Lucifer emphasizes the magnitude and drastic change in Wolsey's position. Like Lucifer, he goes from being in an esteemed position, to being a powerless outcast.
ReplyDeleteI think that the "rude stream", like Jessica said, indicates Wolsey's fall from power and his change in status. The fact that his "high blown pride/ at length broke under [him]" leaving him at "the mercy/ of a rude stream" displays his sudden subordination to a higher power. Wolsey is now, more than ever before, subservient to the the will of the king, as demonstrated by his being at the mercy of a "rude stream".
I don't quite understand lines 10 through 12 of the speech. Is it drawing a contrast between the glorious times of Wolsey's power to his new position of powerlessness and subordination? Any ideas?
Audrey Vidamo
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Lines 10 - 15, basically the whole sea/river metaphor, was definitely unclear to me, too. Though, after reading what Jessica and Daniel said, I also see the bursting of his pride, due to his dismissal, as signaling his new found humility. Reiterating a previously said point, Wolsey, at this point, surely realizes that he is at the mercy of the king/court's whims, and that he is no longer counted among those powerful people.
The comparison that I would like to make takes into account the "rude stream" line in relation to the "sea of glory", which I think answer's Daniel's question. This may be a bit of a stretch, but after rereading lines 10 - 15, I interpret it as, Wolsey, originally in a respected and esteemed position, was swimming in a sea of glory, kept afloat by his massive ego. In other words, a sea, being so wide and endless, could symbolize Wolsey's countless opportunities and ability to go/do anything he wanted. With such power, a king's advisor can certainly be considered a glorious job.
Now, when he gets fired, and subsequently his "high-blown pride [breaks]", I assume that this means that after such a harsh wake up call, he has become a little more aware, a little more reasonable, and a lot more humble as to his real position in the world. As opposed to being on a wonderful, open sea, Wolsey is now shoved into a "rude stream", which is obviously much more narrow, and more importantly, it runs one-way. It is this one-way path to the bottom that Wolsey must now follow, and he considers it as "forever hid[ing]" his aspirations, capabilities, potential, or whatever it may be. It is a sad, pitiful way to be going, after having tasted a bit of greatness.
When in a sea vs. a stream, you are not able to move nearly as freely, or go as far in all directions. I think that the fact that Shakespeare used these two bodies of water as a metaphor strongly emphasizes Wolsey's sudden restrictions or inability, which leads to his bitterness and hate apparent in the poem's later lines.
Jian Miclat
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I'd agree to Mr.Lord that this and suggest that he realized that his downfall was due to his pride, as seen in lines 12- 13: "My high-blown pride/ At length broke under me, and now has left me." I find it very interesting to note that the "killing frost" in line 6 is an external force that caused downfall, however the later realization shows a shift from blaming someone else to taking the blame.I found interesting simile in lines 10- 12 comparing himself to little boys floating around on floaties(the bladders), and how the "sea of glory" is "far beyond my depth." What do you fellas think about Wolsey's use of "bladders" symbolizes????
Jian Miclat
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Can you fellas elaborate on line 21 "pangs and fears than wars or women have", i dont get it.
Lloyd Tisuela
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Although Jian's diction stumbles me in his question, I'd like to think that Wolsey's use of bladders would be that King Henry used Wolsey as a surfacing tool to keep him afloat, now that he is gone, Henry will sink. Bearing the fact that it is not an easy task to become an adviser to the king, it is quite reasonable for Wolsey to release this kind of self-absorbed rage as he was fired. Also bearing the fact that this occurrence was immediately post-discharge of his occupation, Wolsey really displays his true colors, one of which is definitely audacity.
Speaking of his dismissal of the court, it seems Wolsey now speaks in prose and in most Shakespearean novels defines the dialogue of a lowly commoner and because of this, Wolsey's tone knows bounds beyond un-rhymed iambic pentameter and is able to speak his angry, albeit sarcastic, mind. Though, I do question Wolsey and Henry's relationship. What happened to the two of them to cause such a thing to happen? Didn't the two have to be friends to have such a relationship as "king" and "adviser"?
Jian Miclat
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Thank You Mr.Tisuela for that wonderful explanation :)
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ReplyDeleteWell Jian, lines 20-21 are basically stating that even men of power have faults and once those faults are recognized by the people, they will lose their influence and authority. When Wolsey says, "more pangs and fears than wars or women have", he is simply making an accusation about these powerful men, which states that they too experience fear and distress. Although they may mask these feelings with a "smile", these weaknesses remain and can ultimately lead to their "ruin" if revealed.
Anyone know what feelings or ideas Wolsey is conveying in line 16?
Kacie Morton
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Jian, i believe in line 21 when the speaker says,"More pangs and fears than wars or women have", he is referring to the tough stresses and hardships that the person who has to take his place will be forced to go through. The connotations of war include pain, violence, and suffering which are all assumably exaggerations of what the speaker had to experience when employed to the king. So the speaker is expressing empathy for the next person that has to undergo all the tough demands of the job. The whole "women" part of it is an uncommon comparison. Usually war and men go hand in hand because men symbolize strength and toughness, however, the hidden struggles that women have to go through are acknowledged by the speaker in this line. Women often times have much more stresses than men. They are the ones who worry more about the things in life that men do not even stop to think about. They have the responsibilities and pains of going through childbirth and more. So when the speaker says "More pangs and fears than wars or women have", he is basically saying that the new advisor to the king is doomed to a life of pain and suffering.
Lines 10-12 also puzzled me, however as I reread the poem I began to understand and would have to agree with Audrey as well as Lloyd. I interpreted the "little wanton boys" to represent innocence and boys who were still learning. The "bladders" I believe refers to being floaties. Wolsey was innocent and naive, and relied on the King in order to keep afloat.I interpreted that he was swimming in a "sea of glory" as how Wolsey was in such a high and esteemed position as the advisor to the king that his ego was able to keep him afloat. He had the safe guard of having the king, so his ego grew and grew, to a point where he was able to go "far beyond my depth." His ego turned into being the floatie ("high-blown").
ReplyDeleteHowever, lines 13-15 shift to depict his downfall. Wolsey's ego broke and so did his floatie. He no longer had something to keep him afloat, and in the end he has been left to "the mercy / of a rude stream." The rude stream represents and considerable downgrade. He once was in a sea, but now is confined to a small river as Audrey stated. I believe the water metaphors stand for being in the upper class (sea), and being a commoner (stream). Wolsey is now forced to be downgraded to being a commoner, that is why he says it will "forever hide me," because he will blend into common society.
I felt that the theme that was addressed in this poem was that you should be humble. That you should not let your ego become too big and take over your life. Does anyone else have a different take on the theme?
Also, does anyone have any ideas of what lines 16-19 are trying to say? I am unable to get a clear understanding of them.
Nadia Zarate
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well Courtney, I think line 16-19 are basically saying how the speaker thinks that now that he has fallen, the world will not care about him and will keep on going, just caring about its own-current success, which he hates that. He feels betrayed, forgotten, he feels that his heart is being "new open'd",now, I think this words instead of representing a "new" beginning, lean more towards a negative connotation.
And finally he says that he feels sorry for the men who is going to replace him, although I’m not sure about "...hangs on princes favors" does this means that the speaker thinks the king is just making his replacement a favor because he thinks that getting to his position takes work and time; it doesn't make sense that there is someone replacing him that quickly after his downfall, or am i off?
Now, for lines 4-5 I noticed the parallelism between the words "to-day" and "to-morrow", i think the author uses the line bar (-) to give more emphasis to his angry tone. I think he uses the "to-" to say that he had to do a lot and put a lot of effort to arise or to "blossom”, like it is said on the text, from the day he set his hopes for something(today), to the day he successes what is described as "tomorrow."
Kassandra Delgadillo
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I agree with many of the previous comments concerning several different ideas. I had the same thoughts as Audrey in her interpretation of the quote "sea of glory" (line 11). I also think that Wolsey's big ego kept him afloat in the sea of glory. In the beginning Wolsey states that "the tender leaves of hope, to-morrow blossoms" (line 4). This quote can probably signify that first you must hope, then you grow and achieve success which leads to a strong pride. Eventually while he is at his highest point something spontanious may occur that will lead to him falling.
I am still a bit confused on the same quote mentioned by others "like little wanton boys that swim on bladders" (line 10). However, I would also have to agree that bladders can be interpreted as floaties as Jian and Courtney stated. Perhaps it represents his desire to keep himself on top with the help of his pride. However after a while he loses his pride. In addition he also pity's himself when he says "O how wretched is that pooor man that hangs on princes' favors!" (lines 17-18). He does not enjoy the task of listening to the oerders given to him by the king. Lastly, in the quote "and when he falls, he falls like Lucifer never to hope again" (lines 22-23) Wolsey closes by saying that he has fallen hard enough to not have any hope left.
Lloyd Tisuela
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I do agree with Kassandra in the scrutiny that there is no hope left for Wolsey as a fall from such a high position leaves no room for restoring that especially at his age.
Bearing the fact that Wolsey has been extinguished from his position however, I've been thinking that Wolsey might not be totally at fault here. Henry VIII of England was the king that separated the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church on grounds of divorce of Catherine (from her lack of producing a son) to Anne Boleyn. This brings me to the fact that the poem ends in "not any hope left", yet with a feminine ending leading to the belief that there is something in distress or emotionally unstable going on. This could be proven with the fact that Henry is not only known for his wives, but for the instability of England Catholicism in Europe because of the Protestant Reformation. This anti-Catholicism mentality going on in Europe can also be in conjunction with the allusion to Lucifer and his connotation with the Roman Catholic Church.
Jason Galang
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I agree with most of the comments shared above. Cardinal Wolsey had just been dismissed from court, from being the advisor to the king. As Lloyd stated, Wolsey fell from such a high position that he could not possibly return to something of that sort as he is "weary and old with service"(14). That is why he chose to use the allusion to Lucifer(22). Adding to what Kassandra was saying, he fell hard, hard enough for him to believe that his life was practically over. He saw his position as so high and heavenly like being God's right hand man. Now without that job, he views himself and the life he has left as Satan in the underworld. In his eyes, he knows he is worth more than that, such as a "sea of glory"(11) rather than a "rude stream"(15).
However, I believe Wolsey changes his tone in order to make himself feel better when he says, "O how wretched/ Is that poor man that hangs on princes' favors!"(17-18) Here he is expressing alleged pity for the man who is replacing him. He is trying to say his job was not all that great anyways.
Does anyone have anything to add concerning "The third day comes a frost, a killing frost?"(6) Why does he choose to add the word "killing?"
Oscar E. Eberle
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Jason, I belive the word "killing" in the quotations "The tender leaves of hopes, to-morrow blossoms,/ And bears his blushing honors thick upon him;/ The third day comes a frost, a killing frost,"(4-6) is adding emphasis to how he views his dismissal from court. The killing frost is representing King Henry VIII, where Wolsey is blaming the king for his downfall. As seen in the statement "His greatness is a-ripening, nips his root" (8),Wolsey felt that he was at his prime as the king's advisor then suddenly loosing his position he felt betrayed by the king cutting his career.