Henry IV Parts 1 & 2

Edited, introduced, and annotated by Cedric Watts, Emeritus Professor of English, University of Sussex.

Henry IV, Part 1

In Henry IV, Part 1, the King finds himself in a doubly ironic position:

• His rebellion against Richard II was successful,
• Yet now he is beset by rebels, led by the charismatic Harry Hotspur.

Meanwhile, the King’s son, Prince Hal, appears more interested in the pleasures of the tavern world and the company of the fat rogue, Falstaff, than in the serious concerns of state. However, Hal eventually proves himself a courageous foe of the rebels.

This history play is:

• Lively in its interplay of political intrigue and boisterous comedy,
• Subtle in the connections between high statecraft and low craftiness,
• Exuberant in its range of vivid characters,
• Memorable for its thematic exploration of honour, loyalty, and the quest for power.

Henry IV, Part 2

In Henry IV, Part 2:

• The King is ailing,
• Falstaff is ageing,
• The kingdom itself, where rebellion still thrives, seems diseased or debilitated.

The comedy takes on a melancholy undertone, and the politics verge on the Machiavellian. Eventually, the resourceful Hal, inheriting the crown as Henry V, must prove that he can uphold justice in the realm.

Here, Shakespeare demonstrates:

• A mastery of thematic complexity and subtlety,
• The human cost that may accompany political success.