Will McKay, Zoë Goslin, Levi Morger and Ariana Karpdiscuss Act I of King Henry IV Part I. Among the topics discussed:
- All three worlds in the first act
- Henry IV’s reign characterized by civil war, his belief in the importance of a Crusade to the Holy Land
- Henry’s language characterized by metaphor and personification
- “Beastly shameless transformation” of the dead bodies by Welsh women
- Miscommunication and misinformation during the battle scenes
- Hal’s balance of thought and expectation, Hal as observer
- Falstaff’s aspirations for the glorification of thieves title - and his attempt to influence domestic policy
- What is Poin’s status?
- The title of “sweet” as a term of endearment and intimacy for the tavern folk
- Hotspur’s disdain for the court and politics
- The danger and daring of the conspiracy being initiated in the throne room