Evolution of Richard's Language in Richard Ii

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King Richard II essay Explore Richard's use of poetic and political rhetoric in this play and the possible dramatic effects of this contrast. Richard's use of language evolves throughout Richard II as the character himself and his circumstances change. The play begins with Richard being the king, using a very Machiavellian and political rhetoric in public. As he looses his power, his language becomes more and more poetic. This new language seems to show the sincerity of the king and his part of humanity he didn't show before. At the beginning, Richard believes that his speech is power, and language is powerful in the political sense. Later, once Richard is no longer king and his words don't have any political power, he manages to make language powerful in a different sense: his words are more moving and poetic. But does the audience feel sympathy for Richard as he changes? Act I is very important to set the play and the situation. The play starts with a quarrel between Bullingbrook and Mowbray. Richard is the king and controls the situation, although we already see a bit of hollowness in his character. "We were not born to sue, but to command". The authority of his office sustains his words, but in a way he is still scared of not being listened. Despite this moment, Richard seems to appear wise and impartial: "The accuser and the accused freely speak." In this first scene we can see how hypocritical characters can be in public. Richard wants to seem a good king, and for this, he uses his political rhetoric. On the other hand, he also uses different forms of address to Bullingbrook and Mowbray to show how he feels about them. He can be intimate ("my son"), personal ("Thomas Mowbray"), familiar ("Edward") or formal ("the Duke of Norfolk"). In Act I Scene iii, Richard's decision seems to be an evidence of his power and prestige. He is Machiavellian, as
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