Henry IV, Part 2

This is chillier world than the first part of Henry IV, lacking in both its good humor and its generosity. Falstaff is not nearly so funny apart from Hal, Prince John is a much icier foil than the mercurial Hotspur, and Hal himself--whom we wish to like--makes himself disagreeable by stealing his dy......more

In Henry IV, Part 1, Prince Hal was for the most part in a rebellion against his father and his noble calling, and spent his time in the cesspools of London with his friends, the beer-bellied Falstaff and the rest of the prostitutes and hoodies. Here, in Part 2, the rebellions against the ever-sickl......more

The threat of social disorder swirls around William Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part 2 (War of the Roses #3). The threat comes in many forms. Most outwardly, it’s a rebellion led by nobles who have never really accepted the legitimacy of King Henry IV’s monarchy. As a further representation of a disrupt......more

I can't consider these plays as solitary occasions. I'm all teary-eyed. Who knew I could shed tears for poor old Falstaff, even now? I mean, sure, he's a fool and a rascal and incorrigible, but at the core of it, he and Hal were friends, weren't they? And yet, even while I hate Hal a little for his de......more

Henry IV Part 2 had some excellent moments, particularly the discussion between father and son in Act 4, but I had a hard time appreciating the machinations of Falstaff and found Hal a bit abrupt in his rejection of Falstaff at the end. My favorite scene occurs as the dying King Henry IV is sleeping......more