“The superior man thinks always of virtues; the common man thinks of comfort” (Confucius). Just as in A Man for All Seasons, Robert Bolt uses the character of the Common Man to display how an ordinary man can have an influence in history. Throughout the play, the Common Man takes on many different roles, such as the Boatman, Steward, and Jailer displaying how these different characters face different consequences. This allows the reader to understand how the Common Man changes his morals in order to adapt to times of need. The Common Man adapts to situations in order to stay alive, gain wealth resulting in the realization of his ever-changing morals. Bolt portrays the Common Man as one who can adapt to many changes that occur throughout the play.
To begin with, the Common Man is a man who will do anything he must in order to gain wealth. Throughout the play, the Common Man does anything he he must in order to continue living his life without losing any money.
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He takes many actions in order to benefit himself, the first being when he leaves More to work for Richard Rich. Steward believes that it is not his fault that he has to leave, he blames that More is “down on his luck” and if “[he had] any luck to spare he could have some” (97). Steward feels sorry for More since he is losing everything he has, however, he also believes it is Mores fault he is losing his life's work. If he took the oath and accepted the King's terms, he would not be losing everything he has built throughout his life. The Common Man once again states that he would do anything to survive and stay alive for as long as he needs to. The Common Man believes that it is better to be “a live rat than a dead lion” (Bolt 127). This means that he would rather sneak around and do things that defy his morals in order to stay alive rather than stay loyal to them and become a dead man like