Henry Iv Part 1 Honor Essay

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Honor is to be shown, and regarded with great respect. One of the main themes explored in the play by Shakespeare, is honor, and he portrays it in a number of the characters' lives. In the play Henry IV, Part One By Shakespeare, King Henry, Prince Hal, Hotspur, and Falstaff are the main individuals who deal with the theme honor, and really understanding what honor is. In the play Henry IV, Part One, King Henry shows his honor through the momentum of his kingdom, Prince Hal’s is shown through proving he will be an honorable King, Hotspur’s honor is shown through his defendment of reputation, and Falstaff identifies honor as a waste. In the play Henry IV, Part One, King Henry bases honor upon how momentous a kingdom is perceived. …show more content…

Falstaff is a thief, a robber, a drunk, and a liar. Falstaff thinks honor is nothing if cannot enjoy it because he is dead. With Falstaff already been shown as a coward, honor to him just isn't worth it . He would rather eat food, drink, and continue to be a thief. In the play Henry IV, Part One, before going on to the battlefield, Falstaff explains what is honor to him “Can honor set a leg? Or an arm? No. Or take away the grief of a wound?...What is honor? A word. What is in that word. “honor”?... Therefore, I’ll have none of it. Honor is a mere scutcheon.” (V. 2, 132-141). Falstaff is questioning is it worth going into battle knowing he may not come out alive. He’s saying what can honor give a person other than a title. Falstaff doesn't want honor, because to him it’s like a death sentence for him. In the book Henry IV, Part One Falstaff affirms what he said earlier about honor is true when he says “- Soft, who are you? Sir Walter Blunt. There’s honor for you. Here’s no vanity...God keep lead out of me...There’s not three of my hundred and fifty left alive” (V,3, 34-50). When Sir Walter Blunt, a noble knight dies with honor to Protect the king, Falstaff scolds blunt, basically saying look where honor has gotten him, reestablishing that honor is a complete waste, and he will not die like Sir Walter Blunt. or his men just to be considered an honorable

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