Contrasting Shakespeares Richard with the Historical Figure Essay exam

There are two Richards the Machiavellian monster created by Shakespeare and the diachronic figure who many historians claim is a much-maligned innocent man. So is Richard the sinner or the one sinned against? How can we decide? Is a decision correct possible? In Shakespeares play Richard III, Richard describes himself as a deformed discontented in the opening soliloquy. (Shakespeare often uses physical deformity to mirror an infernal mind.) I, that am curtaild of this fair proportion, Cheated of feature by dissembling nature, Deformed, unfinishd, sent sooner my time Into this breathing world, scarce half made up, ... And therefore, since I cannot manifest a lover, To entertain these fair well-spoken days, I am decided to prove a villain And hate the idle pleasures of these days. (1.1.18-31) Many historians, on the other hand, have a different view of the man. For instance, in the 1956 muniment Richard the Third, Paul Murray Kendall describes Richard based on contemporary writings and two known portraits of the King. Most contemporary descriptions bear out the enjoin of these portraits that Richard had no noted bodily deformity, and establish him as a thin, frail man of a little less than normal height. (537) The most heinous crime that the Tudors (the kings who succeeded Richard to the throne) accuse Richard of committing was the murder of his nephews-Edward V and Richard, Duke of York-the sons of his brother, the former king, Edward IV. How seriously should we take this accusation? What evidence supports it? Kendall writes, If we take evidence to mean testimony that would secure a verdict in a court of law, there is no evidence that he Rich... ...ing skills that lead lead to success both in school and in life. whole kit and boodle Cited Fields, Bertram. Royal Blood Richard III and the Mystery of the Princes. new York ReganBooks, 1998. Kendall, Paul Murray. Richard the Third. New York Norton, 1983. - - - . Richard III The Great Debate. New York Norton, 1992. Looking for Richard. Dir. Al Pacino. Perf. Al Pacino, Alec Baldwin, Aidan Quinn, Winona Ryder, and Kevin Spacey. Videocassette. Fox, 1996. The deficient Princes of England. Dir. Melissa Jo Peltier. Narr. David Ackroyd. Videocassette. New Video Group, 1998. Shakespeare, William. Richard III. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York Washington straightforwardly Press, 1996. Tey, Josephine. The Daughter of Time. New York Scribner, 1988. Weir, Alison. The Princes in the Tower. New York Ballantine Books, 1995.