How Is Richard Presented As A Villain

Richard III is a play made for the stage. The language Shakespeare uses for Richard’s conversations has a purpose, and he constantly keeps revealing how; his confessions in his soliloquies coupled with the rhetoric, make the play come to life. Shakespeare wrote this play in 1592 when the monarch of England was Queen Elizabeth I, a descendent of Henry VII, who took the throne from Richard III. In the play William the conqueror was shown as the one to bring freedom and prosperity to England. This makes us wonder if there was a reason Shakespeare portrayed Richard to be a villain. Could there have been adverse results of doing otherwise? Its spectacular how Shakespeare sets up the play in a way that Richard tries to convinces the characters that
She curses Richard and expresses her strong hatred towards him for his heinous crimes. She expresses her anger by saying, ). She mocks his repulsive behavior and his disability; she holds his evil aura responsible for the blood pouring from the empty veins of King Henry. She is so displeasured by his presence, that she wishes him dead when she says,. Richard knows how angry she is and he takes an interesting approach towards her. His replies are witty and each line serves towards a greater purpose. When Lady Anne says, referring to Richard as a beast, he responds saying, He accepts that he knows no pity, and also denies that he's a beast; we see the irony in his statement. Richard uses comedy here to lighten the mood to prepare Lady Anne for what he say to say. In his opening soliloquy, Richard accepts that he is not pleased by love and hence, he has decided to become a villain and yet we see a contrast here when he is trying to please Lady Anne. This shows the volatility of Richard’s behavior depending upon who is present on the
He uses his weakness to play with our emotions, so that the audience develops a soft spot for Richard out of sheer pity. Richard says that he is not , here we see that he characterizes himself by his looks. Shakespeare beautifully used the word ‘amorous’ to describe the ‘glass’ in comparison with Richard who claims he is deprived of beauty and so he doesn't look in the mirror. We can see a contrast between this and Richard’s speech at the end of 1.2 after his exchange with Lady Anne when he says,

This is surprising as Richard’s characterization of himself has transformed. Richard is shocked by his accomplishment and the fact that Lady Anne found him handsome, given the image he portrays of himself in 1.1. Shakespeare uses repetition as Richard again refers to the ‘glass’ and this stresses on his constant need to compare his personality to his looks. Ironically, this time Richard wants to appreciate himself in the glass; now that Lady Anne liked him, he is more confident to look into the