A High Schooler's Guide to "Richard II"

A HIGH
SCHOOLER’S
GUIDE TO
RICHARD II Lorem Ipsum
Kathryn Waltman and Jaclyn Wagner

Chapter 1
Section 1: How to Use the eBook
Section 2: Notes on Shakespeare
Section 3: Early Modern London
Section 4: Genre
Section 5: Main Character Descriptions
INTRODUCTION

This purpose of this eBook is to help you to better understand Richard II as you read the play. It is not meant to be a replacement
for reading the actual text. The introduction will help to familiarize yourself with Shakespeare and life in England during the
time the play was written. As you read, use the discussion questions at the end of each section to get you to think deeper about
the themes of the text.
The authors of this book, Jaclyn Wagner and Kathryn Waltman, graduated from Indiana University with degrees in Secondary
English Education. Jaclyn graduated from high school in Chicago, Illinois, and Kathryn in South Bend, Indiana.
2
Section 1
About the eBook and Authors

Shakespeare was an extremely famous poet and
playwright during the time of Early Modern
England. Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets and 38
plays. Much of Shakespeare’s writing was con-
sidered extremely controversial at the time, but
has grown more popular with time. The play-
wright became more famous for his work after
his death and his writing is considered to be
timeless. Classrooms around the globe continue
to study Shakespearean writing to this day.
3
SECTION 1
Notes on Shakespeare
Portrait of William Shakespeare

4
Early Modern
England
The England of Shakespeare’s time was an ugly, violent
place. The cities were dirty, cramped, and full of diverse people.
It was common to see people dumping their waste in the street
and people with diseases lining the streets. Because of this, the
plague and other illnesses spread really easily. Outside the cities
was only farmland. These farmers lived outside the cities and
brought their goods into town to sell. Entertainment was found in
the torture of criminals, animal ﬁghting, and plays. The
playhouses appealed to all types and social classes of people,
except the Puritans. The Puritans objected to the plays for many
religious reasons and caused some problems for the acting
troupes.
SECTION 2

6
SECTION 3
Genre
Genre is extremely important in analyzing the
various happenings of a play. The genre of
Richard II is complex in that it does not fall
into one category. The play is both a history
and a tragedy and this can be seen by the style
of writing as well as the tone and content of
the play. There are speciﬁc rules and
conventions that genre plays follow and
Richard II is no exception. The genre of
tragedy suggests that someone will die at the
end of the play, which is the case with this play.
The genre of history suggests that the play will
be deeply rooted in issues such as politics and
war, which again is the case in this play. While
you are reading this play, be sure to keep in mind the
genres and how they affect the play as a whole.

King Richard II:
• Current king of England
• Struggling to maintain his position of power
• His insecurities often cause him to make irra-
tional decisions
Bolingbroke:
• Richard’s cousin
• Next in line for the throne
• Wants to take the throne from Richard
7
SECTION 4
Main Character
Descriptions
Young King Richard II

John of Gaunt:
• Richard’s uncle and Bolingbroke’s father
• Close confidant of King Richard
• Is the first to predict Richard’s demise
The Queen
• Richard’s wife
• Easily manipulated
• Though she is the Queen, she has a small
role in the play
Duke of York
• Father of the Duke of Aumerle
• Richard’s right-hand man
• His loyalty is easily swayed
Duke of Aumerle
• Son of the Duke of York
• Gets caught up in conspiracy plots
Duchess of York
• Duke of York’s second wife
• NOT Aumerle’s mother
• Defends Aumerle when his conspiracies get
him in trouble
Mowbray
• Duke of Norfolk
• Banished from England for life due to accu-
sations of killing the Dike of Gloucester
Duchess of Gloucester
• Widow of the murdered Duke of Gloucester
8

Chapter 2
Section 1: Scene i
Section 2: Scene ii
Section 3: Scene iii
Section 4: Scene iv
Section 5: Discussion Topics
ACT I

11
SECTION 1
Act I, Scene i
In this scene, Bolingbroke accuses
Mowbray of treason and blames him
for the murder of the Duke of
Gloucester. Both men challenge each
other to a duel by throwing gages.
Richard establishes his authority by
scheduling the duel for another time.
Mowbray and Bolingbroke
throw their gages.

In this scene, the Duchess of Gloucester
pleads to Gaunt to get revenge for the mur-
der of her husband. Gaunt informs the
Duchess that since the King was responsi-
ble for the murder, only God can seek pun-
ishment. The King is viewed as God’s
body on earth and has the Divine Right
of Kings given to him by God.
12
SECTION 2
Act I, Scene ii
John of Gaunt

Bolingbroke and Mowbray are pre-
paring to fight, but King Richard
stops this before it goes for. The
men were fighting in order to
prove their innocence in regards
to the death of Gloucester. King
Richard banishes Mowbray for life
and Bolingbroke for seven years.
13
SECTION 3
Act I, Scene iii

Richard begins to make plans to go
to war with Ireland yet again. The
King has been raising money for
the war by leasing out land and
revenue in exchange for cash and
collects high taxes from the wealthy.
When Richard hears that Gaunt is
ill, he decides that he wants to
claim his property in order to help
fund the war.
14
SECTION 4
Act I, Scene iv

• If the King actually killed the Duke of
Gloucester, why doesn’t anyone accuse him
of it?
• Why does King Richard ban Mowbray for
life, but Bolingbroke only for seven years?
• What does John of Gaunt mean in Act I,
Scene ii, lines 39-43? How are these lines
significant in the play?
15
SECTION 5
Discussion Topics
King Richard II and his court

Chapter 3
Section 1: Scene i
Section 2: Scene ii
Section 4: Scene iv
ACT II

Richard begins to make plans to go to
war with Ireland yet again. The King has
been raising money for the war by leasing
out land and revenue in exchange for
cash and collects high taxes from the
wealthy. When Richard hears that Gaunt
is ill, he decides that he wants to claim
his property in order to help fund the
war.
17
SECTION 1
Act II, Scene i

Richard leaves for Ireland and the Queen is
very depressed over his absence. The Queen
has a premonition that something bad is go-
ing to happen to Richard while he is overseas.
King Richard leaves York in charge in his ab-
sence, thus having to deal with an angry
Bolingbroke when he arrives back in England.
18
SECTION 2
Act II, Scene ii

Northumberland, who previously worked
for Richard, decides to side with Boling-
broke. Both men are at Berkeley Castle
and they meet Northumberland’s son,
Henry Percy. York arrives at the castle and
scolds Bolingbroke for coming back to Eng-
land before his sentence is up, but ends up
dismissing him knowing there is nothing he
can do to make Bolingbroke leave.
19
SECTION 3
Act I, Scene iii

Richard’s army in Wales disbands
because they believed him to be
dead. The Earl of Salisbury predicts
that Richard’s demise is near.
20
SECTION 4
Act II, Scene iv

• What is the role of prophecies in this play?
• What does Richard’s army leaving Whales
say about his leadership?
• What predictions do you have about what
happens during the rest of the play.
• Why do you think Bolingbroke decides to
return to England before the end of his
banishment?
21
SECTION 5
Discussion Topics

Chapter 4
Section 1: Scene i
Section 2: Scene ii
Section 4: Scene iv
ACT III

Bolingbroke sentences Bushy and Green
to death, despite not being King.
23
SECTION 1
Act III, Scene i

Richard returns to Wales to find that his
troops have left, Bushy and Green have been
killed, and York and many of Richard’s other
supporters have decided to side with Boling-
broke. King Richard discharges his army and
retreats to Flint Castle.
24
SECTION 2
Act III, Scene ii

Bolingbroke arrives at Flint Castle and learns
that Richard is there as well. Aumerle accom-
panies Richard to meet with Northumberland
who becomes the middle-man between Boling-
broke and Richard. Bolingbroke demands
that Richard lift his banishment and King
Richard gives into this demand. Northumber-
land tells Richard that he must meet with
Bolingbroke because Bolingbroke is demand-
ing it. Richard again gives in and accompa-
nies Bolingbroke to London.
25
SECTION 3
Act III, Scene iii

The Queen overhears the gardeners
discussing Richard’s downfall and the
likelihood that he will lose the king-
ship.
26
SECTION 4
Act III, Scene iv

• What is the significance of Bolingbroke sen-
tencing two men to death even though he is
not king?
• Why is it important that Richard simply gives
in to Bolingbroke’s demands? What does this
say about the character of both men?
• What is the purpose of the scene in which the
Queen hears about Richard’s demise from the
gardeners? What does this say about gender
roles?
27
SECTION 5
Discussion Topics

Chapter 5
Section 1: Scene 1
Section 2: Discussion Sections
ACT IV

Bolingbroke wants to learn more about the death
of the Duke of Gloucester and many of the no-
bles, including Aumerle and Bagot, challenge one
another when the death is brought up. Many peo-
ple throw down gauges in order to initiate a fight
over who is to blame for the death of the Duke.
York comes to tell everyone that Richard is step-
ping down from the throne and when Bolingbroke
begins to take the throne, the Bishop of Carlisle
accuses him of treachery and predicts a civil war.
Carlisle is arrested and Bolingbroke orders Rich-
ard to come meet with him in person. Richard for-
mally resigns the crown in front of Bolingbroke
and his taken to the tower and Aumerle learns
that people are plotting against Bolingbroke.
29
SECTION 1
Act IV, Scene i

• Why does Carlisle accuse Bolingbroke of
treachery?
• What does it say about Richard that he sent
his assistant to do his dirty work for him?
• What could the broken mirror symbolize?
Elaborate.
• Discuss the significance of the part of the
scene where both Richard and Bolingbroke
hold the crown.
30
SECTION 2
Discussion Topics
Richard inspects his reﬂection in
a mirror.

Chapter 6
Section 1: Scene 1
Section 2: Scene 2
Section 3: Scene 3
Section 4: Scene 4
Section 5: Scene 5:
Section 6: Scene 6
ACT V

Richard says goodbye to his Queen
and decides to send her back to
France.
32
SECTION 1
Act V, Scene i

The Duke of York expresses his condolences
to Richard, but then swears his loyalty to
King Henry Bolingbroke. York discovers that
Aumerle is plotting against the new King and
set off on a mission to inform King Henry of
this. Aumerle and the Duchess of York follow
after York to beg the King for mercy.
33
SECTION 2
Act V, Scene 2

Aumerle reaches King Henry first and pleads
to the King for mercy in regards to an un-
named crime. The Duke of York follows be-
hind Aumerle and informs the King of the en-
tire plot against him. The Duchess barges in
after the Duke and the three kneel before the
King pleading for different things, York Au-
merle and the Duchess and Aumerle for
mercy and forgiveness. The king opts to par-
don Aumerle and sends his army to arrest the
other conspirators.
34
SECTION 3
Act V, Scene iii

Sir Pierce Exton removes Richard accord-
ing to the wishes of King Henry Boling-
broke.
35
SECTION 4
Act V, Scene iv

Richard is imprisoned in Pontefract Castle
and is visited by a boy that previously worked
in his stable. The prison keeper visits Richard
as well. Exton later enters with a number of
armed men and Richard kills several of them
in self-defense before Exton finally kills Rich-
ard.
36
SECTION 5
Act V, Scene v

King Henry hears about the capture of the
leaders of the conspiracy against him. The
King pardons the Bishop of Carlisle. Exton
brings Richard’s dead body to Henry who pro-
ceeds to banish Exton for murder. King
Henry decides to go to the Holy Land to rid
himself of his personal guilt.
37
SECTION 6
Act V, Scene vi

• Why does King Henry banish Exton after ex-
plicitly telling him to kill Richard?
• How do you interpret Richard’s soliloquy at
the beginning of Scene v?
• Why does York beg King Henry to take kill his
own son.
38
SECTION 7
Discussion Topics
King Henry IV

-Discuss the importance of word choice in the play.
-How is gender significant throughout this play?
-Discuss how this play hints at what makes a good king versus a bad king.
-Looking back, what examples of foreshadow can you find in the text?
-How does this play follow, as well as break, the typical rules and conventions of the gen-
res of history and tragedy? Elaborate.
-How do you think this play was received when it was first written and performed? Why?
40
Reﬂection Topics

"9 Minor Points In Shakespearean Plays That Totally Change The Whole Story | Cracked.com." Cracked.com. N.p., n.d. Web.
10 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.cracked.com/funny-8321-9-minor-points-in-shakespearean-plays-that-totally-change-whole-story/>.
"American Illiterati." : Shakespeare: King Henry IV Part 1 & 2. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://americanilliterati.blogspot.com/2011/05/shakespeare-king-henry-iv-part-1-2.html>.
Delahoyde, Michael, Ph.D. "Richard II." Public.WSU.edu. Washington State University, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
<http://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/shakespeare/richardII.3.html>.
"File:FirstFolioRichardII.jpg." Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:FirstFolioRichardII.jpg>.
"Flint Castle 01." Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flint_Castle_01.JPG>.
"John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/101362/John-of-Gaunt-duke-of-Lancaster>.
"KING HENRY IV OF ENGLAND (1367-1413) [Henry Bolingbroke, Henry Lancaster]." KING HENRY IV OF ENGLAND
(1367-1413) [Henry Bolingbroke, Henry Lancaster]. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.luminarium.org/encyclopedia/henry4.htm>.
"King Richard II (1367-1400)." YouTube. YouTube, 06 Oct. 2010. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-wCTP741bI>.
"King Richard II." King Richard Armitage. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://kingrichardarmitage.rgcwp.com/history/biography/>.
41
Works Cited

"The Kings and Queens of England." The Kings and Queens of England. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/history/richard2.htm>.
"A King's Verse Fails to Prevent His Decline." Shakespeare's 'Richard II,' From the Pearl Theater Company. N.p., 24 Nov. 2011.
Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://theater.nytimes.com/2011/11/25/theater/reviews/shakespeares-richard-ii-from-the-pearl-theater-company.html?_r=0
>.
"The Language of Shakespeare." The Language of Shakespeare. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.uni-due.de/SHE/SHE_Shakespeare-s_Language.htm>.
McAvoy, Dave, Ph.D. "Richard II." Indiana University Eng-L220 Spring 2013. Ballantine Hall, Bloomington. Jan. 2013. Lecture.
"Richard II Queen." Historical Articles and Illustrations » Blog Archive ». N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.lookandlearn.com/blog/21497/anne-the-good-was-richard-iis-much-loved-queen/>.
"Richard II." Production History in Pictures. Royal Shakespeare Company, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.rsc.org.uk/whats-on/richard-ii/production-history-in-pictures.aspx>.
"Richard II of England." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 20 Apr. 2013. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_II_of_England>.
Rusche, Henry. "Shakespeare Illustrated." Shakespeare Illustrated | The Artists | Richard II. Emory University, n.d. Web. 21
Apr. 2013.
<http://shakespeare.emory.edu/illustrated_showimage.cfm?imageid=291>.
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<http://www.rsc.org.uk/explore/shakespeare/london.aspx>.
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42

"Thomas Mowbray." Thomas Mowbray. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.shakespeareandhistory.com/thomas-mowbray.php>.
"William Shakespearein London." William Shakespeare in London. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.literarygenius.info/william-shakespeare-london.htm>.
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A High Schooler's Guide to "Richard II"

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A High Schooler's Guide to "Richard II"