How does the play show the importance of having a conscience?
William Shakespeare’s depictions of ‘conscience’ in ‘Richard III’ associates its existence to a strong moral sense of values and beliefs. Indeed through the exploration of the characters in the play, the audience is subjected to the overall importance of the existence of morality. These underlying ideas are evident in the unavoidability of an individuals conscience, humanity being defined by a sense of righteousness as well as the role conscience plays in distinguishing right versus wrong. Despite this, the play also depicts the relative unimportance of conscience in its vulnerability against greed.
Ultimately the presence of one’s conscience is inescapable. Despite the animalistic characterizations of Richard as a ‘wretched, bloody and usurping boar’, the audience is still subjected to Richard’s vulnerable and insecure nature that is his morality. After his dream vision in which he is so vividly haunted by his victims, Richard claims that his ‘conscience hath but a thousand several tongues and each tongue brings a several tale’. Perhaps in his most anxious and naked state, the audience recognizes Richard’s psyche in identifying the presence of some sort of moral compass. He understands that his actions are of utter evil and hence his claim that ‘each tale condemns me as a villain’ serves to portray the remorse that resides in him. He is no longer so ‘determined to prove a villain’ as his atrocious crimes continue to fill him with penitence. It shows that even Richard, a character of extreme malignancy, is unable to ignore the existence of his conscience. Furthermore, at his imminent execution, Buckingham is able to identify the wrongdoings of his support of the Duke, and expresses ‘wrong hath but wrong, and blame the due of blame’. In doing so, Buckingham is suggesting the presence of retribution in that his death is a product of his own accord. Due to his prior support of Richard, the existence of his conscience can no longer be ignored as he represents the ‘due of blame’. It emphasises the unavoidability of an individuals moral concepts and displays the importance of a conscience.
In exploring the characters of the play, Shakespeare suggests that conscience plays a role in the depiction of an individuals humanity. Richard is easily recognizes as the most animalistic character. This portrayal is made so through the ever-increasing evil of his crimes. In organizing the death of the young princes, Richard asks ‘Comes to me Tyrrel, Soon and after supper’. Even at the murderers description of the act as ‘the most arch deed of piteous massacre’, Richard is so easily able to appease his apetite. In fact the Duke’s intrigue seems to depict an almost cannibalistic nature as the details of the two young children’s death stimulates his hunger. Through his inability to recognize his misdeeds, and his lack of conscience developing a desire for evil in Richard, the audience is subjected to his truly inhumane nature, further showing the importance morality has in defining humanity.
The importance of righteousness is evident through it’s ability to distinguish right versus wrong. The play seems to imply several messages regarding gender roles, and perhaps the most prevalent idea is the moral priorities women hold over men. In recognizing Richard’s motive for marrying her daughter, Elizabeth claims she will ‘corrupt her manners, stain her beauty, slander my name as false to Edward’s bed’. By identifying Richard’s claims of ‘love’ as being for purely dynastic purposes, Elizabeth is so readily able to sacrifice her image for her daughter. Unlike the male characters of the play, the sense of conscience Elizabeth seemingly upholds in protecting her daughter from the sufferings of Richard distinguishes her from other characters and provides her with the ability to take notice of Richard’s false appearance. Moreover, Margaret’s sense of morality is evident through her constant warnings of the fate of the other characters. Despite her being largely ignored by those surrounding her, she is so cleverly able to for see the imminent direction of the play as well as the true nature of Richard. She predicts his downfall as ‘prosperity begins to mellow and deep into the rotten mouths of death’. Margaret’s analogy of Richard’s power degrading like a fruit, serves to depict her ability to distinguish right from wrong and emphasises the sense of moral’s she has. It depicts the importance conscience has in determining the extent of one’s nature.
The play also suggests the vulnerability conscience has in that it can be so readily overcome by greed. The existence of Buckingham’s conscience is obvious in his final moments. As such his moral compass is largely ignored throughout the play. At Richard’s offering of the ‘earldom of Hereford’, Buckingham so readily disposes of his neutrality and supports Richard’s conquest. He himself is able to commit evil crimes at the thought of his ‘claim that [earldom of Hereford] at your grace’s hand’. In doing so, it shows that conscience can be buried by a sense of greed displaying its relative unimportance when compared to desire/
Conscience is well explored in William Shakespeare’s ‘Richard III’. As the events of the play unfold, the importance of a sense of right versus wrong is exposed to the audience. Its prevalence is evident in conscience’s unavoidability, its role in our humanity and its ability to dictate right versus wrong. Ultimately though, when compared to the power of greed, conscience becomes relatively unimportant.
Home
Help
Search
Login
