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A review by leesmyth
King Edward III by William Shakespeare
4.0
I was very pleasantly surprised by this one, given its uncertain canonical status. (Apparently, Shakespeare is now thought to have written some sections of it.)
It's a bit of proto-Henry V in many of its plot elements, and also has both some misunderstood prophecies and several points where masts or spears of an army are momentarily taken for trees (lending a sort of proto-Macbeth feel).
One recurring theme is oath-keeping, often in the face of a royal command ordering and purporting to 'absolve' the oath-breaking in advance.
* We first see this in King Edward's attempt on the virtue of the Countess of Salisbury. She declines to break their respective marriage oaths, and eventually shames Edward into renouncing the project entirely. (But not before Edward has tricked her father into promising to try persuade her to say yes. Her father is horrified, of course, but honors his promise nonetheless in a wonderful dialogue.)
* We also see this in the French prisoner Villiers, who is released strictly on his promise to secure a safe-conduct for his captors from the Dauphin, and to return to his erstwhile captors if he is unsuccessful. Quite understandably, the Dauphin thinks this is crazy and that Villiers has no obligation to keep that promise. (Cf JRRT's escape of the prisoner vs flight of the deserter argument.) But Villiers sticks to his guns, and the Dauphin relents and provides the passport specifically so Villiers won't return empty-handed to his erstwhile captors and voluntarily re-enter captivity.
* And then the King of France tries to order the Dauphin to break his promise of safe-conduct, on the theory that it was ultra vires and countermanded. Here, too, the King ultimately relents and allows the Dauphin to honor his promise.
It's a bit of proto-Henry V in many of its plot elements, and also has both some misunderstood prophecies and several points where masts or spears of an army are momentarily taken for trees (lending a sort of proto-Macbeth feel).
One recurring theme is oath-keeping, often in the face of a royal command ordering and purporting to 'absolve' the oath-breaking in advance.
* We first see this in King Edward's attempt on the virtue of the Countess of Salisbury. She declines to break their respective marriage oaths, and eventually shames Edward into renouncing the project entirely. (But not before Edward has tricked her father into promising to try persuade her to say yes. Her father is horrified, of course, but honors his promise nonetheless in a wonderful dialogue.)
* We also see this in the French prisoner Villiers, who is released strictly on his promise to secure a safe-conduct for his captors from the Dauphin, and to return to his erstwhile captors if he is unsuccessful. Quite understandably, the Dauphin thinks this is crazy and that Villiers has no obligation to keep that promise. (Cf JRRT's escape of the prisoner vs flight of the deserter argument.) But Villiers sticks to his guns, and the Dauphin relents and provides the passport specifically so Villiers won't return empty-handed to his erstwhile captors and voluntarily re-enter captivity.
* And then the King of France tries to order the Dauphin to break his promise of safe-conduct, on the theory that it was ultra vires and countermanded. Here, too, the King ultimately relents and allows the Dauphin to honor his promise.