Henry VI Part 1 Themes

Oh, politics. They're all over the place in Henry VI, Part 1. It is a play about kingship, after all—and boy, is kingship complicated. A few things to notice: (1) Lots of people have long-running...

Political strength is just one kind of power in Henry VI, Part 1. There's also military power, rhetorical power, supernatural power—and if you're a king, you're sort of expected to have them all....

Society and class are a big deal in Henry VI, Part 1. The aristocracy is a little like a high school clique—hard to get into and filled with rivals. To be fair, lots of the members are pretty goo...

Religion is seriously complex in Henry VI, Part 1. What's going down? Catholic Christianity is the religion shared by both the French and English. Should be simple enough to keep straight, right? M...

In Henry VI, Part 1, it is considered kind of doubtful for a woman to lead an army or fight in a battle. That's not to say women didn't get to do anything—after all, Queen Elizabeth is running En...

What's it mean to love your country? The answer to that in Henry VI, Part 1 turns out to be a little complicated. It might mean being loyal to your king. But wait: Maybe your king's grandfather sto...

Remember back in the old days, when there was no homework, the streets ran with gold, and it was sunny every day? Yeah, we don't either. Were there ever any old days where everything was perfect? O...

Henry VI, Part 1 is about battles, right? So who needs language and communication skills? Pretty much everybody, as it turns out. Language is a really important way that people exercise power in th...