How we cite our quotes: (Act.Scene.Line)
Quote #1
YORK
I never read but England's kings have had
Large sums of gold and dowries with their wives;
And our King Henry gives away his own
To match with her that brings no vantages. (1.1.134-137)
York is shocked that Henry would give up lands to get Margaret. That's not something an English king should do—didn't Henry get the memo? York's comment tells the other nobles just how weak and selfish Henry is. Plus, it slams Margaret in the process. Win, win?
Quote #2
YORK
And force perforce I'll make him yield the crown,
Whose bookish rule hath pulled fair England down. (1.1.270-271)
Now York talks directly to us—the audience. With no one else on stage, he lays out his plan of attack. We'd like to focus on the fact that he calls Henry "bookish." York highlights the fact that the king is better fit to study or read than he is to rule. Check out the way he describes getting the crown. York doesn't say "fight" or "battle," but simply "make him yield," as if it's that simple. With Henry, it might be. One question we have: why is it better for a king to be warlike than to be "bookish"? What does this tell us about society in this play?
Quote #3
QUEEN MARGARET
Is this the fashions in the court of England?
Is this the government of Britain's isle
And this the royalty of Albion's king?
What shall King Henry be a pupil still
Under the surly Gloucester's governance? (1.3.45-49)
Even Henry's wife thinks he's weak: Margaret describes Henry as a student in Gloucester's class, meaning that Henry still can't think for himself and needs guidance. He's so weak that he can't even control his nobles. It seems like Shakespeare goes out of his way to include lines from different characters about Henry. The nobles might be fighting with each other, but they agree on one thing: the fact that Henry is weak.