Module A – Essay On King Richard III

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MOD A: King Richard III essay

How does the textual conversation between Richard III and Looking for Richard highlight different perspectives on the nature of tyranny?

Texts reflect the concerns of their time, allowing composers to affirm or challenge the dominant values of the time, thus influencing how we view ourselves, and our place in society. In his 1597 play, King Richard III, Shakespeare draws upon the politically turbulent past to craft his Machiavellian antagonist, Richard, to warn against acts of free will by challenging Providential values pertinent to the structured order that shaped society within the Great Chain of Being. Dramatising his immoral demise, Shakespeare’s serves his pragmatic purpose; to condemn the tyrannical Yorks and uphold Tudor Monarchy’s and, subsequently, Queen Elizabeth I’s reign. In contrast, Al Pacino’s 1996 docudrama, ‘Looking for Richard’ reflects his contemporary context where he rejects a singular reading of ‘Richard III’ and challenges the binaries of good and evil, conveying that individuality is a democratic right to be exercised. Further, his film reshapes elements of Shakespeare’s original to reveal…