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    King John, with line numbers
    King John, with line numbers
    King John, with line numbers
    Ebook129 pages1 hour

    King John, with line numbers

    By William Shakespeare

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    The classic Shakespeare history play, with line numbers. According to Wikipedia: "The Life and Death of King John, a history play by William Shakespeare, dramatises the reign of John, King of England (ruled 1199–1216), son of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine and father of Henry III of England. It is believed to have been written in the mid-1590s but was not published until it appeared in the First Folio in 1623."
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSeltzer Books
    Release dateMar 1, 2018
    ISBN9781455425914
    King John, with line numbers
    Author

    William Shakespeare

    William Shakespeare is the world's greatest ever playwright. Born in 1564, he split his time between Stratford-upon-Avon and London, where he worked as a playwright, poet and actor. In 1582 he married Anne Hathaway. Shakespeare died in 1616 at the age of fifty-two, leaving three children—Susanna, Hamnet and Judith. The rest is silence.

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    Reviews for King John, with line numbers

    3.5/5

    31 ratings30 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Having finished the last of a trilogy of novels about Eleanor of Aquitaine last night, I was prompted to read this, one of Shakespeare's less well known and now rarely performed plays. It prevents a telescoped version of the events early in John's reign in 1202-3, where he fought, triumphed over and probably murdered his nephew Arthur of Brittany, who had an arguably superior claim to the throne of England, being the son of one of John's older brothers, Geoffrey. It also presents a fictitious version of John's death and succession by his son, Prince Henry, who was not in reality born until a few years after Arthur's death. (Magna Carta does not exist in this fictionalised version of events). The events are dramatic, but it mostly lacks the memorable and pithy dialogue and quotations of many of the plays, and is one of only two Shakespeare plays written entirely in (mostly blank) verse.
    • 4/5
      WS sees John as a lesser man coming to the throne in the wake of the Glorious Richard Lionheart. He's not that good, and drags the country down, gets it interdicted by the Papacy and invaded by the French. He's also the murderer of his older brother's son, a child with a good claim to the throne. WS creates., a point of view character "Bastard Fauconbridge" who represents the playwright's vision of what the English thought of John. there's no mention of the Magna Carta, because in Elizabeth I's England, it wasn't thought of as an important document. I've recorded it as read 4 times.
    • 4/5
      This play has absolutely the best line in Shakespeare: Let that be thy message and go rot!
    • 4/5
      Has powerful moment when Prince Arthur is pleading with Hubert for his life.
    • 4/5
      I don' t know why Shakespeare's King John is so little known. It has an involving story line and some quirky characters that I imagine could be played very effectively, though I have never had the opportunity to see it on stage. King John is as bad as he is legendarily supposed to be, though not without redeeming qualities. The famous Eleanor of Aquitaine of Lion in Winter fame plays a substantial part. There is, however, no comic character to compare with Falstaff of the Henry IV plays, though Richard the Bastard, the supposed illegitimate son of King Richard the Lion Heart, has a fair number of snarky lines, and is, in his role of outside observer, a satiric commentator on the political insincerities of the other characters, until his assumption of a redemptive role in the final act.

      I had to brush up on the history of the real King John after reading the play. It turns out that King John had a very convoluted and eventful life filled with sound and fury, and Shakespeare selected episodes from it to weave into a tragedy without much regard to the actual historical sequence of events. Yet every episode dramatizes something that is part of the historical record.
      I recommend King John if you have already read the major Shakespeare plays. Otherwise go read them first, i.e. Macbeth, Julius Caesar, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, The Tempest, Antony and Cleopatra, The Merchant of Venice, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Henry IV Parts I and II, Henry V, Othello, etc. King John is not at the same level of excellence, but is still worth a read.
    • 5/5
      I love, love, love King John. I can see why it's hardly ever performed, though - there's several characters that only show up for a scene or two before leaving (the three women - Constance, Queen Elinore and Blanche disappear after act three), plus it would be hard to find a child actor that could memorize and speak Arthur's role. But, dear God, the characters! Constance and Philip the Bastard may be two of my favorite characters in all the histories. Constance is just so nuts - her catfight with Queen Elinor is hilarious - and the Bastard is so completely epic in every way. His constant haranguing of Austria is hilarious, and his utterly mad schemes of warfare (that always end up working!) are just...he's just awesome.
    • 3/5
      My memory is sketchy on the facts of John's reign, this may be colored by Shakespeare's need to please Queen Elizabeth and re-write history a bit, but then, who reads Shakespeare for history? There are certainly many pithy, witty and funny lines within this drama. Though it isn't my favorite, it was good to read. I really enjoyed the two women sending verbal barbs at each other, and even teared up a bit at Arthur's death.
    • 2/5
      I think I would like a modern English version of this historical (fiction?) play as there was plenty of action. However I struggled with Shakespeare's writing too much to enjoy it.
    • 5/5
      Of most interest as a hint of what is to come in King Henry IV Parts I and II, although still an interest in its own terms, especially for characters like the Duke of York. Richard II begins with the King arbitrating a quarrel by two younger courtiers and ends with one of those younger courtiers, Henry IV, usurping as King. One flaw, at least to my eyes, it jumps from Henry IV returning to claim his lands, and pledging loyalty to King Richard II, to him usurping the throne without ever explaining if his initial attitude was disingenuous, if something changed, or what happened to bring about this transformation.
    • 3/5
      Like all real literature this is about death. While Dick is not necessarily the greatest king around he is at least smart enough to realize that the collapse of his reign is a chain of events that can only inevitably lead to his murder, as the continued existence of a "rightful heir" is a loose end no usurper can afford to leave lying around. So the play is mostly about him alternating trying to grapple with this fact with constructing daydreams of some "possible escape" (there is no escape). A solid tragedy but does not reach the same heights Shakespeare managed with more sympathetic characters than this guy who is portrayed as moostly the cause of his own problems.
    • 4/5
      As usual, Shakespeare plays fast and loose with historical detail, relying on several sources for his play. Superficially, the play is about the struggle between Richard II and Henry Bolingbroke. Ultimately, though, I found this a complex and involving character study of a young, inexperienced king, that foreshadows elements of Henry V and many other of his plays.
    • 5/5
      I love this one. Not sure if this is my second or third reading -- GR says I read it last in Nov. 2014, but I feel like I read it last more recently -- but, again, this is a five star play for me. This time I started with Marjorie Garber's chapter on Richard, from her marvelous Shakespeare After All. Her analysis didn't provide any startling insights, but it added to my appreciation of the way Shakespeare's artistry works in this play. Anyway, I just find Richard fascinating. Sure, he's a dreadful king and a lousy nephew, but he's a wonderful character. So invested in his own performance as flamboyant monarch that when the "script" of events seems to suggest that a tragic fall is imminent, he seizes the role of doomed lord (or, as he often suggests, "Lord") and plays it to the hilt. He reminds me of Hamlet, though not so complex -- self-dramatizing even to the point of his own destruction, self-pitying, and introspective, and he is such a great contrast with Henry. Poet vs. pragmatist. And their uncle, the Duke of York, switching his loyalties from Richard to Henry as it seems expedient, throwing his son over in a red hot minute, acting the "sage counselor" but always putting his own interests first, is marvelous fun! This is one of my favorite plays.The Arden edition of this has excellent notes, and the performances of the actors in the Archangel audio recording are marvelous. I can't recommend Marjorie Garber's Shakespeare After All highly enough, and also, because, of course, plays are meant for watching, the "King Richard II" in the BBC's "The Hollow Crown" and The Royal Shakespeare Company's "King Richard II" with David Tennant, are well worth seeing.
    • 1/5
      I'm not big into the history plays.
    • 3/5
      This is one of Shakespeare's lesser known tragedies but it also became the first in the series that led to Henry V, et al. It is the tale of a king whose kingdom falls apart and who is eventually dethroned, imprisoned, and killed. It had political significance in its time, such that Elizabeth II compared herself to King Richard. For me, it was not an overwhelming work compared to his other plays.
    • 2/5
      The tragedy of this is that Shakespeare devoted a whole play to this milquetoast whiner. It would have been more effective, to me, had his story been included as a small part of the Henry IV plays. Neither a great hero or a great anti-hero, I just found the guy to be annoying as hell.
    • 4/5
      The first of the Henriad plays, 'The Tragedy of Richard II' covers Richard II's "Jesus Year": The eponymous king was only 32- and 33-years old as the tragedy of his life played out, setting the stage for The War of the Roses. During his 22-year reign, he was spoiled, and he abused the royal prerogative, so his fate should be no surprise; but The Bard paints a portrait of a man who found his humanity before paying the ultimate price.
    • 5/5
      Richard II is one of my favorite histories, partly because the actual events surrounding Richard's fall offer plenty of drama, and partly because of its sheer beauty. Richard is eloquent to a fault - literally; he'd rather give flowery speeches than actually do anything. But what speeches! You almost forget what a moron he is.

      But it's the gardener's soliloquy in III.iv that's actually the prettiest, an extended rant about why he should bother weeding the garden when Richard has let pests overrun England.

      It's surprising to me that Richard II doesn't get more attention these days. I understand how Richard III's hilarious villainy and Henry V's blustering violence overshadow it, but this is a rewarding play.
    • 5/5
      Thick as a brick, the Arden edition of "Richard II" is a sight to behold. It's my first Arden history, and I'm looking forward to more. A play entirely in prose needs a lot of textual analysis, but what makes this particularly wonderful is the depth of the notes on the historical context. To an audience watching this in 1600, the references were as familiar to us as an episode of "The Daily Show", replete with all of the tiny little nuances that we just cannot grasp.

      Forker's notes give us detailed quotes from Shakespeare's sources, and spend a lot of time examining the relationship of the text to history. Being of an older generation, many of his thoughts on individual words and grammar are particularly enlightening, although one could argue that readers uninitiated in the particularities of grammar (vocatives, absolutes, etc.) may need to consult a guidebook as they go. Forker commendably sometimes offers alternatives to phrases even when the obvious reading seems likely (or, at least, easy), but he has a frustrating grandfatherly habit of dismissing modern theatrical approaches to the plays when they aren't historically accurate. While I can appreciate his points sometimes, it seems churlish to expect directors of these plays - made, after all, for a populist audience - to prioritise historical veracity even when it would confuse audiences or obfuscate an already challenging text. But anyhow, I digress. That's a minor quibble for what is another sterling edition in this most wonderful of book series.

      As with all Ardens, this is for scholars and readers rather than families and actors. Genius work though. We live in an often-terrible world, and yet we near the completion of such an astonishing scholarly project as this. There is hope for us yet.
    • 4/5
      After Bullingbrooke, Duke of Hereford and cousin to King Richard, publicly accuses Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk, of treason, the two Dukes decide to settle their quarrel with a duel. But Richard steps in and banishes them instead, giving his cousin a much shorter sentence, which some would think was done out of love. The truth is that Richard doesn't love Bullingbrooke, and may even be jealous that his cousin is so favored by the people. He just might be plotting to ensure that his cousin never returns to England. When news comes that Bullingbrooke has returned to fight Richard it divides the aristocracy, including the King's own family.This is one of the histories, and it's a mix of accuracy and fiction. There's very little action but constant threats of fighting and the stakes are high: first banishment, then deaths, then a fight for the throne. I don't know about you but I found it enthralling.
    • 4/5
      Richard spends so much of this play depressed that you'd think he was in The Bell Jar. This play had three stars until "Go thou and fill another room in hell" made me change my pants.
    • 4/5
      Richard II is the first play in the Henriad (second tetralogy). It is followed by the three plays, Henry IV, Part 1; Henry IV, Part 2; and Henry V. Shakespeare’s histories have always been his most intimidating works for me. Richard III and Henry V are obviously incredible, but some of the others, like this one, ramble on with so many different names that it can be hard to follow. I decided it was time to just dive in and start at the chronological beginning. The Wars of the Roses play out in eight different works beginning with Richard II; then Henry IV, Part 1 and Part 2, Henry V, Henry VI Part 1, 2, and 3, and Richard III. This play introduces many of the major players that have a role throughout the rest of those plays. It's about the fall of a king, the shifting of power, unhappy subjects and the plotting that leads to the king’s downfall. There's a beautiful scene between Richard II and his wife in act five. She’s watching he husband lose his power and is heartbroken for him…“But soft, but see, or rather do not see, My fair rose wither: yet look up, behold, That you in pity may dissolve to dew, And wash him fresh again with true-love tears.” I recently saw a film version of this one and it was fantastic. It was such a wonderful portrayal and those individuals will stick in my mind as those characters. Also I saw it at the Old Vic in London and Kevin Spacey played Richard II a few years ago. It was a wonderful performance. I’ve found that Shakespeare works so much better for me in book form if I’ve had a chance to see it performed live first. BOTTOM LINE: A beautiful portrait of the tenuous nature of power and the bittersweet nature of victory. It can be hard to follow because of the sheer number of characters and shifting alliances. If possible I'd recommend seeing a play or movie version before reading it because it's easier to follow the text when you can put a face with the name.“I wasted time, and now doth time waste me;For now hath time made me his numb'ring clock;My thoughts are minutes, and with sighs they jarTheir watches on unto mine eyes, the outward watch,Whereto my finger, like a dial's point,Is pointing still, in cleansing them from tears.”
    • 4/5
      Tough one to rate: without knowing the historical background completely, most things that happen are a little opaque - which makes this particular edition a god-send. Richard's speeches, particularly in the second half, are brilliant.
    • 4/5
      When I was in high school, I always thought Shakespeare was over-hyped. I read and reread, without understanding WHY someone could be so popular for so long; how could he have changed the world with simple, short plays? But in college, I had a professor who opened my eyes to how truly amazing Shakespeare was as an artist. He basically invented a metaphorical language that captured irony, pun, tragedy, and comedy in almost-flawless storytelling. Richard II, though not my favorite of his plays, is still amazing in the way it captures both political and social fears of the time. I suggest that anyone who is reading Shakespeare for the first time should look up as much history as they can. It is amazing the things you will learn about figurative language and the political force of Shakespeare's plays. Genius.
    • 4/5
      Much better than I expected. I usually dislike Shakespeare's historical plays. This was not dull or silly, but beautiful.
    • 4/5
      Of most interest as a hint of what is to come in King Henry IV Parts I and II, although still an interest in its own terms, especially for characters like the Duke of York. Richard II begins with the King arbitrating a quarrel by two younger courtiers and ends with one of those younger courtiers, Henry IV, usurping as King. One flaw, at least to my eyes, it jumps from Henry IV returning to claim his lands, and pledging loyalty to King Richard II, to him usurping the throne without ever explaining if his initial attitude was disingenuous, if something changed, or what happened to bring about this transformation.
    • 3/5
      I'm still not a fan of reading plays, and yet as I started to read Richard II, I thought I might maybe revisit plays like Macbeth and Hamlet and read them properly, now I can appreciate them a bit more... so I suppose there's still hope for me yet. I still maintain that plays are understood and appreciated best when performed.

      Richard II was, for me, definitely not as compelling as Richard III. The language is still astounding, and I enjoyed reading about the political situation and then applying it while I read the play -- it's interesting in that sense -- but neither Richard II nor Bolingbroke are as compelling as Richard III with his confident villainy.
    • 3/5
      This is the first proper History I've read, and I'm not really sure I get it. There's probably a lot I'm missing by not having the cultural knowledge Shakespeare's audience had. The fourth act is really great, though - enough so that I like the play.
    • 3/5
      I don’t have much to say about this play, mostly because I did not really care for it. Of the dozen or so Shakespeare plays that I’ve actually sat down and read (as opposed to those I’ve seen in performance), this and Twelfth Night are the only two in which I’ve had a difficult time connecting to the characters. In the case of Richard, I’m sure it didn't help that I was coming to it straight off the comedies. While Richard II is one of the English history plays, it is certainly in the tragic mode. Moreover, it is entirely in verse, places great stress on political ceremony, and is virtually devoid of humor. The result is rather solemn and detached. Richard’s wife was a wonderfully pitiable character, and he himself gained in tragic stature during the final acts, but by then it was almost too late for me to care.As an antidote to my indifference, I tried watching the 1978 BBC adaptation starring Sir Derek Jacobi, but I had an even harder time getting into that—and I usually love Jacobi. I suppose this play just isn’t for me, at least not at this stage in my life.
    • 3/5
      Certainly not among Shakespeare's greatest plays, "King John" isn't among his worst either. I found it pretty middle of the road overall -- a decent plot and good pacing, but lacking in those memorable lines of dialog that have filtered into modern times.The plot, like most of the bard's historical plays, focuses on the struggle over the throne as a vacillating and somewhat weak-willed King John fights with the French. All this is viewed through his brother's illegitimate son's eyes.I'm not sure why this is ranked with Shakespeare's least popular plays -- it's not half bad.
    • 3/5
      The Bastard Faulconbridge, illegitimate son of Richard the Lion-Hearted, is welcomed at the beginning of the play into the retinue of his uncle John. He spends most of the rest of the play being shocked at the inability of the medieval powers that be to keep their word or maintain their honor or stay the course or even show decent familial feelings when "commodity" enters the picture. This dour play, almost a satire, puts King John in Richard III's position, i.e., having a young boy as a dangerous political rival, but John behaves more like Richard II than III, giving the death order rashly, then whining over its consequences.

    Book preview

    King John, with line numbers - William Shakespeare

    King John By William Shakespeare

    published by Samizdat Express, Orange, CT, USA

    established in 1974, offering over 14,000 books

    Other histories by William Shakespeare:

    King Richard II

    King Henry IV Part 1

    King Henry IV Part 2

    King Henry V

    King Henry VI Part 1

    King Henry VI Part 2

    King Henry VI Part 3

    King Richard III

    King Henry VIII

    feedback welcome: info@samizdat.com

    visit us at samizdat.com

    Dramatis Personae

    King John

    Act I.

    Scene I. Northampton. A Room Of State In The Palace.

    Act II.

    Scene I. France. Before The Walls Of Angiers.

    Act III.

    Scene I. France. The French King's Tent.

    Scene II. The Same. Plains Near Angiers

    Scene III. The Same.

    Scene IV. The Same. The French King's Tent.

    Act IV.

    Scene I. Northampton. A Room In The Castle.

    Scene II. The Same. A Room Of State In The Palace.

    Scene III. The Same. Before The Castle.

    Act V.

    Scene I. Northampton. A Room In The Palace.

    Scene II. Near Saint Edmunds-Bury. The French Camp.

    Scene III. The Same. The Field Of Battle.

    Scene IV. The Same. Another Part Of The Same.

    Scene V. The Same. The French Camp.

    Scene VI. An Open Place In The Neighborhood Of Swinstead Abbey.

    Scene VII. The Orchard Of Swinstead Abbey.

    DRAMATIS PERSONAE

    King John.

    Prince Henry, His Son; Afterwards King Henry III.

    Arthur, Duke Of Bretagne, Son To Geffrey, Late Duke Of Bretagne, The Elder Brother To King John.

    William Marshall, Earl Of Pembroke.

    Geoffrey Fitz-Peter, Earl Of Essex, Chief Justiciary Of England.

    William Longsword, Earl Of Salisbury.

    Robert Bigot, Earl Of Norfolk.

    Hubert De Burgh, Chamberlain To The King.

    Robert Falconbridge, Son To Sir Robert Falconbridge.

    Philip Falconbridge, His Half-Brother, Bastard Son To King

    Richard I.

    James Gurney, Servant To Lady Falconbridge.

    Peter Of Pomfret, A Prophet

    Philip, King Of France.

    Louis, The Dauphin.

    Archduke Of Austria.

    Cardinal Pandulph, The Pope's Legate.

    Melun, A French Lord.

    Chatillon, Ambassador From France To King John.

    Elinor, Widow Of King Henry Ii And Mother To King John.

    Constance, Mother To Arthur.

    Blanch Of Spain, Daughter To Alphonso, King Of Castile, And Niece To King John.

    Lady Falconbridge, Mother To The Bastard And Robert Falconbridge.

    Lords, Citizens of Angiers, Sheriff, Heralds, Officers, Soldiers, Messengers, Attendantsand other Attendants.

    SCENE: Sometimes in England, and sometimes in France.

    KING JOHN

    ACT I.

    SCENE I. Northampton. A Room of State in the Palace.

    [Enter KING JOHN, QUEEN ELINOR, PEMBROKE, ESSEX, SALISBURY, and others, with CHATILLON.]

    (1) KING JOHN. Now, say, Chatillon, what would France with us?

    CHATILLON. Thus, after greeting, speaks the King of France,

    In my behaviour, to the majesty,

    The borrow'd majesty of England here.

    ELINOR. A strange beginning:--borrow'd majesty!

    KING JOHN. Silence, good mother; hear the embassy.

    CHATILLON. Philip of France, in right and true behalf

    Of thy deceased brother Geffrey's son,

    Arthur Plantagenet, lays most lawful claim

    (10) To this fair island and the territories,--

    To Ireland, Poictiers, Anjou, Touraine, Maine;

    Desiring thee to lay aside the sword

    Which sways usurpingly these several titles,

    And put the same into young Arthur's hand,

    Thy nephew and right royal sovereign.

    KING JOHN. What follows if we disallow of this?

    CHATILLON. The proud control of fierce and bloody war,

    To enforce these rights so forcibly withheld.

    KING JOHN.

    Here have we war for war, and blood for blood,

    (20) Controlment for controlment;--so answer France.

    CHATILLON.

    Then take my king's defiance from my mouth,

    The farthest limit of my embassy.

    KING JOHN. Bear mine to him, and so depart in peace:

    Be thou as lightning in the eyes of France;

    For ere thou canst report I will be there,

    The thunder of my cannon shall be heard:

    So, hence! Be thou the trumpet of our wrath,

    And sullen presage of your own decay.--

    An honourable conduct let him have:--

    (30) Pembroke, look to 't. Farewell, Chatillon.

    [Exeunt CHATILLON and PEMBROKE.]

    ELINOR. What now, my son! Have I not ever said

    How that ambitious Constance would not cease

    Till she had kindled France and all the world

    Upon the right and party of her son?

    This might have been prevented and made whole

    With very easy arguments of love;

    Which now the manage of two kingdoms must

    With fearful bloody issue arbitrate.

    KING JOHN. Our strong possession and our right for us.

    (40) ELINOR. Your strong possession much more than your right,

    Or else it must go wrong with you and me:

    So much my conscience whispers in your ear,

    Which none but heaven and you and I shall hear.

    [Enter the SHERIFF OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE, who whispers to ESSEX.]

    ESSEX. My liege, here is the strangest controversy,

    Come from the country to be judg'd by you,

    That e'er I heard: shall I produce the men?

    KING JOHN. Let them approach.--

    [Exit SHERIFF.]

    Our abbeys and our priories shall pay

    This expedition's charge.

    [Re-enter SHERIFF, with ROBERT FAULCONBRIDGE and PHILIP, his bastard Brother.]

    What men are you?

    (50) BASTARD. Your faithful subject I, a gentleman

    Born in Northamptonshire, and eldest son,

    As I suppose, to Robert Falconbridge,--

    A soldier by the honour-giving hand

    Of Coeur-de-lion knighted in the field.

    KING JOHN. What art thou?

    ROBERT. The son and heir to that same Falconbridge.

    KING JOHN. Is that the elder, and art thou the heir?

    You came not of one mother then, it seems.

    BASTARD. Most certain of one mother, mighty king,--

    (60) That is well known; and, as I think, one father:

    But for the certain knowledge of that truth

    I put you o'er to heaven and to my mother:--

    Of that I doubt, as all men's children may.

    ELINOR. Out on thee, rude man! thou dost shame thy mother,

    And wound her honour with this diffidence.

    BASTARD. I, madam? no, I have no reason for it,--

    That is my brother's plea, and none of mine;

    The which if he can prove, 'a pops me out

    At least from fair five hundred pound a-year:

    (70) Heaven guard my mother's honour and my land!

    KING JOHN. A good blunt fellow.--Why, being younger born,

    Doth he lay claim to thine inheritance?

    BASTARD. I know not why, except to get the land.

    But once he slander'd me with bastardy:

    But whe'er I be as true begot or no,

    That still I lay upon my mother's head;

    But that I am as well begot, my liege,--

    Fair fall the bones that took the pains for me!--

    Compare our faces and be judge yourself.

    (80) If old Sir Robert did beget us both,

    And were our father, and this son like him,--

    O old Sir Robert, father, on my knee

    I give heaven

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