The Function of the Chorus in Henry V Essay - 1663 Words

The Function of the Chorus in Henry V O for a muse of fire, The Chorus introduces the start of Henry V with imagery of flames and war. Shakespeare uses the Chorus to initiate the play and summarise each act to the audience before the next one begins. He is merely a tool to avoid the audience getting too confused. The function for the chorus is merely a practical one, by summarising the plot at every available opportunity; there is little chance for confusion, even if the audience do have to use their imagination. But, we must ask ourselves, if this was Shakespeares only reason for including the Chorus, why does he not use a similar device in his other plays? Surely in all of his plays†¦show more content†¦At the start of Act 4, the Chorus depicts the growing tension on the battlefield as fire faces fire. Both sides are full of courage, patriotism and rage. Another type of imagery the Chorus uses to venerate King Henry and the English army is comparison with characters from Roman mythology. They compare King Harry to Mars, the Roman God of war. They are comparing the King to the best warrior of Roman Mythology; there is no possible greater praise. Mars was also often symbolised by fire, which links back to the Choruss use of fiery imagery to portray bravery and courage. The English population are depicted as English Mercuries. Mercury was the Roman messenger God, famed for his speed and reliability, by contrasting the English to this God is also remarkable praise. Because it is clearly impossible to bring a whole war onstage, Shakespeare uses the Chorus to get the audience to picture the mighty war. However, he does not get the Chorus to merely paint the picture, he uses them to idealise the idea of conflict so that the audiences ideas are built up strongly, and they are expecting a play about glorified combat. The Chorus asks the audience to imagine great things onstage, for example they ask the audience to visualize horses with proud hoofs, they are not just hoofs, but Proud hoofs showing the emphasis on magnificence. WhenShow MoreRelatedEssay Functions of the Chorus in Shakespeares Henry V2783 Words   |  12 PagesFunctions of the Chorus in Shakespeares Henry V In Shakespeares Henry V, the chorus plays a prominent role. There are few other plays written by Shakespeare that include a chorus, however in no other play does the chorus have such an important role. The principal purpose of the chorus is that of story telling. The chorus acts as a guide for the audience, narrating parts that wouldnt fit into the action of the play. 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