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The Courtship Scene in Henry V

The Courtship Scene in Henry V Henry V’s inept manner of courtship, though successful as far as the French princess is concerned, has been unlucky in its appeal to critics of literature. Doctor Johnson disliked its “military grossness” ; to Swinburne it had “the savour rather of a ploughman than a prince” ; Mark Van Doren was reminded of a “hearty undergraduate with enormous initials on his chest”; and John Palmer found in Henry’s tonduct the undesirable characteristics which “are most admired in the legendary Englishman.”l Such strictures have been, however, less convincing than the practical observation that “the wooing scene itself . . . must have been enough to float the play.”e Proof of the episode’s unusual appeal is to be found in the enduring popularity of its comic theme: the difficulties of the bluff soldier in relationship with women. For it is not as a “legendary Englishman” that Henry proposes to Katherine. His ineptness in courtship is constantly related to the conventional soldierly temperament. “I speak to thee plain soldier,” he tells the princess; and again, “take me, take a soldier.”8 The very outset of the wooing stresses the plain soldier’s inability to command the niceties of language. “Fair Katherine, and mQst http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Modern Language Quarterly: A Journal of Literary History Duke University Press

The Courtship Scene in Henry V

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Publisher
Duke University Press
Copyright
Copyright 1950 by University of Washington
ISSN
0026-7929
eISSN
1527-1943
DOI
10.1215/00267929-11-2-180
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Henry V’s inept manner of courtship, though successful as far as the French princess is concerned, has been unlucky in its appeal to critics of literature. Doctor Johnson disliked its “military grossness” ; to Swinburne it had “the savour rather of a ploughman than a prince” ; Mark Van Doren was reminded of a “hearty undergraduate with enormous initials on his chest”; and John Palmer found in Henry’s tonduct the undesirable characteristics which “are most admired in the legendary Englishman.”l Such strictures have been, however, less convincing than the practical observation that “the wooing scene itself . . . must have been enough to float the play.”e Proof of the episode’s unusual appeal is to be found in the enduring popularity of its comic theme: the difficulties of the bluff soldier in relationship with women. For it is not as a “legendary Englishman” that Henry proposes to Katherine. His ineptness in courtship is constantly related to the conventional soldierly temperament. “I speak to thee plain soldier,” he tells the princess; and again, “take me, take a soldier.”8 The very outset of the wooing stresses the plain soldier’s inability to command the niceties of language. “Fair Katherine, and mQst

Journal

Modern Language Quarterly: A Journal of Literary History – Duke University Press

Published: Jan 1, 1950

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