Language in Anthony and Brutus’ Speeches Essay

Compare and contrast Henry’s use of rhetoric to affect others in his Harfleur speeches with the effectiveness of the language in Anthony and Brutus’ speeches In Henry V, Henry uses rhetoric very effectively as he persuades the Governor at Harfleur to surrender and encourages his troops onward with his ‘Once more unto the breach’ speech. This is very similar to Anthony and Brutus of Julius Caesar as they use rhetoric to influence the ‘mob’; firstly Brutus wins the crowd over and they believe the death of Caesar is a good thing and then Anthony turns them around and they end up hating Cassius and Brutus. Henry uses rhetoric to create a number of different effects one of them being to persuade the Governor to surrender. Rhoda Koenig suggests that this scene ‘points up the character of this immature and disaffected king’, which I disagree with as I believe that this speech shows just how the King has matured as he is able to bluff his way through as his army is, really, worn and battered. This speech shows how Henry’s words are more powerful than his army, which is similar to Anthony in Julius Caesar who turns the mob into a state of madness just through the use of his oratorical skills. For example, Henry starts his speech with short, sharp sentences: â€Å"How yet resolves the governor of the/ town?† This creates an assertive beginning and one that makes Henry seem powerful and stern. This coupled with the use of a rhetorical question puts the Governor in a situation where the mercy of Henry is in his hands, as if the outcome of his men depends on his decision. This also removes the responsibility from Henry’s shoulders which is a recurring theme throughout the play. Henry also describes what the outcome could look like if the Governor doesn’t surrender: â€Å"The gates of mercy shall be all shut up.† The use of a metaphor here, ‘the gates of mercy’, refers to Henry as if once he starts the battle there’s no goi ng back. This is used to scare the Governor so that he believes Harfleur will be desecrated once the battle has begun. This, of course, is a faà §ade as Henry knows full-well that his army is worn thin and lacking in strength. This demonstrates Henry’s good leadership, as he bluffs his way through with confidence. Also, this quote contains lots of monosyllables which make it very powerful and reinforces the threat which forces the Governor to surrender. Bernard Richards raised an interesting point where he said that Shakespeare ‘wanted to show the full range of war – the glamour as well as the squalid and obscene violence.’ This interested me as throughout this speech there is talk of atrocities of war such as ‘shrieking daughters’ while elsewhere in the play we see the French think of war as glorious. This is very similar to Brutus in Julius Caesar who has to use rhetoric to convince the crowd to surrender, as they are initially angry at the conspirat ors for killing their leader. For example, he uses rhetorical questions to force the crowd to realise that the murder of Caesar will benefit them: â€Å"Who here is so base [†¦] Who here is so rude [†¦] Who is so vile [†¦] for him have I offended.† The crowd are forced to ask themselves if they would want to be slaves, for example, which they of course answer ‘no’. The use of a three-part list also emphasizes this and would allow the crowd to remember this more accurately: â€Å"Let him be Caesar!† This quote shows that Brutus’s rhetoric successfully convinces the crowd, although they appear to have missed the point as they want Brutus to be ‘the new Caesar’ and the sole leader of Rome which is what the conspirators were fighting against. It is also interesting to note that Shakespeare’s main characters usually speak in blank verse, but here Brutus speaks in prose. This is because prose is the perfect way to persuade so has a stronger affect on the crowd. It could also be argued that because he speaks to the low-life characters, they will understand prose better than blank verse. Within his speech Brutus also uses repetition which reinforces his message: â€Å"Hear me for cause [†¦] hear.† The use of framing repetition here grabs the crowd’s attention and makes them listen. He also repeats ‘honour’ throughout his speech: â€Å"Believe me for mine honour, and have respect for mine honour.† This repetition is used to emphasize to the crowd that the conspirator’s cause was honourable and that they have done the right thing while it also serves to remind the crowd how Brutus is an honourable man, which is a similarity with Henry who also takes great care in ensuring the cause for going to war is moral. The repetition would ‘grind’ it into the crowds’ heads so that it’s almost like subliminal messaging. The repetition also shows how Brutus is still unsure himself and that he is trying to convince himself that they have done the right thing. Henry also uses rhetoric to empower his army and urge them on at Harfluer in what Hal Hinson of the Washington Post calls ‘the greatest half-time speech in human historyà ¢â‚¬â„¢. Here, Henry is forced to persuade his army that they should not retreat but attack once again: â€Å"Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more.† Similarly to Brutus, Henry uses framing repetition to encourage his army to attack Harfleur once more. The repetition helps to reinforce the message and will stick in their minds through the battle. Also in this quote, he uses an endearing pronoun ‘friend’. This affects the army as they will feel that they are all friends of the King and will have a surge of confidence. This will help the army to conquer whatever they face, even though they have had to retreat. Interestingly, this contrast to what the Chorus says in the preceding scene as he states that the great British are invading France when really they are being forced to retreat. Henry also uses alliteration: â€Å"But when the blast of war blows in our ears.† The use of plosive alliteration here creates a powerful sound which suggests that the English army are powerful enough to defeat the French. This also shows Henry’s passion as if it’s bursting out of him as he desperately wants his men to survive as he feels guilty that the war may not have an honourable cause. Also is this speech, sibilance is used: â€Å"Stiffen the sinews.† This also creates quite an aggressive sound which would be passed onto the soldiers and make them feel aggressive and willing to fight. Henry also uses figurative language: â€Å"Let it pry [†¦] like the brass cannon.† This simile likens the mind prying to a cannon – an item associated with war – which would rile up the soldiers and also remind them that they are at war, its kill or be killed. Another simile used refers to Alexander the Great: â€Å"On, on, you noblest English [†¦] like so many Alexanders.† Here, Henry likens his army to a group of Alexander the Greats. Alexander the Great is a figure of Greek legend which states that he conquered the Persian Empire. It also says that he was often reckless with his own life and his soldiers as he believed he was indestructible. This would encourage his men and fill them with confidence as Alexander was a great warrior and Henry’s army will feel equally invincible. Shakespeare’s Elizabethan audience were very interested in Greek culture so the simile would have been more relevant and had more effect than it would on our society who have a lesser interest. Also, in this quote he addresses the ‘noblest English ’while further on he addresses the â€Å"good yeomen.† Henry directly addresses each social class as his army was compiled of a number of different classes, even nationalities. King Henry V was known for uniting people under him as he prevented a civil war between the Church and the Government and th is unity is shown in the scene between Gower, Fluellen, Jamy and MacMorris. This scene also, as James Shapiro suggests, ‘prophetically anticipates the notion of a united kingdom’. Although these nations were far from united in 1599, when the play was written as England and Ireland were at war, and some were very hostile during Henry’s reign. For example, James Shapiro criticizes that Henry says the Scots may attack yet here they are united. This would make each soldier feel important, needed and a friend of the king’s, which would, ultimately, provide the soldiers with confidence to fight, and beat, the French. Likewise, Mark Anthony in Julius Caesar also addresses his crowd individually while manipulating them until they run riot around Rome: â€Å"Friends, Romans, countrymen.† Anthony immediately begins with a three-part list which grabs his audience’s attentions and the first word used is ‘friends’. This instantly makes the crowd warm to him as he is speaking to them as equals. This is similar to Henry who calls his army the ‘noble English’ and ‘good yeomen’, while it contrasts with Brutus who says, â€Å"Romans, countrymen, and lovers†, as if ‘lovers’ is an afterthought. This may hint at why Henry and Anthony were successful at convincing their audience while Brutus failed, because Henry and Anthony allowed the audience to warm to them while Brutus did not. Another way Anthony wins his crowd over is by using repetition: â€Å"And Brutus is an honourable man.† This is repeated at regular intervals throughout his speech and each time it becomes more sarcastic. The sarcastic tone induces the crowd to question whether killing Caesar was an honourable thing. Here, in the same way as Brutus, he uses subliminal messaging; however he uses it against Brutus and to much better effect as the crowd end up rampaging across Rome. In conclusion, Henry and Anthony use rhetoric and their oratorical skills very well – combining repetition, friendly language, and other techniques – to persuade their respective crowds to see their way of thinking. Brutus, however, fails to convince his crowd (or is unable to deliver a speech worthy of Anthony’s) which goes to show how good Anthony’s speech is. Henry manages to convince the Governor to surrender, and convince his battered army to continue, while Anthony manages to convince an audience who love Brutus, to hunt him down. Brutus, on the other hand, cannot prevent the people of Rome from turning against him as he didn’t endear himself to the crowd.