Leaning on His SwordWithin Shakespeare's plays there are many villains. There is the highly egoistic andconceited Malvolio, and the cunning and manipulative Iago, as well as the treacherous and vilelyexploitative sisters Goneril and Regan. Henry 'Hotspur' Percy is another such villain, with hisown distinct boldness, a penchant for impudence, and the hotheadedness that grants him hisnickname. Hotspur is a villain characterized by his irreverence for authority and faith in his ownmagnificence. He has a tongue as blunt and witty as a schoolboy's and lies incessantly. But aboveall, his most defining characteristic is his trust in actions over diplomacy, and the sword over anything.From the moment Hotspur is introduced in Act I Scene 3 of
Henry the Fourth Part One
his lack of honor and respect for the King is apparent—the first utterance from Hotspur's mouthis a lie. He even comes close to admitting the truth when he says, “My liege, I did deny no prisoners” (l. 29). With the removal of the negative, his statement would be true, but Hotspur boldly lies, right to King Henry's face. This shameless scorn of the King's authority is purely aHotspur characteristic. The fact that he includes the honorific epithet “my liege” is even morerevealing of his character, as he puts on a veil of respect when before the King while behind his back he spouts his insubordinate comments. It is not evident on the page, but one can imaginethe tone with which this line would be performed—a tired, impatient tone, hinging oninsubordination.Hotspur now goes into his account of what happened to the prisoners which he claims hedoes not deny the King. He begins by giving a vivid description of himself after the battle, “drywith rage and extreme toil, / Breathless and faint, leaning upon [his] sword” (l. 31). A sense of the reverence Hotspur has for himself can be found in this line. He is the mighty victoriouswarrior, gallantly fighting with his every bit of strength, and now he rests, tired and deserving of said rest. He depicts himself as supported by his sword. He leans on it—it is the strength thatsupports him and holds him up as a man of power, but unknowing to him it is also his crutch, andhe leans on it, crippled by the reverence and value which he places solely in the sword and not inthe court. Next in his account, “a certain lord, neat and trimly dressed, / Fresh as a bridegroom, andhis chin new reaped” (l. 33) comes onto the battlefield strewn with the aftermath of battle.Hotspur portrays this supposed lord in stark contrast to his own image. Hotspur is rugged anddirty in some commendable way after the battle. He has proven his worth by fighting andsweating and soiling himself in the process of battle, while the lord is clean, well dressed, andfreshly shaved. Demonstrably the lord was not involved in the battle and by the tone of Hotspur'sdescription undeserving of any respect for this reason.Hotspur's description and subsequent contrast of himself and this seemingly fabricatedlord is a veiled stab at the King to whom he is speaking. He holds no regard for a man who is pampered and sits on his throne far from the ugliness of battle, does not lift a finger to fight, andthen bosses around the honest and brave Sir 'Hotspur' Percy. Hotspur even cheapens the lord'simage by likening him to a “milliner” (l. 36), a seller of fashionable gloves and hats. Further onhe describes the nameless lord pestering him for his prisoners as a “popinjay” (l. 50). The choiceof describing the lord as a parrot incessantly spouting nonsense in an obnoxious voice showsexactly what he thinks of the nobility under whose authority he wages battle. Hotspur sees theKing as nothing but a parrot, a nagging nuisance perched on his own valiant pauldron. Hotspur actually believes that in his bravery and gallantry on the battlefield he actually is more important
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