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How Have The Contexts of The Composers of Richard The Third and Looking For Richard Affected Their Portrayal of Their Key Themes?
How Have The Contexts of The Composers of Richard The Third and Looking For Richard Affected Their Portrayal of Their Key Themes?
for power into a cunning and intelligent politician like figure. This change allows for a
greater understanding of Richards pursuit of power and his acts of deception within
Pacinos modern context and audience.
Pacino reshapes Shakespeares Richard during the final scenes of the play to explain his
loss of power in his modern American context, differing from Shakespeares use of divine
retribution. Shakespeare portrays Richard as an evil royal usurper, and utilises the plot
device of the ghosts in Act 5 Scene 3 to convey to his audience, who are already familiar
with the Tudor myth, that Richard must die in order for peace to be restored, bloody and
guilty in a bloody battle end thy days!. Richards loss of power due to divine retribution
and ghostly intervention is not relevant for a humanist society; hence Pacino portrays
Richard as mentally unstable and lacking confidence. Pacino conveys Richard's loss of
power as due to his conscience, through the plot device of his existential crisis. The
ghosts from Richard III are reframed into Richards dream using visual stichomythia and
are obviously distorted to appear dreamlike. Quickly alternating shots of Clarence, the
young princes, and the nobles Richard has murdered, along with Queen Elizabeth
wrought with anguish are contrasted with shots of Richards own death both in rehearsal
and performance. Kimballs voiceover is used to state he has let the pursuit of power
totally corrupt him he is alienated from his own self. Shakespeare conveys Richards
conscience, not his lack of support from the church, as leading to his downfall. Hence
Pacino reshapes Shakespeares original text through his portrayal of Richardss character
in order to convey the impacts of Richardss nature in secular modern context, whilst still
commenting on the impacts of ones ruthless pursuit of power at all costs.
The great contextual change is evident within final scene of both the play and the
docudrama in which King Richard dies and Richmond takes power. Both the themes of
Richards pursuit for power and the impacts of his evil nature are explored throughout
the parallel scenes. Shakespeare utilises brief stage directions they fight; Richard is
slain, followed by the metaphor the bloody dog is dead to convey the death of Richard.
Shakespeare employs the immediate death of Richard and the animal imagery conveyed
by Richmond to portray to his audience that God has carried out an act of divine
retribution due to Richardss Machiavellian nature. Shakespeare employs Richmonds
monologue in the final scene to convey the restoration of divine order and peace
throughout the kingdom, we will unite the white rose and the red. Smile, heaven, upon
this fair conjunction. Shakespeares audience would now recognise that order has been
restored through their current rulers the Tudors supported by both God and the church.
Pacino must transform final scenes to create a greater understanding for his mainly
secular audience. Pacino employs the plot device of Richmond's soldiers shooting Richard
in his back, thus portraying his death as unfair. Pacino gives Richmond no heroic
monologue just two sentences God and your arms be praised, victorious friends. The
day is ours, the bloody dog is dead. This is said whilst Richmond is walking away from
the camera, hence Pacino utilises the mise en scene of this shot and the following close
up shot of the filmmaker stating is this it? I hope so whilst the scene is still filming in the
background to undermine Richmonds inglorious victory and take focus away from
Richmonds speech of the role of god and thus importance of divine retribution. Through
his focus on the impacts of conscience not divine retribution Pacino is able to transform
the text and Richardss death to suit his context in which Richards death arises from the
burden of guilt.
Both Richard III and Looking for Richard are products of different times yet they are
connected through their exploration of Richardss evil nature and his obsession with
power. Pacino in his docudrama Looking for Richard reshapes Shakespeares original
play Richard III in order to bring the Elizabethan drama with a heavy religious context,
to his twentieth century mainly secular audience, whilst still delivering the key ideas and
insights to be gained from the Shakespearian original. Through a study of the contexts
and values of the texts, the responder arrives at more nuanced understanding of the
varying treatment and reception of texts over time, and gains insight into the inevitable
downfall one must suffer when they choose to be a villain in order to gain power and
glory for themselves.