In Robert Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons, several characters are presented with having philosophical meanings that take on greater significance than their character itself. Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, and Richard Rich, are just three out of the many whose actions changed history eternally and that I will be talking about. Even though the actions of these three do not appear as having much importance, they end up being majorly significant to the plays’ conclusion.
In A Man for All Seasons, Thomas More is portrayed with having the philosophy of God above all. He closely holds this saying and applies it to his moral principles by acting virtuous at all times, no matter how difficult or dangerous it could be. In the play, More is faced with a problem when asked to pick between serving his King by standing with him and supporting his divorce or with God by standing with the church and going against it. When More decides to stand with God, he is questioned by his family about his choice because going against the King would be considered treason. He says to them that “Morality’s not practical. Morality’s a gesture. A complicated gesture learned from books.”. Essentially, what he means by this is that morality does not have a meaning if it is not put into practice. It is not enough to acknowledge that something is wrong, one has to back it up with his actions. If this is not done, one’s morals are without meaning. Here he shows how he picks doing the right thing over the wrong, despite the consequences. Due to the fact that More was a strong believer in the catholic faith, he was also a strong believer in after life. After several tries and fails to get More accused for treason, the King’s side finally succeeded. Richard Rich “gave false evidence that ended up causing Thomas More considerable problems” (Simkin). Despite being fictitiously charged, he was not angry nor worried. Instead, all More said was “I am sorrier for your perjury than my peril.”. He knew that he did not do anything wrong in God’s eyes. He also knew that even though Rich would not suffer any legal consequences for his perjury, he had damaged his soul in an irreversible way and would therefore suffer after his death. This is yet another representation of his character and proof of his philosophy about God and God’s judgment above all. The last example in which More’s philosophy was apparent was when he chose God over his family. While in the Tower of London, More’s family came to see him. They tried to convince him to take the oath in order to spare his own life. More did not want to do this because he believed otherwise in his heart. He said “When a man takes an oath, Meg, he is holding his own self in his own hands. Like Water. And, if he opens his fingers then — he needn’t hope to find himself again.” (Bolt 83). By saying this, More meant that a man holds his soul in his hands when he takes an oath. He needs to carefully choose what he does after because by sinning or doing something against his oath he is opening his fingers and letting the water slip away. The Kings oath went against God’s, and because of this, More could not take it. If he did, he would not be able to find himself again and there would not be a point to life. When looking at all of More’s choices, one could predict that his end would come down to choosing God over himself. This was foreshadowed through several parts of the play and by the end, one could see how More’s philosophical significance took on greater meaning than his character itself.
Thomas Cromwell had an end justifies the means philosophy in the play. In addition to that, he was a manipulative, immoral cynic who was a strong believer that the state came first and because of this, he did almost anything to serve his King and it. It was apparent that he was cynical after he said “You’re absolutely right, it must be done by law. It’s just a matter of finding the right law. Or making one.”. One can see that Cromwell was only concerned with his own interests and disregarded any appropriate standards to reach his goals. He knew that getting More out of the way would benefit him greatly. Due to this, he would go as far as manipulating the law in order to get what he wanted. Cromwell’s decisions were based off of having political sense rather than religious. Here one sees how Cromwell was a believer of the philosophy supporting the ends justifying the means. During the play, Cromwell once explained his reasoning to Rich. He said “The normal aim of administration is to keep steady this factor of convenience.”. What he meant was that “the goal of political administration is to smooth the road for those in power” (Course Hero). If this is done, life would be much easier for everyone so doing what needs to be done, moral or immoral, will excuse any wrongs committed because of the good result to come. Finally, Cromwell called himself “The Kings ear”. He voiced what he thought was his role by saying “Oh, sly! Do you notice how sly he is Rich? Well, I suppose you would call me “The Kings Ear” Its a useful organ, the ear. But in fact its even simpler than that. When the King wants something done, I do it.”. By this he meant that he was the King’s informant. He would gather information and report back in order to get in his good graces. Cromwell had no loyalties to anyone and he would have done anything to get on the King’s good side in hopes of achieving his goals. Once again, we can see how this literary character’s philosophy took on greater significance than his character itself. Being that Cromwell would do anything for power, one could predict that his actions would play a major role in the plays’ plot.
Richard Rich is represented as a Machiavellian. He is portrayed as someone who tries to advance himself politically and socially, whatever the cost may be. He also symbolizes the tendency to give into the temptation of wealth and status. Rich’s philosophy was first shown to the audience when he said “But every man has his price!” (Bolt 2). What he meant was that there is no one who cannot be bribed. Everyone says that they have morals but all humans have their wants as well. Some want money, others want pleasure, titles, women, or even bricks and mortar. (Bolt 2) It is just a matter of finding out what one’s price is to get them to go against their beliefs. This quote allows the audience to infer what might happen later in the play. It presents how easily Rich is drawn towards money in order to gain a certain status. Another example of Rich’s character comes from a few references that he makes to Machiavelli. He does this in front of More. They go on to talking about it and eventually More asks “who recommended you to read Signor Machiavelli?”. Rich replies to this with “Master Cromwell.”. More goes on to tease him about it and takes what Rich is saying lightly. However, by saying this, Rich shows how he thinks. Machiavelli’s teachings tell one to stop at nothing when advancing himself, no matter the cost. This part of the play foretells how Rich’s moral beliefs will lead him to act later on, and how those actions will impact the play as a whole making his philosophies greater than his character itself as well.
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