They will not forget, and some of them may never get over their experiences. Henry may have grown up after the war, but he still really does not recognize just what he has done to his men or how war will affect them all in the end. Henry had the chance to stop the war when King Charles of France offers him a compromise, but he chose to go ahead. He was impetuous, young, and perhaps more than a little foolish. He was truly responsible for all the death and change that would surround this war. Shakespeare, in his own way, is showing the result of war and what it truly costs in this play, and Henry does not really seem to learn that lesson.
Sadly, the worst part of this story of war is that Henry's son loses the territory his father gained in yet another war, and so, the lives lost were really lost for nothing. In the end, France recaptured the land and the English never held European soil again. The men died for Henry's ego and whim, and it did not even matter in the end. Shakespeare portrays Henry as a hero for most of the play, but it seems like he is more like a headstrong boy who really does not understand what he has created and what he has done to his country. War is always costly, and this
War is ugly, and war is ugly in this play. Shakespeare seems to ultimately be taking an anti-war stance in this play, but many people may not see it, because it is lost in the character of Henry, who overpowers the play just as he overpowered the French.
In conclusion, this play really does represent war with passion and with insight. It shows how one word can really become the theme and message of the play. Henry enters into war on a whim. It makes him more of a man, but not man enough to understand that his country and his fellow citizens will pay a great price for his need to fight the French. Henry may be a hero to the English, but he seems more like a spoiled and impulsive boy who cannot really face up to the results of his actions.
References
Shakespeare,…
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