Shoemakers Holiday

¶ … Shoemakers' Holiday" by Thomas Dekker. Specifically, it will identify the functions or roles of Sir Hugh Lacy the Earl of Lincoln, and the King of England in the play, and look at the purpose or intention of each of these characters. Dekker's characters employ characteristics of late British 16th century society, especially as they relate to the distance between classes. Each of these characters shows how class difference separated England, and how some people were clever enough to overcome class difference and better themselves.

Sir Hugh Lacy is the Earl of Lincoln, and is a snobbish and pompous, a true Elizabethan gentleman who looks down his nose at the "common" workers of London. Sir Lacy's purpose in the play is to both illustrate the snobbery of the upper classes in England at the time, and to show that while these classes enjoyed money and prestige, they were often bitter and unhappy. They were so puffed up with themselves and their position, that they could not truly enjoy life, or enjoy the simplicity of an honest day's work. He is in direct contrast with the tradesmen in the story, who enjoy honest labor, vitality, patriotism, and camaraderie, and seem to have much happier lives, even if they do not have as much money. Lincoln personifies English society at the time, which was on the brink of the Industrial Revolution, which would change the trades forever. Trade Unions or Guilds were developing at this time, which gave the laborers, such as the shoemakers, more wealth and status, and allowed them to move up in stature, just as the young Eyre does. Thus, the workers are threatening the upper class, and Lincoln shows just how unbending and pompous the upper classes could be when it came to accepting those "lesser" than them into their ranks. Lincoln serves a vital purpose in the play, because he acts as the wall that existed between the upper and lower classes, and he represents England's past, and the unyielding way the upper classes held on to their "superiority," by strictly structuring their lives and their marriages to keep out the "riff raff."

The King, on the other hand, looks at his subjects more realistically, and is more humanistic and understanding than Sir Lacy. He represents the future of England, where the classes will begin to mix more freely, and men such as Eyre can even aspire to an office such as Lord Mayor, or urge the king to grant him a special patent to sell shoes. The King is approachable and sympathetic in this comedy, and he takes a great interest in the lives of his subjects, which is why he visits their Shrove Tuesday banquet. He pardons Eyre for his desertion and elevates him to Lord Mayor, showing that the distinction between the classes is about to blur, and that he is a benevolent monarch who envisions change for his people. He serves a vital purpose in the play, because even though he is the ultimate "upper classman," he has much more understanding than Sir Lacy, and he is much more open to all of his subjects, not just the most highly placed in society. He shows that hard work and dedication can bring their own reward. The King also symbolizes the majesty of the city of London that Dekker uses for the backdrop for his comedy, and the loyalty of his subjects. The guild of shoemakers is quite loyal to each other, and people like the Earl of Lincoln do not understand this loyalty or dedication to their craft. The two groups are diametrically opposite from each other, and they symbolize the differences that were tearing London apart, while the King hoped to bring them back together into one cohesive city.