Day Thirteen

Henry VI, Part 1

3.2

SYNOPSIS

Joan and some of her men are outside of Roan, disguised as locals; she tells them to act like locals:

Joan

Take heed, be wary how you place your words,

Talk like the vulgar sort of market men

The point of which is to find where English defenses on the wall are weakest to allow Duaphin to climb the wall. As she and her men enter, Charles Dauphin and his men await her signal to enter and challenge for the wall, swords drawn...

Reignier

Enter and cry "The Dolphin!" presently,

And then do execution on the watch.

They win the wall and now taunt the English in the city from the Wall. Burgandy and Talbot are with Bedford who is dying. Joan takes particular delight in mocking Bedford which Talbot thinks is lame.

Joan

What will you do, good greybeard? Break a lance,

And run a-tilt at Death within a chair?

Then Talbot calls them out (the French) and demands they fight him on the field, but not Joan. The French then leave, telling Talbot they just wanted to alert him to their presence. When they depart, Talbot and Burgundy vow to return to town or die trying. And, when they try to move him, Bedford demands he kick it with his friends.

Bedford

Here will I seit before the walls of Roan

And will be partner of your weal or woe.

...

Methinks I should revive the soldiers' hearts,

Because I ever found them as myself

Falstaff then comes and goes, then the French are run out of town afterwhich Bedford feels he can die, and does.

Bedford

Now, quiet soul, depart when heaven please,

For I have seen our enemies' overthrow.

IMPRESSIONS

War. Pretty fun play so far, I have no complaints. I'll be interested to see, the more and more I read, how the writing of this play differs from the others to such a degree that its credibility is questioned. It was also great to see John Falstaff for the first time, albeit purely as comic relief, a grade-A coward in this scene, but really who can blame him...I think that makes him wise. Like I always says, better to be a living coward than a dead hero. Hmm, Bedford?

Captain

Whither away, Sir John Falstaff, in such haste?

Falstaff

Whither away? To save myself by flight.

We are like to have the overthrown again.

Captain

What? Will you fly, and leave Lord Talbot?

Falstaff

Ay,

All the Talbots in the world, to save my life.

Exit.

I thought it was strange that Talbot challenged everyone except Joan, even refused her outright when she accepted his challenge...

Talbot

Dare ye come forth and meet us in the field?

Joan

Belike your lordship...etc

Talbot

I speak not to that railing Hecate...etc.

But I guess since she's defeated him once, I understand his reluctance. "Is there anyone else up there I could fight?" I find myself rooting for the French here for unknown reasons.

LINE OF THE DAY

As the French mock the English from the Wall, Talbot gets into a verbal altercation with Joan. Joan busts out with this line:

Joan

If Talbot do but thunder, rain will follow.

The way I interpret it is this: Talbot is all talk, when he talks: thunder, but Joan'll bring the rain. That's how I choose to read the line, it makes her sound pretty BA, though another reading is likely. In fact, I'm pretty certain she means Talbot is not all talk the exact opposite, but I'm ignoring that. I don't like that she's made to be afraid of Talbot in this scene; she kicked his ass years before, right?