Mojo, The Bard, & Me

Sir, here comes the nobleman that committed the prince for striking him about Bardolf.

-Page

King Henry The Fourth Part II            Act I scene ii line 59

This is the beginning of the play, and this scene is dominated by, you guessed it, Falstaff. I’m not quite sure what the reference regarding ‘the prince for striking him about Bardolf’ is, but that might be irrelevant. At issue is the fact that Falstaff does not want to deal with this nobleman so that he tells his page ‘Wait close; I will not see him’. First he's going to pretend not to see him. And then a few lines further down he tells the page ‘Boy, tell him I am deaf’. Now he will pretend not to hear him. Anything to avoid dealing with the nobleman because Falstaff is certain that the fellow is going to try to hold him responsible for something, which of course he is. And certainly Falstaff does not want to be held accountable for anything. This is the guy, Falstaff, that is supposedly Shakespeare’s greatest creation. I still don’t get it.

First, my own little Falstaff is trying to pretend that he doesn't see or hear me.

 

 

Then, well I'm not even sure he's doing now. Very Falstaffian indeed!