- Richard always compares himself to Christ who betrayed and ultimately crucified in the New Testament
- Richard compares those who are on Bolingbrook’s side to Judas. “Three Judases” – mirroring.
- Richard compares the rebels to Pontius Pilate, the Roman judge who sentences Jesus to be crucified
The
Christ Comparison:
- Richard sees himself as a Christ like figure – a martyr who thinks he is going to be avenged by God. However, Richard is not a Christ like figure. Shakespeare suggests that the problem with such a comparison that is actually the opposite of Richard.
- Christ received a crown – instead of having it taken from him. It was a crown made of thorns nevertheless, it’s a crown. Roman soldiers placed the crown of thorns on Christ’s head.
- Richard talks non-stop about his suffering and Christ never had his uncle killed and did not run an entire kingdom into the ground.
- This is an example of how vain and deluded Richard is.
The
Mirror:
- After losing his title, he looks into the mirror and expects to find wrinkles but he does not and he is unchanged
- He thinks the glass is flattering him or making him look better and healthier
- He tells Bolingbrook to look at how sorrow has ruined his face
- Richard’s face isn’t ruined – it’s the mirror that has broken so now Richard’s reflection looks awful and distorted as Richard feels on the inside.
- Richard’s way of showing us his loss of the crown is by shattering the mirror to pieces.