The Common Man figures prominently both in
the plot of the play and also as a narrator and commentator. Although treated
in more detail in other sections, in the following plot summary,
his presence is indicated only when he interacts directly with the
other characters in the play.
Sir Thomas More, a scholar and statesman,
objects to King Henry VIII’s plan to divorce and remarry in order
to father a male heir. But More, ever the diplomat, keeps quiet
about his feelings in the hopes that Henry will not bother him about
the matter. At a meeting with Cardinal Wolsey, Lord Chancellor of
England, More reviews the letter to Rome that requests the pope’s
approval of Henry’s divorce. More points out that the pope provided
a dispensation, or exemption, in order for Henry to get married
in the first place, since Catherine, the woman Henry married, was
the widow of Henry’s brother. More doubts that the pope will agree
to overturn his first dispensation. Wolsey accuses More of being
too moralistic and recommends that he be more practical.
After conversing with Wolsey, More runs into Thomas Cromwell,
the king’s confidante. Cromwell, recently promoted to the position
of cardinal’s secretary, insincerely tells More he is one of More’s
greatest admirers. More also meets Signor Chapuys, the Spanish ambassador
to England. Chapuys takes More’s noncommittal response to questions
about his meeting with Wolsey to mean that More agrees that the
divorce should not go through. Chapuys stresses Christian morals
and Catholic dogma and seems most concerned that Henry does not
insult Henry’s wife, Catherine, who is also the king of Spain’s
aunt. Chapuys thinks he has found an ally in More.
Back at More’s home, More’s daughter, Margaret, has received
a visit from Roper, her Lutheran boyfriend, despite the late hour. Roper
asks More for Margaret’s hand, but More refuses to allow a Lutheran,
in his eyes a heretic, into his family.
Meanwhile, Wolsey dies, leaving the position of Lord
Chancellor vacant. The king was displeased with Wolsey’s failure
to secure a papal dispensation to annul his marriage to Catherine,
and Wolsey died in disgrace. More is appointed as Wolsey’s replacement.
Cromwell meets with Richard Rich, a low-level functionary whom
More helped establish and to whom More gave a silver cup he was
given as a bribe. (More did not realize that the cup was a bribe
when he received it.) Cromwell tempts Rich with an opportunity for
advancement, and the spineless Rich seems all too eager to accept
the job in exchange for information he has about More. Rich and
Chapuys, who has just entered, ask Cromwell what his current position
is, and Cromwell announces simply that he does whatever the king
wants done. He mentions that the king has planned a boat ride down
the Thames to visit More. Meanwhile, More’s manservant, Matthew
(played by the Common Man), has entered the room, and Cromwell,
Rich, and Chapuys are eager to bribe him for information. Matthew
tells them only the most well known facts about his master, but
the trio pays him off anyway.
Back at More’s home in London’s Chelsea district, the
king is set to arrive, but More is nowhere to be found. After fretting
over his absence, the family eventually finds him busy at vespers
(evening prayers). When the king arrives, all are on their best
behavior, and More comes off as the most flattering of all. However,
More does tell the king that More cannot agree to the divorce, reminding
him that the king promised not to bother More about it. The king
storms off, telling More he will leave him alone provided More does
not speak out against the divorce. Alice, More’s
wife, is angry at his behavior and thinks her husband should do
as Henry wants. Rich arrives to tell More that Cromwell and Chapuys
are collecting information about him. He asks for employment, but
More turns him away.
At a local pub called the Loyal Subject, Cromwell meets
Rich to conspire against More. Rich is reluctant and guilt-ridden,
but he ultimately agrees to tell Cromwell about the bribe that More received
and passed on to him. In exchange, Cromwell offers Rich a job.
Parliament passes the Act of Supremacy, which establishes
the Church in England and appoints King Henry as its head. More decides
that if the English bishops decide to go along with the act, he will
resign as Lord Chancellor. Both Chapuys and Roper call it a remarkable
“gesture,” but More, dead set against the act, thinks of it as a
practical necessity. He refuses to explain himself to anyone but
the king. Even his wife and daughter cannot know his reasons, because
he does not want to put them in the position of having to testify
against him later.
Cromwell meets with the Duke of Norfolk and tells him
of his plan to bring More up on bribery charges. Norfolk proves
that More gave the cup to Rich as soon as More realized it was a
bribe, and Cromwell is forced to come up with some other way to
entrap More. He tells Norfolk, however, that the king expects him
to participate in the persecution of More.
A now impoverished More refuses to receive a letter of
appreciation from the king of Spain, and he turns down the bishops’
sincere offer of charity. Cromwell calls More to his office and
attempts to malign More by accusing him of sympathizing with the
Holy Maid of Kent, who was executed for treason. Cromwell also accuses
him of having written a book attributed to King Henry. More deconstructs
both these charges, but when Cromwell reads a letter from King Henry
calling More a villain, More is genuinely shaken. Meeting Norfolk
outside, More insists that if he wishes to remain in the king’s
favor, Norfolk should cease to be his friend, since by this point
it is dangerous to know a man like More. Parliament passes another
act, this time requiring subjects to swear an oath to King Henry’s
supremacy in England over the Church and to the validity of his
divorce and remarriage. The next time we see More, he is in jail
for having refused to take the oath.
Cromwell, Norfolk, and the Archbishop of Canterbury,
Thomas Cranmer, interrogate More in prison, but they cannot trick
him into signing the oath or divulging his opinions on the king’s
behavior. As long as More refuses to talk or sign the oath, Cromwell
can keep him locked up but cannot have him executed. He removes
More’s books but lets his family visit, hoping that they will be
able to reason with him. Though More’s daughter, Margaret, tries
to convince her father he has done all he can, More refuses to relent.
Alice finally sympathizes fully with More’s predicament, and, displaying
their full love toward each other, they reconcile just before the
jailer (the Common Man) insists that the visit is over.
Cromwell gives Rich the office of attorney general for
Wales in exchange for Rich’s false testimony at More’s trial. Though
More never opened his mouth, Rich claims he heard More deny the
king’s authority over the Church. More is sentenced to death but
not before he can express his disapproval of the Supremacy Act and
his disappointment with a government that would kill a man for keeping
quiet. More goes to his death with dignity and composure, and the
play ends with his beheading.
