Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas
explored in a literary work.
Types of Moral Guides
In his preface, Robert Bolt addresses the apparent contradiction between
Thomas More’s upright moral sense and his periodic attempts to find
legal and moral loopholes. More strongly opposes Henry’s divorce,
yet he hopes to avoid rather than speak out against the Oath of
Supremacy. More explains his actions when he says to Will Roper,
“God’s my god. . . . But I find him rather too . . . subtle.” More
respects God’s law above all else, but he also does not pretend to
understand it. Therefore, he sees man’s law as the best available guide
to action, even if it occasionally contradicts God’s law or lets some
evildoers off the hook.
In his approach to moral action, More is thoroughly pragmatic, but
not, like Cromwell or Rich, at the expense of his
beliefs. If More sometimes seems hypocritical, it is because he
is trying to balance his respect for the law and society with his
deep-rooted sense of self. He obeys the law fully, and, in the end,
the prosecution has to come up with false charges to execute him.
More’s pragmatic maneuvering through society contrasts
with what More calls Roper’s “seagoing” principles. Roper follows
ideals instead of a his conscience or the law, and More argues that attempting
to navigate high-minded ideals is akin to being lost at sea. Roper
switches willy-nilly from Catholicism to Lutheranism and back again,
each time utterly convinced of his own righteousness. Bolt implies
that because we cannot comprehend the moral alignment of the universe,
much less wrap it up in a tidy theory, we should focus our energy
on improving ourselves and our society.
Corruption
A Man for All Seasons focuses on the
rise of Richard Rich as much as it follows the fall of Sir Thomas
More. As More’s steadfast selfhood earns him a spot on the chopping
block, Rich acquires more and more wealth and greater status by
selling out his friend and his own moral principles. Although Rich
at first bemoans his loss of innocence, by the end of the play he
has no qualms about perjuring himself in exchange for a high-ranking
position.
In Act One, scene eight, Rich gives Cromwell information
about the silver cup in exchange for a job. Rich laments that he
has lost his innocence, and the scene suggests that Rich has sold
his soul to the devil. Cromwell himself evokes the devil as he craftily
cajoles Rich into selling out before cramming Rich’s hand into a
candle flame.
Although Act One, scene eight recalls many cautionary
religious tales about the seductive powers of the devil, Bolt does
not depict Rich’s corruption to warn us that people like Rich go
to hell. Rather, Rich’s corruption, set against More’s hard and
fast sense of self, shows the damage Rich has done to his own life.
Rich has sacrificed the goodness of his own self, which the play
argues is the only thing for which life is worth living.
