The Canker of Ambition

One of the play’s central themes relates to the way ambition spreads like a disease throughout both the royal court and the kingdom at large. The opening scene already alerts the audience to the danger of political ambition, as we watch all the nobles at court conspire against each other with varying degrees of subterfuge. Everyone, it seems, is seeking a pathway to greater power, with their ultimate goal being either to influence the king or else usurp his throne. Suffolk and Margaret both want to ensure their control over Henry, the primary obstacle to which is the king’s Protector, who retains his title even though Henry is now of age to rule on his own. Winchester also wants to shore up his influence on Henry, whose religiosity would make him susceptible to the cardinal’s manipulation—if only Gloucester was out of the way. Meanwhile, York, who has nothing against Gloucester, nonetheless realizes that the plot against him will provide cover for his own ambitious plot to steal Henry’s crown and claim the throne for himself.

Ironically given the plot against him, Gloucester is the first person in the play to recognize the danger posed by political ambition. When his own wife expresses her fantasy of him taking over as king, Gloucester chides the Duchess and instructs her to “banish the canker of ambitious thoughts” (1.2.18). The word canker usually refers to a sore or an ulcer, but it can also refer to a rot-inducing fungus or else to any corrupting influence that’s difficult to eradicate. As Gloucester’s language indicates, ambitious thoughts are indeed hard to stop. Despite ordering his wife to check herself, she does no such thing. The Duchess responds by recounting a dream she had in which she was queen, and she later proceeds to hire occultists to help her figure out how to make her dream a reality. Her ineradicable ambition leads her right into a trap set by Suffolk, which is part of a larger plot that ensures Gloucester’s downfall. His eventual murder then helps foment a popular insurrection fueled by anger at how ambitious noblemen are “swallowing the treasure of the realm” (4.1.74).

The Perils of Plotting

Henry VI, Part 2 is a play whose action is largely dictated by the plotting of ambitious politicians. The opening scene lays out the two central plots. The first plot is directed against Gloucester, whose retention of his position as Lord Protector has caused a great deal of envy among those who wish to exert their own influence over the king. The second plot is directed against the king himself, whom York believes to be the descendent of usurpers and hence a wrongful ruler. As a gifted and canny schemer, York is a man who knows just how perilous such political plots can be. His own father had conspired against a previous king, and when he was caught, he lost everything: his land, his title, and his head. York has worked hard to regain what was taken from his father, and he’s keen to avoid further setbacks in his plan to retake the throne. He explains as much to his followers, Salisbury and Warwick, who both pledge their loyalty and address him as king. But York calls for caution. They must allow the plot against Gloucester to proceed first, since it will backfire against the plotters and clear the way for the Yorkist takeover.

If York reaches the end of the play alive, it’s because of his canny circumspection. Others in the play are less keenly aware of the perils of plotting, and they get caught up in their own snares. Take Sir John Hume as an example. He is the priest who arranges for occultists to help the Duchess see into the future. But unbeknownst to the Duchess, he was actually hired by Suffolk and Winchester to help incriminate her. In this way, Hume is involved in a double plot. He knows his involvement will bring the Duchess ruin, which in turn will cause Gloucester’s downfall. However, he doesn’t anticipate how his participation will also imperil him. For indeed, Hume is later sentenced to death for his involvement with the occultists. Just as Hume’s involvement in the plot against the Duchess backfires, so too does the plot against Gloucester result in the deaths of the key co-conspirators. For example, Suffolk is banished and gets captured and executed at sea. Winchester, meanwhile, dies of a mysterious illness that seems symbolically related to his own guilt. Many others also die as the kingdom erupts in pandemonium—the surest sign yet of how political plots imperil the whole state.

The People versus the State

In Henry VI, Part 1, much of the drama turned around a pair of political rivalries that spread among the nobility, creating dangerous rifts that eventually led to major losses in the French wars. In this play, those rivalries are still in play. However, the action of Henry VI, Part 2 traces how the rifts within the ruling class develop into a violent conflict between the common people and the state. This development relates closely to the unique status of Gloucester, who, in addition to being an honorable man who remains loyal to his king, is also widely beloved among the commoners. Thus, when he dies suddenly and under suspicious circumstances, the people immediately suspect foul play and want justice for the only nobleman who seemed to care about their plight. A furious mob shows up outside Gloucester’s residence to demand that the king punish Suffolk, whom they suspect of conspiring with Cardinal Winchester. The force of their presence compels the king to assent to their demands, and he orders Suffolk into exile.

As the popular insurrection led by Jack Cade grows into chaos throughout act 4, the depth of the common people’s grievances becomes increasingly clear. Rebels in Cade’s army openly discuss how the ruling class diminishes the value of their labor. Their frustration motivates them to envision a topsy-turvy version of England where they would rule. They then attempt to realize this vision by toppling the existing hierarchies. In an oft-quoted line, Dick the Butcher suggests a grim starting point: “The first thing we do let’s kill all the lawyers” (4.2.81). Meanwhile, as Suffolk attempts to cross the English Channel to begin his exile in France, he’s captured by pirates. They castigate him for his role in losing huge tracts of land in France and condemn him to death. In return, Suffolk shows nothing but disdain for his captors, whom he dismisses as “lowly vassal[s]” (4.1.111). A similarly contemptuous attitude toward commoners is rampant among the nobility, who variously refer to their social inferiors as “the rude multitude” (3.2.135), “unpolished hinds” (3.2.276), and “the trait’rous rabble” (4.4.42). The cross-class contempt marks a deep—and dangerous—rift in the kingdom.