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Summary
Lord Chamberlain and Lord Sands discuss the oddity of the nobles’ behavior since they returned from the trip to France. The new continental fashions taken up by these returning men seem ridiculous, and the two lords make fun of their dandyish clothes and manners. Lovell enters, relating proposed reformations urging these nobles to give up French-influenced styles. The three agree that such reformations are a good idea. Lovell then says he is on his way to a dinner celebration at Wolsey’s house, to which the Lords Chamberlain and Sands are also invited. They agree that Wolsey is generous, and they set out on their way to his home.
At Wolsey’s house, Guilford welcomes the guests. Lord Chamberlain, Lovell, and Sands arrive, and Sands is seated at a table next to Anne Bullen. Sands flirts with her as Wolsey enters the party. Hearing cannon fire, Wolsey announces that new guests have arrived. Lord Chamberlain discovers that the strangers are shepherds apparently arrived from France, who had heard talk of Wolsey’s party and were so impressed with the tales that they had to attend. Wolsey invites them in. The shepherds are in fact King Henry VIII and some of his men in disguise. The shepherds dance with the ladies, and Henry partners with Anne. He is very taken by her beauty.
Wolsey tells the shepherds that if one of them has a higher position than himself, then he will surrender his place. Wolsey strolls among the shepherds and sees through the king’s disguise, unmasking him. Henry then asks Lord Chamberlain about Anne. Telling her it is bad manners to dance with her without kissing her, he gives her a kiss. Then he goes to a private banquet room with his men, promising Anne that he won’t forget her.
Analysis
In the brief scene 3, Lord Chamberlain and Sands mock and scorn French fashions, which likely would have delighted Shakespeare’s audiences. People of his era did indeed make fun or continental styles, which were commonly thought to be effeminate and bizarre. The men’s conversation offers a comic critique of the nobility and their tendency toward foppishness. Such dandyism stands in ridiculous contrast to the more serious matters of the play, but they also liven the mood of the play somewhat, preparing the way for the festivities taking place at Cardinal Wolsey’s house.
The more crucial event occurs in scene 4, which stages the fateful first meeting between Henry and Anne Bullen. This scene has a carnivalesque spirit, as suggested by the arrival of the king and his consort all dressed in masks, pretending to be shepherds. Traditionally, carnival marked a special period when social codes and hierarchies were temporarily reversed, allowing for a span of upheaval that would make way for renewal once order is again restored. Though not formally a carnival, the masque presented by the king creates the conditions for a temporary suspension of norms, during which the king first lays eyes on and falls for Anne. It’s also notable that this first encounter happens at Wolsey’s residence, since Wolsey will later oppose the king’s infatuation with Anne and even attempt to prevent their marriage by writing a letter to the pope. This letter is what will get him in trouble with the king, leading to the cardinal’s downfall.
Anne’s presence in this scene and in the rest of the play is minimal, but as Henry’s next wife and the soon-to-be mother of the future Queen Elizabeth, she nonetheless plays an important role. Unlike Katherine, who has many impassioned lines, Anne’s says very little, and all her important moments—wedding, coronation, birth—take place offstage. Even so, her quick ascent to queen is a key element of the play. Not only will it lead to the disgrace of Henry’s outspoken first wife, but it will also put Henry at odds with Wolsey, who will lobby the king to marry the sister of the king of France instead. But at this point in the play, Shakespeare presents Henry and Anne’s first meeting as a total accident that results in a bit of harmless flirtation. The only real foreshadowing of the instability their relationship will cause comes when the Lord Chamberlain notes that Anne is “one of her Highness’ women” (1.4.125)—a sign that Anne’s rise will surely require Katherine’s fall.
