A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt
Thomas More C Henry VIII
(Lawyer/Judge/England’s O (King of England/Head of
Chancellor) N Church of England)
| \ F * \
| \ L * \
| \ I * \
| Alice More C Cardinal Wolsey Catherine of Aragon
| (Thomas’s wife) T (Cardinal and Chancellor) (Henry’s 1st Wife/Queen)
| / * \
| / * Anne Boleyn
Meg More ---------- Will Roper Cromwell (Henry’s 2nd Wife/Queen)
(Thomas’s daughter) (Meg’s husband) (Cardinal’s Secretary/King’s Ear)
*
*
Duke of Norfolk *
(Thomas’s friend) Richard Rich
(Cromwell’s Assistant/Future Chancellor)
Chapuys
(Spanish Ambassador)
Historical Background
Henry VII had two sons, Arthur and Henry. A political marriage was arranged with Spain so that Arthur would marry Catherine of Aragon, the King of Spain’s daughter, making Spain and England allies with one another. Soon after Henry VII died, his successor, Arthur, who was very sickly, also died. To keep the alliance with Spain, both English and Spanish officials wanted Henry, the son of Henry VII and Arthur’s brother, to marry Catherine. Since the young Henry would now be the new King of England, this would keep the Spanish-English alliance strong. The only problem is that the Catholic Church believed it was against the Bible’s teachings for a man to marry his brother’s widow. The Pope, after much pressure from both Spain and England, relented and granted a dispensation allowing the marriage to take place. After years of marriage, the new king, Henry VIII, and his queen produced NO male children to be heirs to Henry’s throne. This fact disturbs Henry greatly, and he begins to wonder if God isn’t punishing him for marrying his brother’s wife. He also finds a young lady whom he falls in love with, Anne Boleyn. Anne will not concede to be Henry’s mistress; she wants to be his wife and the queen. Therefore, Henry returns to the Pope to have his marriage with Catherine annulled. When the Pope refuses, Henry angrily demands a divorce, which is strictly against the Catholic faith. Since England is an almost exclusively Catholic country at the time, THIS becomes a problem, and when Thomas More eventually becomes Henry VIII’s choice as Chancellor of England, Thomas as a devout Catholic becomes stuck in the middle.
A Man for All Seasons Vocabulary
Please define the following words in terms that YOU can understand:
1. heretic
2. pragmatist
3. Socrates
4. succession
5. vicarious
6. adamantine
7. Machiavelli
8. discretion
9. Dominus Vobiscum
10. expostulation
11. ambiguous
12. litigant
13. convocation
14. recapitulate
15. perjure
16. iniquitous
17. construe
The Common Man is a device used by Bolt to provide background information, emotional tone and philosophical commentary. As you read the play, list one specific example of each:
1. background
2. tone
3. commentary
A Man for All Seasons Preface Questions
After reading the preface to the play and hearing the lessons on More and King Henry VIII, please answer the following questions in paragraphs:
1. Describe briefly the historical events that led up to the confrontation that this play
centers around. Be sure to include answers to these questions: What difficulty did
Henry face in marrying Catherine? How does he try to use this later to his advantage?
What FOUR motives does he have to seek a divorce?
2. On what basis did Henry feel he could/should appoint the Archbishop? Who did he
appoint?
3. What was Bolt’s idea or vision in presenting Thomas? What is the connection between
More and “oath”?
4. In what way had Bolt intended to use the image of sea and water in his play?
5. With what intention did Bolt use his character the “Common Man” and how was this
misconstrued?
Do Journal Entry #1.
A Man for All Seasons Journal Entries
#1 - Bolt designed the character of the Common Man to represent that which is
common to all men. Aside from the need to breathe, eat and drink, what do
all men share in common? Explain.
#2 - Early in the play, Thomas More tells Cardinal Wolsey : “When a
statesman foresakes his own private conscience for the sake of his public
duties, he leads his country by a short route to chaos.” Do you agree with
More? Why or why not?
#3 - After meeting Henry the Eighth as a character and listening in on his
conversation with Thomas More, what is your opinion of him? Take some
space to psychoanalyze this great ruler of England. (Consider why he is so
adamant about having More’s support.)
#4 - Which character do you relate to most in this play? Why?
#5 - You are Henry the Eighth. Write a diary entry on the evening of Thomas
More’s execution.
#6 - Was More selfish?
#7 - Read the article titled “A Student’s Credo: Cheat or Perish” and then react.
#8 - Who do you think said the following and why:
“Success without honor is an unseasonable dish; it will satisfy your
hunger, but it won’t taste good.”
OR
Explain the truth of : “When a man lies, he murders some part of the world.”
and : “The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of moral
crisis, remain neutral.”
#9 - React to the following:
ITEM : The Harvard School of Medicine has determined that the leading cause of
death is the lack of meaning or purpose in life.
ITEM: The time of death most frequently recorded: 9 AM Monday.
A Man for All Seasons Act One (pages 3 – 35)
stoop - to fly (swoop) down quickly and abruptly
farrier - a blacksmith, one who shoes horses
1. Why does Thomas More suggest that Richard Rich take the post of teacher?
Why does Richard refuse?
2. What does the incident about the cup reveal about the difference between More and
Rich as characters?
3. On page 13 who is Machiavelli and what is Bolt’s intention in presenting the contrast
between him and Aristotle?
4. On page 17, what is the significance of the Steward’s line, “There must be something
he wants to keep”?
5. On page 21-24, what does Cardinal Wolsey want from Thomas More? With what
argument does he try to sway Thomas? What ironic contrast in character are we made
aware of when Wolsey ends their conversation by commenting that More should have
been a cleric (and More’s reply)?
“When a statesman foresakes his own private conscience for the sake of his public
duties, he leads his country by a short route to chaos.”
6. What does Chapuys the Spanish Ambassador seem concerned with?
7. On page 28, what symbolic interpretation can be made from the Boatman’s
conversation with Thomas?
8. Why won’t More allow his daughter Meg to marry Will Roper? Does this seem
consistent with his character?
9. What eventually happens to Cardinal Wolsey and how will it affect Thomas?
Do Journal Entry #2.
A Man for All Seasons Act One (pages 35 – 77)
1. What is Cromwell’s new position and how is he performing his duty?
2. What is the paying off of Matthew, Thomas’s Steward, by Chapuys, Cromwell and
Rich meant to show?
3. What does Thomas’ coolness about his dress at the King’s arrival reveal about him?
(Contrast his family’s reaction).
4. What general impression of the King’s character do you get (ship’s captain, music,
Latin, dancing, wrestling, etc.)? Do these impressions differ from your historical view
of Henry VIII?
5. On pages 54 and 55, what does the King reveal here and why?
6. As their conversation ends, what does the King make clear to Thomas, and how does
this serve the play?
Do Journal Entry #3.
7. On page 65, what attitude does Thomas reveal by not arresting Rich?
“Roper, you’re a fool, God’s my god. But I find him rather too subtle. I don’t
know where he is or what he wants.”
What does this line reveal in Thomas’s character?
8. On pages 60 and 67-8, Thomas reveals his reluctance to be something. What doesn’t
he want to be?
9. How has Rich “lost his innocence” as the act ends? What does Cromwell’s
demonstration with the candle show?
A Man for All Seasons (Act Two: Pages 81 – 113)
1. Since the end of Act One, what has occurred with the Church of England? What does
Thomas threaten to do when Roper asks about his official status as England’s
Chancellor?
2. On page 84, what association does More make with his title as “the English Socrates”?
3. What does Chapuys want in his visit with More? What does he indicate about the
importance of Thomas’s action?
4. How does Thomas react to Roper’s news? Why? How does Norfolk react to
Thomas’s reaction? Alice? Meg? Roper?
5. On pages 91 & 92, what is Thomas’s repartee with Norfolk meant to show?
6. On page 94, when Thomas says, “I hope it is understood I make no gesture,” what
does he mean? What is Alice’s objection?
7. How does Cromwell attempt to maneuver the report of the North Country to keep things
stable? (Is this a political spin?)
8. What past incident arises again to “pressure” Thomas? How are Rich and Matthew,
the Steward, integral to this?
9. How does Cromwell intend to use Norfolk in his plans?
10. Why does Thomas refuse Chapuy’s letter? What state has Thomas’s
household/family fallen into?
Do Journal Entry #4.
A Man for All Seasons Act Two (Pages 113 - The End)
1. What does Cromwell attempt to do when questioning More? What is the message of
the King’s letter and what must More now realize?
2. What sentiments are passed between Norfolk and More as they wait for the boat? How
and why does More instigate a fight with his friend?
3. What Act of Parliament leads More to be jailed in the Tower of London? How does
Thomas protect himself?
4. On page 132, explain what is revealed in the lines beginning: “And when we stand
before God....”
5. On page 136-7, what desperate measures does Cromwell contemplate? What does he
mean when he says, “If I bring about More’s death -- I plant my own” ? How is he
“the keeper of the King’s conscience”?
6. As the jail scene begins, what reversal does Roper show, and how does it relate to
Thomas’s earlier comment about being “anchored to our principles”?
7. How is Thomas and Alice’s final conversation both the technical and dramatic climax
of the play?
8. How is More’s skill as a lawyer revealed at his “trial”, in particular the “silence” issue?
9. Who becomes the instrument of More’s conviction and how does he do it? What
precautions does Cromwell make to ensure More’s guilty verdict?
“Why, Richard ... it profits a man nothing to give his soul for the whole world ... but for Wales ...”
10. What three critical roles does the Common Man play in More’s demise as the play ends? What might Bolt
be saying with this? How is it echoed in the Common Man’s closing words? (Did you notice that he opens
AND closes the play?)
Do Journal Entry #5.