The picture of England’s King Richard III that most people conjure comes from the Shakespeare “history” play that bears his name. In that drama, “evil psychopath” is one way to sum up Shakespeare’s portrayal of Richard III’s personality. Shakespeare’s storyline includes Richard’s murder of his nephews, by suffocation, so that he could steal the crown of England. Moreover, Shakespeare uses physiological symbols to portray Richard’s vile nature, including a disabling hunched back and a withered arm. However, Shakespeare was not writing history; he was creating drama. For that, the author dipped his quill frequently into the dark ink of his imagination, ever mindful of his plot’s narrative arc toward an uplifting ending: the glorious ascension to the throne of the historically brighter, lighter Henry VII and the era of political stability that his reign issued in. That Shakespeare’s plays were literary rather than factual works should not be in doubt, for just as no one ever sold a pound of flesh, so, too, Richard probably did not commit the bulk of the misdeeds that Shakespeare attributes to him. Furthermore, as a result of the discovery of Richard III’s remains under a parking lot a few years ago, we now also know that Richard’s real body is not the one in which Shakespeare has him strut his hour upon the stage. Using Richard’s remains, archaeologists have confirmed that he had a curvature of the spine, but no hunch back and no withered arm. Using his skull, they have also projected the visage of a pleasing young man just 32 when he died in battle against Henry Tudor rather than that of a villain.
1. With which of the following statements would the author of the passage most likely agree? (A) In Richard III, Shakespeare portrays the king as more noble than he actually was.
(B) The dramatic presentations of historical figures in literature should always strain credibility.
(C) Richard III was not the villainous king that Shakespeare leads us to believe.
(D) Richard III may have had a justifiable reason for suffocating his nephews.
(E) Shakespeare’s political leanings were aligned with those of Henry Tudor.
2. The author of the passage refers to Shakespeare’s “physiological symbolism” (Highlighted) most probably in order to (A) gently criticize typical audience gullibility.
(B) roundly repudiate recent archaeological findings.
(C) contrast literal and representational symbols.
(D) further ground his analysis in a literary context.
(E) refute the stereotypes of physical limitations.
3. It can be inferred from the passage that Shakespeare strove for a “narrative arc” (Highlighted) that (A) rose to a moment of intense conflict before reaching an ambiguous and ironic conclusion.
(B) manipulated audience reaction over a continuum of emotional response from horror to relief.
(C) employed plot twists and reversals in order to create the surprise ending of a new political order.
(D) provided a high degree of verisimilitude with the actual events of English his- tory.
(E) capitalized on the dramatic tension supplied by evildoing and eventual atonement for it.
30 Oct 2020, 00:21
92% (02:34) correct
