a man for all seasons

A Man for All Seasons

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Compiled by. Syed Wafiullah "Muslim", Jalalabad, Afghanistan

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A Man for the All Seasons

By Robert Bolt


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Context

THE PLAYWRIGHT ROBERT BOLT was born in 1924 in Manchester, England. In 1941, he

began working at an insurance agency. Later, he attended Manchester University,

served in the Royal Air Force, and fought in World War II. After the war, Bolt

worked in England as a schoolteacher until 1958, when his play Flowering Cherry met

with success and critical acclaim. He wrote A Man for All Seasons in 1960, and the

play was mounted on the London stage that same year and in New York in 1961. Bolt

went on to write the screenplays for director David Lean’s famous films Lawrence of

Arabia (1962) and Dr. Zhivago (1965). He adapted A Man for All Seasons for director

Fred Zinnemann in 1966, and he won Oscars for both Zhivago and A Man for All

Seasons.

Bolt’s Preface to A Man for All Seasons

Bolt begins his preface to A Man for All Seasons by announcing that the story on

which he bases his play is well known. In 1509, King Henry VIII married his

brother’s widow, Catherine of Aragón (Spain), thereby cementing his then-tenuous

alliance with Spain. The pope granted Henry a dispensation (an exemption from

Catholic law) to allow this illegal union between a man and his brother’s widow. The

couple then attempted to produce an heir. Unfortunately for Henry and everyone

else involved, the couple had no success producing a male offspring, and in any case,

the king had become enamored of the lusty and presumably more fertile Anne

Boleyn. Henry therefore sought to overturn the pope’s previous dispensation in

order to annul his marriage to Catherine and enable him to marry Anne. Citing

Leviticus 18—“Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy brother’s wife”—Henry

requested a second dispensation from the pope, this time for a divorce from

Catherine. Henry argued that Catherine’s inability to produce a male child proved

that their marriage was wrong. When Pope Clement VII refused to dispense with his

previous dispensation and allow the divorce, Henry dismissed his adviser, Cardinal

Wolsey, who then died of heart complications. Henry then appointed Thomas More

as Lord Chancellor of England in 1529.

Meanwhile, Henry and his associate Thomas Cromwell enacted legislation to

undermine the authority of the Catholic Church in England. As soon as the pope

assented to Henry’s appointment of Thomas Crammer as Archbishop of Canterbury,

Crammer quickly authorized Henry’s divorce and remarriage. As a result, Henry

was excommunicated from the Catholic Church. In 1534, Parliament enacted the Act

of Supremacy, which established Henry as the head of the Church in England and

eliminated the authority of the pope.

Sir Thomas More, who was born in London on February 7, 1477, was beheaded on

July 6, 1535, for failing to swear to Henry’s oath of supremacy. For his courage and

commitment, More was sainted on May 19, 1935. A humanist and a friend to

Erasmus, More was also author of Utopia (1516), a novel that pictured an ideal


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society founded solely on reason. More was a true Renaissance man, “a man for all

seasons.”

Following the standard historical account, Bolt discusses his interest in the subject

matter and some of the important philosophical questions at hand. He begins by

dismissing the modern tendency to analyze texts according to socioeconomic

trends—such as from the prospective of progressive economy or conservative

religion. This type of analysis, explains Bolt, focuses on the power of social forces

rather than on human beings as individual agents. Ultimately, Bolt disapproves of

this type of interpretation because he believes it is important to see conflicts as

collisions between human beings, not just systems. He prefers to hold the individuals

in his play accountable for their actions. Moreover, Bolt argues that looking at history

as the interaction of large-scale, abstract forces, such as religion and economy, robs

us not only of agency but also of identity. We begin to use social categories to

describe an individual, so that the answer to the question “What am I?” becomes a

statement of someone’s material and social circumstances.

Bolt says he is uninterested in the influence socioeconomic forces and trends may

have had over More. Instead, citing Albert Camus’s treatment of his protagonists as

an inspiration for his own depiction of More, Bolt renders More with a stable and

centered self-image. Bolt was attracted to what he interpreted as More’s

“adamantine,” or unyielding, “sense of his own self.” Bolt explains that the conflict

in his play hinges on More’s need to make a decision when he is asked to swear an

oath against the Catholic Church. Because Catholicism is something More believes

in, Bolt argues, Catholicism is something that More essentially is.

To justify his interpretation, Bolt outlines the difference between what an oath meant

to More and what it might mean to us today. Whereas modern audiences might view

the oath More was asked to swear as a symbolic or ritual exercise, More saw it as an

“invitation to God” to judge More. These days, Bolt writes, when someone takes an

oath, he or she usually provides a guarantee in the form of cash, but for Thomas

More, an oath was a contract in which More was his own collateral. His own life, his

own soul, depended upon whether he kept his word.

Bolt claims to be writing against the grain of contemporary theater as well as against

the grain of contemporary historical study. Specifically, Bolt explains that his style is

a “bastardized version” of the theatrical technique called alienation, which was

conceived by the German playwright Bertolt Brecht. Brechtian alienation was a

highly didactic method of encouraging (and sometimes forcing) the audience to

think about the characters and the message presented on the stage, rather than

simply viewing theater as entertainment. According to Brecht, the convention of

alienation discourages audiences from identifying with the characters on the stage.

However, as Bolt notes, Brecht did not always follow his own didactic technique. In

A Man for All Seasons, Bolt says he wishes to engage his audience not by slapping it in

the face, but by creating an “overtly theatrical” piece that involves the audience

while providing enough distance for critical reflection. Bolt explains that his attempt


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at alienation in the play comes by way of the character named the Common Man,

who periodically addresses the audience and comments on the action, encouraging

the audience to identify with him as both a thinker and a participant in the action of

the play.

Plot Overview

The Common Man figures prominently both in the plot of the play and also as a narrator and

commentator. Although treated in more detail in other sections, in the following plot

summary, his presence is indicated only when he interacts directly with the other characters in

the play.

Sir Thomas More, a scholar and statesman, objects to King Henry VIII’s plan to

divorce and remarry in order to father a male heir. But More, ever the diplomat,

keeps quiet about his feelings in the hopes that Henry will not bother him about the

matter. At a meeting with Cardinal Wolsey, Lord Chancellor of England, More

reviews the letter to Rome that requests the pope’s approval of Henry’s divorce. More

points out that the pope provided a dispensation, or exemption, in order for Henry to

get married in the first place, since Catherine, the woman Henry married, was the

widow of Henry’s brother. More doubts that the pope will agree to overturn his first

dispensation. Wolsey accuses More of being too moralistic and recommends that he

be more practical.

After conversing with Wolsey, More runs into Thomas Cromwell, the king’s

confidante. Cromwell, recently promoted to the position of cardinal’s secretary,

insincerely tells More he is one of More’s greatest admirers. More also meets Signor

Chapuys, the Spanish ambassador to England. Chapuys takes More’s noncommittal

response to questions about his meeting with Wolsey to mean that More agrees that

the divorce should not go through. Chapuys stresses Christian morals and Catholic

dogma and seems most concerned that Henry does not insult Henry’s wife,

Catherine, who is also the king of Spain’s aunt. Chapuys thinks he has found an ally

in More.

Back at More’s home, More’s daughter, Margaret, has received a visit from Roper, her

Lutheran boyfriend, despite the late hour. Roper asks More for Margaret’s hand, but

More refuses to allow a Lutheran, in his eyes a heretic, into his family.

Meanwhile, Wolsey dies, leaving the position of Lord Chancellor vacant. The king

was displeased with Wolsey’s failure to secure a papal dispensation to annul his

marriage to Catherine, and Wolsey died in disgrace. More is appointed as Wolsey’s

replacement.

Cromwell meets with Richard Rich, a low-level functionary whom More helped

establish and to whom More gave a silver cup he was given as a bribe. (More did not

realize that the cup was a bribe when he received it.) Cromwell tempts Rich with an


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opportunity for advancement, and the spineless Rich seems all too eager to accept the

job in exchange for information he has about More. Rich and Chapuys, who has just

entered, ask Cromwell what his current position is, and Cromwell announces simply

that he does whatever the king wants done. He mentions that the king has planned a

boat ride down the Thames to visit More. Meanwhile, More’s manservant, Matthew

(played by the Common Man), has entered the room, and Cromwell, Rich, and

Chapuys are eager to bribe him for information. Matthew tells them only the most

well known facts about his master, but the trio pays him off anyway.

Back at More’s home in London’s Chelsea district, the king is set to arrive, but More is

nowhere to be found. After fretting over his absence, the family eventually finds him

busy at vespers (evening prayers). When the king arrives, all are on their best

behavior, and More comes off as the most flattering of all. However, More does tell

the king that More cannot agree to the divorce, reminding him that the king promised

not to bother More about it. The king storms off, telling More he will leave him alone

provided More does not speak out against the divorce. Alice, More’s wife, is angry at

his behavior and thinks her husband should do as Henry wants. Rich arrives to tell

More that Cromwell and Chapuys are collecting information about him. He asks for

employment, but More turns him away.

At a local pub called the Loyal Subject, Cromwell meets Rich to conspire against

More. Rich is reluctant and guilt-ridden, but he ultimately agrees to tell Cromwell

about the bribe that More received and passed on to him. In exchange, Cromwell

offers Rich a job.

Parliament passes the Act of Supremacy, which establishes the Church in England

and appoints King Henry as its head. More decides that if the English bishops decide

to go along with the act, he will resign as Lord Chancellor. Both Chapuys and Roper

call it a remarkable “gesture,” but More, dead set against the act, thinks of it as a

practical necessity. He refuses to explain himself to anyone but the king. Even his

wife and daughter cannot know his reasons, because he does not want to put them in

the position of having to testify against him later.

Cromwell meets with the Duke of Norfolk and tells him of his plan to bring More up

on bribery charges. Norfolk proves that More gave the cup to Rich as soon as More

realized it was a bribe, and Cromwell is forced to come up with some other way to

entrap More. He tells Norfolk, however, that the king expects him to participate in the

persecution of More.

A now impoverished More refuses to receive a letter of appreciation from the king of

Spain, and he turns down the bishops’ sincere offer of charity. Cromwell calls More to

his office and attempts to malign More by accusing him of sympathizing with the

Holy Maid of Kent, who was executed for treason. Cromwell also accuses him of

having written a book attributed to King Henry. More deconstructs both these


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charges, but when Cromwell reads a letter from King Henry calling More a villain,

More is genuinely shaken. Meeting Norfolk outside, More insists that if he wishes to

remain in the king’s favor, Norfolk should cease to be his friend, since by this point it

is dangerous to know a man like More. Parliament passes another act, this time

requiring subjects to swear an oath to King Henry’s supremacy in England over the

Church and to the validity of his divorce and remarriage. The next time we see More,

he is in jail for having refused to take the oath.

Cromwell, Norfolk, and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, interrogate

More in prison, but they cannot trick him into signing the oath or divulging his

opinions on the king’s behavior. As long as More refuses to talk or sign the oath,

Cromwell can keep him locked up but cannot have him executed. He removes More’s

books but lets his family visit, hoping that they will be able to reason with him.

Though More’s daughter, Margaret, tries to convince her father he has done all he

can, More refuses to relent. Alice finally sympathizes fully with More’s predicament,

and, displaying their full love toward each other, they reconcile just before the jailer

(the Common Man) insists that the visit is over.

Cromwell gives Rich the office of attorney general for Wales in exchange for Rich’s

false testimony at More’s trial. Though More never opened his mouth, Rich claims he

heard More deny the king’s authority over the Church. More is sentenced to death

but not before he can express his disapproval of the Supremacy Act and his

disappointment with a government that would kill a man for keeping quiet. More

goes to his death with dignity and composure, and the play ends with his beheading.

Character List

Sir Thomas More - The protagonist of the play. More’s historical refusal to swear to

Parliament’s Act of Supremacy is the play’s main subject, but Bolt intentionally does

not depict More as the saint or martyr of legend. Bolt does not see More as a person

who takes a stand and sacrifices himself for a cause. Rather, Bolt’s More is a man who

gives up his life because he cannot sacrifice his own commitment to his conscience,

which dictates that he not turn his back on what he believes is right or on God. To

More, a man’s conscience is his self, so he refuses to betray his own conscience even

on pain of death. Significantly, More makes no move to speak out against King

Henry’s divorce or to make any public gesture that indicates his opinion on the

matter. Only after Cromwell condemns him does Thomas reveal his true opinions.

Sir Thomas More (In-Depth Analysis)

The Common Man - The Common Man sporadically narrates the play, and he plays

the roles of most of the lower-class characters: More’s steward Matthew, the boatman,


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the publican (innkeeper), the jailer, the jury foreman, and the headsman

(executioner). Bolt explains in his preface that he intends the Common Man to

personify attitudes and actions that are common to everyone, but ultimately the

Common Man shows that by common, Bolt implies base. In most instances, the

Common Man plays characters who just do their jobs without thinking about the

consequences of their actions or anyone’s interest other than their own. Therefore,

most of these characters end up betraying their own personal moral values. Over the

course of the play, the characters the Common Man plays become more and more

guilt-ridden. In the end, the Common Man silences his guilty conscience by finding

solace in the fact that he is alive. He ends the play by implying that most people do

the same thing.

The Common Man (In-Depth Analysis)

Richard Rich - A low-level functionary whom More helped establish. Rich seeks to

gain employment, but More denies him a high-ranking position and suggests that

Rich become a teacher. Rich, however, goes to work for Norfolk instead and

eventually obtains from Cromwell a post as the attorney general for Wales in

exchange for perjuring himself at More’s trial. Like the Common Man, Rich serves as

a foil, or character contrast, for Sir Thomas. In particular, Rich’s meteoric rise to

wealth and power is simultaneous with More’s fall from favor. Unlike More, Rich

conquers and destroys his conscience rather than obeying it. The repetition of the

word rich in his name signals Rich’s Machiavellian willingness to sacrifice his moral

standards for wealth and status.

Richard Rich (In-Depth Analysis)

Duke of Norfolk - More’s close friend. Norfolk is ultimately asked by Cromwell, and

even encouraged by More himself, to betray his friendship with More. A large and

rather simpleminded man, he is often too stupid to know what’s going on, and he is

innocent relative to Cromwell.

Alice More - More’s wife. A conflicted character, Alice spends most of the play

questioning why her husband refuses to give in to the king’s wishes. Her attitude

shifts from anger to confusion. Eventually, More shows her that he cannot go to his

death until he knows that she understands his decision. When she visits her husband

in prison, Alice finally shows him unconditional love, saying that the fact that “God

knows why” More must die is good enough for her.

Thomas Cromwell - A crafty lawyer who is the primary agent plotting against More.

Whereas Rich and the Common Man are driven to their immoral actions (conspiracy,

execution, and so on) somewhat reluctantly at times, Cromwell is motivated more by

an evil nature. He facilitates More’s downfall with only a minimum of guilt.

Cardinal Wolsey - The Lord Chancellor of England, who dies suddenly following his


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inability to obtain a dispensation from the pope that would annul King Henry’s

marriage to Catherine of Aragon and permit him to marry Anne Boleyn. Though

Bolt’s character descriptions claim Wolsey is ambitious and intelligent, Wolsey’s

character is not well developed, and his primary function relates to the plot. Wolsey’s

sudden death hangs over the rest of the play as a warning to anyone who would

court the king’s disapproval.

Chapuys - The Spanish ambassador to England. Chapuys is loyal to his country and

intent on assuring that the divorce between King Henry and Catherine, which would

dishonor Catherine, does not go through. When questioning More, Chapuys displays

his aptitude for hiding his political agenda under the guise of religious fervor.

William Roper - An overzealous young man who is a staunch Lutheran at the

beginning of the play and later converts to Catholicism. Roper is also Margaret’s

boyfriend and, after he converts to Catholicism, her husband. Roper’s high-minded

ideals contrast with More’s level-headed morality, making Roper yet another foil for

More. Each of Roper’s scenes shows him taking a public stance on a new issue, in

opposition to More, who prefers to keep his opinions to himself. In a conversation

with Roper, More argues that high-minded ideals, which he dubs “seagoing

principles” are inconsistent at best, and he advocates human law as a better guide to

morality.

Margaret Roper - More’s well-educated and inquisitive daughter. Also called Meg,

Margaret is in love with and later marries William Roper. She shows that she

understands her father perhaps better than anyone else in the play (except for More

himself, of course). However, like her mother, Margaret questions her father’s actions.

King Henry VIII - The king of England, who only briefly appears onstage but is a

constant presence in the speech and the thoughts of the other characters. It is very

important to Henry that others think of him as a moral person, and he therefore cares

greatly about what More, a man of great moral repute, thinks of him. Henry, who

believes that he can force everyone, including the pope, into validating his desires,

wants to put his conscience at ease by forcing More to sanction the king’s divorce

from Catherine.

Analysis of Major Characters

Sir Thomas More

Even though Bolt announces in his preface that he tried to avoid the perils of having

his characters represent something, symbolism turns out to be a major force driving

the action of the play, as most characters are motivated by More’s reputation as a

moral man, not by More’s individual characteristics. Perhaps, in fact, More stands for


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the perils of being perceived as a saint or a moral man. Throughout the play,

characters—including Chapuys, Roper, Cromwell, and the king—view More as a

representative of a concept rather than as a person. His consent is important to the

king and to Norfolk because it would make them feel and appear moral. Chapuys

too sees More as an upstanding moral and religious man, and Chapuys takes comfort

in the fact that the virtues More represents contradict the king’s actions.

In his preface to the play, Bolt calls More “a hero of selfhood.” More refuses to

sacrifice his self, which he defines by his moral conscience, even as he sacrifices his

life.

Though More was much later sainted for his refusal to swear an oath to King

Henry’s supremacy to the pope, Bolt does not depict More as someone who ascribes

to religious dogma of any sort. In fact, Bolt disparages such people, who are

represented by Will Roper. As a hero, More is more existential than religious,

because he looks inwardly for his motivations and does not rely on any external

ideals to guide his speech and actions. In fact, More’s morals are continually shifting,

and he surprises Chapuys and other characters with his sharp wit and unexpected

pragmatism. If an ideal agrees with his conscience, More will do his best to live up to

it; if not, he will discard it.

More’s reverence for being practical, however, is rooted in his love for the law.

According to Bolt, the letter of the law held an important place in More’s conscience,

albeit a notch below that held by the Church of Christ and the kingdom of heaven.

Bolt explains that he uses More’s reverence for heaven as a metaphor for humanity’s

reverence for the “terrifying cosmos,” which is either void of any morality or

occupied by warring forces of good (God) and evil (the devil). Unable to know the

nature of the cosmos, Bolt contends, More put his faith in society’s system of

judgment—the law. The great beyond, symbolized in the play by the sea and water,

remains unknown to humankind. Earthly society and laws, symbolized by dry land,

offer the only shelter from the uncertainties of the universe.

The Common Man

In his preface, Bolt explains that he intended “common” to be understood to mean

“universal,” but many people ascribe the pejorative connotations of vulgar and low

class to the word as well. Bolt laments the fact that upper class and even lower-status

people, who resented such an image, failed or refused to view the Common Man as a

representative of themselves. However, regardless of how Bolt viewed his character,

the Common Man embodies both universality and baseness. In fact, the Common

Man shows that the “common” human being is base and immoral.

Although the Common Man acts in many different roles in order to establish his

universal nature, he actually develops into a coherent character as the play


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progresses. Initially, he portrays Matthew and the boatman, who are forgotten

figures of the lower class who judge the noble characters in the play and make them

look like fools. Yet as the play progresses, even the characters played by the

Common Man begin to lose their moral footing. Matthew, for example, tries to

suppress his guilty conscience for having sold out More after More expresses his

affection for Matthew.

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Eventually, the Common Man’s characters become more aware of the excuses they

make for their immoral acts. When the jailer deliberates about whether to set More

free, he speaks directly to the audience about the futility of trying to do the right

thing. By the end of the play, the Common Man affirms the notion that to be alive—

regardless of the nature of one’s actions—is the only thing that counts. As a whole,

the Common Man’s role in the play shows his complicity in More’s persecution.

Because the Common Man represents humanity in general, he is intended to draw us

all into the play’s central moral dilemma.

Richard Rich

Again, even though Bolt claims that he did not want his characters to stand for

anything in particular, Rich symbolizes the tendency to succumb to the temptation of

wealth and status. Rich is a Machiavellian hero, someone who seeks to advance

himself politically and socially, whatever the cost. Despite his selfishness, Rich

reveals his humanity when he wrestles with his own conscience while he sells out his

friend More. In Rich’s awareness of his moral shortcomings, he is similar to the

Common Man.

Like Cromwell, Rich serves as a foil to More, highlighting More’s superior character.

Rich also illuminates More’s character in less obvious ways. For instance, in the

opening scene, More tells Rich that he should be a teacher. More shows great interest

in Rich’s moral fiber and wishes for him to quell his petty, self-interested urge to gain

wealth and status. More’s conversation with Rich reveals More’s own interest in

teaching as not just a profession but as something he himself practices throughout

the play. In his interaction with Rich in the first scene, More teaches by testing Rich

by offering him the goblet, letting Rich know that the goblet was a bribe and is

therefore tainted. More understands Rich’s faults from the very opening of the play,

but he tries to nurture Rich anyway. It is therefore tragic that Rich eventually

perjures himself to condemn More to death.


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Themes, Motifs & Symbols

Themes

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


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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.

The Self and Friendship

Through its depiction of More’s personal relationships, the play examines the extent

to which one can be true to oneself and a good friend to others. Above all, More looks

inwardly for his strength and comfort. He appears to be more of a teacher than a

friend or a lover. He relies on his own conscience as his guide, and through tests and

through the example he sets, he attempts to teach others to do the same. However,

More’s instructive instinct results in relationships that are not overtly heartfelt.

One could also argue that More shows his friendship and love by teaching others.

The play shows that More’s self-reliance is not completely incompatible with

friendship and love. In More’s conversations with Norfolk and Alice, he shows that

he truly cares about them as his friend and wife, respectively. More tells Norfolk to

“cease knowing him,” but More argues that he gives his instruction because of the

friendship the two men share. He tells his wife that he could not die peacefully if he

knew that she was still confused about why he remains silent and does not give in to

King Henry. More also tells Matthew that he will miss him.

Motifs

Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that can help to develop and

inform the text’s major themes.

Satire and Wit

Throughout the play, the characters with ties to the court participate in confused and

misinterpreted exchanges of dialogue. These exchanges both satirize the court and

portray the way corrupt morals lead to corrupt and ambiguous speech. In Cromwell’s

exchange with the innkeeper, Cromwell humorously states that he can never be quite

sure whether he’s duping or being duped when he interacts with such a “tactful”

person. Cromwell has a similar exchange with Rich, in which he tries to assess just

how trustworthy and how bribable Rich might be. Chapuys wrongly assumes that

More’s straightforward answers are double talk and gives him a knowing wink that

is completely out of place.

Historically, More was as witty as he was saintly. Much to Alice’s chagrin, More


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spends most of his time making light of the dangerous situations he encounters. In

the play, More’s wit establishes his humanity. In Act One, scene seven, More insists

that man is born to serve God “wittily.” By this, he means that man must cleverly

escape death for as long as he legitimately and lawfully can, but the statement also

emphasizes the importance of a sense of humor.

Silence

More is remarkable as much for his silence as for his statements. He maintains that if

he does not speak his opinion concerning his disapproval of the king’s intention to

divorce his wife, then, according to the Bible, his silence will connote consent, not

dissent. More uses silence to his advantage, refusing to incriminate himself in a way

that resembles invoking the fifth amendment in a United States court of law. More

also protects his family from legal persecution by staying silent about his opinions in

their presence.

More is silent in other ways as well. He disparages people, like Roper, who clamor at

all times about ideals. More prefers to listen to the voice within, his conscience. He

does not criticize Norfolk until he is sure that Norfolk needs to be criticized and

enraged.

At the trial, Cromwell’s argument to the jury equates More’s silence with complicity

in a crime. Cromwell’s claim is ironic, for the play shows how many other

characters— primarily those played by the Common Man—remain silent when they

could tell More about the plot against him.

Guilt

Guilt receives much attention in the play, particularly in the characters of Rich,

Norfolk, the jailer, Matthew, and even in More himself. Bolt shows how Rich

constantly suffers under his own sense of guilt and yet cannot resist the temptation to

improve his own prospects at the expense of others and his own conscience. When he

is Matthew, the Common Man noticeably feels guilt on some level when More shows

affection for him. As the jailer, the Common Man has a conscious understanding of

his guilt and assuages his guilty conscience by convincing himself that it would be

futile to set More free. Norfolk is obviously wracked with a sense of guilt when he

tells More of Cromwell’s plot and his own association with it. More himself shows an

inkling of guilt when he realizes that he might have to go to the chopping block with

his family still unaware of why he acts the way he does.

More understands guilt as a personal judgment made by one’s own conscience, and,

based upon one’s perspective, the same action could be guilty or innocent. He also

seems to be able to eradicate the guilt he feels for taking the tainted goblet as a bribe

by getting rid of it. This flexibility is particularly true with respect to Norfolk. More

says that he and More could part as friends even if Norfolk were to remain in his


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office, which is associated with the plot against More.

Symbols

Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.

Water and Dry Land

In his preface, Bolt announces that his play is rife with water and seafaring imagery,

which symbolizes the uncertain moral territory of the great beyond, the unknowable

realm of God and the devil. Characters who establish their actions on such an

uncertain base include King Henry, whose shaky moral ground is symbolized by the

way he sails down the Thames in order to visit More, and Roper, who holds what

More calls “seagoing” principles.

Unlike Henry and Roper, More recognizes God’s will as impossible, and More

therefore prefers to root his actions in his own conscience and in the law. When

speaking with Roper, More compares the realm of human law to a forest filled with

protective trees firmly rooted in the earth. To emphasize his belief in law as a guide to

action, More tells Roper that removing all the laws in pursuit of the devil would be

like cutting down all the trees in the land, letting the devil run amok like a fierce

wind. In other words, More views society as a bulwark against the moral mysteries of

the cosmos.

The Gilded Cup

In the first scene in Act One, More offers Rich a cup that More received as a bribe.

Acknowledging that the cup is tainted, More tells Rich that he wishes to be rid of it.

More tries to set an example by throwing away the cup, but Rich quickly shows that

he does not share More’s intentions. Rich takes the cup from More and pawns it for

money and a new set of fashionable clothes. The cup symbolizes corruption, and it

also symbolizes More’s attempt to test Rich and teach him by example. More’s

attempt to test Rich with the cup actually sets in motion the events that lead to More’s

conviction at the end of the play—a conviction that Rich helps secure by lying under

oath in court.


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Act One, scene one

Summary

My Master Thomas More would give anything to anyone. Some say that’s good and some say

that’s bad, but I say he can’t help it—and that’s bad . . . because some day someone’s going to

ask him for something that he wants to keep; and he’ll be out of practice.

(See Important Quotations Explained)

The play opens with a monologue by the Common Man, a character meant to represent

traits and attitudes common to us all. The Common Man carts around a basket of

costumes and props that he uses in his various roles in the play.

The Common Man laments having to open a play about royalty and the noble class. He

thinks himself unsuited to the task at hand, but he says he will present his own

version. He puts on the costume of Matthew, Thomas More’s servant, and declares the

sixteenth century “the Century of the Common Man.” Matthew treats himself to some

of the wine he is putting out for his master and then introduces us to More as he enters.

More playfully asks Matthew how the wine tastes, knowing full well that Matthew

sampled it. Richard Rich follows More into the room, and the two engage in an

argument as to whether every man is capable of being bribed. More dismisses Rich’s

belief that money, status, or women can bribe anyone, but he is intrigued when Rich

implies that a man can be bought with suffering. As it turns out, Rich means that men

wish to avoid suffering and are attracted to the possibility of escape. More immediately

recognizes this idea as one of the theories of Machiavelli, and he asks who

recommended that Rich read Machiavelli’s books.

Rich admits that Master Cromwell recommended he read Machiavelli. Cromwell, Rich

reveals, offered Rich a job or a favor of some sort, but Rich bemoans his joblessness and

his generally low social standing. More points out that the dean of St. Paul’s school has

a comfortable teacher’s job available, but Rich has no interest in what he deems a dead-

end opportunity. More warns that holding an administrative office is full of

temptations, and he shows Rich an Italian silver cup that a litigant used to try to bribe

him. More did not realize at the time that the cup was a bribe, and now that he does, he

wishes to get rid of it. Rich says he will sell the cup to buy new, more respectable

clothing.

The duke of Norfolk and More’s wife, Alice, enter, arguing over whether a falcon can


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stoop from 500 feet to kill a heron. Norfolk baits Alice into a bet of thirty shillings,

although More refuses to let her ride off with Norfolk to see who wins. Meanwhile,

More’s daughter, Margaret, has entered, and Rich begins to flatter Norfolk. More

playfully tells everyone that Rich has been reading Machiavelli under Cromwell’s

tutelage.

Norfolk announces that Cromwell has been promoted to the position of cardinal’s

secretary, and everyone is surprised that such a lowborn and generally disliked man

could get such a job. More points out that Rich’s relationship with Cromwell is now

more valuable and that Rich will not need any help from More at finding a job. Rich

pleads that he would rather work for More than for Cromwell, but a letter from the

cardinal interrupts him. The cardinal wants to see More immediately.

As More prepares to leave, he sends his family off to bed with a prayer and arranges

for Norfolk to take Rich home. More tells the duke that Rich needs a job, but he

playfully adds that he does not necessarily “recommend” Rich. Again, More advises

Rich to teach. Just before the scene ends, Rich runs back in to snatch up the silver cup

that he left on the table. Matthew moves to stop him from taking it, but Rich explains

that it was a gift. Matthew closes the scene by predicting that Rich will amount to

nothing and that More is altogether too generous.

Analysis

The Common Man initiates us to a story that might otherwise seem too far removed in

time to connect with modern audiences. Throughout the play, the Common Man plays

many roles, which emphasizes that he represents all humanity. He functions as a

common denominator against which the other characters in the play can be judged.

The trust More places in his sense of self resonates with the existentialist idea that

human beings are defined above all by their inner selves, by their unique perspectives

on existence. This brand of thought was popularized about a decade before Bolt’s play

by thinkers such as Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre, but the characters in the play,

which is set in the sixteenth century, find More’s beliefs foreign. The Common Man

shows us how we all end up betraying ourselves by just doing our jobs—by serving in

our professions as kings, cardinals, or even commoners—before being true to our inner

selves.

The fact that Rich has read Machiavelli puts Rich’s actions in a historical and

intellectual context. Nicolo Machiavelli (1469–1527), who was most famous for his


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political treatise The Prince, which advocated a kind of common-sense approach to

government that put political expediency ahead of ethical and moral concerns.

Machiavelli’s morals differ greatly from More’s. More reveres his private conscience

above things like personal advancement, but Machiavelli advises the opposite. Rich’s

reference to Machiavelli foreshadows the way he and his mentor, Thomas Cromwell,

will spare no one to achieve success later in the play.

In addition to the Machiavelli reference, several other instances of foreshadowing pop

up in this scene. More’s gift of the silver cup to Rich has dangerous implications for

More later. Matthew’s remarks at the end of the scene that More has been too generous

in giving Rich the cup also foreshadow More’s downfall. However, even though the

gift marks the beginning of Rich’s corruption, More seems to understands the

implications when he offers the cup. He tests Rich by offering him both the tainted cup,

which represents corruption, and a teaching position, which represents a way of

benefiting society. When Rich shuns the teaching job and accepts the cup, he reveals

his immoral character.

While offering the teaching position to Rich, More provides a glimpse into his own

nature. More operates in the play primarily as a servant—to his own conscience and to

God. When he interacts with other people, however, More adopts the role of teacher.

As he illustrates in his conversation with Rich, More teaches not by speaking his mind,

but rather by testing others. Bolt shows More to be a morally ambiguous teacher who

does not stop, and in fact almost encourages, Rich’s moral descent.

Act One, scenes two–three

Summary: Scene two

Well . . . I believe, when statesmen forsake their own private conscience for the sake of their public duties . . . they lead their

country by a short route to chaos.


More arrives at Cardinal Wolsey’s office, and the cardinal asks More what took him so long. Wolsey presents

More with a message to be sent to the pope, explaining that since More seemed so opposed to the dispatch,

should look it over. More diplomatically comments on the style of the message, but Wolsey is more interested in

what More has to say about the message’s content. More mentions that the message is addressed to a Cardinal


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Campeggio and not to the English ambassador to Rome. Wolsey retorts that he personally appointed a “ninny” to

the office of ambassador expressly so that he could write to the cardinal directly. Intrigued, More comments that

Wolsey’s maneuver is “devious,” and Wolsey bemoans what he calls More’s “plodding” moralism.

Getting down to business, Wolsey states that King Henry has just returned from a rendezvous with his mistress,

Anne Boleyn. According to Wolsey, Henry means to divorce his current wife, Catherine of Aragón, in favor of

Anne, who Henry suspects will be more successful at providing him a male heir. Wolsey must now secure the

pope’s authorization of Henry’s divorce and remarriage, and he wants assurance that More will not oppose the

action. But More has already expressed his opinion that the divorce should not be enacted without the pope’s

willing approval.

Wolsey conveys to More the potentially detrimental implications of opposing Henry’s divorce. Wolsey claims that

if the king does not produce an heir to the throne, a change of dynasty or a bloody war of succession will ensue.

More is shaken but responds that he prays every day that Catherine will conceive an heir. Wolsey is skeptical.

More reminds the cardinal that it took a papal dispensation, or exemption to Catholic laws, to allow Henry and

Catherine (who is Henry’s brother’s widow) to marry in the first place. He wonders at the sensibility or feasibility

of discarding the pope’s first dispensation.

Wolsey, in turn, wonders at More’s willingness to put his own private conscience above the interests of his

country. But More retorts that by listening to their own consciences, statesmen avoid leading their country into

chaos. Wolsey again bemoans More’s moralism. Anticipating his own death, Wolsey wonders aloud who might

replace him as Lord Chancellor when he is gone. When Wolsey suggests Cromwell, his secretary, More is shocked

and says that he would rather do it himself than see Cromwell appointed. Wolsey says More would need to be

more practical to fill the chancellor’s post and tells More he should have been a cleric.

Summary: Scene three

Outside, More quibbles with the boatman over the fare for a trip back to his home in Chelsea. Just then, Cromwell

arrives to remind the boatman that the fares are fixed, so he cannot charge More a higher price just because of the

late hour. Cromwell announces that he is on his way to see the cardinal, and he guesses that More has just come

from the cardinal’s office. More admits as much, and he says that the cardinal is not in the best mood. Cromwell

pays More an insincere compliment and heads in to see the cardinal.

As More prepares to leave, Signor Chapuys, the Spanish ambassador, arrives and tries to wheedle information

out of More about his meeting with the cardinal. More simply replies that he and the cardinal parted “amicably,”

if not in agreement. The ambassador interprets More’s comment to mean that More will oppose K

divorce from Catherine, who is the king of Spain’s aunt. Chapuys announces that his king would take personal

offence if the divorce goes through. With a nod and a wink (disregarded by More), the ambassador exits. As More


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returns home in the boat, the boatman complains about fixed fares and his wife’s weight.

Analysis: Scenes two–three

Historically, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, archbishop of York, was virtually in charge of England at the beginning of

Henry’s reign. The king preferred living in the countryside and hunting to the tedium of leading. Wolsey fell out

of Henry’s favor when he failed to secure a papal dispensation for Henry’s divorce, because Pope Clement VII

showed his allegiance to Catherine’s nephew, Charles V of Spain. In his conversation with More, Wolsey reveals

his role as the go-between for the English king and the pope in Rome. Wolsey must juggle the needs of the state

with those of the Church, and after Wolsey dies, his successor must bear the burden of Henry’s disapproval.

Although King Henry appears in the play only once, he is constantly present in the thoughts and the speech of the

other characters. When Wolsey announces Henry’s offstage return from his visit with Anne Boleyn, in Act One,

scene two, he establishes Henry’s role as a man whose uneasy conscience needs to be satisfied. Wolsey (and later

Cromwell) bears responsibility for assuaging Henry’s conscience when he has deliberately done something sinful.

In a way, Henry’s behavior accounts for Wolsey own questionable conduct, including Wolsey’s attempts to

threaten and cajole More into agreement. Henry’s actions are responsible for More’s persecution. Henry’s absence

from most of play implicates the characters, such as Wolsey, who enact Henry’s persecution of More. Though

Henry is responsible for More’s persecution, Wolsey’s willingness to accomodate Henry’s hypocrisy makes him

just as guilty as the king.

Cromwell and Chapuys personify the devious and duplicitous characters necessary to remain in Henry’s good

favor. Consequently, they also personify the kind of groveling that More cannot stand. They are political and

calculating, and they couch their performances in a falsely deferential tone. Cromwell, for instance, insincerely

calls himself More’s admirer. He makes the same claim later in the play, even as he attacks More.

Act One, scene four

Summary

Back at home, More discovers that despite the late hour, Margaret’s boyfriend,

Roper, is paying a visit. When the pair enters, More is playful, reminding Roper of

the late hour. When Margaret announces that Roper has asked for her hand in

marriage, More resolutely refuses. Roper, suspecting that More objects to his social

standing, points out that he is going to be a lawyer and that his family is well-off.

More tells Roper there is nothing wrong with his family. Rather, More objects to

Roper’s Lutheran faith, which More considers to be heretical. Roper balks at the title

of heretic and claims that it is the Catholic Church that is heretical. He brings up

Henry’s divorce, which he suspects the pope will allow. Roper even goes so far as to

call the pope the Antichrist. Angry, More points out to Roper that Roper was a

passionate Catholic just two years earlier and says he hopes that when Roper finishes


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with his religious wavering, he ends up a Catholic once again. Margaret attempts to

keep everyone’s temper in check. More sends Roper home on Alice’s horse.

Left alone, More and Margaret discuss Roper and his family. Margaret asks about

her father’s meeting with the cardinal, but More changes the subject back to the

Ropers, saying that Roper’s father was just like his son. Suddenly, Alice runs

onstage, having seen Roper taking off with her horse. More explains the situation,

and she announces that he should have beaten his daughter for receiving Roper at

such an hour. More disagrees, saying Margaret is too “full of education,” which is

expensive and difficult to obtain.

While Margaret goes to get her father some tea, Alice asks about More’s meeting,

and once again he changes the subject. Alice is shocked to learn of Roper’s marriage

proposal, but she realizes that her husband is trying to divert her and asks again

what Wolsey wanted. More finally admits that Wolsey wanted him to read over a

dispatch to Rome, and Alice knows not to ask any more questions. When Margaret

returns with the tea, Alice mentions that Norfolk suggested More should replace

Wolsey as Lord Chancellor. More says he wants nothing to do with the office, and he

predicts that while Wolsey is alive, there will not be any replacement Lord

Chancellor. As the group heads off to bed, Alice insists that More drink his tea, since

great and common men alike catch colds. More retorts that such talk is dangerously

seditious.

Analysis

Some background on the difference between Protestantism and Catholicism makes

More’s objections to Roper understandable. In 1517, Martin Luther posted his list of

ninety-five theses on the “Power and Efficacy of Indulgences,” harkening the

Protestant Reformation in Europe. Protestantism (or Lutheranism, as its initial form

was called) took as its main tenet the idea that outward displays of faith as practiced

by the Catholic Church could never take the place of a personal, private faith in God.

Martin Luther objected to the idea that people could purchase pardons from their

church as penance for their sins, even if, in their hearts and souls, they did not

repent. Viewing the Catholic Church as morally bankrupt in many ways, Luther’s

sympathizers spread his message, and the Protestant faith expanded across Europe.

Ironically, More appears to have much in common with the Protestant faith, while

Roper more closely resembles the Catholicism to which Protestants objected. Roper

passionately argues that the Catholic Church needs reform, even going so far as to

call the pope the Antichrist. But his actions, according to More, are simply outward

displays of ideals and are not necessarily grounded on firm, personal moral footing.

Roper’s passion in this scene illustrates how lofty ideals are unstable moral

guideposts compared to one’s own moral conscience. Bolt plays with the popular

understanding of More, a saint who represents a deep-seated commitment to

Catholicism. In the play, Bolt shows a strong commitment to the pope and to the

laws of God as he understands them. However, More’s commitment to Catholicism


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is based upon what his conscience tells him to do, not upon some lofty ideal. More’s

morals contrast with Roper’s high-minded, insincere idealism.

In trying to quell her father’s and Roper’s tempers, Margaret says to Roper, “You’ve

no sense of the place!” Margaret’s exclamation introduces another important aspect of

More’s morality—his practicality. To most people, ideals are unrelated to

circumstance and they adhere to ideals despite obvious indications that their ideals

do not apply to particular circumstances. To More, however, it is important to

consider the specific, practical details of a situation before making a decision based

on one’s ideals. Though characters like Wolsey accuse him of being overly moralistic,

More constantly considers the details of an act or an oath to see if he can abide by it

without violating his conscience. Though Roper might reject an act on principle,

More reserves judgment. He objects to an act only if it impedes his sense of self, and

even then (as later scenes show), he objects only as much as he absolutely has to.

More’s unwillingness to talk about his meeting with the cardinal foreshadows his

later refusal to discuss his opinions about the Act of Supremacy. Though Alice

understands in this instance not to press the matter, she eventually takes offense at

not being allowed into her husband’s confidence. Again, More places more weight

on the practical considerations of the matter than on even his love and respect for his

family. Not wanting to implicate them in his affairs, he leaves them out of them,

remaining a conscientious yet solitary man.

Alice foreshadows Wolsey’s death when she comments about how colds affect great

and common men alike. Wolsey soon dies, and his death seems an implicit

affirmation of Alice’s statement.

Act One, scenes five–six

Summary: Scene five

A single spotlight reveals a red robe and the cardinal’s hat lying on the floor. The

Common Man enters to describe Cardinal Wolsey’s death, which was officially

attributed to pulmonary pneumonia but, for all intents and purposes, was caused by

the king’s displeasure with Wolsey’s handling of the divorce. Wolsey died on his

way to jail for the crime of high treason. Thomas More, the Common Man reports,

was appointed Wolsey’s successor. The Common Man jokes that More is considered

by some to be a saint and that if one acknowledges his stubborn disregard of

ordinary reality, then he probably was one.

Summary: Scene six

Cromwell and Rich run into each other at Hampton Court. Belittling Rich’s new

job—Rich is now Norfolk’s secretary and librarian—Cromwell mentions that he

himself was promoted into the king’s service. He asks Rich why he does not have a


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better job since the new Lord Chancellor, Sir Thomas More, is his old friend. When

Rich sheepishly replies that he and More are not really friends, Cromwell takes the

opportunity to dangle a job offer before him, presumably in exchange for some

service.

Suddenly suspicious, Rich asks Cromwell what exactly he does for the king, and just

then Signor Chapuys enters and asks the same question. Cromwell skirts the issue

but finally explains that he does whatever the king “wants done.” As an example,

Cromwell mentions that he recently arranged Henry’s trip down the Thames on the

maiden voyage of a new battleship, the Great Harry. After Chapuys reminds

Cromwell that the ship has fewer guns than Cromwell has claimed, Cromwell tells

Chapuys that the king plans to sail the ship to More’s house to discuss the king’s

divorce. Shocked, Signor Chapuys complains that More has already expressed his

opinion on the matter. Cromwell insists that the king hopes to make More change his

mind.

More’s steward, Matthew (played by the Common Man), appears, and all three men

are eager to talk to him. Cromwell pushes Chapuys out of view and questions

Matthew about More’s opinions concerning the divorce, holding up a coin for

Matthew to see. Matthew tells him that More is so anxious that he turns white as a

sheet whenever the subject is mentioned. Cromwell pays Matthew for his

information and beckons Rich to come with him as he leaves. Rich protests that he

knows nothing, and heads off in the other direction.

Meanwhile, Chapuys has returned. From Matthew, he learns that More is a

religiously observant. Chapuys also pays off Matthew and leaves. Finally, Rich

returns and asks Matthew what he told Chapuys. Matthew tells him, and Rich points

out that the information is common knowledge. Matthew explains that he told

Chapuys what he wanted to hear. Alone, Matthew addresses the audience, reveling

in the fact that he tricked three men into paying him off for little bits of common

knowledge. He imagines that the men will make a big deal and a big secret out of

their discoveries so that they do not feel duped.

Analysis: Scenes five–six

Wolsey’s death sets into motion the clash between More and the king that has been

building for the play’s first four scenes. The Common Man’s announcement in Act

One, scene five, that Wolsey’s death was effectively the result of Henry’s displeasure

foreshadows the dangers of More’s appointment as Wolsey’s replacement. We

realize that More must now take on the prickly situation of securing Henry’s divorce

or else find a way to avoid the same dire consequence that Wolsey faced. The

dramatic use of a spotlight to focus attention on Wolsey’s garments, which are

symbolic of More’s new position, underlines the position’s tenuousness. The

Common Man’s joke about the incompatibility of sainthood and high office provides


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a lighthearted moment that acknowledges the price More pays for his unwillingness

to sacrifice his own conscience for the sake of his life or the demands of others.

The entrances, exits, double talk, bribery, and deceit in scene six showcase the

political environment that More will have to contend with as Lord Chancellor.

However, the Common Man’s bribing of Chapuys, Cromwell, and Rich poses no

actual threat to More but satirizes those who do not know how to operate except

through lies and deception. Matthew takes advantage of all three men by offering

them nothing but the most well known information about More. These exchanges

link with a later scene in the play when Cromwell suspects a lowly innkeeper, also

played by the Common Man, of being even craftier than himself when the innkeeper

plays dumb about Cromwell’s conspiracy.

The Common Man is both common, meaning universal, and common, meaning

lowly. By playing lower-class characters, he serves as a magnet for the double-

dealings of kings and cardinals, and in doing so he questions the assumptions

frequently made about the lower class’s lack of morality. A sixteenth-century butler,

a lower class individual, was assumed to have no moral scruples. Later, More

himself takes it for granted that Matthew has betrayed him, showing that even More

buys into the stereotypes of his time. Yet Matthew turns bribe-taking into a means of

attack. He engages with others in a manner that is dishonest on the surface, but he

does so to cheat his bribers with information that is not technically secret.

At the same time, the Common Man does not tell More about the people who are

plotting against him. Throughout the play, he dupes More’s adversaries, but he does

so only for the audience’s eyes. As the play progresses, the Common Man (or rather,

the characters he plays) has a harder time reconciling his acts with More’s kind

treatment of him. Although the Common Man plays many roles, all his characters

develop in a unified fashion, as though they were one person.

Act One, scenes five–six

Summary: Scene five

A single spotlight reveals a red robe and the cardinal’s hat lying on the floor. The

Common Man enters to describe Cardinal Wolsey’s death, which was officially

attributed to pulmonary pneumonia but, for all intents and purposes, was caused by

the king’s displeasure with Wolsey’s handling of the divorce. Wolsey died on his

way to jail for the crime of high treason. Thomas More, the Common Man reports,

was appointed Wolsey’s successor. The Common Man jokes that More is considered

by some to be a saint and that if one acknowledges his stubborn disregard of

ordinary reality, then he probably was one.


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Summary: Scene six

Cromwell and Rich run into each other at Hampton Court. Belittling Rich’s new

job—Rich is now Norfolk’s secretary and librarian—Cromwell mentions that he

himself was promoted into the king’s service. He asks Rich why he does not have a

better job since the new Lord Chancellor, Sir Thomas More, is his old friend. When

Rich sheepishly replies that he and More are not really friends, Cromwell takes the

opportunity to dangle a job offer before him, presumably in exchange for some

service.

Suddenly suspicious, Rich asks Cromwell what exactly he does for the king, and just

then Signor Chapuys enters and asks the same question. Cromwell skirts the issue

but finally explains that he does whatever the king “wants done.” As an example,

Cromwell mentions that he recently arranged Henry’s trip down the Thames on the

maiden voyage of a new battleship, the Great Harry. After Chapuys reminds

Cromwell that the ship has fewer guns than Cromwell has claimed, Cromwell tells

Chapuys that the king plans to sail the ship to More’s house to discuss the king’s

divorce. Shocked, Signor Chapuys complains that More has already expressed his

opinion on the matter. Cromwell insists that the king hopes to make More change his

mind.

More’s steward, Matthew (played by the Common Man), appears, and all three men

are eager to talk to him. Cromwell pushes Chapuys out of view and questions

Matthew about More’s opinions concerning the divorce, holding up a coin for

Matthew to see. Matthew tells him that More is so anxious that he turns white as a

sheet whenever the subject is mentioned. Cromwell pays Matthew for his

information and beckons Rich to come with him as he leaves. Rich protests that he

knows nothing, and heads off in the other direction.

Meanwhile, Chapuys has returned. From Matthew, he learns that More is a

religiously observant. Chapuys also pays off Matthew and leaves. Finally, Rich

returns and asks Matthew what he told Chapuys. Matthew tells him, and Rich points

out that the information is common knowledge. Matthew explains that he told

Chapuys what he wanted to hear. Alone, Matthew addresses the audience, reveling

in the fact that he tricked three men into paying him off for little bits of common

knowledge. He imagines that the men will make a big deal and a big secret out of

their discoveries so that they do not feel duped.


Wolsey’s death sets into motion the clash between More and the king that has been

building for the play’s first four scenes. The Common Man’s announcement in Act

One, scene five, that Wolsey’s death was effectively the result of Henry’s displeasure


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foreshadows the dangers of More’s appointment as Wolsey’s replacement. We

realize that More must now take on the prickly situation of securing Henry’s divorce

or else find a way to avoid the same dire consequence that Wolsey faced. The

dramatic use of a spotlight to focus attention on Wolsey’s garments, which are

symbolic of More’s new position, underlines the position’s tenuousness. The

Common Man’s joke about the incompatibility of sainthood and high office provides

a lighthearted moment that acknowledges the price More pays for his unwillingness

to sacrifice his own conscience for the sake of his life or the demands of others.

The entrances, exits, double talk, bribery, and deceit in scene six showcase the

political environment that More will have to contend with as Lord Chancellor.

However, the Common Man’s bribing of Chapuys, Cromwell, and Rich poses no

actual threat to More but satirizes those who do not know how to operate except

through lies and deception. Matthew takes advantage of all three men by offering

them nothing but the most well known information about More. These exchanges

link with a later scene in the play when Cromwell suspects a lowly innkeeper, also

played by the Common Man, of being even craftier than himself when the innkeeper

plays dumb about Cromwell’s conspiracy.

The Common Man is both common, meaning universal, and common, meaning

lowly. By playing lower-class characters, he serves as a magnet for the double-

dealings of kings and cardinals, and in doing so he questions the assumptions

frequently made about the lower class’s lack of morality. A sixteenth-century butler,

a lower class individual, was assumed to have no moral scruples. Later, More

himself takes it for granted that Matthew has betrayed him, showing that even More

buys into the stereotypes of his time. Yet Matthew turns bribe-taking into a means of

attack. He engages with others in a manner that is dishonest on the surface, but he

does so to cheat his bribers with information that is not technically secret.

At the same time, the Common Man does not tell More about the people who are

plotting against him. Throughout the play, he dupes More’s adversaries, but he does

so only for the audience’s eyes. As the play progresses, the Common Man (or rather,

the characters he plays) has a harder time reconciling his acts with More’s kind

treatment of him. Although the Common Man plays many roles, all his characters

develop in a unified fashion, as though they were one person.

Act One, scene seven

Summary

I neither could nor would rule my King. (Pleasantly) But there’s a little . . . little, area . . .

where I must rule myself. It’s very little—less to him than a tennis court.


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Back at More’s home in Chelsea, Alice, Norfolk, and Margaret prepare for King

Henry’s arrival, but More is nowhere to be found. When Matthew appears, all three

ask him where More might be, but as usual, Matthew says he knows nothing.

Norfolk complains that More has taken things too far, that More disrespects the king,

and that no good can come of it. Suddenly, More arrives, having been occupied at

vespers (evening prayers). He is dressed simply, and everyone fretfully tries to get

him to put on more appropriate attire, including his chain of office. When Norfolk

chastises More for disrespecting the king and his office, More retorts that he is not

dishonoring any office by serving God. More’s gown is caught up in his stockings,

and as Margaret laughs, Alice tries to fix it.

When King Henry arrives, More bows but Henry insists he be received in a casual

manner. The visit is intended as a surprise, although the family has known about it

for some time. More introduces Alice and Margaret, and the king says he has heard

that Margaret is a scholar. Modestly dismissing the compliment, Margaret

nonetheless goes on to speak Latin with the king. When it becomes clear that her

Latin is better than his, the king changes the subject. He playfully attempts to dance

with Margaret, and, commenting on the strength of Norfolk’s legs, he attempts to

wrestle with Norfolk. Henry then asks Alice what she has available for dinner.

Though Alice has obviously prepared a feast, she promises only a “very simple

supper.” Back on the subject of scholarship, the king mentions his book on the seven

sacraments, which, he admits, More helped to write. Then he pulls More aside to

discuss the divorce but not before impressing Margaret with the orchestra he has

brought with him.

Alone, More and Henry discuss Henry’s trip on his new battleship. More is reverent

and modest, and the king beats around the bush, asking More if they are friends and

telling him that Wolsey himself named More his successor. When More compliments

Wolsey’s ability, Henry complains that Wolsey failed him and needed to be broken.

He suggests that Wolsey wanted to be pope, and Henry laments the greedy authority

of the English cardinals.

Henry, sensing that he has gotten ahead of himself, changes the subject back to his

battleship. Just as suddenly, though, he broaches the subject of the divorce, and

when More admits that he cannot agree with the divorce, Henry grows angry and

then sad. He cannot understand why his friend would deny his request. More

explains that he would readily have his arm cut off if it meant he could agree to the

divorce with a clear conscience.


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More reminds the king that he promised not to bother him about the divorce,

knowing full well what he thought. The king, however, pleads that the matter is of

grave importance, since the book of Leviticus condemns any man who sleeps with

his brother’s wife. His first marriage to Catherine, Henry contends, was sinful, so

God is punishing him by denying him an heir. He wonders why More remains

staunch when everyone else has consented to the marriage. More argues that Henry

should not need his support if everyone else consents. But Henry admits he needs

More to back him up because of his honest reputation.

After some more small talk, Henry finally decides that though he will not insist that

More consent to the marriage, he will insist that he keep quiet on the issue.

Frustrated, Henry opts not to stay for dinner after all, and he leaves in a huff.

Alice chastises More for having angered the king. More protests that his opinion is

actually of little importance to Henry, but of grave importance to himself. He says

that he does not hope to “rule” the king but that he must absolutely rule himself. He

also suggests that the king may have left to be with Anne Boleyn—not because he

was angry.

Roper arrives and asks More whether he should take a seat that he has been offered

in the next Parliament. He admits that his views have changed on Church reform. He

still has concerns about Catholicism but considers the Catholic Church itself to be

sacred. When Roper grows passionate in his stance against reformations like the one

Henry is implementing, More reminds Roper that as chancellor, there are “certain

things” he cannot hear. Roper accuses More of corruption, saying that More, in

maintaining his position, has learned to flatter the court and the king.

Rich arrives and behaves in a defensive manner. He is suspicious to find that Roper

has heard of him and wrongly suspects that he is no longer welcome in More’s

home. Rich tells More that Cromwell and Chapuys have been checking up on him,

and he mentions Matthew’s duplicity. More tells him he is not surprised—such

information-gathering is to be expected. When Rich breaks down and asks again for

employment, More turns him away.

This country’s planted thick with laws from coast to coast—man’s laws, not God’s.


Everyone tells More to arrest Rich, but More reminds them that Rich has done

nothing illegal. More and Roper argue over the respective places of man’s and God’s

laws in human society. Roper accuses More of believing only in the law, not in God.


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More asserts that he believes in God but that man’s law offers a safe haven in an

uncertain universe. He says, “God’s my god. . . . But I find him rather too subtle. . . . I

don’t know where he is nor what he wants.” More tells Roper that while living on

earth, he puts his faith in the law. Moreover, More claims that he stands on firm

ground and that Roper is lost at sea, with his “seagoing principles.” Again, More

denies Roper his daughter’s hand in marriage. More exits forcefully, but reenters to

apologize for criticizing Roper harshly. He then explains to Alice and Margaret that

he considers himself to be safe in the matter of the divorce because he has not broken

any law or disobeyed the king.

Analysis

This lengthy scene contains King Henry’s only appearance in the play, and he proves

to be an arrogant and unpredictable man. Henry is polite and friendly until he feels

that his own power or needs are being undermined. Just as readily as Henry

expresses his feelings of friendship for More, he shouts and storms offstage. When

Henry first meets Margaret, he tactfully compliments her scholarship, but as soon as

she shows that she knows more Latin than he does, he changes the subject. The entire

company plays along with the idea that Henry’s visit is a surprise, even though both

sides show that preparation for such a visit is required and expected.

Henry’s visit shows that he values appearances over truth. Yet he demands both

simultaneously, even though they often contradict one another. For example, he

requires More and his family to bear the burden of planning for his surprise and of

convincing him that they are indeed surprised. He expects Margaret to take a

compliment tactfully and at the same time to hide the fact that it is tact that keeps her

quiet. Unlike the Machiavellians Cromwell and Rich, King Henry is not simply

content to do whatever is most convenient for his political advantage. Instead, he

wants to do whatever he likes and at the same time feel morally upright. If the other

characters can choose only between their personal advancement (chosen by

Cromwell and Rich) and their conscience (More), Henry believes that he can have

both, by using his power to influence others to ease his conscience.

The most important instance of Henry needing moral affirmation comes when he

demands More’s approval of the divorce and marriage because More is reputed to be

a moral man. More’s honest reputation means that his consent could prove the king

right; his lack of consent could prove the king wrong. Bolt suggests that Henry needs

More’s approval for private as well as public reasons. Henry’s immature, insecure

temperament suggests he needs More to ease his own guilt. This idea is supported

by Henry’s comment that it will be fine if More simply keeps quiet. The comment


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suggests that Henry needs More’s approval more for the calm it will give his

conscience than for public opinion.

The exchange between More and Roper reveals the seriousness with which More

does his job. More tells Roper that he must watch what he says and remember that

More is now chancellor. The play as a whole criticizes people who claim that they are

just doing their job as an excuse that allows them to justify behaving in an immoral

way in order to gain advancement. More shows there is nothing wrong with

devotion to one’s employment, as long as doing one’s job does not violate one’s

conscience.

Imagery of land and water is used to illustrate the difference between More’s law-

abiding nature and Roper’s religious idealism. In praising the law, More compares it

to a forest, which is sturdy and provides protection. He says that England is planted

“thick with laws from coast to coast—Man’s laws, not God’s—and if you cut them

down . . . d’you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow

then?” More emphasizes the inconstancy of Roper’s idealism by calling his morals

“seagoing principles,” invoking the image of the shifting and unstable sea to stress

the dangers of looking to God, the unknowable, as a moral guide. More wishes to

rely upon what he knows to be certain and what he can perceive here on earth. He

believes in God, but he does not pretend to understand God, except as God is

manifest in human laws and justice.

Act One, scene eight

Summary

The Common Man enters as the publican, or innkeeper, of a pub called the Loyal

Subject. He says that he is not a deep thinker like More and that he should not be

expected to act with deep principles.

Cromwell arrives at the Loyal Subject and asks the publican if his pub is a good place

to launch a conspiracy. Cromwell wants to insure that there are not “too many little

dark corners,” and the publican, bewildered, answers that there are only four corners

in the room. Cromwell suspects that the man is being disingenuous, and asks the

publican if he knows who Cromwell is. When the publican replies that he does not,

Cromwell accuses him of being too tactful—of saying less than he knows. Cromwell

beckons for Rich to come into the room, and he announces that he has secured the

position of collector of revenues for York, which he will offer to Rich in exchange for

information. Cromwell makes a joke at the king’s expense, and he gets Rich to admit

that he can be bought. Rich’s admission is just what Cromwell wants to hear, because


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Cromwell is counting on Rich’s “common sense” (in other words, his corruptibility)

to get the information he needs.

Cromwell explains that if Henry wants a divorce, he will get one, and it is

Cromwell’s (and, he adds, Rich’s) job to make it as convenient as possible. The major

problem is More, whose opinion is inviolable. But, Cromwell adds, the king will get

a divorce whether or not More approves, and More will either have to bend to his

will or get out of the way. Rich laments his loss of innocence, but he goes on to tell

Cromwell about the silver cup More received as a bribe and passed on to Rich. He

even divulges the price of the item and agrees to take Cromwell to the shop where he

sold it.

Rich feels guilty for betraying More, but he admits that it was not as hard as he had

expected. Cromwell promises that the next bribe will be even easier to take. Rich

wonders what Cromwell plans to do with the information. Cromwell announces that

men like More try to hold fast to their principles, but if they have any sense they get

out of the way of a situation beyond their control. Otherwise, Cromwell predicts,

men like More are only fit for heaven, not earth. Cromwell suspects, however, that

More has plenty of “sense” and can be easily scared into changing his mind. When

Rich retorts that More cannot be frightened, Cromwell demonstrates how far he is

willing to go by holding Rich’s hand in a candle flame. Rich screams and accuses

Cromwell of having enjoyed torturing him. Cromwell remains silent but looks proud

and exultant.

Analysis

All of Cromwell’s actions in this scene—questioning the publican, speaking against

More, and bribing and torturing Rich—are acts of a stock character who represents

evil. Cromwell mentions lightly that an innocent person like More is only fit for

heaven, suggesting that heaven is where he intends to send More. When he burns

Rich he unsubtly evokes the devil and the flames of hell. In a play more about the

struggle between conscience and convenience than about morality and religion, it is

odd to see a character so devoid of conscience as Cromwell. Overall, the scene seems

to have the character of melodrama and morality tales rather than serious drama.

In a way, Bolt’s play is something of a cautionary tale. His characters possess obvious

flaws that lead to More’s condemnation. The Common Man, for example, will

continue to aid and abet More’s downfall, primarily because he plays numerous

characters who are privy to the shady dealings performed behind More’s back and

who do not say anything. He represents the morally risky notion of just going along

with the flow of life without considering the consequences of one’s actions. Rich

represents the dangers of succumbing to the temptations of wealth and status. If the

Common Man and Rich show us step by step how a person can disregard his

conscience for material gain, Cromwell represents evil in its purest form, done for its

own sake.


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Alternatively, one can argue that Cromwell represents the occupational hazards of

working for a corrupt king. After all, Cromwell is also performing some of the same

functions as Wolsey. He has become the guardian of the king’s conscience, and

Henry, we have to assume, is always hovering over him. Later on in the play,

Cromwell refers to King Henry’s “ravenous” conscience.

The comedic, satirical nature of this scene creates the sense that Cromwell and Rich

are buffoons, set apart from the intelligent, moral figures such as More, Alice, and

Margaret. The amusing exchange between Cromwell and the publican emphasizes

Cromwell’s unsophisticated, narrow, and dim-witted outlook. As Cromwell tries to

assess just how trustworthy the Publican might be, he becomes infuriated by the

publican’s inability to understand him. Their muddled exchange lampoons the kind

of court politics Cromwell embodies, because Cromwell speaks in innuendos and

assumes the publican is doing the same, whereas the publican truly does not

understand what Cromwell is asking him. As Rich fluctuates between pangs of guilt

and immoral actions, he reveals his pathetic, whiny nature, which is established in

the play’s first scene.

The Common Man is also a satirical character. The publican may appear clever, but

his cleverness serves him only in an amoral way. The pub’s name, the Loyal Subject,

ironically emphasizes the publican’s immorality. The publican remains loyal to

Cromwell and Rich despite the fact that they are plotting villainous crimes in his

presence. The fact that the publican points out his own faults without provocation

reveals the extent to which he is meant to be a satirical character. He even goes so far

as to say that a man in his position cannot be expected to behave like a “deep” man

like Thomas More. His unsolicited excuse shows he is covering up his guilt in

advance.

Act Two, scenes one–two

Summary: Scene one

The Common Man enters to announce that in the two years that have passed, the

Church of England has been established. He wears spectacles and reads from a book

that the Church was created by an act of Parliament and not by bloodshed. Only a

few people opposed it. These dissenters were dangerously behind the times, the

Common Man reads, and they put themselves at risk, since torture was the order of

the day.

Summary: Scene two

More and Roper discuss the new Church of England. More makes fun of Roper’s

outfit. Now an ardent Catholic, Roper wears all black and a large cross around his

neck. He claims that More’s chain, which indicates More’s position as Lord


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Chancellor, is a disgrace. More reminds Roper that the convocation of bishops is

meeting to decide whether to give their allegiance to London, as King Henry

requests, or to Rome. More promises to resign if the bishops give in to King Henry.

Roper reminds More that regardless of the bishops’ decision, the Act of Supremacy

has made the king the head of the English Church. More points out that the act

includes the caveat, or warning, “so far as the law of God allows.” Though Roper

thinks this caveat is irrelevant, More says it allows him to agree to the act, which is

an otherwise repugnant piece of legislation to him. When Roper offers his opinion on

More’s interpretation of the act, More quiets Roper down, calling his point of view

high treason. He reminds Roper to think of Margaret, who is now Roper’s wife, his

children, and his responsibilities.

Margaret enters and tells Roper to forget responsibilities and follow his heart.

Chapuys arrives and agrees with Margaret’s instruction, calling them all saints for

their devotion to the Church. When More asks what Chapuys wants, Chapuys asks

demurely whether he cannot simply pay a friendly visit to a “brother in Christ.” But

More recognizes that the ambassador is actually on business, so he asks Margaret

and Roper to excuse them.

Alone with More, Chapuys chastises More for letting himself become associated with

the actions of King Henry. He reminds him that as Lord Chancellor, More bears

responsibility for his actions and stances with respect to the king. Finally, he asks

More about the bishops and a rumor he has heard that More is going to resign if the

bishops submit to Henry’s request. Chapuys would admire More for resigning, but

when he calls it a “signal,” More balks. To More, resigning would not be a signal but

a moral obligation. Chapuys announces that he has been on a tour of Yorkshire and

Northumberland, and he sensed that the people there were displeased with Henry’s

actions and ready to resist by force.

Just then, Roper and Norfolk rush in. Chapuys excuses himself, claiming to have

been visiting simply to borrow a book. Norfolk tells More that the bishops submitted

to the king and agreed to cut all ties with Rome. When More starts to take off his

chain of office, Norfolk refuses to help him. More declines an offer from Roper to

assist him, and he asks Alice to do the honors. Alice refuses. Finally, Margaret helps

her father. Alice accuses her husband of behaving “like a printed book.” Norfolk

calls the resignation cowardice, but More tells him that he considers Henry’s actions

to be war on the Catholic Church. He refuses, however, to tell anyone but the king

whether he thinks Catherine is Henry’s true wife. More replies vaguely when


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Norfolk asks why More would sacrifice his station in life for a theory. More says, “I

believe it to be true, or rather, not that I believe it, but that I believe it.”

More tells Norfolk that he is afraid, but Norfolk curtly announces that the king is

disappointed but will not punish or pursue More. As Norfolk goes to leave, More

stops him and repeats what Chapuys has told him about the threat of armed

resistance. Norfolk testily applauds More’s desire to be of some service to his

country, but he tells him that one of Cromwell’s agents took the tour of the

countryside to assess public sentiment with Chapuys, which makes More slightly

jealous and uneasy.

Alice, angry at what she sees as More’s impractical decision, asks what he intends to

do with himself now that he has resigned. Roper congratulates More, calling the

resignation a “noble gesture.” More eagerly clarifies that he would not sacrifice his

status and his family’s finances simply to make a gesture. He says he would have

continued in his post if he could have, but he could not. When More claims that he is

practical and therefore would never make a gesture for symbolism, Roper argues

that More acted morally rather than practically. More counters that morality is

practical, but not gestural. Alice gets angry and accuses Roper of engaging More in a

light “dance” to the Tower of London, where, she fears, he will be tortured. But More

insists that if they all keep quiet about his motives and opinions, no one can accuse

him of opposing the king. People will only be able to guess at his reasons for

resigning. More even refuses to tell his family what he thinks, explaining that if

Cromwell should make them swear on a Bible, he wants them to be able to say

honestly that they do not know what More thinks.

More sends Alice off to the kitchen to release most of the servants since the family

will no longer be able to afford their services. More approaches Matthew and asks

whether Matthew could stay on for less money. When Matthew says he could not,

More says with regret that he will miss him. Matthew replies that More always saw

right through him and that there is nothing to miss, but More is insistent.

I wish we could all have good luck, all the time! I wish we had wings! I wish rainwater was

beer! But it isn’t! . . . And what with not having wings but walking-on two flat feet; and good

luck and bad luck being just exactly even stevens; and rain being water—don’t you

complicate the job by putting things in me for me to miss!


At the end of the scene, Matthew has a short monologue. He wonders what More

could possibly miss in him. He says that he almost “fell for” More’s offer of less


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money, implying that More was simply complimenting him to persuade him to stay

on at the house. Matthew complains that life is not always filled with friendship or

good luck and that More has no right to complicate things. He repeats that he almost

fell for More’s offer, and he leaves the stage chuckling to himself.

Analysis: Scenes one–two

More’s resignation is the central action of both this scene and the play itself, and it

has importance for both the play’s plot and it’s theme. More’s conversations about

his resignation provide information to analyze More’s peculiar brand of morality.

When More resigns, Alice accuses him of behaving like a “book,” and Roper says

More makes a “noble gesture,” but More says he does neither. He is following

something much more certain than a printed page or a precept. He is abiding by

himself, rather than by ideals or appearances. More argues that his decision has

nothing to do with anyone else. He therefore refuses to tell even his wife his true

feelings in order to protect her from having to perjure or condemn herself in a court

of law.

Act Two, scene two, begins by reminding us that Roper’s high-minded ideals are

always subject to change, whereas More’s commitment to his own moral conscience

and to the law is steadfast. Roper, a devout Lutheran earlier in the play, is now an

ardent Catholic, as his clothes reveal. More demonstrates the difference between

himself and Roper when he reminds his son-in-law that the Act of Supremacy’s

caveat, “so far as the law of God allows,” is what enables More to reconcile his

private conscience with the law. Roper, on the other hand, finds the caveat a small

and irrelevant excuse.

Roper’s criticism of More calls into question More’s practical approach to morality.

More may live his life in a moral manner, but he nevertheless manipulates situations

to get what he wants. He claims that he has no choice except to resign, but he has no

choice only within his understanding of morality. His choice has implications for his

family as well. Even though More hopes to protect Alice and Margaret by telling

them nothing about his beliefs, we see the emotional harm that More’s silence inflicts

on them, as well as the strain his resignation will put on their daily life.

The insurrection that the characters talk about in this act is based on a historical

event. King Henry did have to contend with an insurrection in the north similar to

the one Chapuys threatens to stir up among discontented English subjects. The so-

called Pilgrimage of Grace erupted in the aftermath of Henry’s break with Rome,


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partly as a result of poor economic conditions. Fortunately for Henry, the revolt was

ultimately put down.

It is difficult to discuss Brecht’s alienation technique (see Context), for the technique

must be experienced. Essentially, through alienation, an actor can make a comment

to the audience about the character he is playing, even while he is speaking the lines

of the character. The actor uses direct conversation with the audience, an ironic tone,

exaggerated movements or gestures, or other techniques to force the audience to

judge him. Matthew’s monologue about his distrust of More uses the technique to

invite the audience to judge what he’s saying. He discusses how More is just playing

the role of an insincere, money grubbing noble, and he tells the audience that

Matthew himself is nothing more than emptiness. He says that even though human

beings want to believe in things that are not practical—he wishes for rain to be beer,

for instance—we always return to the cold, hard fact that life is somewhat miserable

and that base men are base and empty men are empty. Almost laughing, Matthew

says he “almost fell for it.” Matthew, or the Common Man who is playing Matthew’s

character, actually wants us to question whether he should have fallen for a more

optimistic view of life. Matthew seems to assume that the audience will agree with

his analysis of man’s nature, but if the audience does not, then Matthew has

alienated himself from them in such a way that they will think less of him.

Act Two, scenes three–four

Summary: Scene three

Norfolk protests Cromwell’s intention to pursue More, claiming that since More does

not actively oppose Henry’s divorce, they do not need to bother him. But Cromwell

contends that everyone understands More’s silence to be disapproval. Since More

has shown himself to be a patriot by passing on information about Chapuys’s

rebellion, Cromwell contends, More should have no problem swearing an oath of

loyalty to the administration.

When Norfolk protests again, Cromwell points out that he has instructions from the

king to get More to consent. Cromwell plans to use the information Rich provided

about the silver cup to blackmail More into submission. When Norfolk refuses to

believe that More has ever accepted a bribe, Cromwell brings in Rich and the woman

who gave More the cup. Though the woman did not get the judgment she wanted

from More, she nonetheless admits that she sent him the silver cup. Rich attests that

More received the cup, and Cromwell has enlisted Matthew to corroborate the fact

that More gave the cup to Rich. Norfolk, however, remembers the night that Rich

received the cup, and he reminds Rich that he got the cup the same month that More


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did. Thus, Norfolk asserts, as soon as More realized the cup was a bribe, he got rid of

it. Cromwell admits that the scenario Norfolk proposes is possible, but he promises

to find some better gossip that he can use to force More’s hand.

When Norfolk insists he wants nothing to do with Cromwell’s campaign to discredit

More, Cromwell mentions that the king particularly wants Norfolk to participate

because Norfolk is known to be More’s friend. Norfolk’s involvement will make

Cromwell’s campaign look less like malicious prosecution and more like a fair

investigation of facts. When Norfolk exits, Cromwell turns on Rich and rebukes him

for not remembering that the duke was present the night More gave Rich the cup.

Just as Cromwell and Rich are leaving, Matthew appears and reminds Rich that he

said that he might need a steward. Rich hesitates since he feels that Matthew treated

him poorly back when he was More’s servant. But Matthew insists that Rich’s

memories are incorrect, and as he follows Rich offstage, he announces that he thinks

Rich will be a good match for him.

Summary: Scene four

Back at More’s home, the family’s fortunes have dwindled. Chapuys has come to pay

a visit, and he and his attendant chat about how cold and poor More’s house

suddenly seems. Chapuys speculates that More supports Spain and seems to be

against Cromwell.

When More arrives, Chapuys promises that his fortunes are sure to change, implying

that an alliance with Spain could be very profitable. He hands More a letter from the

king of Spain, but More refuses to take it. Chapuys assures More that no one saw

him coming to his house, but More feels that opening the letter would be unseemly

and that he would feel obliged to take it straight to Henry. He warns Chapuys not to

be so sure about More’s views on the divorce and points out his patriotism. More

even has Alice witness that he has not accepted the letter or broken its seal.

Departing, Chapuys announces that he suspects his king will admire More all the

more for having refused the letter.

Meanwhile, Margaret has entered with a pile of bracken to burn to heat the house.

More calls it a luxury, but Alice is unconvinced. More announces that though the

bishops offered him some money by way of charity, he cannot accept it since it will

make him appear to be in their service. Alice gets angry again, complaining about

their poverty, her husband’s refusal to explain his motives, and his sudden

preoccupation with how things appear. More replies that he has to consider

appearances in such dangerous times, though he hopes his fears are misplaced.

Roper arrives and announces that someone has come to take More to Hampton

Court to answer some charges. Alice is alarmed, but More is stoic and even jokes that

he will bring Cromwell back for dinner later that night.


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Analysis: Scenes three–four

The scene between Matthew and Rich demonstrates an instance in which the

Common Man believes he truly figures out what another man is all about. The

knowing look in his eye and the tone of his comment as he exits the stage indicate

that Matthew believes he has duped Rich into taking him on as a servant. He senses

Rich’s pride and gullibility, perhaps concluding that with Rich he would never be

accused of being missed as he was with More. He definitely feels a sense of power

over his new “master.” Intellectually and ethically, Matthew thinks himself better

than Rich.

More’s demonstration of loyalty to the king when he refuses Chapuys’s letter seems

out of step with More’s character. In the first place, by all indications More owes

nothing to the king, and both politically and religiously he has more in common with

Spain. His choice to refuse the Spanish king’s letter seems impractical and unrelated

to his morality, unless he views patriotism as a moral duty in and of itself. More

clings at least as surely to king, country, and law as he does to the mysteries of faith.

Even at his trial at the end of the play, as his sentence is pronounced, he prays for

Henry and calls himself a loyal subject. In More’s eyes, it is a statesman’s duty to

consider his private conscience, and so he sees himself as the most faithful of subjects

that a king could hope to have. Just as the doctrine of freedom of speech must allow

for those to speak out against it, More’s disagreement with his king is not

tantamount to disloyalty, but rather a testament to his commitment to the king’s best

interests. More operates as much as a teacher in the play as he does a practical man

concerned with his own moral salvation.

More’s concern with appearances when he refuses to take money from the bishops

also seems out of keeping with More’s character. His concern shows that although he

sees resignation as the only moral choice he can make, he recognizes that he must

also weigh other concerns—his own safety, the safety of his family, and the law.

Once again, More disproves the claim that Wolsey and others made that More

ignores practical concerns.

Act Two, scenes five–six

Summary: Scene five

Cromwell tells More that Rich will be recording their conversation. More

compliments Rich’s fancy outfit. Cromwell admits that he greatly admires More, but

as Rich starts to write that down, Cromwell stops him. More asks what the charges

against him are, but Cromwell insists there are no charges, just questions. More asks

Rich to record the fact that there are no charges.


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Getting down to business, Cromwell announces that the king is not pleased with

More and would reward More handsomely if he would only change his mind. More

refuses. Cromwell changes the subject, bringing up the Holy Maid of Kent, a woman

who was executed for sermonizing against the king. More admits that he knew her

and sympathized with her, but when Cromwell accuses him of having withheld

information about her treasonous talk, More assures him that their conversations

were not political in nature. He even says he knows people who can testify to the fact

that they were completely innocent.

Cromwell then accuses More of having written A Defense of the Seven Sacraments, a

work attributed to King Henry himself. More admits that he answered a few of the

king’s questions on canon law, but he denies that he wrote the book, which defends

the pope’s authority in England. When Cromwell finally broaches the subject of

Queen Anne, More says that the king told him not to inquire about that anymore. He

calls Cromwell’s accusations empty threats. Cromwell then produces a letter from

the king, who calls More a villain and a traitor. More is finally unsettled, and

Cromwell excuses him. Cromwell tells Rich that the king has said More will die if he

does not consent. Cromwell says that, as a man of conscience, the king cannot abide

what he sees as More’s disapproval.

Summary: Scene six

Outside, More tries to hail a boat, but no one will stop for him. Norfolk enters and

says he has been following More. He points out that it is dangerous even to know

More, much less be seen with him, but he tells More about Cromwell’s smear

campaign and his own role in it. More insists that Norfolk must forget their

friendship and do his duty. But Norfolk protests that such a thing is impossible.

Norfolk announces that the only solution is for More to change his mind, an idea that

More finds impossible. Norfolk sarcastically protests that the only thing steadfast in

this world is the fact that More will not give in to the king, and More replies that he

thinks highly of friendship but must remain loyal above all to his own self.

More picks a fight with Norfolk that is playful but that has serious undertones. He

accuses Norfolk of neglecting his own conscience by giving in to the amoral actions

of the state, and he suggests that Norfolk is not fit for heaven. Norfolk finally gets

angry, hits More, and departs. Just then, Margaret and Roper arrive to announce a

new act in Parliament that calls for the administration of an oath regarding the king’s

marriage. More asks about the wording of the oath, hoping he will be able to take it

with a clear conscience. More describes for them his philosophy about man’s

struggle for life. More says that God made angels to show him splendor, animals to

show innocence, and plants to display simplicity. God made man, however, “to serve

him wittily, in the tangle of his mind!” More goes on to say that man’s lot is to try to

escape death for as long as possible, until it becomes evident that his time has come.

When men finally die, More clarifies to Roper, men can rant and “clamor like


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champions,” showing God splendor. Until then, More proposes, they go home and

look over the king’s new act.


Rich’s fancy costumes highlight his slow but steady rise through the ranks of the

royal administration. More’s comment about Rich’s attire recalls Rich’s grumbling in

his first scene with More about his shabby clothes. We have witnessed Rich’s moral

undoing, and throughout the rest of the play, we watch as he reaps the benefits of his

evil ways. The contrast between the servile, pathetic Rich in Act One and Rich the

haughty administrator in Act Two continues throughout subsequent scenes.

The meeting between More and Norfolk in Act Two, scene six, shows the complexity

of More’s convictions with regard to friendship, conscience, and duty. Norfolk,

More’s most faithful friend, has not refused to help prosecute More, so he is

understandably flustered and confused as he wrestles with his own conscience.

More’s reaction to Norfolk reveals that More never assumes that he truly knows

someone else. He may like people and wish to help and teach them, but he can know

only himself, and he does not judge others until they truly impinge upon his

conscience.

More’s statement to Norfolk “[Y]ou must cease to know me . . . as a friend” can be

interpreted in different ways. More advises Norfolk to cease their friendship so that

Norfolk may obey his patriotic duty to the king without a guilty conscience. On the

one hand, More might be sincere in speaking these words to Norfolk, since More’s

advice that Norfolk should “cease to know” him accords to More’s strong sense of

patriotic duty. Also, More follows this statement by telling Norfolk to think about the

safety of Norfolk’s son, a comment that illustrates More’s love of family.

On the other hand, More’s comment that Norfolk should cease knowing him might

be insincere. Later in the scene, More attacks Norfolk for being a spineless traitor to

his own conscience while defending the irreligious, “rat-dog pedigree” that the king

and the state have become. More’s decision to pick a fight could mean that he was

never sincere in the first place. If so, More’s command that Norfolk “cease to know”

him implies that Norfolk needs to consider the implications of obeying his king if

doing so means living with a guilty conscience for betraying his friend. Moreover,

More’s allusion to Norfolk’s son might suggest that by sacrificing his conscience for

his irreligious king, Norfolk will set a poor example for his son.

In the middle of their conversation, More asks the confused and troubled Norfolk

what he should do. When Norfolk can only ask More to submit to the king’s wishes

and go against More’s own conscience, More finally becomes confrontational and

harsh. More cannot tolerate the fact that Norfolk’s priorities are not clear. More feels


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Norfolk should follow his conscience, whether it tells him to be loyal to his king or to

his friend. Absurdly, More even tries to show Norfolk that he could live a content,

guilt-free life even if Norfolk plays a role in More’s persecution. More knows that

Norfolk would be justified in his actions for several reasons, including his patriotic

and familial duties. More goes even further to make it easy on Norfolk’s conscience

by showing that if Norfolk simply parts company with him, he will be doing so as a

friend.

There is a striking parallel between More’s behavior here and in the final scene of the

play. In this scene, More decides to unleash his criticisms of Norfolk only after he has

decided that the two should no longer be friends. In contrast, in the play’s final

scene, he begins to speak his mind only after he has been convicted of a crime and

sentenced to death. More’s philosophical lesson to Margaret and Roper at the close of

scene six shows that men are allowed to “clamor” only once they know that their

predestined end has arrived. Perhaps More feels similarly about his friendship with

Norfolk and tries to make Norfolk fully aware of Norfolk’s ill-behavior only once

More knows their friendship has come to an end.

The oath discussed at the end of scene six was administered by Henry’s government

in 1536. All Church and lay government officials were required to swear their

allegiance to Henry as the head of the Church of England, and to recognize and

approve the Church’s break with Rome. Henry’s conduct in this matter reflected a

shift from the time-honored medieval tradition in which rulers were the arbiters of

lawmaking and civil conduct toward the more modern custom in which kings are

also the ideological figureheads of their countries.

Act Two, scene seven

Summary

Better a live rat than a dead lion.


The Common Man, now playing a jailer, introduces us to More’s new home in the

Tower of London. He insists that he would let More out if he could but then they

would both end up in jail. An envelope falls in front of the jailer, and he takes the

letter from it and reads out loud. The letter predicts the convictions of Cromwell,

Norfolk, and Cranmer, who is the archbishop of Canterbury, for high treason, and

the executions of Cromwell and Cranmer. The letter reveals that Rich, by contrast,

fares very well, living a long life and ultimately becoming Lord Chancellor before

dying in his bed. The jailer wishes us the same good luck.


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Of course, all these events have not yet occurred in the play. Cromwell, Cranmer,

and Norfolk have just arrived at the tower to question More. The jailer wakes the

now haggard More and escorts him to the interrogation, where Cromwell presents

More with the Act of Succession. The document invalidates the king’s first marriage

and the pope’s right to sanction it, and the decree also confirms Queen Anne’s

children as the rightful heirs to the throne.

More agrees to the second part of the oath but refuses to answer to the first part. All

attempts to persuade More to change his mind fail. More explains that as long as he

is silent about why he refuses to swear to the oath, they have no way to be sure he is

not holding out just to give them trouble. They can lock him up for life, but they

cannot convict him of treason, a death-penalty offense. When Norfolk points to the

long list of signatories and asks More to sign for the sake of fellowship, More points

out that though they may very well have signed with clear consciences, he cannot do

so, and as such would be damned to hell. Norfolk excuses More.

As More leaves, he asks for some more books, but Cromwell, not having realized he

had books at all, promises instead to take away the ones he already has. More asks to

see his family, but Cromwell refuses. After More has left, Cromwell approaches the

jailer to ask if More has said anything about the divorce, the Church of England, or

the remarriage. The jailer has not heard anything, but he swears an oath that he will

report anything that he hears. When Cromwell promises fifty guineas in exchange

for any information, Cranmer adds that the jailer should not just make something up

in exchange for the money. In a brief aside, the jailer frets over such a large sum of

money, which signals to him that much is at stake and that the great reward could

easily turn to a great penalty, perhaps even death.

Cromwell instructs Rich to return the following day to remove More’s books, and he

informs Norfolk that the king is getting impatient with them because of More’s

silence. Rich approaches Cromwell to inquire whether he might obtain the now-

vacant post of the attorney general for Wales, but Cromwell is preoccupied.

Cromwell claims that More’s silence troubles the king’s conscience but that More’s

execution would trouble his own. He toys with the rack, a torture device, as he

contemplates how to get More to submit.

Analysis

In this scene, the Common Man doubts his conduct toward More for the first time.

Obliged now not only to divulge information about More but also to be his jailer, the

Common Man finds that his complicity in More’s persecution begins to chafe at his

conscience. As Matthew, he could still dodge the guilt he felt when More confided

that More would miss Matthew. As the jailer, the Common Man is conscious of that

guilt and excuses his complicity in More’s persecution by saying, “Better a live rat

than a dead lion”—better to be alive and guilty than dead and a hero.


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In general, A Man for All Seasons argues against the idea that staying alive is the

ultimate good. More’s life is his final and perhaps greatest sacrifice, but it does not

compare to other characters’ sacrifice of their own selves and convictions. At the end

of the play, the Common Man points out that staying alive is actually rather easy, but

through his statement, the play implicitly implies that an immoral life is not always

worth the guilt-ridden consequences. Moreover, the Common Man’s statement

actually misquotes the biblical saying, “better a live dog than a dead lion”

(Ecclesiastes 9:4). The Common Man’s mistake shows how he and others who live by

this philosophy deceive themselves.

In his opening monologue, the jailer tells us about the historical fates of Cromwell,

Norfolk, and Cranmer, implying that, at least in Henry’s court, a live rat is not

always alive for that long. The information is important because it suggests that

unsavory characters receive what they deserve. All of these facts about the eventual

fates of the characters in the play should belong in an epilogue, yet Bolt inserts them

just before the play’s climax. By including this recap of history, Bolt makes certain that

we know what ultimately happens to the play’s antagonists as well as its protagonist,

turning history into a sort of divine justice.

Act Two, scene eight

Summary

In the morning, More’s family arrives at the Tower of London, and the jailer lets

More out of his cell. He is overjoyed to see his family after a year in prison. They

have brought him cheese, custard, and wine. However, Alice is still angry, and she

addresses her husband coldly. The prison disgusts her, but More is either too stoic or

too excited to care about his surroundings. Suddenly, Roper blurts out that More

should take the oath, and More realizes that the only reason they have been allowed

to see him is that they have promised to persuade him to concede. Margaret, ever the

scholar, quotes scripture and suggests that More speak the words of the oath even if

he believes otherwise in his heart. More, however, claims that oaths are by definition

spoken to God, to whom the oath-taker gives his own self as collateral. Margaret

points out that the state is evil and that her father has already done more than can be

expected of him. Alice accuses More of choosing prison over home life, and he

replies that he would escape if he could. Margaret goes on to describe how miserable

they are without him.

The jailer returns to give the visitors a two-minute warning. More sends Roper off

with the wine to try to distract him, then tells Margaret and Alice to leave the

country. More figures he will not be allowed to see them again anyway. Turning his

attention to the food they have brought, More compliments Alice’s custard and then


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her dress, but his comments only make her more angry and upset. More wants to be

sure that Alice understands why he does not cave-in to the king, because if he dies

without her full understanding it would be worse than any torture to which the

authorities could subject him. She replies that she does not understand, that she does

not think all this had to happen, and that she suspects she may resent him when he is

gone. More breaks down, insisting that she must understand. Finally, moved by

More’s display of anguish, Alice hugs her husband and tells him he is the best man

she has ever known.

Just then, the jailer returns, unwavering in his insistence that it is time for the visitors

to go. More, Alice, and Margaret resist, but he is resolute, and even Alice’s insults do

no good. More and Alice part with emotion, and the jailer apologizes to More,

claiming to be a simple man who is just doing his job. Suddenly furious, More shouts

out in frustration and then says, “Why it’s a lion I married! A lion! A lion!”

Analysis

More’s final climactic meeting with his family affirms their union and love as eternal,

despite their imminent earthly separation. In particular, More’s encounter with Alice

resolves their previous conflict and acts as a kind of rejuvenating redemption just

before More faces his accusers. In an earlier scene, More points out to Margaret and

Roper that he must fight death as long as he can “escape” it in good conscience, and

when he no longer can do that, he will know that God has willed him to die. Alice,

who was not present during this discussion of More’s ideas on predestination, could

not understand the motivations behind her husband’s refusal to obey the king. In

this scene, however, Alice reveals her unconditional love for her husband. Even

though she does not seem to recognize why More does not give in to Henry, she

shows that she understands that her husband’s actions are rooted in his faith in God

when she says, “God knows why I suppose.”

Because Alice truly knows her husband, she can respect his choices, even if she

cannot comprehend their significance rationally. Her reaction to More contrasts with

Norfolk’s in Act Two, scene six, in which Norfolk was unable to overcome his

confusion and respect More’s choice to end their friendship. Alice’s actions also

contrast with those of the Common Man. At the end of this scene, More repeats the

word “lion” to describe his wife, evoking the Common Man’s earlier statement,

“Better a live rat than a dead lion.” To More, Alice affirms that strong, courageous,

lion-like people still exist.

At the end of the scene, More also bemoans “simple men” for doing what they are

told to do instead of living their lives according to what they believe. Most of the

characters in the play, and in particular those the Common Man plays, are included

in More’s indictment. More has spent the entire play carefully assessing what aspects

of his duties he could perform without betraying his conscience. Now, having

essentially let go of all his earthly positions, including his position as a husband and


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a father, he shows that even the lowest-level functionary on the long ladder of his

oppressors cannot escape reproach. Though the Common Man might be the most

pardonable of the offenders, he exemplifies the morally bankrupt attitudes of most

people.

Act Two, scenes nine–ten

Summary: Scene nine

The Common Man sets up the stage as a courtroom, placing hats on poles to stand

for jurymen. As he gets ready to leave, Cromwell stops him, insisting that he has to

play the foreman of the jury. Cranmer and Norfolk preside over the trial. Norfolk

offers More one last opportunity to take the oath, but More refuses. Cromwell reads

the charges, which claim that More conspired to undermine Henry’s authority as the

supreme head of the Church of England. More is accused of high treason. Shocked,

More replies that he never denied Henry’s title, but Cromwell points out that he

refused to take the oath. More counters that, legally, his silence does not signify

denial. But Cromwell argues that silence can indicate disapproval. He discusses the

silence of a roomful of people who have just witnessed a murder. In such a case, the

witnesses are complicit in the murder for failing to speak or try to stop it. Cromwell

asserts that everyone knows what More’s silence suggests, but More tells the jury

that under the law silence does not imply consent. More and Cromwell argue about

conscience and the soul. Cromwell says that what More calls minding his conscience

and his soul is in fact a conceited obsession with his own self and his personal

opinions.

Cromwell calls Rich to the stand, and Rich testifies that he heard More say that

Parliament had no power to declare Henry the head of the Church in England. More

laments Rich’s perjury. He swears on oath that he never denied that Henry was the

head of the Church and reminds everyone how highly he regards an oath. More

remembers that two other people were there at the time of his conversation with

Rich, but Cromwell presents a deposition from the two men, saying that they were

out of earshot when More denied the king’s title. As Rich is excused from the stand,

More asks to see the chain of office he is wearing. When he recognizes it as the chain

of the attorney general for Wales, More chides Rich for having sold his soul.

When Norfolk tells the jury to consider the evidence, Cromwell decides they should

not need to retire to decide such an open-and-shut case. The jury finds More guilty,

but before Norfolk can pronounce the sentence, More interrupts. Finally deciding to

speak his mind, More denounces the Act of Supremacy, and he points out that both

the Magna Carta and the Coronation Oath guarantee the Catholic Church’s

authority. He announces that he remains a loyal subject of King Henry, and he tells

the court that he is not on trial for denying the Act of Supremacy but rather because

he refused to recognize the marriage.


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Norfolk condemns More to death, and the scene quickly changes.

Summary: Scene ten

A crowd has gathered at the Tower of London to watch More’s beheading. The

Common Man, this time cast as the executioner, dons a black mask. As More

approaches the block, he refuses Norfolk’s offer of wine and Cranmer’s offer to

perform the last rites. Margaret runs up, distraught, but More comforts her. Just then,

the woman who tried to bribe More appears in the crowd, accusing him of giving her

an incorrect judgment in her case. More dismisses the malicious woman and walks

up to the block. He tells the executioner not to feel bad about having to kill him. He

is sure, he tells Cranmer, that he will go to God. After a blackout indicating the

execution, the Common Man removes his executioner’s mask and says to the

audience, “It isn’t difficult to keep alive, friends—just don’t make trouble. . . . If we

should bump into one another, recognize me.”

Analysis: Scenes nine–ten

Ironically, Cromwell’s argument to the jury that silence can signify guilt ends up

affirming the courtroom audience’s guilt for More’s murder. Cromwell suggests as

an example that if he were to stab More and no one in the courtroom spoke out,

everyone would be complicit in the murder. Even though they will not have to hold

the ax to chop off More’s head, their role as silent witnesses to More’s condemnation

makes them as guilty as the Cromwell.

Rich has completed his transformation into a Machiavellian prince—he is corrupt

and successful. Rich sticks fast to his false story because in exchange for a high-

ranking office, he has become nothing more than a mouthpiece for Cromwell. Rich

has sacrificed his moral conscience, something that More would never do. The final

scene shows that More’s attempt to teach Rich in the first scene has ultimately failed.

Ironically, because More chose not to chastise Rich openly for his petty desires for

status and wealth, Rich fell victim to temptation and then cut down More himself.

More’s style of teaching by way of tests and examples seems ineffective in Rich’s

case, and the final scene elucidates More’s belief that people need to teach

themselves. More defines himself by his conscience and his relationship with the law

and with God, and he believes others ought to do the same. Since More advocates

that people should not care what others say or think, he does not teach others

outright, but rather tests them, hoping they will listen to their own consciences. More

does not want to usurp the rightful place of God, so he rarely speaks his opinions.


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As in his conversation with Norfolk earlier in the play, More becomes fervent about

his opinions concerning Henry only after a ruling has already been made. More’s

final outburst also exemplifies the philosophy More explained to Roper and

Margaret in Act Two, scene six, when he said that we may “clamor” only once we

know that God has chosen the correct time. Sentenced to death and assured that God

has willed that he must die, More finally feels he can teach by speaking out.

Throughout the play, the Common Man becomes increasingly complicit in More’s

death. Matthew betrays More in a roundabout way in the first act, and the innkeeper

proves to be an accomplice as well, but the Common Man’s roles as jailer, juryman,

and executioner implicate the Common Man in a less ambiguous manner. They also

implicate the audience. Immediately after the execution, the Common Man says that

he is still breathing and asks the audience members if they too are breathing. His

question makes the audience aware of the fact that each person could have his or her

head on the chopping block. If there is any question over how one can stay alive, the

Common Man offers advice, then implies that his advice is not a secret but rather

common knowledge understood by common men and women. This comment

associates the audience directly with his title and his characters. Still, his advice is not

moral but mean in nature, in line with the various roles he plays. The Common

Man’s job is to do his job, to fit any number of social roles without rocking the boat.

The Common Man’s final command to his audience, “If we should bump into one

another, recognize me,” recalls More’s statements about how people can only guess

at what he is throughout the play and that very few people can actually truly know

him. The Common Man’s command is rather absurd in one sense because he plays so

many characters that it would be difficult to recognize him among us. But the

Common Man’s warning implies that people will have no problem recognizing who

has a common nature, for just as most of the characters in the play are base, most real

people are base. Whereas More indicates that we cannot really know him, a man of

conscience, the Common Man wishes us to understand that we can recognize and

preferably avoid shallowness and “common” qualities when we see them.

Important Quotations Explained

1. My Master Thomas More would give anything to anyone. Some say that’s good

and some say that’s bad, but I say he can’t help it—and that’s bad . . . because some

day someone’s going to ask him for something that he wants to keep; and he’ll be out

of practice.

(Act One, scene one)

Explanation for Quotation #1

In this excerpt from a monologue at the end of the play’s first scene, More’s servant,

Matthew, predicts the conflict More will face in the play. Yet Matthew’s statement


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that More is out of practice is wrong, since More seems to be the only character with

enough practice to know that there are certain things that he cannot sacrifice. In fact,

the central conflict in the play stems from More’s refusal to give up his sense of self,

which is rooted in his faith in the Catholic Church and in God. After relinquishing

his career, his family, his friendship with Norfolk, and even his freedom, More sees it

as utterly impossible to relinquish his beliefs. Though characters like Roper and

Chapuys see More’s actions as noble but impractical gestures, More thinks of his

behavior as the most practical and realistic option. For More, to double cross his

conscience would be to disown his soul, his self.

It is important that Matthew’s prediction seems insightful but proves incorrect at the

end of the play. In the beginning of the play, the characters the Common Man plays

seem to be insightful and clever members of the lower class, who astutely critique

and satirize the nobility. Yet at the play’s close, even the Common Man has

unraveled and behaves in a reprehensible way, causing us to rethink the opinions we

have had of him all along.

2. Well . . . I believe, when statesmen forsake their own private conscience for the

sake of their public duties . . . they lead their country by a short route to chaos.

(Act One, scene two)


In this pronouncement from Act One, scene two, More tears apart Wolsey’s

common-sense approach to politics. Wolsey believes a person should take the most

convenient and advantageous option in political matters, but More believes a

statesman’s duty is to weigh his “own private conscience” because doing so will

ultimately lead to the common good.

3. (Quietly) I neither could nor would rule my King.

(Pleasantly) But there’s a little . . . little, area . . . where I must rule myself. It’s very

little—less to him than a tennis court.

(Act One, scene seven)


More speaks these words to his wife, Alice, following King Henry’s visit to their

home. Alice urges More either to rule or be ruled, but More argues that he will allow

himself to be ruled, except in matters pertaining to his conscience. We often find

More desperately searching for a loophole in some act or oath, and at such times we

may wonder whether this moral man is trying to skirt the issue. This statement of

More’s reveals that he is not really an idealist. Unlike Roper, More does not do things

just because he believes in them but because, as he says, his conscience believes in

them. He does not try to prove a point or to be a hero, but there are certain points he

feels he cannot concede without sacrificing his own self.


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4. And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned round on you—where

would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? (He leaves him) This country’s

planted thick with laws from coast to coast—man’s laws, not God’s—and if you cut

them down—and you’re just the man to do it—d’you really think you could stand

upright in the winds that would blow then?

(Act One, scene seven)


After Roper accuses More of respecting man’s law over God’s, More delivers this

defense of his actions. Though More believes in the afterlife, he also recognizes that

he has no right and no means to make judgments that are better left to God. More

respects man’s law as the best available means of protecting against evil, even if it

lets people like Rich off the hook from time to time. Bolt explains in his preface that

he uses seafaring and water metaphors to signify the uncertainty of the great beyond,

the moral universe that Roper aims to navigate. In this passage, More’s vision of a

stable, lawful earthly existence is signified by images of the forest, and a lawless

earth is signified by images of a barren wasteland.

5. All right, so he’s down on his luck! I’m sorry. I don’t mind saying that: I’m sorry!

Bad luck! If I’d any good luck to spare he could have some. I wish we could all have

good luck, all the time! I wish we had wings! I wish rainwater was beer! But it isn’t! .

. . And what with not having wings but walking-on two flat feet; and good luck and

bad luck being just exactly even stevens; and rain being water—don’t you complicate

the job by putting things in me for me to miss!

(Act Two, scene two)


When More lets Matthew go, he tells him he’ll be missed, but Matthew is skeptical.

Matthew sees no reason for More to miss him and resents feeling he has to worry

about personal relations and responsibilities, particularly those regarding his boss.

Matthew has spent the entire play acting for his own financial gain, accepting bribes

for information on More and others. More’s suggestion that they share a bond of

friendship makes Matthew feel guilty for how he behaved. Matthew disregarded his

conscience, the very thing that More refuses to do.

Throughout the rest of the play, the Common Man (who plays Matthew and many

other characters) becomes more directly involved in More’s undoing—as jailer,

juryman, and ultimately, executioner. Bolt suggests here that the Common Man

could be any of us just doing our jobs. In a world that celebrates history as a series of

trends, we should all accept personal responsibility and pay attention to our

consciences, even if we feel there’s nothing we can do.

6. Better a live rat than a dead lion


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(Act Two, scene seven)


The jailer, played by the Common Man, invokes this excuse, which he calls an “old

adage,” to justify not living according to his conscience. His statement claims that

life, no matter how immoral, is always better than death. The jailer’s statement is

actually a misquoted version of the biblical saying, “Better a live dog than a dead

lion” (Ecclesiastes 9:4). The Common Man’s deliberate paraphrasing of the Bible

underscores his base nature and the base nature of the other men who act like some

of his characters, like Cromwell. Obviously, the play argues an opposite message,

since its hero, More, gives up his physical existence for the good of his soul.

In general, More does feel that life is better than death. Earlier in Act Two, More

implies that it is important for Norfolk to keep alive and not die by associating

himself with More, telling Norfolk to stay away and reminding him that he has a

son. Before More is imprisoned, he tells Margaret and Roper that he believes men

should fight death until it becomes apparent that death is the only course left to take.

He says that man’s goal must be to escape death until the predestined moment

comes. More lives his life by fighting death however he can until he believes God has

deemed it time for him to depart, at which point he welcomes death with open arms.

Key Facts

FULL TITLE · A Man for all Seasons

AUTHOR · Robert Bolt

TYPE OF WORK · Play

GENRE · Historical drama; satire (a literary work that ridicules human vices and

follies)

LANGUAGE · English

TIME AND PLACE WRITTEN · England, 1960

DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION · 1960

PUBLISHER · William Heinemann Ltd.

NARRATOR · The play is narrated by the Common Man in a series of asides

TONE · The whole of the play points toward the beheading of its hero, Thomas More,

a predetermined, historically specific, outcome. As such, the tone is ominous,

foreboding, and suspenseful.

SETTING (TIME) · 1529–1535

SETTING (PLACE) · More’s home in London’s Chelsea district and the king’s court at

Hampton

PROTAGONIST · Sir Thomas More

MAJOR CONFLICT · Privately, More disapproves of King Henry VIII’s divorce and

remarriage. Publicly, he would prefer to have nothing to do with the matter. But

when Henry, through his agent Cromwell, forces More to speak out, More must

either publicly assent to the divorce or die.

RISING ACTION · After Cardinal Wolsey dies, and More is appointed as his

replacement; Henry and, later, Cromwell press More to take a public stance on the


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issue of King Henry’s marriage; More’s family and friends also encourage him to

relent.

CLIMAX · More’s family visits him in jail, and his wife, Alice, finally accepts More’s

stubborn behavior. At trial, More remains silent until he is condemned to death, after

which he delivers a stirring soliloquy, finally proclaiming his opinions.

FALLING ACTION · More’s death, the Common Man’s summation

THEMES · Types of moral guides; corruption; the self and friendship

MOTIFS · Satire and wit; silence; guilt

SYMBOLS · Water and dry land; the gilded cup

FORESHADOWING · Rich’s reference to Machiavelli foreshadows the way he and

Cromwell will spare no one to achieve success; Rich’s corrupt acceptance of the

tainted cup More offers him as a test foreshadows More’s eventual condemnation,

based on Rich’s perjury; More’s unwillingness to talk with his family about his

meeting with Cardinal Wolsey foreshadows his later refusal to discuss his opinions

about the Act of Supremacy; Wolsey’s and Cromwell’s threats to More foreshadows

More’s condemnation; Alice’s comment that colds kill even great men foreshadows

Wolsey’s death; the Common Man’s announcement that Wolsey’s death was

effectively the result of Henry’s displeasure foreshadows the conflict More will face

as Wolsey’s replacement.

Study Questions & Essay Topics

Study Questions

1. Why does More refuse to agree to the oath? What is the difference between More’s

understanding of what he’s doing and typical expectations of morality and

martyrdom?

Answer for Study Question #1

Going into the play, we know that Thomas More is a saint and a martyr. Most people

consider a saint to be a man of principle, and a martyr is a man who dies for his

beliefs.

But Saint Thomas More as characterized in Robert Bolt’s play has other reasons for

refusing to agree to King Henry’s oath. He is not concerned with doing what is right

according to Christian dogma. Rather, he acts based on his own conscience. He says,

“not that I believe it, but that I believe it,” emphasizing that something within him

dictates how he should act. His morals in this case form the bedrock of his sense of

self, and to betray them would be to kill that self.

Throughout the play, other characters expect More to make gestures that symbolize

his beliefs. But More puts realistic considerations ahead of any high-minded ideals

he might harbor. In this sense, he breaks the mold of what we might expect a martyr

to be—More dies because there’s no other way out for him, not because he wants to

make a political or religious statement. Even though he speaks out at the end of the

play, his diatribe comes only after he has been sentenced to death, showing that he

was not killed for what he said, but what he did not say.


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2. What does Roper’s conversion from Catholicism to Lutheranism and back again

suggest about Bolt’s opinion of faith?


In A Man for All Seasons, William Roper serves as a counterpoint to More, but he is

one who is less clearly reprehensible than men like Thomas Cromwell and Richard

Rich. Roper is passionate about whatever cause he happens to be championing in

any given scene, but his high-minded ideals concerning religion are as inconstant as

the wind or water. After Roper returns to Catholicism, More threatens to hide

Margaret, his daughter, from Roper’s “seagoing principles.” More finds Roper’s

willingness to stake everything on something as uncertain as God’s wishes an

impractical way of approaching life and morality.

In fact, Bolt uses Roper’s ever-changing faith as a comedic device. In addition to

clarifying More’s own position, Roper’s point of view comes off as so inconsistent as

to be funny. Starting off the play calling the pope the Antichrist, he ultimately ends

up in a dour priest’s uniform, complete with a Catholic cross. As More makes fun of

Roper’s outfit, we too recognize the folly of blind faith.

3. How does the Common Man character implicate the audience in More’s struggle?


The Common Man, as Bolt announces in his preface, is intended to be common in the

sense of “universal” rather than in the sense of “low class.” As a universal character,

the Common Man is meant to reflect all of our actions and attitudes in his. To

emphasize his universality, the Common Man plays many different roles. He slips

into and out of the roles of Matthew, the boatman, the innkeeper, the jailer, the jury

foreman, and the headsman (executioner). In each case, the switch is made abruptly

and without much ado and therefore seems omnipresent. He could be any of us at

any given time, and his culpability and cowardice come to be seen as traits that all of

us have had to struggle with at one time or another.

At the same time, the Common Man’s ever-changing roles come on at a faster and

faster rate as the play progresses. At the end, he switches from More’s jailer, to a

juryman, to More’s executioner in rapid succession, and this mounting pace suggests

the suddenness with which we often find ourselves cooperating in situations of

which we don’t ultimately approve.

The Common Man also implicates the audience by addressing us directly, as an

interpreter and commentator. His monologues draw us into his ominous, cautionary

tale. At the end of the play, he wishes us good health and long life, even though

More’s character makes it clear that these should not always be one’s primary

concerns. In this way, the Common Man speaks to what is common in a base sense.

Suggested Essay Topics

1. Discuss Bolt’s approach to history. What does he choose to focus on and why?

What does he omit?


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2. How does Bolt’s use of water imagery encapsulate one of the central conflicts of

the play?

3. Why does More’s wife, Alice, ultimately reconcile with her husband? How does

this emotional climax relate to the moral struggles presented in the play?

4. Describe the moments when More shows his passion. In particular, think about his

final speech in court, and his interactions with Norfolk, Alice, and the jailer. How do

his displays of passion differ from one another? How are they similar? How do they

reflect his philosophy about clamoring before God?

5. Is Sir Thomas More a teacher? If so, describe the instances in the play in which he

tries to teach others. How does he teach? What do his methods reveal about his

character?


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Quiz

Scroll through the page to review your answers. The correct answer is

highlighted in green. Your incorrect answers (if any) are highlighted in

red. If you'd like to take the test over again, click the reset button at the

end of the test.

1. What position does Cromwell offer Rich in exchange for Rich’s false testimony

at More’s trial?

(A) Lord

Chancellor

of England

(B) Duke of Norfolk

(C) Chancellor of Babylon

(D) Attorney general of Wales

2. What did a woman use to attempt to bribe More?

(A) An

Italian

silver cup

(B) Cash

(C) A silver tea service

(D) A fine, single malt scotch

3. Which of the following roles does the Common Man not play?

(A) Judge

(B) Jury

(C) Headsman

(D) Jailer

4. What is the name of the boat King Henry sails down the Thames to meet Sir

Thomas?

(A) The


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QE2

(B) The Fast and the Furious

(C) The Great Harry

(D) Mary, Queen of Scots

5. How long has More been in jail by the time we see him there in Act Two?

(A) Six

months

(B) One year

(C) Two years

(D) D. Twenty-five years

6. What saying does the Common Man come up with to justify the way he treats

the imprisoned Thomas More?

(A) Better

a live rat

than a

dead lion

(B) A rolling stone gathers no moss

(C) When the cat’s away, the mice will play

(D) A bird in the hand is better than two in the bush

7. Why does More suddenly let Roper marry his daughter?

(A)

Because he

respects

Roper’s

steadfast

moral

values

(B) Because he needs an heir

(C) Because Roper switches back to Catholicism

(D) Because Margaret begged him

8. What charge must Cromwell trump up in order to be able to execute Sir

Thomas?


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(A) High

treason

(B) Aggravated assault

(C) First-degree murder

(D) Indecent exposure

9. Who isn’t mentioned by the Common Man as someone who ends up being

executed in the aftermath of the events depicted in the play?

(A) Anne

Boleyn

(B) Thomas Cromwell

(C) Thomas Cranmer

(D) Richard Rich

10. Where is More’s house?

(A)

Chelsea

(B) Westminster

(C) Hampton Court

(D) Wales

11. Where does the family find Thomas when he should be getting ready for the

king’s arrival?

(A) In the

house

(B) At the track

(C) At vespers

(D) Sleeping

12. Why does Norfolk participate in the persecution of his friend More?

(A) The

king

ordered

him to, so

the trial

wouldn’t


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seem

unfair

(B) More made fun of Norfolk’s son

(C) Norfolk wanted to get More out of the way so he could get a papal

dispensation to marry Alice

(D) He genuinely opposed More’s position

13. To which character does More display his passionate side?

(A) Alice

(B) Roper

(C) Jailer

(D) All of the above

14. What book of the Bible does Henry quote to support his claim that his first

marriage was invalid?

(A)

Leviticus

(B) Deuteronomy

(C) Kings

(D) First Corinthians

15. What heretic does Cromwell attempt to associate with More?

(A) Martin

Luther

(B) Galileo

(C) The Holy Maid of Kent

(D) James Baker

16. Why does Thomas refuse to tell his family what he thinks about the divorce

and the Act of Supremacy?

(A)

Because

they can’t

be trusted

(B) Because he doesn’t want them to have to lie if called to testify against him

(C) Because he hopes to pin the whole thing on them


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(D) Because they probably wouldn’t understand

17. What does More burn to warm his house when he is poor?

(A) Wood

(B) Bracken

(C) Coal

(D) Heretics

18. What is Roper’s religion at the beginning of the play?

(A) Jewish

(B) Catholic

(C) Lutheran

(D) Quaker

19. What job does More recommend that Rich take at the very beginning of the

play?

(A) Lord

Chancellor

(B) Attorney general of Wales

(C) Schoolteacher

(D) Stripper

20. What does Rich say he will do with the money he gains from selling the silver

cup?

(A) Buy

new

clothes

(B) Buy papal indulgences

(C) Buy More’s friendship

(D) Buy a ticket out of England

21. What position does Rich take after More first refuses his request for work?

(A)

Cranmer’s


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steward

(B) Roper’s secretary

(C) Henry’s housecleaner

(D) Norfolk’s librarian

22. What phrase does the publican repeat in his conversation with Cromwell?

(A) “Yes,

sir”

(B) “No, sir”

(C) “I don’t understand, sir”

(D) “Take a hike, sir”

23. Who tells More that he’s behaving “like a printed book”?

(A)

Margaret

(B) Alice

(C) Henry

(D) Norfolk

24. Henry’s first queen is named

(A) Anne

(B) Meg

(C) Elizabeth

(D) Catherine

25. In his preface, which man does Bolt not cite as an influence in writing his play?

(A) Albert

Camus

(B) Bertolt Brecht

(C) Thomas More

(D) William Shakespeare

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