Henry V (Cliffs Notes) [Paperback]

Jeffery Fisher (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0822000296 | ISBN-13: 978-0822000297 | Publication Date: January 20, 1961

The original CliffsNotes study guides offer expert commentary on major themes, plots, characters, literary devices, and historical background. The latest generation of titles in this series also feature glossaries and visual elements that complement the classic, familiar format.

In CliffsNotes on Henry V (the final play in Shakespeare's political tetralogy), you once again meet young Prince Hal who is now the ideal Christian monarch, King Henry V. To retain power and increase revenue, he finds he must lead his soldiers in battle against France to reclaim land and titles.

A character study on King Henry V and a close look at sixteenth century politics shed light on the Bard's intentions for the play. You'll also explore synopses of the three related history plays that lead up to Henry V. Count on CliffsNotes on Henry V for detailed summaries and commentaries on every scene to help you appreciate the complexity of the play.

Other features that help you study include

•  A list of characters and their roles
• An interactive quiz
• Essay topics and review questions

Classic literature or modern modern-day treasure — you'll understand it all with expert information and insight from CliffsNotes study guides.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Cliffs Test Preparation Guides help students prepare for and improve their performance on standardized tests ACT Preparation Guide CBEST Preparation Guide CLAST Preparation Guide ELM Review GMAT Preparation Guide GRE Preparation Guide LSAT Preparation Guide MAT Preparation Guide MATH Review for Standardized Tests MSAT Preparation Guide Memory Power for Exams Police Officer Examination Preparation Guide Police Sergeant Examination Preparation Guide Police Management Examinations Preparation Guide Postal Examinations Preparation Guide Praxis I: PPST Preparation Guide Praxis II: NTE Core Battery Preparation Guide SAT Preparation Guide SAT II Writing Preparation Guide TASP Preparation Guide TOEFL Preparation Guide with 2 cassettes Advanced Practice for the TOEFL with 2 cassettes Verbal Review for Standardized Tests Writing Proficiency Examinations You Can Pass the GED Cliffs Quick Reviews help students in introductory college courses or Advanced Placement classes Algebra I Algebra II Anatomy & Physiology Basic Math and Pre-Algebra Biology Calculus Chemistry Differential Equations Economics Geometry Linear Algebra Microbiology Physics Statistics Trigonometry Cliffs Advanced Placement Preparation Guides help high school students taking Advanced Placement courses to earn college credit AP Biology AP Calculus AB AP Chemistry AP English Language & Composition AP English Literature & Composition AP United States History Cliffs Complete Study Editions are comprehensive study guides with complete text, running commentary and glossary Chaucer's Prologue Chaucer's Wife of Bath Hamlet Julius Caesar King Henry IV, Part I King Lear Macbeth The Merchant of Venice Othello Romeo and Juliet The Tempest Twelfth Night See inside back cover for listing of Cliffs Notes titles Registered trademarks include: GRE, MSAT, the Praxis Series, and TOEFL (Educational Testing Service): AP, Advanced Placement Program, and SAT (College Entrance Examination Board); GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Council); and LSAT (Law School Admission Council.)

Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Cliffs Notes (January 20, 1961)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0822000296
• ISBN-13: 978-0822000297
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.2 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #876,727 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #61 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Drama > History

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Shakespeare's "Henry V" as the Idealized Christian King, April 23, 2001

By 

Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Henry V (Cliffs Notes) (Paperback)

Jeffrey Fisher's Cliffs Notes for Shakespeare's "Henry V" provides two sections that are useful before you even begin to read the play. First, he provides the background of the play through brief synopses of "Richard II," "Henry IV, Part I" and "Henry IV, Part II." Without some understanding of Harry's wilder days as Falstaff's companion and his trouble relationship with his father, you cannot appreciate the transformation of the prince into a mighty king. Second, Fisher provides a description of Sixteenth-Century Political Theory, especially as it relates to the political realities of Shakespeare's time when the legitimacy of Queen Elizabeth Tudor was called into question. This is important because in many ways Henry V represents the ideal Christian King and it was important that the reigning monarch measure up to that standard (consider how Shakespeare tries to please Elizabeth's successor, James I from Scotland, in his play "MacBeth").

After providing a very brief section on the Life of Shakespeare and Genealogical Tables of the royal families involved in this particular history cycle, Fisher writes a general plot summary of "Henry V" and lists the characters in terms of the English and the French. As is usual with the little yellow books with the black stripes, the Summaries and Commentaries section goes through the play scene-by-scene. The ideal way of using these sections is to read the commentaries after you have read the corresponding scene. This is important because Fisher does not make as much use of the actual dialogue of the play as I have seen other Cliffs Notes do with Shakespeare (he does, however, provide a loose translation of the scene [Act III, Scene 4] in French between Katharine and Alice), on the off chance a translation is not provided in your copy of the play. After this main section, Fisher provides a very brief Character Summation of the title character.

All things considered, I would judge this to be an average Cliffs Notes. One of the great utilities of this particular play comes from the two film versions that exist. Whether I was teaching this play, or any other work of Shakespeare, I always show my students the Prologue and Act I of "Henry V" from the Olivier and Branagh versions. The Olivier version has the virtue of staging these particular scenes on the stage of the Globe Theater, representative of an actual performance of Shakespeare. In contrast, Branagh's version provides an intense intimacy. Taken together the two versions show students the range available in Shakespeare (aspects played for comedy in one version are dead serious in the other). Even if you do not screen all of either film, it is worthwhile to devote one class period to showing students the opening of both films.