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Act 5, Scene 3
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Richard II, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Throne
Language
Family
Honor and Appearance
England
Summary
Analysis
In this brief scene, Exton remarks that he heard the king say “Have I no friend will rid me of this living fear?” Exton takes this to be an implicit order to kill Richard, and he leaves for Pomfret to commit the murder.
It is unclear whether Henry was implicitly ordering Exton to murder Richard or not, but Henry’s refusal to do so outright is likely due to the fact that Richard’s own rule was clouded by the knowledge that he was involved in Gloucester’s death.
Themes
