Old Blood, New Body: Gender on a Spectrum in Richard II

Abstract

When it comes to Richard II, this is a king with two bodies and not the typical body politic and body natural—but the representation of both the masculine and feminine bodies. In general people have seen Richard as either odd, an exaggerated masculine figure, or simply as a weak king. The loss of his power usually overshadows his reign and his divine right to rule is ignored. I want to connect these things that reflect the parts of Richard and demonstrate how together they make a new type of sovereignty. In my attempt to break down the categories of gender, I offer a blending of the genders to define Richard; although he successfully maneuvers back and forth through ideas of maleness and femaleness, it has an overall negative impact for the citizens on his ability to reign. In this paper, I will demonstrate how the ambiguous gender of Richard hinders him from retaining his crown and ruling among a group of dominant men. While I do not ascribe his masculine femininity as the absolute factor towards his undoing, this text does attribute his androgyny as a significant part in constructing his multilayered persona.