A Smooth Criminal, and a Great King. Week 28: Shakespeare's Henry IV (Parts 1 and 2) and Othello

This week on Crack the Book, I’m still in awe of Shakespeare — and not ready to leave him behind. Somewhere between Falstaff’s jokes and Othello’s heartbreak, I realized just how much I’ve climbed the Shakespeare learning curve. The language that once felt impossible now feels like music, and these plays — Henry IV, Parts 1 & 2, and Othello — have been my favorite week yet.

To start, though, I covered a little of Shakespeare's own history, so that we can better understand what was happening around him as he wrote his plays.

The Henry IV plays are part of Shakespeare’s “Henriad,” tracing Prince Hal’s transformation from tavern-dwelling prankster to King Henry V. Part 1 sets up the tension between fathers and sons — King Henry and Hal, Northumberland and Hotspur — while Falstaff brings both comedy and chaos. I was surprised by how much I loved the histories: the mix of battle and banter, the political drama, and the emotional depth. By Part 2, the story turns elegiac. Henry IV is aging, Hal is ready to lead, and Falstaff’s charm finally wears thin. The final father–son scenes left me sobbing under a tree outside our hotel — Shakespeare reached across 400 years and hit me right in the heart.

Then comes Othello, which could not be more different. Where Falstaff is funny, Iago is chilling. He’s not a misunderstood fool — he’s pure manipulation, the “honest” man who deceives everyone. I was struck by how quickly Shakespeare draws each character: Desdemona’s sweetness, Emilia’s courage, Othello’s nobility. The tragedy lands hard because we believe them all. And even here, amid jealousy and death, Shakespeare finds humor — like a quick, ridiculous debate about national drinking habits.

I watched the Royal Shakespeare Company productions of Henry IV with Anthony Sher’s Falstaff, and they were brilliant — vivid sword fights, excellent pacing, and real warmth. By Othello, I’d developed my ear enough to read without watching.

This project keeps surprising me — and this week, it reminded me why Shakespeare endures. His plays aren’t ancient; they’re alive, human, and heartbreakingly funny.

This is a year-long challenge! Join me next week for Giorgio Vasari's Lives of the Artists and Benvenuto Cellini's Autobiography.

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