『헨리 5세』에 나타난 왕권의 탈신비화 양상

Abstract

The terms ‘subversion' and ‘containment' are crucial key words in New Historicism, and they are very useful in understanding Shakespeare's histories. In his historical plays, Shakespeare dramatized the real historical events during medieval England, and illustrated the relationship between subversion and containment by showing how the ruling class maintained and enforced its power against subversion, and that the class failed to remain in power if it did not overthrow the opposing groups. In his historical plays, Shakespeare used political conflict, rebellion, and war, to demonstrate a variety of ways in which the King's reign of power is constantly colliding with opposing groups or sometimes challenged by them. Especially, Shakespeare's histories are very unique in that the subversive consist of the resistive ruled class, and the hostile people inside the ruling class, as well as the opposing groups plotting a rebellion, which all threaten the dominant ideology. Outwardly, in King Henry V, Henry V is depicted as a successful ruler who won the war against France. But he relentlessly conflicts with the opposing groups. Therefore, King Henry V reveals the contradictory aspects of the dominant ideology inherent in powerful sovereign power. In King Henry V, the ruling class does not merely suppress the oppressive, but also absorbs the forces of subversion to be integrated into the dominant ideology. In King Henry V, Henry V exercises his power to fight against the possibility of a number of subversions schemed by the opposing groups. He manages to strengthen the dominant power with a successful containment strategy. But in the process of strengthening the ideology, his Machiavellian tactics and his anti-heroic aspects come to demystify the sanctity of sovereign power. Eventually, the image of Henry V as an ideal monarch is reduced to just an illusionary one made to conform to the dominant ideology. In Shakespeare's histories, the dominant ideology comes to strengthen itself in the face of possibility of endless subversion by absorbing or suppressing all forms of subversive forces, and the existing order can be maintained through the succession of subversion and containment. On one hand, subversion enforces the existing power structure, acting as an inevitable element in the formation of power. On the other hand, since subversive ideologies themselves not only fight against the existing power, but also modify the prevailing order, they lay the foundation for materialistically analyzing power and ideology. In conclusion, the New Historicist and Cultural Materialist approaches have been criticized for concentrating on analyzing the power structure in study of Shakespeare's histories. But they have great academic significance in that they attempt to restore the surrounding culture which has been neglected so far.