Richard III
by William Shakespeare

Richard III: Style 1 key example

New! Understand every line of Richard III.
Read our modern English translation.
Style
Explanation and Analysis:

Richard III—like all of Shakespeare’s plays—is marked by the playwright’s signature poetic structure. The use of iambic pentameter (a rhythm of speech that mimics the rhythm of a heartbeat) gives the dialogues a dynamic, formal quality and allows for multi-layered wordplay. It is mostly nobly-born characters who speak in iambs, leaving the less structured option of "normal" speech to the poor and the ordinary. The rhythms of iambic pentameter accentuate the carefully-constructed nature of the things the nobles are saying. Nothing is casual when treachery’s around every corner, and the pentameter makes everything seem much more premeditated than conventional dialogue might.