Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Prince and the Pauper, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Appearances vs. Reality
Wealth, Poverty, and Morality
Justice
Nature vs. Nurture
Summary
Analysis
The Earl of Hertford, who Tom learns is “his” (Edward’s) uncle, brings Tom into a beautiful chamber full of elderly nobles. Tom wants them to sit, but Hertford helps him understand that this wouldn’t be appropriate. Lord St. John comes in and asks Tom to dismiss everyone in the room but Hertford, who shows Tom how to wave his hand so people will leave. Once alone, St. John says that King Henry VIII has sent some orders: Tom is to hide his symptoms as much as possible until his sanity is restored, meaning he can’t deny that he’s the real prince and he must accept the reverence other people show to him without appearing uncomfortable or asking them to stop. Henry also orders Tom to take advice from St. John or Hertford when he needs it.
Tom finds himself forced into Edward’s life and must learn how to be Edward—this is why he calls Hertford “his” uncle in quotation marks. Henry essentially tells Tom to do whatever Hertford and St. John tell him to do, which gives those men almost unlimited power and reveals the intense trust Henry has in them not to abuse that power by taking unfair advantage of the prince.
Themes
Hertford tells Tom that he can enjoy some light reading or other entertainment instead of having to take his usual lessons until the banquet. St. John notices that Tom looks confused and he reassures Tom that he’ll start remembering things again soon. Lady Elizabeth and Lady Jane Grey come into the room, and Hertford whispers to them not to notice Tom’s oddities while St. John tells Tom to try to act normal. Although the conversation between Tom, Elizabeth, and Jane is awkward at times, Elizabeth and Hertford help Tom through it. When another visitor is announced, Hertford suggests Tom should excuse himself. Tom agrees, but Elizabeth has to help him make a graceful exit. Tom decides to go rest in a bedroom but can’t sleep because he doesn’t know how to excuse the people in the room.
Because everyone has orders not to acknowledge or comment on any little oddities about the prince, it makes it impossible for Tom to convince anyone of who he really is. The people who know Edward the most and might be able to recognize the subtle difference in mannerisms or speech between Edward and Tom are forced to remain silent, which is partially why the mistake is taken to this extent.
Themes
Once alone, St. John and Hertford discuss the day’s events. They mourn that King Henry VIII is clearly nearing the end of his life and that evidently the prince has gone mad. They briefly touch on the possibility that Tom’s account is true and not madness, but Hertford decides it’s treasonous to even consider that possibility, saying that any inconsistencies in the prince’s manner must be due to madness. St. John leaves Hertford, who soon falls into a deep meditation over the prince’s behavior. Hertford reassures himself that the boy is Edward and that it’s not possible for him to be anyone else—after all, what kind of impostor would claim not to be the prince when the king and an entire royal court insist that he is?
Hertford’s private thoughts reveal that he considers anyone who wouldn’t want to be nobility a little bit mad. The clearest evidence of the prince’s madness, then, is that he insists that he’s a pauper instead of doing what any good impostor would do and happily sliding into the most desirable role in the world: prince and heir to the English throne. This emphasizes just how socially-stratified Tudor England was: in this case, it’s taken for granted that a person would rather dishonestly achieve royalty status than to live authentically as themselves.
Themes
Literary Devices
