A Man for All Seasons Scene 6 Summary

  • At the wedding, the king has just married his new wife, Anne Boleyn. He sings and drinks, and thinks he sees More. He's delighted at first, but then deeply disappointed to find that it's someone else.
  • A messenger arrives at More's house and summons him to answer charges at Cromwell's office.
  • When More arrives, Cromwell says the king is displeased with More for not going along with everyone else and affirming the marriage.
  • Cromwell claims that More spoke to a woman—the "Holy Maid of Kent"—who prophesied against the king treasonously and was executed. Yet More never reported her saying anything treasonous.
  • More explains that this is because she said nothing treasonous to him—plus, he wrote a letter, which he still has witnessed and copied, urging her not to meddle in affairs of state.
  • Next, Cromwell accuses More of ghostwriting a pro-Pope book—published in the king's own name. More explains that he offered advice, but the king actually wrote the book himself.
  • More refuses to say anything about the king's marriage, and Cromwell says that More is a villainous traitor in the king's eyes.
  • Outside, More runs into the Duke of Norfolk after the boatmen refuse to carry him down the Thames.
  • Norfolk wants him to give in, but More says they'll need to end their friendship for the sake of Norfolk's safety. It's dangerous to know More. More says he can't give in because his devotion to God (and therefore the Church) is absolutely central to his own self.
  • They end when More accuses Norfolk—perhaps to intentionally break the friendship—of being unprincipled and only caring about his noble pedigree.
  • Norfolk ends the conversation by taking a swing at More, which he ducks by falling on the ground.