Henry V Gender Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Act.Scene.Line)

Quote #4

KING HENRY
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he today that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now abed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.(4.3.60-67)

We've talked about this passage before, but it's important to the theme of gender so it's worth mentioning here. When Henry delivers his famous St. Crispin's Day speech, he suggests that warfare forges bonds between men that cannot be broken.

Quote #5

EXETER
The pretty and sweet manner of it forced
Those waters from me which I would have stopped,
But I had not so much of man in me,
And all my mother came into mine eyes
And gave me up to tears.
KING HENRY
I blame you not,
For, hearing this, I must perforce compound
With mistful eyes, or they will issue too. (4.7.28-35)

Because weeping is associated with weakness and women (especially "mother[s]"), Exeter is ashamed of the fact that he cried when he witnessed the deaths of men on the battlefield. What's interesting about this passage is that King Henry admits that he's feeling a little misty-eyed as well, which is touching and a little refreshing.

Quote #6

QUEEN OF FRANCE
Our gracious brother, I will go with them.
Haply a woman's voice may do some good
When articles too nicely urged be stood on.
KING HENRY
Yet leave our cousin Katharine here with us.
She is our capital demand, comprised
Within the forerank of our articles. (5.2.94-99)

When Queen Isabel announces that she's going to help the men negotiate the terms of the peace treaty, Henry asks her to leave her daughter behind, since Henry's marriage to Catherine is numero uno on Henry's list of demands. The fact that Catherine is on Henry's list of demands suggests that women don't really get any say at all when it comes to political matters, despite Isabel's claim that a "woman's voice" might hold some sway over the men.