Tools of Characterization

Characterization in A Man for All Seasons

Action

One action makes King Henry VIII, Richard Rich, and Thomas Cromwell all look pretty bad: chopping More's head off.

On the other hand, More's action—or non-action (refusing to swear the oath)—is courageous, and leads to his death. More acts out of principle, while his opponents act out of convenience—with the possible exception of King Henry VIII, who seems to genuinely believe that he's gone against the Bible by marrying his brother's widow and that the Pope is wrong for preventing him from getting his divorce.

Clothing

Thomas More generally keeps it pretty casual, wearing a plain brown cloak. It's dignified, but not flashy. On the other hand, the royal garb of King Henry and his courtiers is super-flashy—those shoulder pads are just ridiculous.

The same goes for Richard Rich, who also dons progressively fancier and nicer clothing as he becomes increasingly corrupt. As he rots inwardly, he grows more colorful and appealing on the outside, until finally he's dressed in impressive robes while sporting his chain of office as Attorney General of Wales.

Family Life

On the one hand, we see More's idyllic family life; on the other hand, we get a glimpse of King Henry's notoriously messy family life (though not in an up-close-and-personal way).

More and his family love each other so much that when they tell More how miserable they've been while he's been in prison, More says, "The King is more merciful than you. He doesn't use the rack." Their pain is his pain—and the one thing that might tempt him to take the oath. Also, we can see how he and his wife get along, and how More has educated his daughter (she's even more scholarly than the king himself).

But King Henry VIII is in the process of trying to get a divorce. Then he'll marry Anne Boleyn, who will fail to produce a male heir and will later be executed for treason. Their daughter, Elizabeth, will eventually become queen. In other words, Elizabeth's father executes her mother—that's about as dysfunctional as a family can get. Henry's relationships aren't really based on love and fidelity. They're based on worldly commitments.

Location

Thomas More's home is bright and situated in nature. It seems at one with More's own joyful-yet-principled state of being.

But the heart of London, where the king and Cromwell all hang out (and where Rich comes to center his attention) is a world of cold stone, compared to More's house along the Thames. It seems to reflect the coldness and the materiality of the political animals who inhabit it.

Occupation

Once Thomas More becomes Chancellor to King Henry VIII, it's funny to compare him to his predecessor, Cardinal Wolsey. Even though Wolsey is a high-ranking cleric and Thomas More is a layperson, More is more religious.

Wolsey is a high-powered political operator, serving the king before the Church. More, on the other hand, won't betray the Church—so there's definitely some irony in the fact that the Cardinal is the less religiously-minded man (or the one less committed to religious institutions).

We also see how career choices might lead down a path to iniquity. Richard Rich is power-hungry and wants either More or Cromwell to employ him. More explains that it will be too hard for Rich to resist corruption in court, and that he should choose a relaxed career in academia. But Rich won't listen—he likes power and access too much. He gets Cromwell to employ him in exchange for betraying More, and the higher Rich climbs, the deeper and more evil the extent of his betrayal runs, until Rich actually lies in order to get More killed.

(Oh, and we almost forgot to mention how King Henry's occupation affects him. Basically, it makes him arrogant and insecure at the same time—not the best personality for a monarch).

Sex and Love

We don't actually see any sex scenes in A Man for All Seasons. It's just not that kind of movie (it's rated G, after all). But we hear a bit about the politics surrounding sex and procreation.

The biggest contrast the movie sets up in this regard is between More's love for his wife, Alice, and King Henry's merely political unions. Henry wants a divorce because he needs a male heir and his current wife isn't giving birth to any. Thus, he marries Anne Boleyn, whom he hopes will be fertile. It's not a very romantic reason to marry—although his desire to prevent a civil war over succession is pretty understandable.

King Henry explains his predicament and why he thinks he's been unable to produce a living male heir:

HENRY: Thomas, you must consider. I stand in peril of my soul. It was no marriage. I have lived in incest with my brother's widow. Leviticus: "Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy brother's wife." Leviticus: Chapter 18, verse 16.

So ol' Henry has his excuses… although More ain't buying them.

On the other hand, More and his wife seem to really love each other. At one point, when Alice inveighs against the king's orders for imprisoning More, More responds, "Why, it's a lion I married. A lion. A lion."

Their admiration and true affection for each other isn't really based on any kind of political manipulation or necessity. Then again, Thomas More isn't a king… so the pressure of producing a male heir doesn't weigh on him as heavily.

Social Status

In the movie, the nobility have all the status and all the swag—and the king has the most of all (being the top dog). In fact, the common folk don't really play much of a role in the movie at all—our only real example is when More's servant, Matthew, proves himself a practical man by not being willing to take a pay cut.

Even clerics like Cardinal Wolsey and the English bishops who approve the king's break with the Church are high status power brokers. They're really concerned with the maintenance of worldly power and are free from More's spiritual idealism.

At one point, More criticizes this tendency, telling his friend, the Duke of Norfolk:

MORE: The nobility of England would have snored through the Sermon on the Mount, but you'll labour like scholars over a bulldog's pedigree.

The real spiritual ideals seem to be found in someone of less noble status… like More.

Speech and Dialogue

Dialogue is the bread and butter of A Man for All Seasons. If you like your costume dramas with a side of snappy banter, this is the movie for you. There's even a Youtube video dedicated to "witty remarks" from A Man for All Seasons.

The characters speak in eloquent rhetoric that seems to fit with the age (even if it isn't tailored to exact historical specifications) and none are more elegant—or more quippy—than More himself.

Here's a good example: Defending the importance of abiding by the rule of law to his son-in-law, Will Roper, More says,

MORE: And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned on you... where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted with laws from coast to coast... man's laws, not God's, and if you cut them down... and you're just the man to do it... do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law for my own safety's sake.

We wish we could talk like that.

Thoughts and Opinions

Along with speech and dialogue, A Man for All Seasons trucks pretty heavily in thoughts and opinions. The movie involves a guy trying to stay true to his principles, and it hits its high notes when More has to explain and articulate those principles against a world that is indifferent to principle. He says to Norfolk,

MORE: … I will not give in, because I oppose it. Not my pride, not my spleen, nor any other of my appetites, but "I" do, "I." Is there in the midst of all this muscle, no single sinew that serves no appetite of Norfolk's, but is just Norfolk? There is! Give that some exercise, my lord!

But Norfolk won't do it. His own opinions run along an easier route. Being More's friend, he wants More to sign the oath "for fellowship's sake." He can't understand that there are principles that are loftier and even more important than "fellowship."