Why did Shakespeare portray Richard III the way he did?
Richard III was portrayed as a deformed hunchback by Shakespeare because he wanted to enhance the horrible things that Richard III did to all of the people around him. Richard III wanted to ensure that he would become King when his brother King Edward IV died. In order to do this he killed all of the possible heirs to the throne including Edward IV's sons: Edward V and Richard duke of York. Shakespeare wanted to make Richard III seem as horrible as he possibly could for the things that he did. Shakespeare was inspired by the Lancastrians, particularly Sir Thomas More. Because Richard III was Yorkist, the portrayal of him by Sir Thomas More and Shakespeare were not entirely accurate. They were biased towards Richard III because he was from the house of York and More was from the house of Lancaster. Richard III did some very terrible things to his family members in order to gain the power of the throne, but Richard III was not actually deformed with a hunchback. The way they portrayed Richard III was not fair to him and it really impacted the way he is depicted even today.
With regard to the history of Richard III, what is meant in distinction between "Traditionalist" or "Revisionist" source? What is meant between "Lancastrian" and "Ricardian"?
According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditionalism, something that is traditionalist tends to stick more with traditions and the traditional beliefs on a subject. Therefore, a traditionalist source would refer to things that people have believed about a subject throughout history whether they are true beliefs or not. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_revisionism#Revisionism_vs._denial, something that is revisionist deviates from the traditional beliefs on something and usually disagrees with the way a historical event is portrayed in the traditionalist view. Therefore, a revisionist source would be based more on solid fact rather than what people believe or have decided is true about something. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricardian_(Richard_III), Ricardian is used to describe a person who wants to change the portrayal and perception of Richard III's reputation. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancastrians, Lancastrian is used to describe a member of the Lancastrian house during the War of the Roses. They were the opposing house of Richard III.
This goes along with the history of Richard III because there are two different sides to the way that he is portrayed throughout history. The Lancastrians and Shakespeare had a more traditionalist view of Richard III because they portrayed him as being deformed and withered when he really was not. This has affected the way that people see him today, and this visual of him has really been passed down and believed by people throughout history. There are many different societies formed that are trying to erase the image of Richard III being deformed; they would be considered revisionist. They are deviating from what people traditionally think of Richard III and making a new image for him. Ricardians would be considered to have a revisionist view of Richard III.
"Lancastrian" or "Ricardian"
The first document is Lancastrian because it puts tons of emphasis on the terrible things that Richard III did and the people that he killed. "But in the mean time perceaving that William lord Hastings was most vehement and earnest to have prince Edward once crowned king...whether yt wer that he fearyd his powr, or despearyd yt possible to draw him to his syde and opynyon, he determynyd to ryd the man owt of the way before his purpose showld be discoveryd to the resydew, whom he did not yeat fully trust." This talks about how Richard III killed William lord Hastings because he believed that Hastings wanted Edward to take the throne that Richard III so desired. He believed that Hastings had a lot of impact on the people and a lot of power. Richard III did not think it would be possible to bring Hastings over to his side so he killed him to keep him out of the way of the throne. "Richerd, whose mynde partly was enflamyd with desire of usurping the kyngdom, partly was trubblyd by guyltynes of intent to commyt so haynous wickednes (for a guiltie conscience causeth thoffendor to have dew punishment alway in imagination before his eyes)." This quote focuses entirely on the Richard III's thoughts and the intent of his actions. The person writing this did not know what Richard III was thinking, therefore, does not have the right to say such things. The writer is focusing on bringing down the reputation of Richard III rather than building it up.
The second document is Ricardian because it talks about how misrepresented Richard III's reputation was. It also talks about how Richard III was not actually deformed; that was just a rumor to make Richard III look even worse. Horace Walpole says, "The old countess of Desmond, who had danced with Richard, declared he was the handsomest man in the room except his brother Edward, and was very well made." There were people during Richard's time period who stated that Richard III was a handsome man. The idea that he was deformed did not come until later. The writer talks about a Lancastrian painter who painted a portrait of Richard III and did not include anything about ugliness or deformity. If a Lancastrian person could paint a portrait of Yorkist Richard III without including deformities, then that should be proof that Richard was not deformed. "Richard, who was slender and not tall, had one shoulder a little higher than the other: a defect, by the magnifying glasses of party, by distance of time, and by the amplification of tradition, easily swelled to shocking deformity; for falsehood itself generally pays so much respect to truth as to make it the basis of its superstructure." The writer explains that Richard III did have one shoulder that was slightly higher than the other, but over time this small imperfection became magnified by people of the Lancastrian house and Richard III was portrayed throughout history as being deformed.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditionalism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_revisionism#Revisionism_vs._denial
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricardian_(Richard_III)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancastrians
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