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Chapter 16 - Richard III

Fact, Myth, Fiction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 October 2022

By
Anna Ilona Rajala  and
Timo Uotinen
Edited by
Irma Taavitsainen ,
Turo Hiltunen ,
Jeremy J. Smith  and
Carla Suhr
Irma Taavitsainen
Affiliation:
University of Helsinki
Turo Hiltunen
Affiliation:
University of Helsinki
Jeremy J. Smith
Affiliation:
University of Glasgow
Carla Suhr
Affiliation:
University of Helsinki
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Summary

In this chapter we study representations of the last Plantagenet king of England, Richard III, relating his myth and history to the discovery of his body in 2012 in a Leicester car park. Focusing on the body of Richard, we address the unique cross-genre nexus between historiography, Shakespeare’s drama, and modern medical writing, to evaluate the mythical, factual, fictitious, and scientific depictions of Richard. Our aim is to find out what role interpretation and truth play in the differing genres and what kind of implications interpretation and truth have for these genres regarding the body of Richard. We draw on literary studies, disability studies, health sciences, and especially the work of Horkheimer and Adorno to argue that, in the case of Richard, myth and science are modes of representation that seek to control truth and rely on interpretation and speculation to draw conclusions about uncertain and unknowable things. The post-excavation science does not oppose myth and fiction, but perpetuates the mythology surrounding Richard, whereas Shakespeare drama has ‘truth content’ in challenging conceptions of disability. Moreover, this cross-genre nexus demonstrates the inseparability of subjectivity from interpretation and that truth never appears unmediated. Thus, making subjectivity visible in analyses is indispensible for a higher fidelity to truth.

Keywords

Richard IIIbodydisabilitydialectic of enlightenmentsubjectivityShakespeare
Type
Chapter
Information
Genre in English Medical Writing, 1500–1820
Sociocultural Contexts of Production and Use
 , pp. 278 - 296
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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