Act 4, Scene 5 Summary

Sir Stanley, at his house, tells Sir Christopher to explain that Stanley would like to join him, but cannot because Richard is holding his son hostage. He is also to report that Queen Elizabeth has agreed that her daughter will marry Richmond. Before he leaves, Christopher informs Stanley that Richmond is near and has attracted many of the nobles to his cause.

Act 4, Scene 5 Analysis

It seems that Richard's suspicions of Stanley were correct, since we see here that he does want to defect to Richmond's side. However, one must question if Stanley's current feelings were caused because of Richard's mistrust of him, and his insistence on holding Stanley's son hostage. In addition, the news that Elizabeth has agreed to let her daughter marry Richmond shows that she was not taken in by Richard's arguments at all, and has made other...