ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author discusses the role of other characters in illustrating the corrupt nature of Richard’s society with a particular focus on Margaret. It then moves to a consideration of the role of trauma in shaping Richard’s actions and proceeds to a closer examination of those actions in light of early modern ideas about the body with regard to contamination, emotion, masculinity, and performance. The continuing influence of Galenic ideas suggested a relation between imbalanced internal humor and external defect; Paracelsan ideas imagined a potential for external influences to impact the womb and the fetal body. Christian interpretations of birth defects in popular literature often cited the marks as a sign from God of human malfeasance. Finally, the author details the role of kingship in connecting Richard’s disabled body to the disabled body politic and argue for the importance of maintaining an emphasis on the corruption that marks the play’s political landscape.
