The Gardening Metaphor in Richard II

The Gardening Metaphor in Shakespeare's Richard II

Shakespeare's development of the gardening metaphor is brought into full focus in Act III, Scene 4 of Richard II where the close correlation between weeding and pruning when compared with England, its royal family, and the deposition of Richard is clearly established. Rather than being an extraneous scene, it actually gets quickly to the crux of the action of the entire work.

The metaphor is introduced by old Gaunt in I,ii. Edward III had seven sons ("branches") that all came "from one root" (Edward). Some have already been "cut" off. Through this, Shakespeare introduces the idea that Bullingbrook and Richard are both branched from Edward III. In that scene it is further established that all of Edward's descendants are equally royal.

When the gardener enters in III, iv, the instructions he gives his helpers about weeding and pruning are superimposed on the political situation. The garden is England and the plant needing pruning is the royal family. The gardener explains that the weeding and pruning process is necessary for the long range life of the garden. In the same way it is presented that Richard's deposition has become inevitable if England is to become well-ordered again.

The gardener proceeds to develop this idea by discussing the political problems of England. Richard's noble friends (represented as weeds) appeared to be supporting him while actually they were choking him off draining the resources of England. The country was wasting away as a result of their greediness. Bullingbrook has begun weeding England to restore order. The gardener bemoans the fact that Richard himself, did not order the weeds pulled so he could have restored himself as a healthy part of England's garden. Through this it appears that until his point Richard could have salvaged his reign.

Through this scene with the gardener, Shakespeare has developed a visual, common metaphor that is easily understood by his audience. It becomes crucial to the understanding of the actions of the play and the motivations behind those actions.