Here is the line-by-line modern paraphrase of Richard’s monologue from Henry VI, Part 3 (Act 5, Scene 6):

Original: What, will the aspiring blood of Lancaster
Modern: What, will the ambitious bloodline of Lancaster

Original: Sink in the ground? I thought it would have mounted.
Modern: Just sink into the ground? I thought it would have risen higher.

Original: See how my sword weeps for the poor king’s death!
Modern: Look at how my sword drips with blood for this poor king’s death!

Original: O, may such purple tears be alway shed
Modern: Oh, may such blood-red tears always be spilled

Original: From those that wish the downfall of our house!
Modern: From anyone who wants to destroy our family!

Original: If any spark of life be yet remaining,
Modern: If there is even a single spark of life still left in you,

Original: Down, down to hell; and say I sent thee thither:
Modern: Go down, down to hell, and tell them I’m the one who sent you there.

Original: I, that have neither pity, love, nor fear.
Modern: I am someone who feels no pity, no love, and no fear.

Original: Indeed, ‘tis true that Henry told me of;
Modern: And it’s true, what Henry just told me about myself;

Original: For I have often heard my mother say
Modern: Because I have often heard my mother say

Original: I came into the world with my legs forward:
Modern: That I came into the world feet-first:

Original: Had I not reason, think ye, to make haste,
Modern: Didn’t I have good reason to rush into the world,

Original: And seek their ruin that usurp’d our right?
Modern: And destroy those who stole what rightfully belongs to us?

Original: The midwife wonder’d and the women cried
Modern: The midwife was shocked and the women around her cried out,

Original: ‘O, Jesus bless us, he is born with teeth!’
Modern: “Oh, God help us, he was born with teeth already!”

Original: And so I was; which plainly signified
Modern: And I was indeed born with teeth, which clearly meant

Original: That I should snarl and bite and play the dog.
Modern: That I was meant to growl, bite, and act like a vicious dog.

Original: Then, since the heavens have shaped my body so,
Modern: So then, since heaven itself made my body this way,

Original: Let hell make crook’d my mind to answer it.
Modern: Let hell twist my mind to match it.

Original: I have no brother, I am like no brother;
Modern: I have no real brother, I am nothing like a brother;

Original: And this word ‘love,’ which graybeards call divine,
Modern: And this thing called “love,” which old men say is sacred,

Original: Be resident in men like one another
Modern: Let it live in men who are normal and like each other,

Original: And not in me: I am myself alone.
Modern: But not in me — I belong only to myself.

Original: Clarence, beware; thou keep’st me from the light:
Modern: Watch out, Clarence — you stand between me and the throne:

Original: But I will sort a pitchy day for thee;
Modern: But I will arrange a dark and terrible day for you;

Original: For I will buz abroad such prophecies
Modern: Because I will spread rumors and false prophecies

Original: That Edward shall be fearful of his life,
Modern: That will make King Edward afraid for his own life,

Original: And then, to purge his fear, I’ll be thy death.
Modern: And then, to get rid of that fear, I will be the cause of your death.

Original: King Henry and the prince his son are gone:
Modern: King Henry and his son the prince are now dead:

Original: Clarence, thy turn is next, and then the rest,
Modern: Clarence, you are next in line, and then everyone else after you,

Original: Counting myself but bad till I be best.
Modern: Because I won’t be satisfied until I am the most powerful of all.

Original: I’ll throw thy body in another room
Modern: I’ll toss your body aside into another room,

Original: And triumph, Henry, in thy day of doom.
Modern: And celebrate over you, Henry, on this the day of your destruction.

Henry VI, Part 3 opens with the aftermath of the Battle of St. Albans, where the Yorkists have achieved victory over the Lancastrians. The Duke of York enters Parliament and claims the throne, leading to a confrontation with King Henry VI. A compromise is reached whereby Henry remains king for his lifetime but agrees to disinherit his son Prince Edward in favor of York and his heirs. When Queen Margaret learns of this arrangement, she is furious and raises an army to defend her son’s birthright.

The conflict escalates into full civil war. Margaret’s forces defeat and kill the Duke of York at the Battle of Wakefield, but York’s sons—Edward, George, and Richard—continue the fight. They achieve victory at the Battle of Towton, where King Henry is captured and Edward of York is proclaimed King Edward IV. Henry escapes and flees to Scotland with Margaret and Prince Edward, while Edward IV consolidates his power and marries Elizabeth Woodville, causing tension with his supporter the Earl of Warwick.

Warwick, feeling betrayed by Edward’s marriage, switches sides and allies with Margaret and the exiled Henry VI. With French support, they invade England and briefly restore Henry to the throne while Edward flees to Burgundy. However, Edward returns with an army and reclaims his crown. The final act culminates in the Battle of Tewkesbury, where the Yorkists achieve decisive victory. Prince Edward is killed in battle, Queen Margaret is captured, and Henry VI is murdered in the Tower of London by Richard of Gloucester. The play concludes with Edward IV seemingly secure on the throne, though Richard’s final soliloquy hints at his own future ambitions for the crown.