Original: I come no more to make you laugh: things now,
Modern: I’m not here to entertain you with comedy anymore: what we’re presenting now,

Original: That bear a weighty and a serious brow,
Modern: Has a heavy and serious tone,

Original: Sad, high, and working, full of state and woe,
Modern: Sorrowful, noble, and emotionally powerful, filled with matters of importance and grief,

Original: Such noble scenes as draw the eye to flow,
Modern: The kind of dignified scenes that will make you cry,

Original: We now present. Those that can pity, here
Modern: Is what we’re showing you today. Those of you who can feel compassion, here

Original: May, if they think it well, let fall a tear;
Modern: May shed a tear if you feel it’s appropriate;

Original: The subject will deserve it. Such as give
Modern: The story deserves it. Those who pay

Original: Their money out of hope they may believe,
Modern: Their admission hoping they might witness something believable,

Original: May here find truth too. Those that come to see
Modern: Will find truth here as well. Those who come expecting to see

Original: Only a show or two, and so agree
Modern: Just a spectacle or two, and think

Original: The play may pass, if they be still and willing,
Modern: The play is acceptable, as long as they sit quietly and keep an open mind,

Original: I’ll undertake may see away their shilling
Modern: I promise they’ll get their money’s worth

Original: Richly in two short hours. Only they
Modern: In a richly rewarding two hours. But those

Original: That come to hear a merry bawdy play,
Modern: Who come expecting to hear a funny, raunchy comedy,

Original: A noise of targets, or to see a fellow
Modern: The clashing of shields in mock combat, or to see a performer

Original: In a long motley coat guarded with yellow,
Modern: Dressed in a jester’s colorful costume trimmed with yellow,

Original: Will be deceived; for, gentle hearers, know,
Modern: Will be disappointed; because, kind audience members, understand this,

Original: To rank our chosen truth with such a show
Modern: To put our carefully chosen true story on the same level as entertainment

Original: As fool and fight is, beside forfeiting
Modern: Like clowning and stage fighting, would not only throw away

Original: Our own brains, and the opinion that we bring,
Modern: Our own intelligence and the reputation we’ve built,

Original: To make that only true we now intend,
Modern: To make real what we now plan to present,

Original: Will leave us never an understanding friend.
Modern: Would lose us every intelligent supporter we have.

Original: Therefore, for goodness’ sake, and as you are known
Modern: So, for heaven’s sake, and since you’re known as

Original: The first and happiest hearers of the town,
Modern: The best and most enthusiastic audience in the city,

Original: Be sad, as we would make ye: think ye see
Modern: Be prepared to feel sorrow, as we intend you to: imagine you’re watching

Original: The very persons of our noble story
Modern: The actual people from our noble story

Original: As they were living; think you see them great,
Modern: As if they were alive; imagine seeing them in their greatness,

Original: And follow’d with the general throng and sweat
Modern: Surrounded by crowds of people pressing close

Original: Of thousand friends; then in a moment, see
Modern: Thousands of followers; then in an instant, see

Original: How soon this mightiness meets misery:
Modern: How quickly this power and glory turns to tragedy:

Original: And, if you can be merry then, I’ll say
Modern: And if you can still laugh after that, I’ll say

Original: A man may weep upon his wedding-day.
Modern: That’s as absurd as a man crying on his wedding day.

The Prologue of “Henry VIII” is delivered by a single speaker who directly addresses the audience to prepare them for the serious historical drama they are about to witness. The Prologue warns that this play will not be a lighthearted entertainment filled with jokes, crude humor, or comic relief that might make the audience laugh. Instead, it promises a weighty and solemn presentation that will move audiences to tears rather than laughter, dealing with the rise and fall of great figures and the serious consequences of political ambition.

The speaker emphasizes that the play will present true historical events with dignity and gravity, showing how those in high positions can experience dramatic reversals of fortune. The Prologue asks the audience to approach the performance with appropriate seriousness and attention, as they will witness stories of great men who fall from grace and others who rise to prominence. The speaker concludes by requesting the audience’s patience and favorable judgment, preparing them to observe the unfolding of significant historical events with the proper reverent attitude that such weighty subject matter deserves.

Henry VIII: Plot Summary

The play opens in the court of King Henry VIII of England, where the powerful Cardinal Wolsey has orchestrated the downfall of the Duke of Buckingham, who is arrested for treason based on the testimony of his own surveyor. Despite pleas for mercy, Buckingham is condemned and executed. Meanwhile, King Henry meets Anne Bullen (Anne Boleyn) at a masque hosted by Cardinal Wolsey and becomes captivated by her. Henry also begins to express doubts about the validity of his marriage to Queen Katherine of Aragon, claiming his conscience troubles him over the legality of the union, as Katherine was previously married to his brother Prince Arthur.

Cardinal Wolsey works to manage the political situation, but his influence begins to unravel when Henry discovers that Wolsey has been secretly corresponding with the Pope to delay the annulment of Henry’s marriage to Katherine, and that Wolsey has been accumulating enormous personal wealth. Henry strips Wolsey of his offices and powers. Wolsey, broken by his fall from grace, dies before he can be brought to formal ruin. Queen Katherine, meanwhile, is put on trial regarding the annulment of her marriage. She passionately defends herself before the court but is ultimately cast aside. She later receives a vision of blessed spirits before dying, having been given the reduced title of Princess Dowager.

With Katherine removed, Henry marries Anne Bullen, and she is crowned Queen in a grand coronation celebrated by the common people. Archbishop Cranmer, a Protestant reformer and ally of the King, comes under threat from a council of nobles who attempt to bring charges against him. Henry, however, intervenes to protect Cranmer. The play concludes with the christening of Henry and Anne’s newborn daughter, the future Queen Elizabeth I, where Cranmer delivers a joyful prophecy foretelling the greatness of Elizabeth’s reign and the prosperity that will follow under her successor, King James I.