In Henry V, who are the characters Bardolph, Nym and Pistol?
A) Cronies of the rascally Sir John Falstaff ü B) Servants who run away rather than follow Henry into battle C) Soldiers who die in battle defending the king D) Traitors whom Henry orders to be hanged
When Henry was a wild young prince, as depicted in Henry IV, Falstaff was his drinking companion and tutor in revelry. At the end of part two of that play, however, Falstaff is crushingly rejected by Henry, and in Henry V we learn that he has died broken-hearted in the care of Nell Quickly, the tavern-keeper. Bardolph and the others join the king’s army in its invasion of France, but Bardolph is soon caught stealing from a French church, and is hanged by Henry’s order. Nym is slain during the battle of Agincourt while Pistol, who is Nell Quickly’s husband, learns at the end of the play that she too has died. When we last see him he is planning to return to England and become a thief.
