Richard III ~ A Progression of Evil

Richard III in Shakespeare's play is clearly an evil character as any decent person can see. However, while he certainly is evil, his level of evilness seems to progress from act to act. This is seen in both his actions and his manipulation skills.

Richad III actions become more horrific in the way he deals with other people. At the start of the play Richard III only kills to get more power. For instance the things he does to Clarence is done to help lock in his progression to being crowned king. This is seen in the quote:
"I'll in to urge his hatred more to Clarence,
With lies well steeled with weighty arguements.
And if I fail not in my deep intent,
Clarence hath not another day to live-". (Act 1.1, 147-150)

Richard's intent he is talking about in this quote is to get Clarence out of the way by turning the king (his brother) against him. This will make Richard III protector and next in line to be crowned after the kings son. However, by Act 4 Richard III has progressed to the point to where he is killing for really no good reason.He kills the prince and his brother even though he has already become king and there is no chance of the public allowing the prince to take his place as king with the rumors Richard III has spread about his father. Richard also decides to have Buckingham killed because he refuses to kill the princes and thus questions his loyalty. By Act 5 we are reminded of just how evil Richard III has become by the progression of ghosts coming forward, all of which were killed by Richard.

In addition, Richards manipulation skills grow throughout the play. At the start he is only manipulating one person at a time, and is more cautious as shown in the quote:

"Clarenxe still breathes, Edward still lives and reigns;
When they are gone, then must I count my gains.". (Act 1.1, 161 - 162)

In this quote it is clear that he is slowing himself down, reminding himself that he must keep his head together and not count his gains before he gets them. However, by the end of the play he trys to manipulate all the citizens and everyone else in a short amount of time, to make the final step to become king. Also, by Act 5 he can no longer slow his mind down and is constantly contradicting himself, not able to make decisions. Thus, it is clear that it is a result of him thinking he is all powerfull and able to manipulate anyone to do or accept anything he wants that ultimatly gets him in a mess. This leads to his downfall both mentally (in the destruction of his identity) and physically (when he is killed).