Send him packing Why Should I Care

Why Should I Care?

Have your parents ever given you the lecture about your friends? They want you to stop hanging out with [insert rebel-of-choice's name here] because he's a bad influence. But you still want to hang out with that person because it's fun.

That's exactly what's happening here. When it comes down to it, Henry IV Part I is a coming-of-age story about Prince Hal, who's got to figure out a way to grow up in the public spotlight with a seriously judgmental father breathing down his neck.

While most of us have no idea what it's like to be a prince who's expected to change his wild ways and prepare to lead a country that's troubled by civil war, we all know what it's like to negotiate the pitfalls of adolescence and the pressures of outside scrutiny (whether it's under the watchful eye of hopeful parents, strict teachers, coaches, or peers).

Like Prince Hal, we've all made mistakes, and most of us also know what it's like to feel as though we've disappointed or let down those whose opinions matter the most. So, imagine all that pressure you've felt over the years and multiply it by an entire, war-torn kingdom that's pinned all its hopes and dreams for the future on you. That's a whole lot of pressure.

Now you see why you might want to send someone packing if you were in Hal's shoes. Yep, it might be fair to say Shakespeare gets the whole growing up thing.