I would say that the protagonist of this play, if I had
to choose one, would be Bolingbroke. It is his desire to stop the war from
happening that causes him to interfere with everyone else’s business. The
Duchess is the clear antagonist of the play, what with her desire to start a
war and have an affair, and Bolingbroke manages to thwart both of her plots. I
think because of this reason, he is the person the audience is supposed to root
for (if they actually do, that depends).
Bolingbroke is definitely the character who gets the most stage time,
and his goals are so tightly wound with what happens to the other characters
that he has to manipulate them to get what he wants and thus, he moves the plot
forward.
I agree with your analysis of Bolingbroke as the protagonist of The Glass of Water. I wonder if ‘manipulate’ is the correct term to consider Bolingbroke with. He certainly struggles against the Duchess for favor with the Queen and uses information given to him by Marsham and Abigail but personally I do not see him manipulating people. Connivng yes, but manipulating no so much.
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