This reminds me of a satire piece I wrote on
Howard Dean and Henry V. Old news, I know...
"Crispin Shriek" may spell political end for Henry V
According to experts, Henry V's pre-battle "Crispin Shriek" may be his political undoing. "There he was, going on about how the soldiers were his 'brothers' and how they'd be showing off their scars, years from now," said University of Texas Prof. Jurgen Streeck, a linguist and president of the International Society for Gesture Study. "I was stunned by the inappropriateness of it. These soldiers aren't his brothers at all. I'm sure they saw right through that false machismo."
Other experts agreed. Anthropologist David B. Givens, director of the Center for Nonverbal Studies in Spokane, Wash., said "It was the least kingly body language I think I've seen in any of the campaigns against the French so far. His constant references to St. Crispin -- hardly a well-known saint among the masses he's trying to influence -- came across as nearly hysterical."
Henry's speech, which rose to a yelling volume as he shouted "we happy few," could spell the end of his reign. "There weren't a 'few' soldiers -- there were hundreds," said University of Pennsylvania communications Prof. Kathleen Hall Jamieson. "Who wants a king who clearly can't count? And the overconfidence in his speech, when he was clearly outnumbered by the French -- this is a man who's about to lose. It's no time to be screaming. I would say it's nowhere on the continuum of kingly public behavior." While many pundits had previously spoken of Henry's common touch, his poll numbers immediately plunged after the "Crispin Shriek" was broadcast. Several composers have even sampled it in madrigals, as all Britain wonders: does Henry have an anger management problem?
Montjoy, spokesman for the French, could not be reached for comment.