The Perplexity of York

If I know how or which way to order these affairs
Thus thrust disorderly into my hands,
Never believe me. Both are my kinsmen:
The one is my sovereign, whom both my oath
And duty bids defend; the other again
Is my kinsman, whom the king hath wrong'd,
Whom conscience and my kindred bids to right.
Well, somewhat we must do....
(II.ii.109-116)

York is torn between two competing demands of justice. As a subject of the king and as the one left in charge while the king is in Ireland, York must defend the king against Hereford's usurpation. Yet he is sensitive to the fact that the king has greatly wronged Hereford and that he has a moral duty to do whatever is in his power to right that wrong. He never seems to take a stand on either principle and ends up simply muddling through.