King Lear English Revision

CharactersLear Classic tragic hero- a powerful but fatally flawed ruler who, through hubris (excessive pride or arrogance), destroys both himself and those around him. Initially Lear is introduced as a powerful character- it is made obvious that he has experienced absolute power for many years. His disinheritance of Cordelia and banishment of Kent affirm that he is a despotic monarch He craves flattery rather than truth in the love test Gradually his sanity and senility comes more and more under scrutiny By the end of the first scene Regan comments he hath ever but slenderly known himself Once he has given away his freedom the play charts his journey from pride and arrogance to self-knowledge and redemption The further Lear descends into madness, the sharper becomes his awareness of the worlds evils Briefly he emerges from his tortured madness to find some kind of peace and reconciliation with Cordelia Infuriatingly self-obsessed, morally blind, unjust and unfairCordelia Speaks only in four scenes yet her presence permeates most of the play Early exchanges with Lear show honesty in the face of falsity her asides to the audience accentuate the integrity of what she says and feels she abhors deception and pretence (Who covers faults, at last with shame derides) Takes courage to stand up to her father Her candid assessments of her sisters behaviour smack of insight and perception (I know you what you are) When she returns to England her regal qualities are often accentuated (powerful costume changes etc). Her language resonates with words of healing and therapy, leading some to interpret her in a particularly Christian way. In displaying unconditional love and forgiveness for her father, she is a symbol of hope and goodness That her life should be so pointlessly extinguished is perhaps the cruellest act of all Gonerill Speaks first in the love test and instantly displays how devious and deceitful she is. Her words are slick and oily and play to Lears vanity- she exploits his weaknesses. Systematically schemes with Regan to erode the last vestiges of the Kings power (reduce followers and make him homeless) Hates her husband and plots adultery with Edmond Poisons her sister When Edmond is mortally wounded she kills herself- an act of courage or perverse self-destruction?Regan Initially seems less spiteful and more restrained than Gonerill As the play unfolds her sadistic disposition comes to the fore Proposes Kents punishment in the stocks should be extended (Till night, my Lord, and all night too) Wants to deny Lear even one follower Orders the castle gates to be locked against him Participates fully in the torture of Gloucester- urges Cornwall to take out the other eye les One side will mock another Ambitious Keen to seek sexual pleasure, competing for Edmonds favour When poisoned she meets what many see as a symbolically just demiseGloucester Lears loyal and long-serving counsellor Like Lear he is an elderly father who misjudges his children and who achieves self-knowledge and reconciliation with his virtuous child only after suffering extremes of pain and distress His flippant joking about his illegitimate son Edmond and the ease with which the latter exploits his gullible and superstitious nature do not create a good first impression Sympathises with Lear and seeks to offer him solace when he is cast out in the storm His blinding, like Lears madness, leads to new insight and understanding In despair he attempts to leap off a cliff in Dover but is saved by Edgar in disguiseEdmond Gloucesters bastard son Speaks in asides directly to the audience but his soliloquies are more powerful and engaging than Edgars Often portrayed as physically robust and attractive- exudes raw energy and desire Unabashed in his selfishness and ruthlessly seeks to better himself, using whatever means possible Seems to be no pity or remorse in him Close to death he is strangely capable of one final gesture of decency in attempting to repeal Cordelias death warrant: Some good I mean to do, / Despite of mine own Nature. Edmund attempts to save Lear and Cordelia because it is the kingly thing to do. Only a king has the ability to pardon those about to be executed. By attempting to pardon Lear and Cordelia, Edmund symbolically takes on the power of kingship. Edmund, originally just an illegitimate child and a social outcast, dies in command of the kind of power only held by those in the highest position.Edgar Gloucesters legitimate and virtuous son Duped by Edmonds scheming Accused of plotting his fathers murder, he disguises himself as the mad beggar Poor Tom to avoid capture In his disguised forms he helps both Lear and Gloucester attain self-knowledge and understanding Used as a chorus device- comments directly to the audience on the intensity of the other characters suffering Becomes an overt force for good- kills Oswald who had been sent to murder Gloucester and then mortally wounding Edmond Neither Albany nor Kent has the heart to take over governance of England, so it is left to Edgar Gloucester has realized that Edgar was innocent, and he longs to be reunited with his son. "O dear son Edgar Might I but live to see thee in my touch, / I'd say I had eyes again" Gloucester says in Edgar's presence (4.1.24-26). Edgar hears this, but does not reveal himself. Some critics suggest that Edgar's refusal to tell his father his identity is Edgar's way of getting revenge on his father. Scholar Stanley Cavell argues that Edgar's silence is cruel. According to Cavell, by refusing to tell his father his identity, Edgar denies Gloucester the chance to "see him in his touch" and say he "had eyes again." By doing this, Cavell claims that Edgar symbolically blinds his father a second time. On the other hand, it's worth noting that Gloucester does die of a combination of shock and joy when Edgar finally reveals his identity to his father. Edgar might have delayed telling his father the truth out of fear that something like this would happen. There are also reasons that Edgar might not reveal himself to his father that have nothing to do with cruelty. Cavell, taking multiple sides as usual, suggests that Edgar's horror at his father's weakness made him silent. By revealing himself to his father, Edgar will have to watch his blind father realize that his son is now stronger and more capable than he is. Cavell suggests Edgar may be afraid of rubbing his strength in his father's face. "He wants his father still to be a father, powerful, so thathecan still remain a child," Cavell writes.Albany Albany is a force for good, but his role inKing Learsuggests that good is often a weak force that can't really stand up to evil. Albany leads his armies into battle against the King and the French soldiers even though he thinks the opposing forces are in the right. And he ultimately can't confront Edmund (who's been sleeping with his wife) alone he brings in Edgar to do his fighting for him.Cornwall Cornwall, Regan's husband, represents abuse of power at its worst.Fool An allowed fool, such as feste in twelfth night, was able to say what he wanted without fear of punishment Lears fool is all-licensed, and so can speak frankly and critically about anything and anyone. He acts as a kind of dramatic chorus, an ironic commentator on the action he observes. Although he is threatened with whipping for impertinence, the fool constantly reminds Lear of his folly. Lear is relentlessly used as the butt of the Fools barbed comments: this fellow has banished two ons daughters and did the third a blessing against his will; thou hast pared thy wit oboth sides and left nothing Ithmiddle; I am a fool, thou art nothing. The fool moves easily between different styles of humour: stand up comedy (Thou hadst little wit in thy bald crown when thou gavst thy golden one away); son (Fools had neer less grace in a year); rhyme or proverb (Fathers that wear rags / Do make their children blind); and sexual innuendo (She thats a maid now). His language is a mix of sense and nonsense. They may be puzzling but carry significance in relation to Lears plight- so out went the candle, and we were left darkling- spoken as Gonerill begins to undermine Lears sanity, prophetic of the blindness and confusion that will follow. Fool appears in 6 scenes. From his first appearance, his special relationship with Lear is evident. Sees him follow Lear selflessly into the storm Almost like Lears alter ego- perhaps his sane self? Disappears in act 3 scene 6. When Lear says and my poor fool is hanged he could be speaking of Cordelia (fool is a term of endearment), or the fool. Kent On stage for almost half the play Presented as Lears loyal and devoted servant, he epitomises the kind of unconditional love that the old king could inspire. The voice of unflagging honesty and plain speaking, challenging Lear in the love trial to check / this hideous rashness and to see better. Never afraid to speak bluntly. In disguise as caius he remains constant in his dedication to his master, following him through misfortune, storm and subsequent madness. Acts as a bridge with Cordelia, reminding the audience that she keeps a watchful eye on her father. His selflessness is marked in contrast to the selfishness of others. Ultimate act of loyalty is when he hints that he will follow his master into death: I have a journey, sir, shortly to go: / My master calls me; I must not say no.

ThemesMadness In Jacobean England, the mad were thought to be possessed by devils and therefore had to be confined and whipped to expel the demonic spirits Shakespeare was particularly interested in madness as an agent of beneficial change. For example, hamlet finds calm and understanding after his journey of mental suffering Madness in King Lear is most evident in the portrayal of Lear himself. Lears madness is that of a selfish, autocratic old man whose will is thwarted His moral blindness, misjudgements and lack of understanding of himself and others inevitably lead to breakdown Not only the psychological depiction of the insanity of an individual. Human madness is reflected in disturbance at two levels- natural and social. The onset of the storm in Act 3 suggests that tempests in nature mirror those in an individuals mind As Poor Tom, Edgar puts on the madness of a bedlam beggar The fools madness is professional, eccentric, witty, exposing weakness and folly may not an ass know when the cart draws the horse Cornwall and Regan become possessed by the madness of evil in their obsession with Gloucesters punishment and torture Hang him instantly. Gloucester, near to death, thinks it better to be distract and lose his sorrow in wrong imaginations as if madness were a blessing which would release him from his terrible sufferings. Lears journey of madness Act 1 Lears tendency to mental instability is established. He subjects his daughters to a bizarre love trial, banishes his loyal adviser Kent and disowns Cordelia. He reacts with violent curses to Gonerills challenges to his wilful behaviour Act 2 Lears sanity is undermined by his obsession with filial ingratitude, the unnatural behaviour of Gonerill and Regan Infuriated by Kents punishment in the stocks, Regans refusal to speak to him and Gonerills alliance with her sister, Lear rants impotently about revenge. Fearing the onset of madness, he storms out of Gloucesters castle Act 3 Lear rages at the storm, calling for universal destruction. His moods swing violently from raging in the storm to quieter sympathy for those less fortunate than himself- poor naked wretches Lears mad companions, the fool and poor tom, deepen the sense of his decline into insanity. He rips off his clothes- off, off you lendings Hallucinates about devilish spirits Act 4 A stage direction in scene 5 indicates Enter LEAR, [mad]. Talking with the blinded Gloucester, Lears language combines sexual loathing with hallucinations about hell and damnation: let copulation thrive there is the sulphurous pit, burning, scalding, stench, consumption Lears disordered thoughts range over morality, justice and authority, and erupt in savage emotion: and when I have stoln upon these son-in-laws / then kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill! At last, reunited with Cordelia, his mental torment ceases Act 5 The murder of Cordelia threatens Lears wits once more: howl, howl, howl, howl! He dies, his final words suggesting that he is deluding himself that she lives.Nature The words nature, natural and unnatural occur over 40 times Almost every character appeals to nature to justify their actions or help them Lear begins the love trial by asking his daughters to compete for their share in the kingdom by expressing with adoring language their natural affection for their father where nature doth with merit challenge. But within minutes he rejects Cordelia as a wretch whom nature is ashamed almost tacknowledge hers. Later he calls Gonerill and Regan unnatural hags. A reason why nature is important in the play is that it is a means of controlling people. It is natural for Lear to have absolute power and be obeyed and so he has power over his subjects What is natural is what is right Any person who frustrates Lears desires is described as unnatural Nature is a goddess Lear appeals to her in order to get revenge on Gonerill Hear, Nature, hear The play is a slow and agonising transformation of Lears view of the natural order of things.2 views of nature Two different views of nature- malign or benign Characters are grouped according to their view of nature- this defines their opinion of society, of what people are like and how they should behave Nature as malign Links to the ruthless individualism of Edmond, Gonerill and Regan A malign force that is a powerful motivator, drives and feeds selfish impulses Humans behave like violent animals, preying on the nave, innocent and vulnerable. Lack conscience and sensitivity and are concerned with their own advancement and profit Edmond sees nature as a deity Thou, Nature, art my goddess Nature as benign Gloucester, Kent, Edgar and Cordelia see nature as a benevolent force which strives for order, stability and harmony Gloucester sees the world as orderly and hierarchical, valuing trust, loyalty and family bonds. His response to Edgars apparent villainy is to proclaim him as an unnatural, detested, brutish villain. Kents loyalty to his master expresses itself in his unwavering and unquestioning sympathy and concern for the king throughout the play Cordelias nature is truthful and honest. Her constancy and devotion to Lear act as healing, cleansing forcesPower/politics Firmly rooted in political and social conditions of Shakespeares times Play reflects the political issues which were debated in Elizabethan and Jacobean England- divine right of kings, the unity of the kingdom, the changing social order which triggered a growth of conflicting factions and a threatening underclass. A play about struggle for power, property and inheritance The play opens with Lear portrayed as an absolute monarch who demands unquestioning obedience. Ruling on gods behalf. Such absolute rulers also acknowledged a god-given obligation. It was their sacred duty to keep their kingdom intact. Elizabeth emphasised that she had to answer to god for her government of the kingdom. It would be a sin against their divinely given authority to abdicate or divide their country. Jacobean society was one in transition. The feudal world of medieval times with its strong allegiances and hierarchy was collapsing. A newly prosperous gentry and commercial class challenged the power of the king and of an aristocracy divided among itself. Political factions abounded- hinted at in the rivalry between Albany and Cornwall. Newly acquired property gave power to a new kind of individual. Powerful memn emerged who had no obligation to the old feudal loyalties- they were driven by self-interest. Edmond refuses to stand the plague of custom. He seeks to thrive on his own cunning, mocking his father- an upholder of the old feudal style loyalty to the king The corrupt Oswald is another example of the new man. self-serving- ridiculed by Kent such smiling rogues as these. Some of these are still relevant- future of the British monarchy and the union of the countries in the united kingdom. Justice At the end Albany confronts the bloody reality of the death and suffering caused by the division of the kingdom and declares that both friends and foes will get what they deserve. Edmond is killed by the brother he wronged The wicked Gonerill and Regan are dead The innocent Cordelia dies cruelly Gloucesters blinding and suffering are hardly fit punishment for the crime of fathering the bastard Edmond Does Lear deserve the agonies of madness he has undergone and the twisted irony of being reconciled with Cordelia only to have her dieDivine justice A belief in the power of divine justice runs through the play Lear Strengthens his early displays of authority and paternal cursing by appearing to pagan deities. He swears by the sacred radiance of the sun, the mysteries of Hecate and the night, Apollo, Jupiter begs for help from the heavens: if you do love old men send down and take my part acknowledges the authority of high-judging Jove Regan appeals to the blessed gods when Lear turns his anger on her The gods are sometimes seen as kind and mighty Albany- you are above/ you justicers Gloucester- you ever gentle gods Cordelia- o you kind gods With his brother dying and sightless father dead, Edgar acknowledges a divine justice watches over and judges all human actions- The gods are just, and of our pleasant vices/ make instruments to plague us. Sometimes as arbitrary, indifferent or cruel Gloucester- as flies to wanton boys are we to thgods;/ they kill us for their sportHuman justice There are 5 trials within the play in which one human being judges another: Lears love trial (1:1). Lear, as judge and jury, metes out the justice he thinks is appropriate Cornwalls trial of Kent (2:2) , whose bluntness earns him instant punishment in the stocks Cornwall and Regans trial of Gloucester (Act 3 Scene 7) at which the old man is not allowed any representation or defence Lears mock trial of Gonerill and Regan (in the Quarto edition), showing how Lears madness craves justice against his ungrateful daughters The trial by battle (Act 5 Scene 3). Edgar challenges Edmond to trial by combat on the charge of treason Throughout the play characters pass judgement on their fellows, always appealing to some higher power or authority. Lear exiles Kent for daring to criticise him Gloucester impulsively condemns Edgar Gonerill and Regan, having assumed power, judge Lear and pronounce punishment Edmond sentences Lear and Cordelia to imprisonment and issues their death warrant The play shows that, when humans exercise justice, there is no guarantee that it will be fair, proper or right. Possession of power is more important than fairness. Gonerill sees herself as the queen, unchallengeable, controlling the law and yet beyond it: the laws are mine, not thine. / Who can arraign me fort? Lear displays insight into the way powerful, rich people can avoid punishment for their crimes: Plate sin with gold, / And the strong lance of justice hurtles breaks. And the fallibility of judges a dogs obeyed in office There is some kind of natural justice at work- a loyal servant protests against Gloucesters horrific treatment and mortally wounds Cornwall. Another helps his blinded master to Dover and Oswald is killed by Edgar. Morality "The gods are just and of our pleasant vices / make instruments to plague us," Edgar tells Edmund. "The dark and vicious place where thee he got / cost him his eyes" (5.3.169-171). Edgar's argument is pretty extreme; he claims Gloucester's adultery, which produced Edmund, is a sin for which his father deserves a terrible punishment.Family At the beginning of the play, Lear and Gloucester appear to believe that they head successful and happy families. by the end of the first scene Lear has torn his family apart and in the opening lines of the second scene Edmond reveals the plot against his brother that will destroy Gloucesters family. Sharp dramatic focus on fathers and their children. The fracturing bonds between fathers and children is mirrored in the play by the terrible storm in nature, and by the breakdown of society itself. Gloucester, troubled by the discovery of Edgars supposed treachery, expresses this mirror-image: Love cools, friendship falls off, brothers divide. In cities mutinies; in countries, discord; in palaces, treason; and the bond cracked twixt son and father. A family problem is a sign of much wider national and cosmic discord. Neither family has a mother Family can be viewed as an economic unit which allows one generation to build on the success of the previous one through the inheritance of property and power. The riches of the kingdom await the heirs of Lear and Gloucester The issue of inheritance generates great resentment in some children The letter which Edmond pretends has been written by Edgar makes this resentment clear: this policy and reverence of age makes the world bitter to the best of our times, keeps our fortunes from us till our oldness cannot relish them. Gonerill and Regan also detest this aged tyranny and want to take over power, wealth and status Families satisfy the human need for a sense of belonging and the security of love. Edgar and Cordelia remain selflessly devoted to their fathers At the beginning of the play Lear seems unable to understand or value family love- he demands his daughters proclaim it publically. A major function of the family is to provide security for its members as they pass through childhood, sickness and old age. Lear had expected this from Cordelia- I loved her most, and thought to set my rest on her kind nursery Lear shows a calculating attitude to love when he rates Regans and Gonerills affection according to the number of his servants they are willing to support- thy fifty yet doth double five and twenty, and thou art twice her love. Women in the family The power of women outside the family in 16th-17th centuries was limited by the rules of inheritance, ingrained traditions, and the prejudiced attitudes of the state, the law and the Church. Powerful women were not unknown- James mother (Mary queen of Scots) and his predecessor (Elizabeth I) Women in positions of authority caused much consternation in the 16th century. By the time King Lear was published this attitude had been changed by Elizabeths success but women still had low status in society. In the play, although Lears daughters are his heirs, the power and authority of the crown is transferred to their husbands. The daughters are not made queens regnant (in their own right) but wield their influence through their husbands. Gonerill has to goad Albany into action when he has doubts about how to act Both Gonerill and Regan want Edmond not just as a lover but as a consort. Lears wife is dead before the play begins. There is no reference to Edgars mother and Edmonds is only mentioned lewdly in the beginning. Sons and brothers The good and evil qualities of the kings daughters are reflected in Edgars struggles to protect his father, and Edmonds schemes to harm him. Marriage Gonerill detests Albany Regan and Gonerill must exercise their power through their husbands France favours Cordelia when she has been outcast thou art most rich being poor Can see the true worth of a person?Blindness When Lear banishes Kent with out of my sight!, Kents reply, beginning see better, Lear, highlights Lears moral blindness, his lack of self-knowledge and understanding. The king is clearly unable to see through the falseness of gonerills claim to love him dearer than eyesight. Terrible literalness in gonerills pluck out his eyes and Cornwalls brutal execution of that order, upon these eyes of thine Ill set my foot. The many images of sight and blindness which pervade the play sharply underscore and emphasise the dramatic effect of Gonerill and Cornwalls words Gloucester talks ironically of not needing spectacles to read Edgars traitorous letter. The villainous Edmond can clearly see the business Lear speaks of old fond eyes which threaten to shed tears The physical pain and suffering of Gloucester as a result of his blinding bring him insight into his past errors I stumbled when I saw. His new-found compassionate awareness of the nature of the world is vividly expressed: I see it feelingly.

ContextNature, the cosmos and humankind Plotinus rejected the belief that the stars guide human fortune, arguing that such a belief gave people a ready-made excuse for their own bad behaviour The great chain of being was the theory (held by Elizabeths mathematics tutor Dr John Dee among others) that that which is base within society could be refined to make it nobler. Considered by some to be heretical as it showed dissatisfaction with gods natural order.King Lear in performance In 1681 the dramatist Nahum Tate rewrote the play with a happy ending, and produced a version that lasted for 150 years. Tate cut the fool, invented a trusted woman friend for Cordelia (whom he married off to Edgar), and ensured that Lear, Kent and gloucester survived into the happy retirement of old age, leaving Cordelia and Edgar to rule. During the mental derangement of king George III, performances of king Lear were suspended as it was too close for comfort 19th century productions were increasingly concerned with spectacle. Large casts, lavish costumes and monumental sets were used to give historical accuracy to the play. 20th century saw attempts to return to original Shakespeare and to face the bleakness of the play. During the century of real mechanised warfare and human cruelty, King Lear became one of the most popular Shakespeare plays. Peter Brooks version (1962) cut the servant intervention in gloucesters blinding and edmonds line some good I mean to do (5:3:217). The hostile universe seemed indifferent to suffering. 1997 the young vic theatre cast a female Lear as if the king was so old he virtually surpassed gender. In a wheelchair, with a bald, shrunken head, he was presented as an inhabitant of a nursing home in a set full of steel scaffolding and large wooden doors. 2012 Attenborough (Almeida)- emphasised sexual abuse (modern social/political issues explored) 2008 Trevor Nunn (Ian Mckellen) 1983 Elliot (Laurence Olivier)Christian or pre-Christian Those who regard King Lear as a christian play see Lear redeemed by the crucifixion of his suffering. They identify Cordelia as a symbol of Christian redemption, almost Christ-like. She is a healer of suffering, a purger of ills and sins. Her reconciliation with her father helps to restore his wits. Her language affirms such Christian qualities as tolerance and understanding: blest, virtues, aidant, remediate, love, goodness, cure, restoration, repair, pity, benediction. When she returns at the head of an army to aid Lear, her words echo those of jesus, o dear father / it is thy business that I go about (act 4 scene 3, lines 23-4) Much evidence within the play of a pre-christian world. Characters dont appeal to a Christian god byt to the sun, Hecate, Jupiter and Apollo. Lear proclaims his faith in high-judging jove Gloucesters world is beset by superstitious beliefs in the late eclipses in the sun and moon Edmond puts his faith in nature as a goddess Gloucester, Albany, Cordelia and Kent constantly appeal to the gods as they try to make sense of the apparently arbitrary nature of fortune and justice which they dispense.Shakespeares influencesGossip of the day Real-life stories of greed and suffering among the moneyed classes were sensational and popular sources of gossip in the early 17th century Sir William Allen, a former lord mayor of the city, in old age split his estate between his three daughters and arranging to live with them in turn. Once they had his money, the old man was treated with cruelty and disrespect The eldest daughter of Sir Brian Annesley tried to have him certified as infirm of mind in 1603 but his youngest daughter, Cordell, challenged her sister in court.Hazards of transferring power Inheritance in Elizabethan and Jacobean England was determined by male primogeniture. Lack of sons was therefore dangerous At the start of the seventeenth century, as the childless Queen Elizabeths life drew to a close, many feared a disputed succession and possible civil war The folly of deliberately dividing up a kingdom would have been obvious to a Shakespearean audience. They would have understood Kents outrage. English history had been traditionally seen as a steady movement towards the security, strength and cohesion of a single realm. The contrast between the recent peaceful succession of James in 1603, which united the crowns of England and Scotland, and Lears unwise division would have been clear to Shakespearean audiences. A history play/legendary stories Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote about King Lear in his history of England, over 400 years before Shakespeare. A mixture of myth and legend but many people regarded it as historical fact. In 1577 Raphael Holinshed re-told the legend. Shakespeare added the characters of the fool, Kent and Oswald, Lears madness and the storm, the subplot of Gloucester and his sons, Cordelias death before Lears and the end of the play involving the deaths of Lears entire family. In Holinsheds version, Lear returns to the throne following the defeat of Albany and Cornwall. Cordelia succeeds him but her reign is cut short by a rebellion by her sisters sons. They battle against each other and peace is only restored when one kills the other to rule uncontested. A literary play Shakespeare may have seen or read The True Chronicle History of King Leir, a play first performed in the 1590s and published in 1605. In this version no characters die and Leir is restored to the throne. It contains stage directions for thunder and lightning which may have inspired the storm in act 3 Shakespeare read Samuel Harsnetts A Declaration of Egregious Popish Impostures (1603). Much of the strange language used by Poor Tom (Flibbertigibbet) is taken from this anti-Catholic pamphlet. It claimed to expose the evils of false exorcism and quoted speeches supposedly made by people who pretended to be possessed by demons. By giving such evil language to Edgar, a good character, Shakespeare increases the dramatic intensity of the play- appearance of evil and actual evil are explored etc. The sub-plot of Gloucester and his sons is based on an episode in Arcadia (1590). The main character in that version is a king and the illegitimate son is directly responsible for his fathers blinding after seizing the throne. The virtuous son is betrayed by his brother, loses his fathers favour and is driven into exile. The virtuous son returns to protect his father but refuses to help him commit suicide. The blind king eventually crowns his son and dies happy

The play1:1LEARMeantime we shall express our darker purpose we- the royal we places Lear in a position of authority darker purpose- sinister feel, ominousLEAR tis our fast intent / To shake all cares and business from our age, / Conferring them on younger strengths while we / Unburdened crawl toward death. Antithesis of age and younger strengths Ironic that he describes his life from this point (in essence his retirement) as unburdened given what will follow Demonstrates his purpose- to abdicateLEAR Which of you shall we say doth love us most Competition of flattery shows his vanityCORDELIA I am sure my loves more ponderous than my tongue Her asides show the genuine nature of her words Authenticity CORDELIA Why have my sisters husbands if they say they love you all? Demonstrates the insincerity of the words of the sistersCORDELIA time shall unfold what plighted cunning hides; Recognises that the duplicity of her sisters will come to lightGONERILL we must look from his age to receive not alone the imperfections of long-engraffed condition Seek to exploit their fathers infirmities- true nature revealed1:2 The opening soliloquy sets up the impending dramatic irony, allowing the audience to see the true Edmond- his real thoughts and feelings- as well as to bear witness to his plan EDMONDwherefore should I stand in the plague of custom..? why bastard? wherefore base? Why brand they us with base? with baseness? bastardy? base, base? Identifies his weak social status resulting from his birth One of the new men of shakespeares times- seeks to elevate his position from this point Anger and frustration conveyed through repetitionEDMONDlegitimate Edgar, I must have your land. legitimate- emphasises frustration at his position Purpose conveyedGLOUCESTERKent banished thus? And France in choler parted? And the king gone tonight?... Series of rhetorical questions- convey confusion. At once shows the ridiculous nature of the events of the previous scene- shocking- as well as his vulnerability as a character (impressionable?)GLOUCESTERThe quality of nothing hath not such need to hide itself Theme of nothing- in Cordelias case it was not hidden and she ended up banishedGLOUCESTERThese late eclipses in the sun and moon portend no good to us Thinks that the world is influenced by the stars Show his vulnerability to influence Described as foppery by Edmond Power of nature within the playEDMONDwhen we are sick in fortune, often the surfeits of our own behaviour, we make guilty of our disasters the sun, the moon, and stars;EDMONDmy father compounded with my mother under the dragons tail Satanic image- Shakespeare begins to convey Edmonds true characterEDMOND I am rough and lecherous Edmond acknowledges his character himselfEDMONDI should have been that I am had the maidenliest star in the firmament twinkled on my bastardising The stars have nothing to do with character- he is evil through and through and no planetary influence affected it Emphasis on bastardising- suggests this is the root of his cruel nature. Social constraints/frustration lead to evil? Is Shakespeare criticising rigid social order?EDMONDI am thinking of a prediction I read this other day, what should follow these eclipses the effects he writes of succeed unhappily Immediately demonstrates his duplicity- having previously ridiculed his fathers belief in it1:3GONERILLhe wrongs me he flashes into one gross crime or other His knights grow riotous, and himself upbraids us on every trifle. Lear deserves his future treatment?GONERILLcome slack of former services and let his knights have colder looks among you: what grows of it no matter. Lear will no longer command the respect of the servants- his decline has begun at gonerills order1:4OSWALDMy ladys father (in response to Lear asking who he is) Avoids Lears royal title Puts his master (Gonerill) in a position higher than the king Demonstrates Lears declineLEARDoes anyone know me? This is not Lear Who is it that can tell me who I am?FOOLLears shadow Emphasises Lears decline- he exclaims he is not himself as he does not command authority any longerLEARO most small fault, How ugly didst thou in Cordelia show! O Lear, Lear, Lear! Beat at this get that let thy folly in and thy dear judgement out. Shows his regret already- only 3 scenes after her banishment Anguish/awakening and greater self awareness already thy folly- his age/vanity- the fatal flaw that led him to poor judgement1:5LEARI did her wrong Regret- Cordelia Simple, short statement. Blunt FOOLI can tell why a snail has a house to puts head in, not to give it away to his daughters, and leave his horns without a case. A snail has better judgement than Lear References to home/shelter- the comfort of family, emphasises disfunctionality of Lears familyLEARO let me not be man, no mad, sweet heaven! Keep me in temper, I would not be mad. Foreshadows what is to come It has already started and he acknowledges it?2:1GLOUCESTERMy old heart is cracked, its cracked Like Lear- parallel narrativeCORNWALLyou have shown your father a child-like office Edmond has risen to legitimacy? Advanced alreadyCORNWALLNatures of such deep trust we shall much need; Ironic 2:2KENTI serve the king, on whose employment I was sent to you. You shall do small respects, show too bold malice against the grace and person of my master, stocking his messenger. Kent emphasises the disrespect shown to the king Represents feudal loyalty/respect KENTFortune, goodnight, smile once more, turn thy wheel. Role of fortune in the play- all has been turned on its head2:3EDGARtake the basest and most poorest shape Lowers himself below Edmond- what Edmond wants (dramatic irony?)2:4LEARThey durst not dot: They could not, would not dot Disbelief that his daughter would disrespect him so- believes he is still all powerfulLEARTis not in thee to grudge my pleasures to oppose the bolt against my coming in. thou better knowst the offices of nature, bond of childhood, effects of courtesy, dues of gratitude. Lines emphasised in almeida version to suggest child abuseLEAR O reason not the need! Our basest beggars are in the poorest thing superfluous. Allow not nature more than nature needs, Mans life is cheap as beasts. thou art a lady; if only to go warm were gorgeous, why nature needs not what thou gorgeous wearst, which scarcely keeps thee warm. But for true need you heavens, give me that patience, patience I need. You see me here, you gods, a poor old man, As full of grief as age, wretched in both; If it be you that stirs these daughters hearts against their father, fool me not so much to bear it tamely. Touch me with noble anger, and let not womens weapons, water drops, stain my mans cheeks. No, you unnatural hags, I will have such revenges on you both that all the world shall I will do such things what they are, yet I know not, but they shall be the terrors of the earth! You think Ill weep; No, Ill not weep, I have full cause of weeping, but this heart shall break into a hundred thousand flaws or ere Ill weep. O fool, I shall go mad. O, !- opens with an exclamation- despair superfluous- iambic pentameter breaks down- emphasis reasonmad- begins with reason and ends with madness- indication of his journey Repetition of nature and need- connection between the two, to need what is natural or to need more than that Talk of clothing (wearst)- nakedness is representative of vulnerability. Links to the literal nakedness of tom and Lear later in the play Asks if it is the gods who stirs these daughters hearts against their father- blame on divine interference womens weapons, water drops- circumlocution/periphrasis shows his move towards madness? Dithering old man womens weapons- emphasis on the power of women at this point I will do such thing what they are, yet I know not,- empty threat, sad, broken speech through caesura, decline of authority shown- presumes the language of power but has not the contentGONERILLTis his own blame; hath put himself from rest and must needs taste his folly Seeks to justify their actions Lear deserves his treatment3:2LEARBlow, winds, crack your cheeks! Rage, blow Strike flat the thick rotundity othworld Encourages the extinction of the human race- human nature is ingrateful and doesnt deserve existence Commanding- uses the language of authority and power, imperatives etcLEARHide thee, thou bloody hand, thou perjured and thou similar of virtue That art incestuous That which seems natural is incestuous/unnaturalLEARI am a man more sinned against than sinning. Tragedy- his mistake led to this but yet he is still a noble, good man, not perfect but not evil.3:3GLOUCESTERI like not this unnatural dealing. Recognised as unnatural- the turning out of LearEDMONDMost savage and unnatural! Sarcastic/duplicitous Appears loyal and yet does not see anything unnatural about the actions of the daughter- he hopes to do the sameEDMONDmust draw me that which my father loses: no less than all. The younger rises when the old doth fall. old/younger- antithesis Rhyming Couplet emphasises his final intent Purpose of his actions made clear to the audience- emphasises his duplicity3:4LEARBut where the greater malady is fixed, the lesser is scarce felt. This tempest in my mind doth from my senses take all feeling else. Purgation He cannot feel the storm because the torment in his mind is greater The storm is a metaphor for his madness His madness is all consumingLEARO Regan, Gonerill, your kind old father, whose frank heart gave all O that way madness lies; let me shun that; No more of that. Identifies his daughters as the cause of madness Materially he gave them all- did he emotionally? He loved Cordelia most by his own admission Closes/insulates himselfLEARPoor naked wretches, wheresoeer you are how shall your houseless heads and unfed sides defend you from seasons such as these? More humility- acknowledges the plight of the homelessLEARDidst thou give all to thy daughters? And art thou come to this? what, has his daughters brought him to this pass? Couldst thou save nothing? Wouldst thou give em all? Nothing could have subdued nature to such lowness but his unkind daughters. Identifies his daughters again as the cause of insanityLEARFirst let me talk with this philosopher (in reference to Poor Tom) good Athenian Lears madness is worsening- indicated by the fact he sees those who are also mad(although in the case of Edgar it is pretence) Philosopher/ Athenian- links to Plato/allegory of the cave. Is the philosopher the one who can see the truth3:5CORNWALLI will have my revenge it was not altogether your brothers evil disposition made him seek his death, but a provoking merit set a-work by a reprovable badness in himself Cruelty is provoked? Edgars evil (as constructed by Edmond) is not the fault of Edgar but a result of Gloucesters fatheringEDMONDI will persever in my course of loyalty, though the conflict be sore between that and my blood. Loyalty is unnatural to him- conflicts with his character/innate evil He is cruel by nature3:6LEARThen let them anatomise Regan; see what breeds about her heart. Is there any cause in nature that makes these hard hearts? Where does cruelty come from? Is it innate or nurtured?LEAR[To Edgar] You, sir, I entertain for one of my hundred, Still believes he has powerLEARMake no noise, make no noise. Draw the curtains: so, so. Well go to supper Ithmorning. Nonsensical Prose- lowly status (mad)KENThis wits are gone Lears madness has completely descended Absolute statement- not going but gone3:7REGANThe lunatic King Acknowledges the madness of her father though she has not seen him since before the storm- he was already mad?GLOUCESTERBecause I would not see thy cruel nails Pluck out his poor old eyes, nor thy fierce sister in his anointed flesh stick boarish fangs. Ironic given his fate Antithesis of anointed and boarish- the king and the beastGLOUCESTEREdmond, enkindle all the sparks of nature to quit this horrid act Hopeless plea for help- Edmond hates thee Shows how deeply he has been deceivedGLOUCESTERO, my follies! Then Edgar was abused. Realisation of mistake- like Lear No response from Regan after Cornwall is hurt at the end of the scene- could be portrayed as cold/unloving4:1GLOUCESTERI stumbled when I saw/ As flies 2 key quotes Themes of blindness and gods4:3 Cordelia and Lear reunited4:5EDGARWhy I do trifle thus with his despair is done to cure it. Emphasises the difference between his deceit and that of edmonds- his is for goodGLOUCESTERO you mighty gods! This world I do renounce, and in your sights shake patiently my great affliction off. Attempt to commit suicide Almost comedic on stage- he falls flat on his face . GLOUCESTERHenceforth Ill bear affliction till it do cry out itself Enough, enough, and die. Anagnorisis- awakening/realisation[Enter LEAR, mad] Decisive changeLEARTo say ay and no to everything I said ay and no to was no good divinity Realises the mistakes he made of absolute monarchyLEARThey told me I was everything; tis a lie, I am not ague-proof Admits his flaw ague-proof- immune to fevers. Likened to a diseaseLEARBut to the girdle do the gods inherit; beneath is all the fiends. sulphurous pit Sexual power linked to evilLEARThou rascal beadle, hold thy bloody hand. Why dost thou lash that whore? Strip thy own back All people are guilty, do not punish others, look to yourself Highlights the hypocrisy of the world thou hotly lusts to use her in that kind for which thou whipst her. plate sin with gold- the rich are sinful, they cover it with wealth- like him? Now he has nothing his sins are revealed to himEDGARreason in madnessLEARI know thee well enough; thy name is gloucester Is he really mad? More insight when he is madLEARWhen we are born, we cry that we are come to this great stage of fools Pessimistic4:6 In the Olivier version of the play, Cordelia kisses KentCORDELIAchild-changed father! Ideas of senility, regression to a child. The daughters become the mothersGENTLEMANfresh garments Often white- symbol of cleansing/redemptionLEARPray you now, forget and forgive. I am old and foolish. Asks for forgiveness Acknowledges his faults Old and foolish are linked5:3LEARHowl, howl, howl, howl! No, no, no life? Never, never, never, never, never. Despair Repetition shows extent of emotionLEARLook on her! Look, her lips. Look there, look there. Coming back to life? Does he therefore die of happiness? (AC Bradley proposes)- resurrection, Christ-like Or can he see something in the distance? The light?- dying? Is he urging those around him to awake from their moral blindness?He dies In the Attenborough production this is violent- justice?EDGARthe weight of this sad time we must obey, speak what we feel, not what we ought to say. The oldest hath borne most; we that are young shall never see so much, nor live so long. Age is a burden that the young fail to relieve them of

The end of king Lear The last scene gathers all the main characters together- brings the stories to a conclusion Continuation of established themes that eye that told you so, looked but asquint- distorted perception (jealous people see things wrongly) Final stage direction exeunt with a death march creates an ominous air, finishes on a sombre note Lears desperation at the end over Cordelias death- lend me a looking-glass; if that her breath will mist or stain the stone, why then she lives. in contrast to his quickness to disown her at the beginning Albany- for us, we will resign during the life of this old majesty to him our absolute power;- undoes the original sin of the abdication?

Critical perspectivesGeneral criticsHarold C Goddard the predestined end of unmastered passion is the suicide of the species. That is the gospel according to King Lear only the characters who have mastered their passions can avert doom Gonerill and Regans murder/suicide is an example of how ruthless pursuit of passions leads to extinction Mark Van Doren the initial act of the hero is his only act; the remainder is passion. An old and weary king, hungry for rest, banishes the one daughter who would give it to him and plunges at once into the long, loud night of his catastrophe. An early recognition of his error does not save him. The poet does not wish to save him, for his instinct is to develop a catastrophe as none has been developed before or since.Harley Granville-Barker Lears progress dramatic and spiritual lies through a dissipation of egoism; submission to the cruelty of an indifferent Nature, less cruel to him than are his own kin; to ultimate loss of himself in madness.AC Bradley The secondary plot fills out a story which would by itself have been somewhat thin, and it provides a most effective contrast between its personages and those of the main plot, the tragic strength and stature being heightened by comparison with the slighter build of the former. Bridget Gellert Lyons the subplot simplifies the central action, translating its concerns into familiar (and therefore easily apprehensible) verbal and visual patterns. The subplot is easier to grasp because its characters tend to account for their sufferings in traditional moral language; it also pictorialises the main action, supplying interpreted visual emblems for some of the plays important themes (eg blindness- gloucesters blinding)DA Traversi the storm which has broken out in Lears mind, the result of his treatment at the hands of his children, is admirably fused with the description of the warring elements mainly entrusted to his lips; the external storm, while exercising upon his aged physique the intolerable strain under which it finally breaks, is itself a projection of his inner state, being fused with it as a single poetic reality.Kenneth Muir the play is not pessimistic and pagan: it is rather an attempt to provide an answer to the undermining of traditional ideas by the new philosophy that called in doubt. Shakespeare goes back to a pre-christian world and builds up from the nature of man himself, and not from revealed religion, those same moral and religious ideals that were being undermined man reduced to his essentials needs not wealth, nor power, nor even physical freedom, but rather patience, stoical fortitude, and loveJohn Danby it is not only our profoundest tragedy; it is also our profoundest expression of an essentially Christian comment on mans world and his society,Arthur Small there is, indeed, in king Lear, a kind of irony which is not, to any important extent, to be found in any other play: the irony which lies in the contradiction between the rightness of what is said and the wrongness of its being said by that particular character, or in that particular situation, or in that particular manner.David Ball Interprets the conversation of Kent and Gloucester at the beginning of the play to mean that the court already knows the kings decision regarding the division of his kingdom. The king knows Cordelia will act this way and so uses it as an excuse to complete his plan The duke of Albany is the title given to Scottish heirs to the throne, and later occasionally to British heirs. The duke of Cornwall is that given to British heirs- differ to France and burgundy- foreign?Roy battenhouse Cordelia is initially selfishWilliam Elton Gonerill and Regan are typical renaissance pagans, preoccupied with the natural and the self Lawrence Rossinger The play is about Gloucester and Lears self discovery as a result of treating others in a selfish wayRosalie L Cole The play is a commentary of fathers losing their powerMarian Novy Lear abuses Cordelia and then begs her forgiveness Criticises the powerful rights father had over their daughters Patriarchal structures are threatened in the playStephen Greenblatt Lear wishes to be the object of his childrens love (possibly the sole recipient)Peter Erickson The play is about a failure of male bodning. Lear attempts to counter the loss of his daughters with his knights, the fool and poor tom. They are finally a minor resource in comparison to the equivocal centrality of Cordelia Familial love is greaterDon Foran The play points up Lears tragic mistake of investing rather than divesting and to mistake affection for affectationTerry Eagleton Watching king Lears affliction makes the audience yearn for political liberationNicholas Marsh King Lear carries Cordelias body on stage and dies looking at her, the other bodies could be on stage When Lear dies the final scene becomes much more static Both language and poetry show a change- phrases are abstract and broken (lines 318 onwards) end-stopped lines, caesura on most lines Painful/violent language before line 318 and the language that follows is softer, with long vowel sounds (realm, warm) Edgar says that during this sad time they must speak what they feel and not what they ought to say. When political life restarts, after the period of mourning, does falsity resume? Is there hope or not?Freudian/psychoanalyticalCoppelia Kahn Since there are no literal mothers within the play, kahn provides a psychoanalytic interpretation of the maternal subtext of the play Lear in his old age regresses to an infantile disposition, and now seeks the love that is normally satisfied by a mothering woman. Her characterisation of Lear is that of a child being mothered, but without real mothers, his children become the daughter-mother figures.ExistentialismExistentialism is the philosophical and cultural movement which holds that the starting point of philosophical thinking must be the experiences of the individual. Sren Kierkegaard, generally considered to be the first existentialist philosopher, posited that it is the individual who is solely responsible for giving meaning to life and for living life passionately and sincerely ("authentically").Concepts: A central proposition of existentialism is that existence precedes essence, which means that the most important consideration for the individual is the fact that he or she is an individualan independently acting and responsible conscious being ("existence")rather than what labels, roles, stereotypes, definitions, or other preconceived categories the individual fits ("essence"). The notion of the Absurd contains the idea that there is no meaning to be found in the world beyond what meaning we give to it. Facticity is a concept defined by Sartre in Being and Nothingness as that "in-itself" of which humans are in the mode of not being. Facticity is both a limitation and a condition of freedom. It is a limitation in that a large part of one's facticity consists of things one couldn't have chosen (birthplace, etc.), but a condition in the sense that one's values most likely will depend on it. However, even though one's facticity is "set in stone" (as being past, for instance), it cannot determine a person: The value ascribed to one's facticity is still ascribed to it freely by that person. The theme of authentic existence is common to many existentialist thinkers. It is often taken to mean that one has to "find oneself" and then live in accordance with this self. What is meant by authenticity is that in acting, one should act as oneself, not as One acts or as one's genes or any other essence requires.Feminist Cordelia shows that women who refuse to be subservient to their male counterparts, or will not abide by their whims, are subordinated. She is representative of the strong female voice in society being oppressed Feminist scholars, on the other hand, think that Cordelia is an unrealistic character. She's little more than a male fantasy, they argue. At the beginning, Cordelia resists her father's demands and asserts her own identity. She refuses to give all her love to her father and withholds some of it to bestow on her future husband. But by the end of the play, however, Cordelia's independence has disappeared. Lear's initial dream of having his daughter's love all to himself is realized when Lear and Cordelia go to prison together. Lear's looking forward to "sing[ing] alone like birds'i'the'cage" is, by feminist interpretation, less a symbol of Lear's personal growth than proof that Lear hasn't changed at all (5.3). He wanted to monopolize Cordelia's love, and in prison, he will get to. Feminist scholars point out that Cordelia barely speaks at all during her last scene alive, and dies by strangulation a symbolic representation of the fact that she no longer has a voice of her own.Marilyn French mens behaviour matters. But women;s behaviour is of the essence. Cordelia redeems nature from the general curse/ which twain have brought her to. The twain are, ofcourse, Gonerill and Regan. Cordelia redeems nature; Gonerill and Regan are responsible for its curse. In the rhetoric of the play, no male is condemned as Gonerill is condemned. A woman who refuses to uphold the inlaw feminine principle completely topples the natural order and plunges the world into chaos.

Language/form/structure techniquesLanguageImagery Vivid words and phrases conjure up emotionally charged pictures in the imagination and create the atmosphere of the play I am bound / upon a wheel of fire, that mine own tears / Do scold like molten lead Use of simile we two alone will sing like birds Ithcage my life I never held but as a pawn Use of metaphor come not between the dragon and his wrath how sharper than a serpents tooth it is / To have a thankless child Personification Thou, Nature, art my goddess ingratitude! Thou marble-hearted fiendAntithesis Opposition of words or phrases against each other so young, and so untender? so young, my lord, and true. Expresses conflict Conflict occurs in many forms in the play- father against daughter, son against father, brother against brother, sister against sister, wife against husband. The king itself is divided and invaded by France. Thematically, sight works against blindness, nature against the unnatural, ,am against animal, rich against poor, truth against deception When Kent is banished in the first scene he expresses moral and social confusion stemming from Lears decisions in a series of antitheses. freedom against banishment hence and here And he will shape his old course in a country newLear and the language of power Initially Lear has an imperative style of speaking, which matches the kings conviction regarding his absolute power. His first words are an order to Gloucester- attend the lords of France and Burgundy what can you say to draw / a third more opulent than your sisters? Speak Even in madness, Lear strives to dictate to the elements, instructing the storm blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! By the end, even when he commands he is softer and more polite Pray do not mock me pray you, undo this button. Thank you, sir. His final words, Look there, look there, are an impassioned plea for confirmation that Cordelia still lives. He speaks in the language of power but there is variation in his speech. Animal imagery Lear likens his daughters cruelty to that of predatory birds and beasts Gonerill is a detested kite whose ingratitude is sharper than a serpents tooth. Her face is wolvish, her tongue serpent-like He sees Gonerill and Regan as pelican daughters, cruelling feeding on his flesh and blood Edgar, disguised as poor tom, describes himself as hog in sloth, fox in stealth, wolf in greediness, dog in madness, lion in prey Gloucester likens humans to flies (as flies to wanton boys are we)Disease and pain The political and moral disruptions in the play are echoed by recurring images of pain and disease, of bodies racked and tortured. Lears madness and gloucesters blinding illustrate the theme of mental and physical suffering Kent identifies Cordelias banishment as a foul disease Lear views the fools criticisms as a pestilent gall (an infected irritant) On both his ungrateful daughters he wishes all the plagues that in the pendulous air hang Gonerill is described by Lear as a disease thats in my flesh, a boil / A plague-sore, or embossed carbuncle The language of disease is partly counterbalanced by the language of healing. Cordelia, grieving for her fathers madness, urges that all you unpublished virtues of the earth, / Spring with my tears; be aidant and remediate / In the good mans distress. And seeks to return him to health, restoration hang / thy medicine on my lips.Nothing The word nothing resounds throughout the play Cordelia uses it first, saying nothing, my lord in answer to Lears love test. She has nothing to say, no flattering words to accompany her dutiful love. Lears response adds new meaning, nothing will come of nothing. If she doesnt declare her love, she will inherit nothing Gloucester rewards Edmond (it shall lose thee nothing) for his false loyalty. Kent criticises the fools joking advice- this is nothing, fool Lears criticism of the fool is returned with a sharp twist of meaning- thou has pared thy wit oboth sides and left nothing Ithmiddle. Thus the fool gives the word another interpretation- loss of identity. I am a fool, thou art nothing. This is echoed as Edgar discards his true personality Edgar I nothing am Gonerill and Regan remind Lear that his former power will be reduced to nothing- what need you five and twenty? Ten? Or five? what need one?Plain speaking Explores the differences between speaking sincerely and insincerely. Some characters private thoughts clearly do not match their public voices. Cordelia recognises that her sisters speak untruthfully in Lears love test, but she refuses to speak dishonestly: I want that glib and oily art / to speak and purpose not. Elsewhere, Gonerill and Regans language is plain and direct, even though the duplicitous nature of their scheming pervades the play Kent is banished for his plain speaking, his offence, honesty and returns as a character still committed to speaking candidly and bluntly Edmond uses lies to prey on a credulous father and uses his cunning to stuff his [Cornwalls] suspicions more fully. The virtuous Edgar, disguised as Poor Tom, lies to his blinded father, but his motivation is benign and with almost the final words of the play he urges plain speaking, speak what we feel, not what we ought to say.Blank verse or prose? Conventional for prose to be used for low-status characters for comedy, to express madness, and in letters.Pathetic fallacy Personification of inanimate objects to show emotionAct 3, Scenes 1-3 Instead of a stable, hierarchical kingdom with Lear in control, chaos has overtaken the realm, and the country is at the mercy of the plays villains, who care for nothing but their own power. This political chaos is mirrored in the natural world. We find Lear and his courtiers plodding across a deserted heath with winds howling around them and rain drenching them. The importance of the storm, and its symbolic connection to the state of mind of the people caught in it, is first suggested by the knights words to Kent. Kent asks the knight, Whos there, besides foul weather?; the knight answers, One minded like the weather, most unquietly(3.1.12). Here the knights state of mind is shown to be as turbulent as the winds and clouds surrounding him. This is true of Lear as well: when Kent asks the knight where the king is, the knight replies, Contending with the fretful elements; / . . . / Strives in his little world of man to out-scorn / The to-and-fro-conflicting wind and rain (3.1.411). Shakespeares use of pathetic fallacya literary device in which inanimate objects such as nature assume human reactionsamplifies the tension of the characters struggles by elevating human forces to the level of natural forces. The chaos reflects the disorder in Lears increasingly crazed mind, and the apocalyptic language represents the projection of Lears rage and despair onto the outside world: if his world has come to a symbolic end because his daughters have stripped away his power and betrayed him, then, he seems to think, the real world ought to end, too. As we have seen, the chaos in nature also reflects the very real political chaos that has engulfed Britain in the absence of Lears authority.FormTragedy Tragedy depicts the downfall of a noble hero or heroine, usually through some combination of hubris, fate, and the will of the gods. The tragic heros powerful wish to achieve some goal inevitably encounters limits, usually those of human frailty (flaws in reason, hubris, society), the gods, or nature. 3 parts to a tragic plot: Reversal (peripeteia)- when a situation appears to be developing in one direction and then turns to another When the division of the kingdom appears to be going well and suddenly all changes- Cordelia who is loved most initially, is cast out along with Kent, the faithful servant Recognition (anagnorisis)- a change from ignorance to awareness of a bond of love or hate Lears awareness of his faults, his mistreatment of Cordelia, his anguish Suffering (pathos)- a calamity, a destructive or painful act. The deaths of Cordelia and Lear, the suggested death of Kent The tragic hero Aristotle says the tragic hero should have a flaw and/or make some mistake (hamartia) The hero need not die at the end but must undergo a change in fortune The tragic hero may achieve some revelation or recognition- anagnorisis- about human fate, destiny and the will of the gods. a man who is neither a paragon of virtue and justice nor undergoes the change to misfortune through any real badness or wickedness but because of some mistake

Plot summaryAct I.Shakespeare's dark tragedy, King Lear begins with the fictional King of England, King Lear, handing over his kingdom to daughters Regan and Goneril whom he believes truly love him. King Lear intends to stay with each daughter consecutively, accompanied by one hundred loyal knights.Angry that Cordelia his youngest daughter does not appear to love him as do Goneril and Regan, Lear banishes his youngest daughter Cordelia, and Kent, the servant who attempts to defend her. Cordelia leaves and is taken by the King of France as his Queen...Edmund, the loved but illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester plots to have his elder brother Edgar's reputation ruined. Edmund tricks his father Gloucester into believing that Edgar wanted to kill him...The disrespectful Goneril conspires to have her guest and father, King Lear, driven out of her house.Kent, who has now disguised his identity to serve King Lear, earns King Lear's respect by defending his name. Goneril offends King Lear and dismisses fifty of his knights. Lear starts to realize Cordelia was not so disrespecting. Lear decides to leave for Regan where he is sure to be treated properly...Lear instructs Kent to deliver several letters to Gloucester. The Fool teaches Lear several riddles.Act II.We learn of possible conflict between evil sisters Regan and Goneril. Edmund further manipulates Edgar. Gloucester learns from Edmund of Edgar's plan to kill him and believes it...Kent and Oswald, Goneril's steward fight. Kent is placed in stocks emphasizing just how little Lear's name is now respected by daughters Regan and Goneril...Edgar, now alone and disguised, describes his fate of living in hiding.Showing complete disregard for King Lear's authority, Kent remains in stocks. Lear tells Regan how much Goneril has hurt him. Regan in consultation with Goneril, allows Lear to stay but without a single follower. Lear decides not to stay with either daughter...Act III.The King of France may well invade England. Kent sends a messenger to Cordelia to keep her aware of King Lear's plight... Lear braves the elements against a storm, no doubt symbolic of his tortured soul...Gloucester lets slip to his traitorous son Edmund that the army of France is poised to invade, guaranteeing Gloucester's own future suffering. We learn more of a potential conflict between Regan and Goneril, centering on their husbands...Lear is brought out of the elements. Lear explains that nature's physical torment of him distracted him from the pain his daughters have given him.Edgar, Gloucester's legitimate son, makes his appearance, disguised as "poor Tom." Cornwall, Regan's husband and Edmund speak. After implicating his father Gloucester as a traitor against Cornwall, Edmund is rewarded for betraying his father Gloucester by receiving his father's title as the new Earl of Gloucester.Cornwall tells Edmund to seek out his father saying "he may be ready for our apprehension" or punishment.Lear and company find solace and safety in a farmhouse. Lear, showing signs of madness, holds a mock trial to punish his daughters addressing two joint stools as if they were Regan and Goneril. Kent leads Lear to Dover where he will be safe...Gloucester is captured and tortured first having his beard ripped away and later being made blind. Unable to bear Cornwall's brutality any longer, a servant wounds Cornwall...Act IV.Gloucester now blind, realizes in his suffering his mistakes, especially about his son Edgar. Gloucester meets "poor Tom" not realizing it is Edgar in disguise. Edgar leads his father to the cliffs of Dover where his father wishes to commit suicide.The Duke of Albany renounces his wife Goneril, realizing that he has been on the wrong side... The Duke of Cornwall (Regan's husband) is now dead. The rivalry for Edmund by Regan and Goneril intensifies.Kent wonders how Cordelia can be so good and her sisters so evil. The King of France will not oversee the battle about to begin. Cordelia is saddened by what she learns of King Lear's plight...Cordelia has her men search for her father... With the battle almost about to start, we learn Albany has switched sides again, supporting Goneril and Regan's forces against the invading French.Regan worries more about her sister's intentions for Edmund more than the battle that lies ahead... Edgar continues to lead his father to the cliffs of Dover where he tricks him that he miraculously survived his fall. Lear learns of Gloucester's blindness.Edgar kills Oswald when he attempts to kill Gloucester. Oswald's letter, which comes from Goneril, reveals instructions for Edmund to kill her husband, The Duke of Albany so she may marry him. Cordelia finds her father Lear who deeply regrets how he treated her...Act V.Regan and Goneril put Edmund on the spot by demanding he choose for once and for all, which one of them he loves. Albany decides to fight on Regan and Goneril's side but only to fight an invading power (France).Cordelia's forces lose to Goneril and Regan's and Cordelia and Lear are taken prisoner. Captured, King Lear tries to comfort Cordelia. Albany congratulates his allies but now turns on them. Edgar fights his brother Edmund, mortally wounding him. Goneril kills herself and poisons sister Regan.Edgar reveals his true identity to Gloucester who dies from a heart unable to take both grief and joy. Albany and the dying Edmund try to prevent Lear and Cordelia being hanged but are too late for Cordelia.Lear howls with pain his loss of Cordelia. Kent is finally recognized for his loyalty by Lear. Lear, unable to take further pain, dies. Albany is left to restore order following this tragedy...