Title: The Tragedy of King Lear

Genre: Play (drama, tragedy)

Author: William Shakespeare
Period/ School: Elizabethan England
Publication Date: 1605-1606

The Author and His Times: Queen Elizabeth ruled during the time of the play’s publication—
perhaps influencing Shakespeare’s opinion on traditional women’s roles and leading to a feeling
of anxiety regarding women in leadership positions and a loss of faith in the Great Chain of
Being. Having an independent, female ruler challenged the perceptions of many at that time,
pulling them out of their social comfort zone and leading the English people to feel that some of
their most well-established rules and customs could be overturned. Shakespeare lived from April
1564 to April 1616. He had two daughters, who, due to living arrangements, he rarely saw—
perhaps a source of inspiration for the sense of distance that Lear feels from his own children.

Form, Structure, Plot: The play is divided into five acts, is told linearly, and has two plots that
eventually intersect near the end.

Characters: The main character is Lear, and supporting characters are Cordelia, Reagan, Goneril,
France, Burgundy, Cornwall, Albany, Kent, Gloucester, Oswald, the Fool, Edgar, and Edmund.
Major characters are fully round; while some of minor or villainous characters, while not
completely flat, seem to lack the same level of complexity. This same pattern seems to hold true
when judging whether characters are static or dynamic. While there are several examples of
characters regretting past decisions and trying to redeem themselves as they adapt to the rapidly
disintegrating world around them, other, more simplistic characters do not respond to their
environment or evolve emotionally with the same intensity as some of their peers. Due to the
high level of deception and trickery that takes place, little that characters say about each other—
at least leading up to the climax of the play—can be entirely trusted, as it is based an illusion
rather than reality. The protagonist of the play is Lear, as it is his thoughts and actions that dictate
the behavior of the majority of the other players, and he is ultimately the one with the most
daunting struggle to overcome. Secondary protagonists are Cordelia and Edgar, who must both
overcome the deception of their siblings to win back the acceptance of their fathers. The
antagonists are Reagan, Goneril, and Edmund, who have no rightful claim to power, but have
sought it out regardless, therefore upsetting the Great Chain of Being; they are also all master
illusionists and are able to manipulate the insecurities of others to serve their own needs.
Cordelia; young; brave, honest, devoted; often played by attractive girls with long hair; differs
strongly in temperament from her sisters, independent-minded, loves and is committed to her
father, but not more than appropriate, image of purity but is also strong; her death elevates her to
martyrdom status; her name is more lyrical than that of her sisters and may be derived from
“heart of Lear,” her name also seems to have many positive connotations, such as “accord,”
“cordial” and “core”; “The jewels of our father, with washed eyes Cordelia leaves you. I know
you what you are, and, like a sister, am most loathe to call your faults as they are named. Love
well our father. To your professed bosoms I commit him. But yet, alas, stood I within his grace, I
would prefer him a better place. So farewell to you both.” (Act 1, scene 1, line 269-277). This
piece of dialogue reveals the sharp-tongued and bratty side of Cordelia that is easy to overlook
when compared to the images of her innocence and purity. This quote shows that Cordelia is the
only one who seems fully aware of her sister’s actions and motives.
Edmund; young; manipulative, dishonest, power-hungry; handsome; dislikes his brother and
father and is willing to take advantage of their trust for his own gain, acutely aware of his
illegitimate status, desperate for acceptance for society, tries to redeem himself at the last
moment; Edmund is the embodiment of societal disorder and uncertainty, he divides people and
breeds distrust and jealousy; “Why bastard? Wherefore base? When my dimensions are as well
compact, my mind as generous, and my shape as true, as honest madam’s issue? Why brand they
us with base? With baseness? Bastardy? Base? Base? […] Well then, legitimate Edgar, I must
have your land, our father’s love is to the bastard Edmund as to th’ legitimate.” (Act 1, scene 2,
line 6-18). This quote, while both laying the groundwork for Edmund’s later deeds, also reveals a
strong insecurity and desire to prove himself that permeates his actions. He is desperate for
physical evidence of his father’s love, a way to prove himself equal to his brother and a way to
validate his place in life. He has turned away from social rules because they trap him in a lower
status than he feels he deserves—initiating the theme of gradually loosening the arbitrary titles
that keep people stratified to different social levels.
Lear; old; insane, passionate, stubborn; slowly reverts back to a childlike state as his world falls
apart, only to regain his sanity in time to witness Cordelia’s death, he has strong emotions and
expects to see a return in loyalty and devotion equal to what he feels he deserves, he angers
quickly; fills a God-like role in the play, ordering everyone and expecting them to act in
accordance with his desires, his turn to insanity mirrors a loss of logic and meaning in society;
“Thou wert better in a grave than to answer with thy uncovered body this extremity of the skies.
Is man no more than this? Consider him well. Thou ow’st the worm no silk, the beast no hide, the
sheep no wool, the cat no perfume. […] thou art the thing itself; unaccomodated man is no more
but such a poor, bare, forked animal as thou art.” (Act 3, scene 4, line 103-110) A vital part of
Lear’s healing process is the acknowledgement that he does not have God-like authority over
everyone else, that titles such as ‘king’ do not define him and cannot change him. It is in this
scene that Lear takes down the barriers that separate him from other people.
Edgar; young; loyal, passionate, naive; Edgar begins the play with a certain amount of naiveté,
but ultimately undergoes the most profound transformation, while on the run from his father he
disguises himself as Tom O’ Bedlam, saves his father, then returns to Lear’s palace to face off
against Edmund as a strong and enlightened individual who becomes the epitome for the forces
of good and justice and ultimately inherits the kingdom; Edgar is a model of how humanity can
evolve from ignorance into strength by going through all echelons of society, but his journey
eventually proves pointless, as there really is nothing worth evolving for; “Take heed o’ th’ foul
fiend; obey thy parents; keep thy word’s justice; swear not; commit not with man’s sworn
spouse; set not thy sweet heart on proud array. Tom’s a-cold.” (3, 4, 80-83). As Tom O’Bedlam,
Edgar represents mankind in its most vulnerable form, adopting this disguise makes Edgar the
strongest character in the play—as he is the only one not limited by social class in his ability to
understand the motives of others, and he needs this expansive worldview in order to defeat
Edmund. In this particular discussion that Edgar has with Lear, he is mocking the formerly hard-
set rules of proper conduct that kept the world ordered, which is ironic because the message that
searching out concrete answers amidst the chaos of the storm is the only way to regain order and
logic is in this case delivered by a mad man, the embodiment of insanity and lack of logic.

Setting: Pre-Christian England, meaning that typical Christian conceptions of morality do not
apply in this world; the kingdom is being disbanded, mirroring the disbanding of societal order
and Lear’s sanity. The setting becomes more important during the storm scene, when the natural
world turns against Lear, but ultimately makes him equal to everyone else. The natural world is
portrayed as wild and full of dangers, creating a feeling of anxiety.

Diction: Characters speak in blank verse; villainous intentions are discussed in prose, making
their speakers seem inelegant; written in Elizabethan English. More honest and simple characters
tend to use more honest and simple language. Both the Fool and Edgar regularly speak in riddles.
“Does any here know me? This is not Lear. Does Lear walk thus? Speak thus? Where are his
eyes? Either his notion weakens, or his discerning are lethargied—Ha! Walking? ‘Tis not so.
Who is it that can tell me who I am?” (I, 4, 232-236). In this passage, Shakespeare establishes a
tone of urgent uncertainty by having Lear ask many questions in succession. Lear also refers to
himself in the third person, indicating that he has lost touch with his identity. He clearly no
longer knows how to identify himself or what to expect of himself, and is searching for some
externally imposed reality to answer these questions for him.
“Th’ hast spoken right, ‘tis true; the wheel is come full circle; I am here.” (V, 3, 175-176). The
wheel can be interpreted two ways in this line: as an allusion to the wheel of destiny in Greek
mythology, and also to the futility of trying to progress or change one’s status in life. Until this
moment, Edmund believed that society moved linearly, and that he would be able to improve his
social standing by working his way up through the ranks. However, this is not the case; the
harder he works to escape from what he is, the closer he comes to his ultimate failure.
“We have seen the best of our time. Machinations, hollowness, treachery, and all ruinous
disorders follow us disquietly to our graves. Find out this villain, Edmund, it shall lose thee
nothing.” (I, 2, 122-125). This vision is foreshadowing and an indication to the reader that there
will be no true redemption, that humanity is on a downward slide and will not be able to recover.
There is also another appearance of the word “nothing,” which in this case adds to the tone of
hopelessness created by Gloucester’s words.

Syntax: Moments of beauty rhyme and have a more poetic structure. “Thy dow’rless daughter,
King, thrown to my chance, is Queen of us, of ours, and our fair France. Not all the dukes of
wat’rish Burgundy can buy this unprized precious maid of me. Bid them farewell, Cordelia,
though unkind. Thou losest here, a better where to find.” (I, 1, 258-263). France is one of the few
characters who can balance elegance and simplicity in his speech, and the only one who can
make the honest elaborate and beautiful. This set of lines is the most typically poetic in the entire
play, and therefore raise France in the audience’s eyes, making him seem noble and trustworthy.

Concrete Detail/ Imagery: Animal imagery is used often, especially in reference to Reagan and
Goneril, effectively lowering their position on the Great Chain of Being. The discussions in act
one, scene two between Edmund and Gloucester contain references to astrological signs and
astronomy, creating a philosophical conflict between predestination and free will, a theme which
becomes more important considering Lear’s relinquishing of his God-like authority. The word
“nothing” is used several times by various characters, underscoring the emptiness of the world.

Symbolism: Lear’s crown is used as a symbol of his masculinity, which he divides and gives to
his children. The nation of England itself is also divided, foreshadowing the familial divisions
that will later take place. The storm is a symbol of societal and psychological disquiet. People’s
eyes also play an important role—it is often after they have been psychically blinded, or
weakened in some other way, that they are most able to truly see. Letters are important.

Figurative Language: The Fool often uses riddles to express his thoughts on the situation as it is
unfolding. Because this is a pre-Christian play, there are many allusions to ancient Gods, which
may alienate the audience and make them feel uncomfortable, as if the rules that apply in this
world are not the ones they are accustomed to. There are also several anachronisms, such as the
illusion contained in the name of Tom O’Bedlam—a reference to a mental hospital that did not
exist at the time. These anachronisms are likely used for the audience’s convenience, who would
pick up the subtext, even if it is not completely historically accurate.

Ironic Devices: Dramatic Irony: The audience knows that Cordelia is really the most loyal
daughter and that Reagan and Goneril are self-interested, even though Lear does not. The
audience knows that Edmund is lying about Edgar’s letter and Gloucester does not. These two
situations create a motif of parents being deceived by their children. Situational: Often the wisest
advice comes from the people lowest in the social order, such as the servants, the Fool, and
Edgar disguised as Tom. Edmund refers to Edgar sarcastically, specifically emphasizing the word
“legitimate.” Euphemisms for male genitalia are often used, especially at Lear’s expense. This is
done to emphasize Lear’s emasculation by his daughters. Irony is used in a largely philosophical
sense near the end of the play, as it is slowly revealed that the things the various characters value
the most—land, family, loyalty, and power—ultimately destroy them.

Tone: The tone is somber. This is established early on, when Lear banishes Kent and Cordelia
from the palace, jarring the audience and making them feel uncomfortable. The play becomes
progressively serious in nature as many of the characters are physically or emotionally mutilated,
and Lear becomes increasingly delusional. The storm is an important tone-creating device, as one
can assume that the noise it created onstage was dreary and overpowering, emphasizing Lear’s
own insecurities and weaknesses. All characters—with the exception of the Fool, whose riddles,
while often melancholy in nature, are delivered with a twinge of humor—speak harshly to each
other, which makes it difficult to sympathize with any one character. The slew of deaths at the
end of the play reinforces the dismal tone and leaves the reader with a sense of emptiness.

Theme: One of the central themes is that all attempts to re-establish a sense of order and meaning
in a disordered universe will fail. The central conflicts in the play are brought about by a loss of
order, security, and faith in the rules and regulations that once kept the world running smoothly.
Through the disintegration of the family units, the breakdown of the Great Chain of Being, the
elimination of father figures, and the prominence of common people—all things that never
should have occurred in a strictly ordered world—the reader comes to understand that the rules
people cling to for comfort and security are nonexistent. Another major theme is that destiny and
free will are constantly in battle, and it often is not clear which is the victor. This struggle is seen
in Gloucester’s faith in astrology, which Edmund mocks. Unfortunately, being right does not
mean being happy, so ultimately having any worldview at all is a futile attempt to structure the
inherent chaos and fragility of the universe, and people do not benefit by having faith of any sort.

Significance of Title: Tells the reader that, while other characters suffer, the main tragedy of the
play will revolve around Lear.

Memorable Quotes: “Now, gods, stand up for bastards.” (I, 2, 23) This is Edmund’s most stirring
line. “The 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.” (V, 3,
325-329). This is where the final message of the play is revealed. “It is the stars, the stars above
us, govern our conditions” (IV, 3, 33-34) This line builds on the idea of destiny’s role in life.
“Didst thou give all to thy daughters? And art thou come to this?” (III, 4, 48-49) This line shows
how Lear is incapable of conceiving of anything outside of his own misery.