King Lear Research Paper

Rage, blow! You cataracts and hurricanoes , spout Till you have drenched our steeples, drowned the cocks”(3.2.1-4). The acting done by both James Earl Jones and Lawrence Olivier in this scene is used to bring about pathos in the audience and show how Lear’s Hubris has led him to this very low point. Next, Internal suffering is demonstrated in King Lear following the climax of the films where Lear looses his mind due to his daughter’s betrayal (Western Waters 1).

Pride is one of the very many themes that plays a fundamental role throughout the play. Toward the start of the play Lear seems to be a vain and proud old king. Not so much violent, but not safe either. He wants the title of a king but does not want the responsibility that comes with it. His ignorance and pride prompts the distance of his only daughter who truly loved him, Cordelia (Lear 1.1.95) and the revelation that Regan and Goneril’s words were never genuine (Lear 1.1.70). Ignored by both Regan and Goneril, Lear turns against the storm and screams, “I am a man more sinned against than sinning” (Lear 3.2.56-57). Here, Lear still believes that he

In Shakespeare's famous tragedy King Lear, the parallel between natural and unnatural occurrences unifies the plot while further developing and foreshadowing the conflicts in the play. Lear's resignation from the throne and his method of distributing the land, as well as the unnaturalness of Gloucester's and Edmund's situation, brings turmoil and tragedy to a society based on natural order. From the physical works of nature such as the storm in the third act to the variety of unnatural politics, it all comes together to cause ultimate chaos in the kingdom.

Lear's insanity increases throughout the play, demonstrated to the audience through more speeches, until his emotions overthrow his reason at the climax of the play. Lear randomly shouts in to the storm,

The concepts of nature, humanity, power and love lay as a foundation for Shakespeare’s, King Lear. These notions are examined through the actions and realizations of King Lear, himself. Throughout the discourse of this play we view the portrayal of humans as animals and witness King Lear’s mistreatment after he gives away his power. When doing so he makes clear his view on love and its value, solely based on the flattery of words.Through nature, King Lear becomes grounded and recognizes the animalistic behaviors of the rich and the struggles of the poor. This recognition brings him to an utmost discovery that presents the reality of vicious humanity and changes the way he views the world.

His misery, due to his impending Madness and the Fury that he has accumulated from his daughter's deceit, perfectly alludes to the Raging thunderstorm that Lear denies taking shelter from. In act 3 scene 4 of King Lear, Lear admits there's a “Tempest in (his) mind” Which correlates to the raging storm on the heath. This passage shows that the storm is a relatively accurate reflection of Lear’s psychological state. In 'How To Read Literature Like a Professor', in chapter 10 it's more than just rain or snow, Thomas Foster says that a character can be cleansed by rain; “if you want a character to be cleansed, symbolically, let him walk through the rain to get somewhere. He can be quite transformed when he gets there…the stain that was upon him—figuratively—can be removed" (How to Read Literature Like a Professor, pages 77-78). This could be Lear’s cleansing. For he was sent out into the rain when he had all of his troubles and he may have found peace through nature. However, the exact opposite could happen; as Thomas Foster says that a character can go through rain and become symbolically stained because rain can create mud and make the situation worse than before (which also relates to King Lear). Foster also says in chapter 10 of 'How To Read Literature Like a Professor' that rain can be used as a plot device; it forces characters to endure certain conditions or circumstances. Perhaps it's because Lear was stuck in the specific circumstances and conditions of a raging storm that he lost his mind. Thomas Foster also said that rain was a misery Factor; it is the “Most wretched element” Foster stated. And perhaps Lear was already on the brink of Madness due to the wrongdoings of his daughters and so him being exposed to this “misery Factor” pushed him over the edge. Another claim from 'How To Read Literature Like a Professor' by Thomas Foster that

Due to this flaw, Lear has given way to the two older daughters to conspire against him.  Lear is finally thrown out of his daughters’ homes and left with a fool, a servant and a beggar. This is when Lear realizes the mistake that he has made and suffers the banishment of his two eldest daughters.  Lear is caught in a storm and begins to lose his sanity because he can not bear the treatment of his two daughters as well as the error he has made with Cordelia and Kent.  Lear also suffers from lack of rest when he is moving all over the place and the thing that breaks him is the death of his youngest daughter, Cordelia.  This suffering can be contrasted with other happier times like when Lear was still king and when he was not banished by his two daughters.

Lear knows he is a foolish old man for what he did to the Cordelia whom loved him the most but Cordelia, with all the reasons to hate her father still loves him and wants to help him gain what he has lost. Additionally, Lear shows how low he has become because of what he did: “Lear lies prostrate on the floor.” (Lopez 121). This refers to the state Lear is in, he is broken, defeated and wishes for death to come similar to Gloucester once he learns the truth about Edmund. With the novel 419 the father talks about how parents have moments where they were fools: “all the times they needed our love and we didn’t give it”.

F. When King Lear is out on the heath in a storm symbolizes a man who lost everything in life. At that precise moment, he had nothing when he had everything he could have wanted, but his ignorance towards the truth and false glorification led to his end. This can also, be interpreted as a message from Shakespeare about the falsehood of ambition as well as the ultimate question of life and

The storm scene in King Lear is one of the most involving scenes the play. During this scene Shakespeare gives the storm as a personality and it echoes Lear’s inner confusion. It allows Lear to grow a sense of human weakness and humbleness. Brook’s interpretation of the storm scene remains consistent with his simple Shakespearean techniques. Wobble boards and symbols are used for thunder and

Later in the play, during the storm scene, Lear’s madness becomes even more apparent. The chaos created by the storm parallels the chaos that is within Lear’s mind. Late in Act 3, Lear himself speaks on the effect that the storm has on his mental state. The King proclaims, “Thou’dst meet the bear i’the mouth. When the mind’s free, / The body’s delicate: this tempest in my mind” (3.4.11-12). The chaos that arises from the mental decay of Lear parallels the chaos that arises from the storm. It can be inferred that the chaos created by the storm parallels the chaos within the King’s mind, and the fact that King Lear says “this tempest in my mind” while is standing in the tempest, which means storm, proves that this parallel exists. This also further proves that authority is more powerful that chaos because as Lear’s mind decays, chaos consumes him, and as the storm rages on, the chaos from the storm consumes the country of England. The authority that Lear used to represent has been diminished by his decreasing mental capacity in the same way that the stable conditions of the country has been destroyed by the chaos that the storm has created. In the middle of the sixth scene of Act 4, Lear’s madness in conjunction with nature becomes evident again. The stage directions read, “Enter LEAR mad [crowned with wild flowers]” (332). First, the brackets around “crowned with wild flowers”

At the beginning of the play King Lear has more power than anyone else, the feeling of power made him think it was okay to ask his three daughters who loved him the most. When his youngest and favourite daughter Cordelia did not give him the answer he wanted by saying, “Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave / My heart into my mouth/ I love your majesty / According to my bond, no more nor less” (King Lear 1.1.91-93). he started lashing out. Lear clearly values Goneril and Regan fawning over him over Cordelia’s sincere honesty. Out of pride and anger, Lear banishes Cordelia, as well as Kent for defending her. Lear splits the kingdom in half to Goneril and Regan which leads to the deaths of many people in the play. Throughout the play he becomes increasingly shocked when people do not obey him the way they did before and the lack of respect he receives. With his loss of power Lear often responds to these problems with anger saying things like “My curses on her!” (2.4.138). about his own daughter. By the end of the play he recognizes that he takes responsibility for both his own problems and for those of others. King Lear’s actions were the first step to the plays tragic outcome.

In addition, he strips himself to expose the true nature of man which he realizes as insignificant. It's as if he is intentionally trying to alienate himself. As if he views all mankind to be a foreign concept due to the irrational state of life. He curses, “You cataracts and hurricanoes, spout Till you have drenched our steeples, drowned the cocks!(III. ii. 32)” to defy the elements. We can't help but see Lear act against nature as if he is the storm itself. Moreover, he tries to justify his temper by mentioning that nothing can hurt him more than his daughters. Not even the elements can corrupt this poor, old man. We see the storm bring about awareness when Lear exclaims,“You sulfurous and thought-executing fires, Vaunt-couriers of oak-cleaving thunderbolts, Singe my white head!(III. ii. 33)” as if he begins to finally discover his true hair color which directly correlates with his age. I see that Lear is becoming aware of his age, but not willing to accept the anemic state of his body and mind. He intentionally makes note of his hair color, but the realization leaves him in a state of mental insanity soon to discover his impending death.

The most prevailing images in King Lear are the images (metaphoric and actual) of nature. The concept of nature seems to consume the dialogue, monologues, and setting.

As the play progressed Lear's sanity went downhill, but his vision became clearer. When Goneril and Regan would not provide him with shelter during a furious storm, Lear realized that they were the daughters who did not love him. He also began to understand the words of Cordelia from the beginning of the play, he realized that she loved him too much to put into words.