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King Lear Sacrifice

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The foundations of family relationships lies in their love for one another. Sacrifices and expression of love are essential elements to further strengthen or weaken a family’s bond. How love is expressed between family members is a crucial part in sustaining healthy family relationships. However, if it is not maintained, it can bring downfall to the family. In King Lear, Lear’s mindset towards conveying love brought his downfall, he measured his daughters’ love by the flattery he received (Shakespeare, 1.44-45). Whereas in The Road, love was communicated between the father and the son by simple gestures, such as forehead kisses (McCarthy, 223). The sacrificial component in each novel played another prominent role in family relationships. In …show more content…

The father continually worked hard to find the necessary items essential for survival for both him and his son. However, the father sacrificed his body in the process. Despite the father sacrificing his body and health for his son, he is angry because he is aware of the limits that his body can perform. The son’s physique having “sunken cheeks” (98) and “knobby spinebones” (218) are evidence that despite the father’s best efforts, he cannot provide his child with the basic necessities of human life—food, water, and shelter. However, despite not able to provide these things, the father incessantly seeks to give the boy the best in each situation. By providing the child with treats such as the Coke Cola and the juice, it shows that these small acts were of a parent doing the best of his abilities trying to provide their child the best of things. The father’s feelings of uselessness because of his inadequacy to take care of his son (McCarthy, 96) led to his devotion to raise the chances of survival for the boy. The father’s persistence to push his body to the limits in order for his child to live is because he wanted his child to experience life. Then maybe in the end, his life may have had a purpose and his attempt to let his son live on can be justifiable. Furthermore, even though the father has a weak physique, he needs to be a …show more content…

To love is to have a strong emotional connection with an individual and being concerned for their welfare (OED Online). The love of a family brings sacrifice. Sacrifices are like a gamble, this is because it can be rewarding, in which it fosters love, or it can be detrimental, in which death and destruction is the only outcome. In King Lear, Lear’s sacrifice for the love of his daughters led to his kingdom’s downfall. However, in The Road, the father’s sacrifices led to the boy’s survival but it cost the father his life. Furthermore, there are a multitude ways to express familial love. In King Lear, Lear used extravagancy to appraise his daughters’ proclamations of love in order to properly divide the kingdom. Lear could not express his love towards his children properly, because of this his kingdom suffered greatly. Compared to the father in The Road, his love is immeasurable. The father’s love towards his child has surpassed human language because there are no need for words to describe the love he has for his son. In King Lear, despite having everything in his disposal, Lear did not give his children proper affection. And in The Road, even though the father had nothing to support his son, he gave him everything, even at the expense of his

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