King Lear - 1057 Words

William Shakespeare’s King Lear is a timeless play whose textual integrity lends itself to a variety of interpretations and in exploring the human condition the text remains relevant across a wide range of contexts. It is possible to present the text as exploring and affirming the human condition, where humanity is defined as the ability to love and empathise. However, in the same instance, a nihilist perspective, such as Peter Brooke’s 1971 production of King Lear, challenges this by outlining that humanity as an imaginary ideal. The notion that humanity is possessed only by those who understand and perceive the basic human condition can be seen to be explored in King Lear. Lear’s advancing madness allows him to perceive reality once†¦show more content†¦This is emphasised when Gonerill and Regan question him about his train, to which he responds with, â€Å"Reason not the need!† This shows that Lear believes it is what he possesses that determines who he is, demonstrating his misguided value judgements. In Brooke’s production, the camera is then seen to spiral around Lear, reflecting his emotions in relation to the betrayal of his daughters. However, during the storm scene, he relinquishes material possessions, crying, â€Å"Off, off, you lendings!† denoting his understanding that material possessions are without value. As a result, in the removal of his material possessions, a nihilist perception would interpret this as his acceptance of the worthlessness of all that ori ginally embodied him, further suggesting that he has forsaken his ego and resigned himself to the belief that he, like the rest of the world, will be fundamentally reduced to nothing. Deception occurs throughout the play and catalyses the understanding of the human condition. Both Gloucester and Lear are egocentric and succumb to flattery. Dramatic irony features, where Gloucester must lose his sight in order to perceive â€Å"how this world goes†, announcing, â€Å"I stumbled when I saw.† Similarly, Lear becomes mad upon discovering his daughters’ false love and discovers humanity in his madness. It could be suggested it is the devastation that they undergo through their children’s’ deception that catalyse their self-realisation, outlining thatShow MoreRelated Shakespeares King Lear - The Redemption of King Lear Essay746 Words   |  3 PagesThe Redemption of King Lear It is said that no other playwright illustrates the human condition like William Shakespeare. Furthermore, it is said that no other play illustrates the human condition like King Lear. The story of a bad king who becomes a good man is truly one of the deepest analyses of humanity in literary history; and it can be best seen through the evolution of Lear himself. In essence, King Lear goes through hell in order to compensate for his sins. LearsRead More King Lear Essay1229 Words   |  5 PagesKing Lear Every situation in life has an appearance, and a reality. The appearance of a situation is usually what we want to see. The reality, what is really going on, is not always as obvious to the observer. People who cannot penetrate through the superficial appearance of a situation will see only what they want to believe is true; often, the reality of a situation is unappealing to the perceiver. These are the circumstances surrounding the conflict that occurs in William ShakespearesRead MoreThe Tragedy Of King Lear1347 Words   |  6 PagesThe Tragedy of King Lear: William Shakespeare, a playwright of the 1600 s, has been well known for writing many plays and poems. His play titled The Tragedy of King Lear is remembered globally and is learned in many schools today. A continuous theme in King Lear is a disguise, which consists of many different forms. There are physical, manipulative, and figurative disguises. In the beginning of the play, characters already fall into this category. In the first act, King Lear is at old age andRead More Shakespeares King Lear - Goneril and Cordelia in King Lear953 Words   |  4 Pages The Characters of Goneril and Cordelia in King Learnbsp;nbsp; Nothing makes a story like a good villain, or in this case, good villainess. They are the people we love to hate and yearn to watch burn. Goneril, of Shakespeare’s King Lear, is no exception. Her evils flamed from the very beginning of the play with her lack of sincerity in professing her love for her father: Sir, I love you more than word can wield the matter; Dearer than eyesight, space, and liberty; Beyond what can be valuedRead MoreThe Tragedy Of King Lear Essay1745 Words   |  7 PagesIn William Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of King Lear, human suffering is exploited through exploring social destruction caused by love, lust, and loss. King Lear’s kingdom is broken down through the excess of love and hate. Behaviors resulting from such emotions becomes tragic flaws for the characters within the play, as the need for approval disrupts all natural social order, which is then represented by the natural world. The natural world and nature of society become intertwined as the plotRead MoreThe Villains of King Lear2097 Words   |  9 PagesThe Villains of King Lear â€Å"A villain must be a thing of power, handled with delicacy and grace. He must be wicked enough to excite our aversion, strong enough to arouse our fear, human enough to awaken some transient gleam of sympathy. We must triumph in his downfall, yet not barbarously nor with contempt, and the close of his career must be in harmony with all its previous development.† -Agnes Repplier What makes a villain a villain? Some people might say that it is maniacal laughter and aRead MoreEssay on King Lear949 Words   |  4 Pages King Lear Summary nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The play, â€Å"King Lear† by William Shakespeare, starts with noblemen Kent and Gloucester having a conversation and the audience finds out that Gloucester has two sons. Edgar who is his heir, and Edmund his unimportant son. This info. leads to the mini-plot. Then, Lear enters to say that he is going to end his life’s tasks and problems. He then points to the map, he tells the people there that he will split his land into three parts. They are goingRead MoreBlindness-King Lear1809 Words   |  8 PagesIt seems ironic that both the oldest characters, Gloucester and Lear, who are blind either metaphorically or physically. They both exemplify that wisdom does not always come with old age. The parallel characters are very important to each other, Lear who is blinded metaphorically, and Gloucester who is physically blinded. Both characters undergo radical changes and their once sightless decisions become regrettable actions. They are unable to see people for who they truly are; thus their tragedy isRead More Shakespeares King Lear - Suffering of Cordelia in King Lear1507 Words   |  7 Pagestragedy of Shakespeare’s King Lear is made far more tragic and painful by the presence and suffering of the kings youngest daughter, Cordelia. While our sympathy for the king is somewhat restrained by his brutal cruelty towards others, there is nothing to dampen our emotional response to Cordelias suffering. Nothing, that is, at first glance. Harley Granville-Barker justifies her irreconcilable fate thus: the tragic truth about life to the Shakespeare that wrote King Lear... includes its capriciousRead More plotlear King Lear Essays: Importance of the Parallel Plot in King Lear810 Words   |  4 Pages Importance of the Parallel Plot in King Lear nbsp; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Literature can be expressed using many different techniques and styles of writing, some very effective and others not as much.nbsp;nbsp; One of the methods chosen by many is the use of so called parallel plots. Parallel plots, or sometimes referred to as minor, give the opportunity of experiencing a secondary storyline going along with the main plot that otherwise would be unmentioned.nbsp;