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critical viewpoints on king lear
king lear and the abuse of power
critical viewpoints on king lear
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In King Lear the society and the control of his land made me go to the approach of Marxist.
This means and involves the over scan of society and control of it. King Lear is starting to doubt his kingdom and his land because he feels like he is too old to be in charge and cannot really deal with the requirement anymore. He takes some time to think on what he should do and decides to give his land away to one of his beautiful daughters.
Lear is very optimistic on which one of his daughters should take the kingdom. Therefore, he asks each one of his daughters to plea there love to him. Reagan and Goneril lie, while Cordelia does not really feel that is the right way, so she denies him and is expelled from the kingdom. So Reagan and Goneril inherit the kingdom.
Now I think Edmund got pissed off and he wanted the power. So Edmund made a plan to rule against his father to have power. He even plotted to make Edgar his brother look like the bad guy. So now both families were having their own plot against them. They just want the power while their parents want the best for the people. They t...
Absolute in every child’s mind is the belief that they are right, despite all the evidence to the contrary. Until children grow up to raise children own their own, a parent’s disputation only inflates that desire to prove. Part and parcel to this, as one may find out through personal experience or by extension, cruelty towards parents is a reflection of a child’s own inadequacy (whether in large or small scale). In this sense, King Lear is a story of children with a desire to break past their hierarchal status. Whether it is the belief that a woman shall take a husband, and with that guard her inherited land, or what role bastards truly deserves in a society that preemptively condemns them. Cruelty at the hands of children accounts for almost
Lear: I’m old with older strengths with the burden of rule, legal ownership of territory and all the duties and commands that are thrown upon you regarding cares of state. Restless i have three times as many daughters as one and i have three pieces of a map. The last one being the largest and given to the blood and flesh which loves this old man more than for himself. So unleash your hearts for your words are future jewels, revenue, soil and marble, fuels of the earth and raiment.
The play of "King Lear" is about a search for personal identity. In the historical period in which this play is set, the social structure was set in order of things closest to Heaven. Therefore, on Earth, the king was at the top, followed by his noblemen and going all the way down to the basest of objects such as rocks and dirt. This structure was set up by the people, and by going by the premise that anything that is man made is imperfect, this system cannot exist for long without conflict.
Firstly, in King Lear, Shakespeare uses the idea of social illusion to develop ideas around civilization and torture. When Lear, Kent and the Fool find a hovel, Lear stands in the rain and starts praying for the “poor naked wretches, wheresoe’er you are,/ That bide the pelting of this pitiless storm” (III.iv.35-36). Lear becomes more compassionate for the poor when he leaves his kingdom. In King Lear, there are two main settings; the kingdom and the heath. When Lear loses his place in civilization, he changes from an uncaring king to a caring person. Civilization is supposed to encourage righteous actions towards humans, while nature is supposed to encourage animalistic behaviour. Lear’s change proves that the Kingdom is a place of torture whereas nature is a space that allows for characters to grow into compassion and kindness, traits usually associated with civilization. This is evident when Lear’s daughters betray him and he says, “The little dogs and all/ Tray, Blanch, and Sweetheart, see, they bark at me” (III.vi.63-64). Lear’s statement supports that his daughters are torturing him and not deferring to what he believes is his importance. However, Lear is not the only person who has made this realization. Edgar, who is Gloucester’s eldest son, also changes his view once he leaves
Cordelia uses her self-entitlement to create a newfound identity for herself that is stronger and more prominent. The text creator develops her character through a very strong leader who regardless of her gender is able to use her sense of entitlement to empower herself. On the other hand, closely following this concept set out by Shakespeare, he also expands on the other side of this curtain through King Lear. Lear’s fatal flaw is indeed is self-entitlement and this upper status of himself he has built up. It not only leads to the ultimate downfall of himself, but further also causes the destruction of the closely held relationships in his life – causing them to be lost or for the element of complete moral respect to diminish; degrading the value of entitlement. all in all, Shakespeare expands on this key element of self-entitlement and delivers the idea to the reader that when managed it can be a tool that empowers an individual, or when gone out of one’s control can be the singular reason to the ultimate downfall of an
Social pressures change as time passes, therefore it is interesting to see how these three texts whom differ by almost four hundred years perceive society and the effect this has on the protagonists; Shakespeare’s King Lear which was first performed in 1606 during the Jacobean era, presents a patriarchal society. Whilst, Arthur Miller uses the characters in ‘Death of a salesman’ to show the failure of the ‘American dream’ during the “golden era” of America in the late 40’s. The ‘American Dream’ was a set of ideals which suggested that anyone in the US could be successful through hard work, and had the potential to live a happy life. The sense of the deterioration in the equality of opportunities links to the fall in power and hierarchy in King Lear. Arudanthi Roy, however, uses her contemporary Indian novel to illustrate, using a proleptic and coalesce structure, the lives of the protagonists living in a post – colonial society. In each of these three texts there are characters who fit the stereotypes that society has instilled in them, but then there are those characters who noticeably differ from the norm; According to 19th century novelist Alfred de Musset “how glorious it is – and how painful – to be an exception.” Hence this statement can be seen as applicable to these characters, because in all three texts these characters do end up losing a lot.
actions can cause a great deal of predicaments for a leader such as King Lear, mainly
William Shakespeare devised Edmund as an ambitious character that seeks power over others within his tragedy King Lear. Tainted by his illegitimacy, Edmund must rise to power through his own capabilities and intellect rather than inheritance. However, his drive for power leads him toward corruption as he commits treachery to both his father and brother. Shakespeare demonstrates the problem society has with those who seek power as a means for retribution.
There is an unnaturalness where gender and generational roles are subverted. In the context relating to the death of Henry Tudor and the incest and witchcraft tainting Elizabeth’s birth and duality as a Virgin Queen. Overall in King Lear the issues surrounding gender are associated with unnaturalness, a deviation from the laws of nature, from the authority of God and the misuse of power. Gender and its treatment is the cause of the fall of Lear’s reign. The incest and adultery are a curse on the land and the royalty, the wind battles against the evil natures of the characters men. The restoration of the patriarchy and order in society is linked to the chastisement undergone by Edgar, and the result being the victory of his noble and chivalrous character over that of the false Edmund. The darkness and shame of the relationship to the female gender and sexuality are brought to life, and rage throughout, what was hidden or kept in the darkness is brought out. In relation to the context the issue being the challenge to patriarchal culture and the tragedy of the reversal of gender roles resulting from the hamartia or fall of grace of the noble
As a whole, the tragedy of Lear directly depicts the fallibility of man as it demonstrates the penalty for those who lack self-knowledge and conduct themselves in a corresponding manner. Eventually, the arrogance and sense of invincibility that go along with this vanity give way to the utter turmoil of the one whom they once consumed. However, this suffering proves a necessary adversity as one can only gain wisdom through hardship and despair. Not until this turmoil strips man of the wealth and power that previously blinded him can he fully perceive the dejection of un-accommodated man and empathize with him. Thus, the attainment of self-awareness should be man’s most crucial intellectual concern, as with it comes also the commiseration with common man.
King Lear, the protagonist of the play, is a truly tragic figure. He is driven by greed and arrogance and is known for his stubbornness and imperious temper, he often acts upon emotions and whims. He values appearances above reality. He wants to be treated as a king and to enjoy the title, but he doesn’t want to fulfill a king’s obligations of governing for the good of his subjects.
Many rulers throughout time have ruled unjustly or incompetently. When rulers do not rightfully rule, not much can change, since kings act as the deputy of God. William Shakespeare beautifully tackles this idea of when and how a king should lose his kingship, through allegories, in his play Richard II. Allegories have an effectiveness in revealing a political notion, that simply stating it does not have. Richard has allowed his garden, or his kingdom, to become a tangled mess, showing his ineffectiveness as a ruler. Shakespeare strategically slips in some allegories that try to tell the reader what to do about an ineffective ruler, like Richard.
In King Lear, Shakespeare portrays a society whose emphasis on social class results in a strict social hierarchy fueled by the unceasing desire to improve one’s social status. It is this desire for improved social status that led to the unintentional deterioration of the social hierarchy in King Lear. This desire becomes so great that Edmund, Goneril, Reagan and Cornwall were willing to act contrary to the authority of the social hierarchy for the betterment of their own position within it. As the plot unfolds, the actions of the aforementioned characters get progressively more desperate and destructive as they realize their lack of success in attaining their personal goals. The goals vary, however the selfish motivation does not. With Edmund, Goneril, Reagan and Cornwall as examples, Shakespeare portrays the social hierarchy as a self-defeating system because it fosters desires in its members that motivate them to act against the authority of the hierarchy to benefit themselves. A consideration of each characters actions in chronological order and the reasons behind such actions reveals a common theme among the goals for which morality is abandoned.
The first stage of Lear’s transformation is resentment. At the start of the play it is made quite clear that Lear is a proud, impulsive, hot-tempered old man. He is so self-centered that he simply cannot fathom being criticized. The strength of Lear’s ego becomes evident in the brutal images with which he expresses his anger towards Cordelia: “The barbarous Scythian,/Or he that makes his generation messes/To gorge his appetite, shall to my bosom/Be as well neighboured, pitied, and relieved,/As thou may sometime daughter.” (1.1.118-122). The powerful language that Lear uses to describe his intense hatred towards Cordelia is so incommensurable to the cause, that there can be only one explanation: Lear is so passionately wrapped up in his own particular self-image, that he simply cannot comprehend any viewpoint (regarding himself) that differs from his own (no matter how politely framed). It is this anger and resentment that sets Lear’s suffering and ultimate purification in motion.
King Lear by Shakespeare portrayed the negative effects of power resulting in destruction caused by the children of a figure with authority. Through lies and continual hatred, characters maintained a greed for power causing destruction within their families. The daughter’s of Lear and the son Gloucester lied to inherit power for themselves. Edmund the son of Gloucester planned to eliminate his brother Edgar from his inheritance.