King Lear And Sunset Boulevard Sparknotes

In both King Lear and Sunset Boulevard, a main character slipped into a delusional state of mind, but this did not occur by their actions alone. In King Lear, the titular character is aided by Kent, a man so blinded by his loyalty to the king that he is lessoned himself to continue to be near Lear. Additionally, in Sunset Boulevard, a dramatic film star, Norma, is living in a facade of former fame with the help of her servant, Max. Through enabling main characters, the authors are able to illuminate the spiraling madness and destruction that occurs when a person corroborates the skewed perception of another’s surroundings.
Both Lear and Norma had people that they held in high standing that were willing to descend to the level of a servant to stay near

enough to keep them on their pedestal: “If but as well I other accents borrow/ That can my speech defuse, my good intent/ May carry through itself to that full issue/ For which I razed my likeness.

Now, banished Kent,/ If thou canst serve where thou dost stand condemned,/ So may it come thy master, whom thou lov'st,/ Shall find thee full of labors.”( Act 1, Sc. 4 Ln. 1-8). This quote demonstrates that Kent is willing to demote himself in order to aid the king that he loves so dearly. Kent is cognizant that Lear is not acting properly when he sends Cordelia away and Kent is banished for protesting the command. Despite the unseemly action, Kent decides to return to the king’s side and help him along his journey. Shakespeare uses Lear’s descent into madness to show the devastating effects flattery and lies can have on what a person believes as truth. Kent continues the lie that Lear still has power through his devotion only fit for a king. In Kent’s well intentioned yet misguided quest to hold true to his king, he accentuates the effect of Lear’s inaccurate perception of what has transpired. “Your servant Kent. Where is your servant Caius?/ He's a good fellow, I can tell you that./ He'll strike, and quickly too.”(Act 5, Scn. 3, Ln. 342-345). Kent continues his devoted loyalty and attempts to withhold his

master’s honour when the dukes defy his power. “Call not your stocks for me. I serve the king.../ his messenger.” (Act 2, Scn. 2, Ln. 138-144). Kent’s continued belief in the respect his monarch is due is in sharp contrast to how the rest of the characters outside of Lear’s circle see him. Through this juxtaposition of perception, we see Shakespeare's comment on how much a person can lie to himself or herself about who they are before they inevitably fall into madness. Lear’s belief and Kent’s support of it cause lear to fall down a spiral of madness from the differences in perception of Lear, and the rest of the characters.
In Sunset Boulevard, Norma was deserted by the people that were most important to her: her devoted fans. In order to remedy this, Max sends letters to her that were postmarked as if they were from her fans. Max caters to his beloved Madame in multiple ways: “It was I who asked to come back. I could have continued my career, but I found it unbearable after she’d left me. You see, I was her first husband” (Wilder). This quote illustrates the ultimate sacrifice that Max made for Norma as well as his unrequited love for her. The admiration and affection that Max feels toward Norma is his motivation for creating a microcosm of fame for Norma to reside within. Norma depends on Max to reaffirm the world that she lives in: “Norma Desmond: It’s not true! Max! Max Von Mayerling: Madame is the greatest star of them all” (Wilder). Despite not starring in a film for about twenty years, Max fuels the fire of fame that resides in Norma and that ultimately skews her perceptions greatly as well as prompts her to commit internecine acts. Max’s coddling did not prepare Norma well for the rejection that she receives from Joe Gillis. Rather, indulging in a person’s wishes constantly is a poor touchstone for typical human interaction. When Joe opts to reveal his intentions to return to Dayton, Ohio, it is too much for Norma to bear. She takes the revolver that was intended for her suicide and employs it for the fait accompli of the work: the death of Joe Gillis. Through this action, Norma is trying to protect the meticulously built belief system she has made for herself. When Max and the hoi polloi acquiesced to the often outrageous requests made by Norma, they contributed to her spiral of insanity, even though they had the best intentions. The series of passive allowances contribute an important message to the work as a whole. People cannot live in a world of their own making. It is imperative that they face reality; otherwise there will be detrimental consequences, both for themselves and the people that surround them. Norma was never able to understand this fully because her sanity and human nature was already long gone.
King Lear and Sunset Boulevard both provide a compelling account of the deracination that follows the madness produced by false realities. In both works, the people around Lear and Norma, main characters of the respective pieces, shaped their perceptions of reality in a negative way. Though the characters had both fallen from their pedestals, the enablers, namely Kent and Max, attempted to construct a new tower for them to reside in from the broken shambles of the past. The subsequent, destructive events help illustrate the overall message that exists in both classics: If people are permitted to create their own reality, they will have trouble when confrontations with the outside world arise, and will conclusively deracinate themselves and everything that surrounds them.