King Lear And A Thousand Acres

The iconic playwright, William Shakespeare, is one of the most critically beloved writers of all time. His timeless stories still maintain cultural relevance today, despite being written centuries ago. Part of Shakespeare 's appeal, is that his plays can be understood by the uneducated masses of Victorian England, and still be intellectually edifying to British Nobility. Characters like King Lear, who are incredibly intense and tragic, may not require much thought to understand, but deserve a profound analysis in order to fully appreciate. Timeless characters like King Lear, have been emulated in fiction ever since the character made his debut in Shakespeare 's play. Larry Cook from A Thousand Acres, although not an identical representation,

In the same way as Lear, Larry possesses power, authority and land. He is heavily involved in his church community and is seen as a decent family man. Not only are his deeds admirable, but his age also commands respect from those younger than him. King Lear is ruler of one of the most powerful nations in all of Europe and is a loved King with strong allies like, Kent and Gloucester; Lear is also up in age and demands respect from those younger than him. As highly regarded public figures, each character is accustomed to seeing events play out as they wish, meaning that they have little experience in dealing with opposition or disappointment. Similarly to Lear, Larry decides to divide his property in order to avoid family conflict after his death and so that his daughters are not “lumped with inheritance taxes, giving the government money”, however; he faces disappointment in the form of his youngest daughter. For Larry, when his daughter, Caroline “wants to think about [the decision]” instead of praising her father for his ingenious decision, he comes to the conclusion that “She doesn’t want [any shares]. Simple as that”. Larry goes so far as to shut Caroline out of his home when an important business decision regarding the farm is being made. Larry’s disownment of Caroline is nearly identical to Lear’s disownment of Cordelia. When Cordelia refuses to vainly profess her love for her father, Lear admonishes her that “Nothing will come of nothing [and urges her to] speak again” (1.1.4). When Cordelia once again, disappoints her father, Lear banishes her from his kingdom, letting her know that if “[her] banish 'd trunk be found in [his] dominions, The moment is [her] death” (1.1.8). Both these characters willingly push away the people in their lives with the most love and respect for them all because of their pride. It was the youngest daughters of both