Goneril’s actions tend towards the immoral. Through her bitter deeds, she is the instigator of Lear’s rapid descent from King to beggar; turning his generosity towards her into his biggest regret, “Nothing could have subdued nature / To such a lowness but his unkind daughters.” She banishes him from her household which is a cruel warped echo of his banishment of Cordelia. This is a deed designed to taunt, ridicule and ultimately hurt Lear.
Cordelia is portrayed as the antithesis of Goneril. Her pure intentions and sentiments are sincere and innocent. She remains a symbol of perfect morality due to her prolonged absence during play; she undoubtedly has flaws but Shakespeare choses to keep them hidden. In this sense, Cordelia is but a foil character used to illume the flaws of others.
Regan is a passive follower of Goneril, bereft moral guidance and devoid of conscience. Take out the key influences of Goneril, and Cornwall, her husband, and Regan is divested of strong characteristics. Though she is capable of committing vicious acts, she is more likely to leave it to others and there seems to be a lack of real maliciousness in her character. Her amorality allows the events of the play to flow around her, to wash over her, she creates no waves of her own, she is dragged in the current of Goneril.
There is a sea between the natures Goneril and Regan, and that of Cordelia. Cordelia is present for very little of the play, so little in fact that she appears a figure of imagination, or of folklore. Goneril, on the other hand, is imprinted on every scene in it, while Regan remains present but far from the foreground. All three have an element of power, Cordelia through France, Goneril and Regan through their households. Cordelia’s very personality is a rebellion against the influences of her older sisters, while her sisters’ personalities are a direct result of Lear’s treatment of them. Cordelia’s probity and modesty refuse to allow her follow her sisters’ insincere professions of absolute affection, her sisters hyperbolic sentiments are clearly false to everyone but Lear, “And find I am only felicitate / In your dear Highness’ love”. However, her love for Lear far outstretches any vision of love created by her sisters, she simply “cannot heave / [Her] heart into [her] mouth”.
The favouritism of Lear in regards to his daughters raises the idea of nature versus nurture. Cordelia is a clear favourite, however he is not at all suspicious of Goneril and Regan’s words, they must not have revealed their true minds to him previously. This appears to be more of an oversight by Lear rather than anything else, as Cordelia is aware of their nature “Cordelia leaves you: I know you what you are”. The elder sisters (Goneril in particular) have been waiting for the day that they are preferred to their faultless little sister. Therefore it has been necessary for them to keep their masks on, so they can act without restriction when their opportunity comes. Lear’s preferment of Cordelia has caused the rift between the sisters, and a cloud of distrust and resentment hangs over the family.
Their shared exclusion from their father’s affection has meant Goneril and Regan are extremely close and loyal to one another. They support and trust each other completely until the final act “Must be content to think you old, and so - / But she knows what she does”. Regan the opportunity to abandon Goneril when Lear comes to her, therefore becoming the golden daughter she always wished to be, but instead she sides with her sister and expels her father. This is a rare moment in which Regan’s values come into play. The only thing that separates them is Edmund. This is interesting as for two who invest so much in status and wealth, they are beguiled by Edmund, who was born without either. Goneril poisoning Regan is an irrational act, one which she soon regrets so emphatically that she commits suicide.
In conclusion, Shakespeare expresses his view on sisters with great lucidity throughout the play, touching strongly on the concepts of the contrast between siblings, the effects of favouritism on family dynamics and loyalty between sisters.
In the two texts king Lear and pride and prejudice the view of sisters could not be anymore contrasting. In king Lear we see these feuding sisters that are evil, conniving and selfish. A direct foil of this is the sisters in pride and prejudice who although drive each other mad at times love one another dearly . Looking particularly at the sister Lizzy and jane these two are like ham and cheese they go together perfectly although they have very different personalities they get on like a house on fire and it's an extremely sweet thing to see and we become very attached to this pair. To contrast this looking at the sisters Goneril and Reagan in king Lear, these also get along quite well it would seem but it isn't long before the differences are apparent and it is very clear that these two care like for each other and are ready to betray their sister without much pain in fact inflicting the pain on their sister would be the real way to put it as Goneril goes and murders Reagan. These two pairs are real foils of one another and show how different a similar relationship can be portrayed. An interesting thing also about these pairs is there attitude and approach to their younger sisters. Jane and Elizabethan are very caring towards their younger sisters and act as mother figures almost to them. They are able to enjoy their company and laugh with them. Goneril and Reagan on the other hand belittle their younger sister Cordelia and have little care for her. In king Lear Lear there seems to be now mother figure for the girls therefore you would believe that the eldest sister would step in and take on that responsibility but Goneril does nothing of the sort and rather than this pair enjoying the company of their younger sister they laugh at her and enjoy when she is in pain.
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ReplyDeleteThe views of sisters and their relationships could not be more different in 'King Lear' and 'Pride and Prejucice'. The balance of the family often hinges on the sister-sister dynamic and as we see they can either lift the family from the ashes or crush it into the ground.
ReplyDeleteBoth the Lear and the Bennet families have only female children but that is where the similarities stop. Austen's view of sisters is a complete juxtaposition to Shakespeare's. In 'Pride and Prejudice' the five sisters show a remarkably solidarity to each other, always offering advice and never truely criticising another's decision (they only spread it as gossip), however in 'King Lear' there appears to be almost a chasm between the sisters. Goneril and Regan are only united by the common enemy of Cordelia and as soon as she is gone they turn viciously on each other.
Goneril and Regan Lear could also be said to be foil characters for Jane and Elizabeth Bennet. At the beginning the Lear sisters seem to agree on everything (while never really talking about anything) and their soul goal is to rid themselves of Cordelia. The somewhat supportive relationship that these sisters have soon crumbles though as the contrasts between their characters clash and ultimately lead to their undoing. The Bennet sisters however share everything with each other and happily have disputes and argue over differences. This allows the eldest two to build a friendship (as apposed to simply being relations) that we never see in 'King Lear'.
The views of sisters in 'King Lear' and 'Pride and Prejudice' could not be more conflicting. To put it simply; the Bennet sisters would die for each other while the Lears die at the hands of each other.