Emotions and the suppression of emotions in King Lear

King Lear is an exquisite example of the nature of the human emotion and how we connect to emotion. The heart is the key word in terms of emotion in King Lear. We see the warm-hearted, the hard hearted and the plain heartless. One of the biggest contrasts throughout the play in terms of emotional connectedness is King lear.

In the opening scene we see a contrast between openness in emotions between the daughters. On one hand we see Goneril and Regan who are prepared to say anything to please their father. They are quick to manipulate his feelings using emotionally intense language. Goneril loves her father more than "words can wield the matter", "dearer than eyesight" a love, in her own words that makes "breath poor, and speech unable." Cordelia on the other hand seems to struggle to dictate the love she feels or is suppressing her true emotions, something that she seems to maintain for the duration of this play. " I cannot heave my heart into my mouth."

In this scene we all so see a perfect example of Lear's tempestuous and short fused nature. It is clear he is quite a passionate man with the ability to become enraged after a short time (maybe that is his biggest flaw??-that he is too well connected to express his emotions?)

As he flies off the handle he describes how much he loved Cordelia in comparison to he sisters and says "I loved her the most" -we get an idea of the type of person Lear was. He was a bad parent with the ability to manipulate emotions. This also shows his character-he was someone who craved affection and love to the point where it pushed him to madness- there is a huge sense of vulnerability and sadness in that.

In regards to Edmund and Glocester, we see the manipulation of emotions (mirroring the daughters to Lear) as Edmund's forged letter pretending to be from his brother shows the depth of evil and malice and the sheer lack of empathy as Edmund is prepared to slander his own brother and to put him in harm's way.

It also shows a parallel as to the lengths characters are pushed by society and how it affects their actions: Edmund is pushed to the extremes of having to slander his own brother's name due to Edmund's bastard status (which deems him a lesser) and King Lear is pushed to the extremes of insanity after dividing his land amongst his two scheming daughters, Goneril and Regan.

In the second key scene we see the same emotional  misogyny that is seen at the start of the play as female characters (the daughters) are described as animals. "Wolves," "Serpents"   "foxes," "crabs," "vultures," "a boil," "a plague sore," "embossed carbuncle." -The daughters lose their human characteristics. They deny their maternal instincts. It allows us to prepare for the ferocity of Goneril, Regan, Cornwall, and Edmund later on.

Shows the lack of empathy and a certain lack of emotional disconnectedness? Do Lear and the Fool mean to say these things- do they realise the emotional impact their words have?

In the storm scene Lear notes that the storm, unlike his daughters, owes him nothing and has no obligation to treat him any better.

Lear's line "O that way madness lies; let me shun that!" he believes if he tries no to think about the cruelty he has endured at the hands of his duaghters he will avoid a descent into madness (foreshadowing!) shows how governed he is by his emotions and a strong degree of self awareness.

The relationship between the storms power and Lear's emotions are important to remember. Lear is so emotionally anguished by the way he has been treated he seems slightly oblivious to it. Maybe it is a parallel? is the storm a symbol of the inner turmoil and Lear's chaotic mind?

The use of powerful language ("Blow, winds and crack your cheeks!") emphasises the intensity and chaotic emotions, making Lear seem more like an uncontrolled animal. This echoes the relationship between human and animal that we saw when Lear and the Fool were angry with Goneril and Reagan.

 Lear's unstable mental state is primarily the result of the actions aganist him by his daughters. If we say that Lear's descent into madness is the core event of this play one could argue that emotions, their suppression, their manipulation and the feeling of emtion is the core theme of this play.

Lear is constantly shouting throughout this scene as the storm rages on in the background and shows an interesting aspect in the relationship between human and nature.

Lear describes his daughters as being like animals eg "those pelican daughters"- this is a really sad moment- what great emotional suffering must have Lear endured to call his daughters such spiteful things?

Edgar also uses emotional and animalistic imagery to describe the daughters again. (see earlier!)

We see a better connectedness between Lear and his emotions. "[1] A poor, infirm, weak and despised old man." He is to be pitied. The reflection of the person whom Lear describes matches perfectly.-" I am a man more sinned against than sinning." There is also something quite sad and vulnerable about this line too. At the start we saw a powerful and driven man and here we see a poor old man drowning in self pity.

"Is it the fashion that discarded fathers Should have thus little mercy on their flesh."

"Is there any cause in nature that makes these hard hearts?" (Lear Act 3:6:74) This brings an existential and philosophical side to the daughters and their behaviour. Are they naturally cruel people or was it the way they were raised? - nature vs. nurture.

At the start of "the Fall" scene we are once again greeted with the ongoing motif of nothingness and nihilsim in this play and we feel a great sense of despair and intense sadness for Gloucester and Edgar. Edgar is still playing the disguise of Poor Tom and wandering half naked and believes the worst part to be over following his cruel brother Edmund's plan falsely claiming Edgar was out to get Gloucester. Edgar is greeted with the recently blinded Gloucetsrer and because of the situation Edgar is forced to keep up the charade of Poor Tom.

"As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods: They kill us for their sport" The scene taps into the overwhelming sense of despair and hopelessness we feel.

Edgar is the beacon of hope and positivity to the despair of his father and in a dramatic and symbolic turn, Edgar turns Gloucester's suicide into a rebirth. The scene is a key moment for emotions and the manipulation of them. It is clear Gloucster no longer wants to live yet Edgar manages to reverse these feelings. It is also a powerful scene in terms of religious connotations and imagery.

Was it cruel for Edgar to do this and manipulate his father and take advantage of him? What were Edgar's aims? This scene reveals both the complicated yet kind hearted nature of Edgar.

We also see Lear in this scene and we see the misogynistic soliloquy- lines 124-130. Lear reveals himself to be someone with pent up emotions and very bitter.

As the play draws to a close we see Cordelia who is somewhat repentant for her sister's actions, giving closure to the emotionally draining journey. It shows an emotional maturity on Cordelia's part who is prepared to sacrifice her ego to rescue her father and cover her sisters. "Thy medecine on thy lips, and let this kiss Repair those violent harms that my two sisters Have in thy revernace made."

We see the opposite of this in Edmund's character. In my opinion one would probably describe Edmund as being a pyschopath. He lacks any emotional empathy and loyalty. He is a monster who manipulated Goneril and Regan whom he cared very little about and relished watching them scheme together to compete for his love. He is a pig.

The demise of Goneril and Regan is deserved of their evil nature. They are victims of their own greed and hatred.  They represent the theme of nihilism as a character- they both have nothing to offer humanity.

Shakespeare was conveying a sense of moral justice in the play through their deaths?  

Through all these events we can see how emotions are an important element of this play. We are unsure of how to feel about characters. Those who did wrong were wronged at certain points and we feel a certain sense of confusion about how we should or shouldn't feel.

By J.S

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