By E. C.
It is perhaps, through every fault of his own, that tragedy
unfolds around Lear during the course of the play. His quick temper, so fiery,
that the resulting billows of smoke cloud any of his better judgement. Which
unsurprisingly causes him to incorrectly evaluate the surrounding characters
and fail to identify underlying motives. Thus can the audience ever be brought
to pity him, even when he stands at the very source of all his misfortunes?
From the starting scene Lear demonstrates the fatal flaw in
his personality. Dividing up his land between his three daughters so he can
“unburthened crawl towards death”. In return he asks each to vouch for their
love for him, where after he can decide “which of you doth love us most”. The youngest,
Cordelia, refuses to play his game and feed his ego but as consequence come
“between the dragon and his wrath”. In a surge of anger Lear disowns Cordelia
even though he “loved her most”. Now that “her price is fallen” the prospects
of a good marriage and future become very slim; “lost a father… must lose a
husband”. The only offer Cordelia receives is a proposal from France, whom now
she must accept and follow. Thus Lear deals himself his first blow.
Left in the care of his other pair of mean spirited
daughters, who manipulate Lear’s famous temper to their advantage. Wishing him
out of their charge, they launch a series of insults; “more like a tavern or a
brothel than a graced palace”. Lear is quickly baited. His heated disposition
lands him and his companions out on the moors in the middle of a storm.
It is here that Lear begins to understand that he “hadst
little wit in his bald crown, when thou gavest thy golden one away” and “madest
thy daughters thy mothers”. From this Lear commences his descent into madness.
Surprisingly with his unstable mental state comes a realisation and deeper
understanding of others, along with a more empathetic treatment of them. Maybe
this is the biggest tragedy of all? That Lear had to go insane as punishment
for his previous mistakes and rashness. That when trapped in his madness, he is
in fact, trapped in purgatory.
By the end of the play one begins to believe that King Lear
really is a character “more sinned against than sinning” and either ironically
or unfortunately, Lear was caught in his own vicious cycle. One where he,
unknowingly, was sinning against no-one, but himself and grievously the wheels
that his temper had set in motion had gathered too much momentum to prevent the
ensuing tragedy.
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