Far From a Fairytale

We know that King Lear is a tragedy but we are not really sure why until we begin to read it. At first I thought that it was a nice story. It had a fairytale kind of start with three beautiful daughters and a map that showed their land. The setting was a castle and I could close my eyes and picture the beautiful and elaborate clothing.

Right away we learn that King Lear is giving up power and control of his kingdom before he is too sick. However, he wants to be called King until his death and he wants 100 of his knights always with him. I figured that this theme was what made the play a tragedy. I could imagine how the next few lines would go. Like King Richard and King Henry, we have a King that has disturbed some order and will surly shed blood before the closing act. I was wrong.

I began to understand that he was an older man during a time in which a King did really keep the peace and order in a country. Lear was truly troubled when he had to give up his country and ultimately his power to daughters, women. This is where the tragedy lied. A King had to step down. King Lear was a person that had the power at all times and now he had to give it up. He had becoming older and was relying on his daughters because they were all he had left. Without his power and his control, Lear was just a weak and vulnerable man. I still don’t like his character, but could relate a tiny bit after reading and seeing the way his daughters treat him. Shakespeare made King Lear a human being.

The daughters were the object of my dislike in Shakespeare’s King Lear. Two out of the three were conniving and manipulative. During the ‘love test’ scene all their devious words needed no dissection. They said things to try and win over their father. Though there was still an incestuous tone between the King and his children, it was much more muted. I felt that Goneril and Regan were preying on their father. They were no longer powerless, but slowly becoming dangerously powerful. Regan and Goneril take power to another level and I feel ultimately will be the two that make this play into a tragic story.

Cordelia’s character was drastically different from her sisters. In my opinion she is the strongest character in King Lear that we have met so far in the first act. Her utterances during the ‘love test’ show a woman that has had enough. Cordellia says, “Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave my heart into my mouth. I love your majesty according to my bond; nor more nor less” (1.1.90). She is no longer performing for her father even if that means she does not get control of land. He simple statement is a breath of fresh air to the scene.