As I was reading Act I of King Lear I was very interested in how
the King of France and King of Burgundy would react to Cordelia’s disownment
and banishment. I was eager to see
if both or either or neither of them would still want her as a wife without her
promised inheritance. Burgundy
acted how I expected—he saw this as an unfit business deal and respectfully
revoked his proposal. The King of
France, however, really surprised me when he not only still accepted her, but
he admired her and loved her all the more after her disownment and
banishment. At 1.1.243 he
adoringly proclaims, “’Tis strange that from their cold’st neglect/My love
should kindle to inflamed respect.”
It is clear that he fell very hard and very fast for the rejected
princess.
Personally,
I think that France is making a very wise decision as a leader of a country as
well as a man seeking out a spouse.
He has just witnessed first hand how loyal, true, and virtuous Cordelia
is. She holds on to her values and
morals even at the risk of losing her family, home, and inheritance. She will not flatter or give in to her
sisters’ phony adulation; she will only speak of the love that is and should be
in a daughter’s heart for her father. He also sees that she has accepted her disownment with
grace, where a panicked and angry disposition would seem completely
understandable and rational.
Unlike Burgundy who only views Cordelia as an expired paycheck, France
sees the priceless value of a genuinely good woman. He makes this clear at 1.1.240-241: “Thee and thy virtues
here I seize upon./Be it lawful, I take up what’s cast away.” As a King, it is very important to have
a loyal and true queen by his side.
In my opinion, I believe France definitely got the best deal of any of
the characters in Act 1.
Since
the beginning of this class, this is one of the first examples where a suitor
chose a woman solely for her inner character. In almost every other play we’ve read, the betrothing of a woman is simply a business deal.
Suitors choose a wife based on how much land and property she will come
with. We saw that in Taming of the
Shrew with Baptista’s strategic and business-like negotiations with his
daughters’ suitors. More recently,
I recall Henry V’s negotiation with the King of France for his daughter’s hand
in marriage. Henry only wanted the
princess because of her inheritance and land. It was very refreshing to see one of Shakespeare’s male
characters who actually treasures a woman’s virtue and inner value—such a
breath of fresh air!
