King Lear

I agree with Kahn’s argument that the point of King Lear is for him to unlock an area of himself that he had never realized was there. Unfortunately because he lacked any emotional attachment to his daughters, they, Goneril and Regan, just essentially throw him away and do not think twice. One starts to feel bad for Lear and how ignorant he appears to be about his relationship with his daughters and where he went wrong. He is old by the time he realizes that two of his daughters are cold hearted and ruthless. They quickly show that they do not care what it takes to get what they want, even if it means destroying their own father.

As for Cordelia, as discussed in class, judging from their previous relationship Lear sees her as a type of spouse. The fact that they get along so well shows a severe contrast to how Lear, Goneril and Regan get along. It is admirable that Cordelia would choose to be completely honest with her father at a time when she had the ability to gain the most power among her and her sisters. It proves that she really did love her father enough to show him tough love in the hopes that he would better himself. On the contrary, maybe Cordelia was brutally honest with her father and did not show him the least bit of compassion because that is how she was taught. Cordelia remains true to herself and I think that she is probably the most like her mother in that sense. I believe that it is mainly Cordelia who teaches her father what he needs to do to become a better person. Yes, his other two daughters did betray him, but Cordelia being his favorite would have made what she did or thought matter more to him.

For the time period it is remarkable that Shakespeare wrote about a man possessing both a masculine and feminine side. It seems that during this time males and females were thought to occupy completely different and separate characteristics. The absence of a mother would make sense that a father would have to take on dual roles, but it is also not surprising that Lear, who is male, would fail to realize this. For the majority of the girls’ lives, he does not think twice about the impact of not having a motherly figure present would have on their lives and development. On the other hand, maybe he does realize this and chooses the denial route, where he believes the girls can get by without two parents to lean on. The girls are handled like employees and are not shown the affection and compassion that would be expected from a parent. He is all business with them, which is why he cannot understand it when his body starts to form tears over the fall out between him and Cordelia. When this occurs, it is clear that he is starting to realize where he went wrong with them and then begins to work on damage control. Lear continually shows just how scared he is to show any emotion over the turmoil that is going on in his life and truly believes the stereotype that the man is supposed to be “king” of a household and be the alpha compared to his female counterpart.