Who Is Shakespeare's King Lear-Who Can Blame Them?

Words: 824
Pages: 4
Open Document
Shakespeare’s King Lear - Who Can Blame Them?
In Shakespeare’s King Lear, the two fathers, King Lear and Gloucester, struggle in dealing with their good children (Cordelia and Edgar) and bad children (Goneril, Regan, and Edmund). King Lear asks his three daughters “‘[w]hich of you shall we say doth love us most [?]’” (1.1.50) to hand his kingdom over to the ones who satisfies him; but, the two daughters neglect him after they inherit the kingdom. Edmund, Gloucester’s illegitimate son, attempts to get rid of every obstacles including his own brother and father. The childhood environment and upbringing could significantly influence on children’s whole life so that children need proper guardians to guide and to help them establishing morality …show more content…
He wants to take over his brother and father’s prestige and wealth by eliminating them. He doesn’t feel guilty about his cunning and rather justifies himself saying he’s taking back what he needs to be deserved. Erik Erikson, a developmental psychologist who is profoundly influenced by Freud, uses the term “eight stages” and “identity crisis” to explain his theory; Everyone goes through eight developmental stages with biological and cultural interaction and a person who successfully accomplishes the stage can be developed as a normal and healthy individual while the one who fails the stage will have mental deficiency. Edmund is the illegitimate son who is disrespected by the society and even by his own father. During the conversation between Kent and Gloucester, Gloucester says he was shame of Edmund pinning his adultery on the mistress and Edmund. Edmund seems he missed Erikson’s fourth stage, Industry vs. Inferiority, and turns his inferiority into the distorted choices: taking other people’s possession. Edmund says “’the base [s]hall top th' legitimate’” (1.2.20) as he prepares a fake letter to get rid of his brother, and it indicates his abnormal mind. Edmund says “[o]ur father’s love is to the bastard Edmund [a]s to the legitimate” (1.2.17) before he entraps Edgar and “[y]et Edmund was beloved” (5.3.220) before he dies as if he wants to hear that he was loved. Lawrence Kohlberg’s moral
Show More

Related Documents: Who Is Shakespeare's King Lear-Who Can Blame Them?

What Are The Events In James Shapiro's The Year Of Lear

“The Year of Lear” by James Shapiro is a book about Shakespeare’s life and works during the year 1606. James Shapiro is an author and professor at Columbia University that specializes in Shakespeare and the Early Modern period. He carefully analyzes the events that occurred during that year that gave Shakespeare inspiration to write his tragedies. Shapiro was successful in demonstrating how events like the unification of England and Scotland by King James, the outbreak of the plague, the gunpowder…

Words 1128 - Pages 5

How Does Shakespeare Explore The Theme Essay

How does Shakespeare explore the theme of responsibility through the characters of Lear and Gloucester in Act One, Scenes 1-3? The play King Lear, written by Shakespeare was first printed around 1603 and its first known performance in 1607. It was the first attribution to Shakespeare and was a 1608 publication in quarto of uncertain provenance. The Tragedy of King Lear, a more theatrical version was included in the 1623 First Folio. Shakespeare explores many themes throughout this play but one of…

Words 1856 - Pages 8

Essay Characters in Hamlet and Hamlet Creative Reading

Creative Reading Portfolio Entry Section I: Significance of Title Hamlet is much like Shakespeare’s other great tragedies, such as Macbeth and King Lear, in which the play is named after the protagonist. Hamlet is the Prince of Denmark, nephew to Claudius and son of the former King of Denmark and Gertrude. Section II: Author William Shakespeare is one of the most well known poet, playwright and actor. Shakespeare’s work is studied, read and performed worldwide. He has been very influential on the…

Words 1619 - Pages 7