Some thoughts to King Lear

As I read King Lear, one thought kept occurring to me:  Lear is a man full of contradictions. He doesn't know what he wants, but he wants it all the same.

An appropriate quote for a poster about King Lear.

1. At the beginning he says that he has a plan to divide his kingdom and give the largest part to the daughter that loves him most.  Yet, after Goneril has spoken he immediately assigns her her portion, without hearing from either of his other daughters.  The same thing happens after Regan speaks, he gives her her portion without hearing from Cordelia.  So it would seem that he already knew how he was going to divide the kingdom.  If he were really waiting to hear what his daughters thought, he would have heard them all, and then divided the kingdom.  As it is, Lear says he wants to give the largest portion to the daughter that loves him most, but it appears that he has already decided that it should be Cordelia.  Which is what makes her refusal to play his game all the more crushing for him.



2. He says he wants to divest himself of the kingdom, of the daily affairs and the tasks that come with being king, but he still wants to be respected and have the power and control that he has as king.  He doesn't want to actually be king, gladly giving those duties over to Cornwall and Albany, but he still wants his hundred knights and servants and daughters to obey him when he commands them.  Sorry, Lear, you can't have your cake and eat it, too.  One or the other.  Either you're the king, or you're not the king.

It really is no wonder that he goes mad,  the world that he has set up for himself is so full of contradictions that nothing makes sense; it is full of nonsense, which is what he embraces.


It was also interesting to look at parallels within the text, especially comparing Lear and his three daughters and their familial interaction with Gloucester and his two sons and their familial interaction.  This is something I want to look more into, study the lines and passages more carefully and draw out the specific similarities and differences, but on the surface it is interesting to note that Lear has all daughters, Gloucester has all sons, one of Gloucester's sons is illegitimate, but all of Lear's daughters are his.  And in both cases it is the youngest who is actually most loyal, though the father chooses to believe otherwise when others convince him of their treachery.
I'm sure that this study has been done already, I should look into that as I continue my careful reading of the text looking at these parallels.  It should be fun.