Lear Quotations Act 2&3

Lear Quotations Act 2&3

1. Lear: Hysterica passio, down, thou climbing sorrow.

   • Lear is becoming rapidly hysterical with grief as he realises he has been deceived by his daughters.

2. Lear: O fool, I shall go mad!

   • Foreshadowing, ironically an example of Lear being insightful and self-aware, in recognising his deteriorating mental state.

3. Lear: First let me talk with this philosopher [to Edgar]

   • Mad people are driven mad due to their high levels of insight, Lear wishes to attain this

4. Gloucester: Pluck out his poor old eyes

   • Foreshadowing of his torture, old patriarchs inability to see clearly