Characters in "King Lear"

Lear
1. When we first meet Lear, he seems to be a powerful, decisive figure. He commands the respect of those around him and is clearly used to being obeyed.
2. The storm on the heath reflects the storm that is in Lear's mind and, for a short time, distracts him from his sorrow and anger at his daughters' treatment of him:
  Annotations:
  - king
  1. His madness is his downfall - we see him go from this powerful authority to being a "old" King with no power.
    1. whilst out in the storm Lear goes into a crazed state of emotion and starts shouting at the elements 'Here i stand your slave a poor infirm weak ans despised old man'
    2. Lear is strangely optimistic when brought to prison with Cordelia 'come, lets away to prison. we two alone will sing like birds i'th' cage.
  2. The surest sign that the once- proud king is becoming insane is the mocktrial he conducts, in which two pieces of furniture play the parts of Goneril and Regan. He claims that the Fool, Poor Tom and Kent will be the judges.
    1. when Lear meets Cordelia again he begs for her forgiveness and says that even if she wants to give him poison, he will take it.
    2. In the final, tragic scene, Lear enters with the body of Cordelia in his arms. He is utterly grief-stricken 'Shes gone for ever- Cordelia, Cordelia stay a little Ha?'
3. Absurd love test 'which of you shall we say doth love us most'
  Annotations:
  - he was
4. He takes in Kent and loves the Fool showing that he does care for the lower class and respects loyalty.
  1. when Lear meets poor tom he sympathizes with him he regrets that he didnt look after the poor when he was king
5. He banishes Kent and disowns Cordelia
6. Audiences feel sorry for him he was treated horrendously by his family 'I am a man more sinned against than sinning'
7. even when Lear retires as king he still expects to be treated like one 'i have perceived a most faint neglect of late'
  1. Lear's capacity for change, then, for humanity and humility, outweigh his flaws, and errors and indiscretions
8. 'It is through his madness that Lear comes to a new outlook on life' Critic Arnold Kettle
9. His madness lets him learn the unjust place that he had ruled, that he must forgive Cordelia and that he must understand the poor.
  1. Lear is truly mad when he is brought to Dover to be with Cordelia. He wanders in the fields outside the French camp, ashamed to face Cordelia.
10. characteristics at the beginning; vain, egotistical, mad, naive, a poor judge of character, more interested in the appearance than reality, rash, impulsive, arrogent
11. Protagonist- tragic hero
Cordelia
1. Her refusal to do Lear's love test might be her rebelling against the conforms of the male characters?
2. Cordelia genuinely loves her father, but her refusal to flatter him leads to the tragedy that unfolds
3. She is presented as the perfect character who will restore good to the land with her return.
  1. 'Cordelia is an opposition to Lear's authority, She uses silence, the only possible way of subversion for woman of the middle ages 'Rubio
  2. She is honest and just, her "nothing" is the only bit of truth spoken by the daughters.
  3. Cordelia has no desire for revenge, nor any need to make her father suffer for having misjudged her 'and let this kiss Repair those violent harms that my two sisters have in thy reverence made!'
4. Cordelia’s main characteristics are devotion, kindness, beauty, and honesty—honesty to a fault, perhaps.
5. Cordelia could not be any more different than her sister
6. Cordelia's tears at the news of her father's treatment prove her compassion and establish that she is, indeed, the opposite of her sisters.
Gonerill
1. Goneril is controlling from the start
2. After professing her deep love for her father and receiving half of his kingdom, she betrays him and plots his murder.
3. She takes away any authority that her husband has and turns him against her.
  1. Goneril is Lear's eldest daughter. After professing her deep love for her father and receiving half of his kingdom, she betrays him and plots his murder.
4. Goneril and Regans treatment of their father merely reverses the existing patterns of rule Kathleen McLuskie
5. Goneril knows exactly what to say to flatter her father 'sir i do love you more than words can wield the matter deare than eyesight space or liberty'
Regan
1. Regan and Cornwall appear to be conscientious and reasonable people. Regan appears genuinely upset to learn of Edgar's betrayal.
2. She becomes more dominant, telling Cornwall to inflict more pain on Gloucester and leading the army against Lear.
3. Regan is cruel and callous er treatment of Gloucester is abominable 'And let him smell his way to Dover'
4. Regan's plucking of Gloucester's beard reinforces the point that she has no respect for age or rank.
5. Her lust for Edmund blinds her to what her sister is plotting against her as well as turning her against Goneril.
6. Regan blames Lear's old age on him being a bad judge of character 'Tis the infirmity of his age'
Albany
1. At the beginning it is suggested that he is so good and naiive that he has been taken in by Gonerill.
2. Doesn't say anything at the beginning so that the plot is focused on Lear and his daughters, which makes him look better later on.
3. He turns good at the end of the play and turns against Gonerill and Edmond, by arresting the latter.
4. He becomes a voice of justice at the end - he assumes the power and allows Edgar to speak of Gloucester's death.
5. With a new resistance to his wife, Albany joins the ranks of characters who undergo dramatic change during the course of the play 'o Gonril, You are not worth the dust which the rude wind blows in your face '
6. As Goneril's husband, Albany grows in stature during the play and ultimately finds the strength to resist his wife's efforts to have Lear killed.
Cornwall
1. Cornwall is much like Gonerill and Regan; ruthless and unpleasant.
2. You can tell Cornwall is mean and power-hungry when he puts Kent in the stocks for failing to show a little respect,
3. He is working against Lear - he wants to have power, and the crown, and acts as if he is entitled to it throughout.
4. He is responsible for the most shocking moment in the play, Gloucester's blinding, showing that he is violent and aggressive.'pluck out his poor old eyes'
5. Cornwall's purpose is to show how far the characters can sink, and then he is disposed of.
  1. The fact that he is murdered by his servant is justice and ironic - he betrayed Lear and his servant has betrayed him.
  2. He enjoys causing other people pain, and he likes being in power because then nobody is allowed to stop him.
Edmund
1. he feels cheated about his position is society. ' the younger rises when the old do fall'
2. Edmund will go to any lengths to get what he wants
3. 'Edmund has none of his fathers amiable,conservative qualities' Arnold Kettle
4. Yet in the end, Edmund repents and tries to rescind his order to execute Cordelia and Lear, and in this small measure, he does prove himself worthy of Gloucester's blood.
5. Edmund is the main reason for most of the deaths in the play
6. Gloucester's younger illegitimate son is an opportunist, whose ambitions lead him to form a union with Goneril and Regan.
7. Edmund is used to getting what he wants and somehow manages to have both sisters wrapped around his finger 'to both theses sisters have i sworn my love ..which of them shall i take?
8. Edmund excuses the betrayal of his own father, having willingly and easily left his father vulnerable to Cornwall's anger.
Edgar
1. Edgar is manipulated by his brother Edmund
2. 'The various roles Edgar plays are the means by which he matures into royalty ' Kenneth Muir
  1. Edmund's explanation that Edgar is ‘a brother noble, / Whose nature is so far from doing harms that he suspects none’.
3. The manner in which Edgar addresses his father indicates compassion, understanding, and an acceptance of his father's flaws.
  1. he is gullible and easily manipulated.
4. He is the good character that the audience has faith in and wants to see succeed.
5. By the end we can truly say that he is an honourable character as he is the only charater to not have commited a crime
6. Edgar disguises himself as a beggar called poor Tom.
Gloucester
1. By mistaking Edmund's motives, Gloucester is blind to the events occurring around him, even before Cornwall gouges out his eyes.
  1. Direct parallel with Lear who casts out his one good daughter.
2. he deeply regrets not believing Edgar 'O my follies then Edgar was abused. kind Gods. Forgive me that and prosper him.
3. Positive - he helps Lear out on the heath, denounces Gonerill and Regan and tries to reconcile with Edgar.
4. His pain reflects Lear's madness and his suicidal thoughts keep the end of the play bleak.
5. Our first impression of Gloucester is that he is a foolish, insensitive, superstitious man. He introduces his son Edmund to Kent, but jokes crudely about Edmund's illegitimacy and the fact that there was ‘good sport at his making’
6. We begin not liking Gloucester but throughout the lay we see the real him Later, Gloucester is willing to sacrifice his own life for the king. This heroic behavior sets Gloucester apart from his youngest son,
7. Gloucester is introduced as a father who does not understand his children.
The Fool
1. Comic Relief - he helps to form a break during the more tense moments
2. Dramatic Chorus - he narrates the play and foreshadows what is going to happen at the end.
  1. “The Fool does not follow any ideology. He rejects all appearances of law, justice moral order… Lear, insisting on his fictitious majesty, seems ridiculous to him… The Fool knows that the only true madness is to recognise this world as rational.” Jon Kott
3. He tells Lear the truth but is never banished for it he is the only one that can be completely honest with him
4. he helps lear realise that it was a terrible choice to give the kindom away in the foolish manner he did . 'Thou hadst little wit in thy bald crown when thou gavest thy golden one away'
5. The Fool's use of irony, sarcasm, and humor help to ease the truth, and allows him to moderate Lear's behavior.
6. The Fool assumes the role of Lear's protector when Cordelia is banished.
Kent
1. Kent is detirmined to stay loyal to Lear throughout the whole play - he speaks the truth and comes back disguised when he is banished.
2. Kent is so loyal towards Lear that he even follows him into the after life even after being offered joint rule of the kingdom with
3. "The world of King Lear would be considerably darker without Kent's diligence"Rebecca Warren
4. He is a good character - he speaks the truth throughout, he cares for Lear and Cordelia,
5. Kent is disgusted by the way Lear's daughters treat him 'his dog- hearted daughters'

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Characters in "King Lear"

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