Examples Of Blindness In King Lear

In the play, Shakespeare uses the idea of blindness and plays on it, blindness theoretically means the disability/ incapability to not see or have sight. But in this play, Shakespeare uses blindness as not a physical flaw, however, he makes it a mental flaw. He makes blindness the inability to see people for who they really are as humans. Shakespeare showcases this through two characters, Lear and Gloucester, who are not able to distinguish their children for who they really are. This leads them to make bad decisions that lead to the deterioration of the society. Firstly, a key character to emphasize this idea is Lear, who in the first scene of the book showcases that he is incapable to distinguish his daughters for who they really are. He

He as a king is supposed to be making good decisions and should be able to distinguish from good and bad, however, Lear’s good judgement is clouded by his incapability to see the truth. He is so easily blinded by the expression and claims of love from Goneril and Regan, he becomes blindsided when it comes to Cordelia. He believed that Cordelia would announce her love in the form of the most flattering terms but he becomes infuriated by what she actually says to him. He is so blinded by the lies of Goneril and Regan that he cannot see that Cordelia is being honest and genuinely kind. Therefore, he banishes her in his anger and he also banishes his loyal ally, Kent, when he tries to tell Lear that he is being irrational. By taking the words and his daughters, Regan and Goneril, at face value, it results in the ripple effect of events to come which lead to the destabilization of society. This can be supported by the existentialist theory, which questions how one’s actions and decisions determine the meaning to his/her existence. In this case, the existence of Lear is determined by his decision to divide his kingdom into two parts, while banishing Cordelia and