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Compare and contrast Gloucester and Lear at the end of the story
Main plot and subplot in king lear
Compare and contrast Gloucester and Lear at the end of the story
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Filial Ingratitude in Shakespeare's King Lear
In Shakespeare's King Lear, the main plot, which is focused around the error of King Lear, is mirrored by the subplot, which is based on the Earl of Gloucester's mistake. The main plot parallels the subplot in order to reiterate one of the main themes of the play, filial ingratitude. At first, both Gloucester & Lear are unaware that their disloyal offspring are taking advantage of them, and they have wrongfully accused their virtuous heirs. When they discover their mistakes however, it is too late to correct them.
In Act I, Scene I, Goneril claims, "Sir, I love you more than words can wield the matter...a love that makes breath poor, and speech unable; beyond all manner of so much I love you" lines 54-60. Regan, her evil counterpart also declares, " [I] alone felicitate in your dear highness' love" lines 73-74. Cordelia, his honest daughter cannot grant him such unfounded flattery and relies, "I love your majesty according to my bond; nor more nor less" lines 89-90. Lear enraged at her answer, b...
It is a fact that many human beings nowadays, or more specifically, those growing up under the influence of the American dream, have an attitude of entitlement. This directly relates to the idea that the world owes these individuals something. Often, one may find themselves taking things for granted and expecting things at no cost – all descriptions of the ordinary lives of many Americans. It may be true, that a sense of entitlement is naturally distilled into young children, and we may even be breeding human beings to have this element condensed into them at a young age. Children grow up with a sense of entitlement. We know what they want, when they want it. This further continues through a child’s life
The general plot of King Lear revolves mainly around the conflict between the King and his daughters, although there is a definite and distinct sub-plot dealing with the plight and tragedy of Gloucester as well. One of the main themes that Shakespeare chooses to focus on in King Lear is the dysfunctional nature of not only the royal family and Gloucester, but the heartache and emotional strain that goes along with being a parent and having to make a decision that will divide your children. This play focuses on not only the after effects of this decision, but the way in which it affects the King, his children and his subjects as well.
Two powerful characters in the play, aging King Lear and the gullible Earl of Gloucester, both betrayed their children unintentionally. Firstly, characters are betrayed due to family assumption. Lear banished his youngest daughter Cordelia because he over estimated how much she loved him. When questioned by her father, she responds with, "I love your Majesty / According to my bond, no more nor less." (I,i, 94-95) Lear assumed that since Cordelia was his daughter, she had to love him in a certain way, but he took this new knowledge and banished her without further thought. Secondly, characters were betrayed because of class. Edmund, the first-born son in the Gloucester family, should have been his father's next of kin. He would have been able to take over the position of Earl upon his father's death if he did not hold the title of a legitimate bastard. In his first soliloquy he says, "Why Bastard? Wherefore base? / When my dimensions are as well compact/ my mind as generous, and my shape as true " (I,ii, 6-8) Edmund believes he is at least equal, if not more, to his father in body and in mind, but the title that his father regrettably gave to him still lingers. Lastly, characters were betrayed because of family trust. Gloucester trusted his son Edmund when he was told that his other son was trying to kill him. Upon reading the forged letter written by Edmund, he responded with, "O villain, villain! His very opinion in the letter! Go, sirrah, seek him." (I,ii,75-77) Gloucester inadvertently betrayed Edgar because he held so much trust in his one son that he was easily persuaded to lose all trust in his other one. These blind characters were unfortunately betrayed there children, but they did it unintentionally and will eventually see there wrong doings.
In Act 1, Lear has all this land that he needs to get rid of, and he chooses to divide it between his daughters. Cordelia is the youngest daughter, and she is very independent. Regan and Goneril are the older daughters, and they abuse their power in many ways. The daughters have to show their love for him in order to get land. Regan and Goneril suck up to him and tell him that they love him. In reality, they don’t love him at all. They just want more power. Cordelia is very straight forward with him. She tells him that she loves him but not as much as her sisters. Lear gets mad by her response, which shows that the daughters have enough power to make him feel whatever emotion they want. They can easily get under his skin, and strip him of his power. His power was at an all-time high, but over time it gets taken over.
In King Lear, Shakespeare portrays a society whose emphasis on social class results in a strict social hierarchy fueled by the unceasing desire to improve one’s social status. It is this desire for improved social status that led to the unintentional deterioration of the social hierarchy in King Lear. This desire becomes so great that Edmund, Goneril, Reagan and Cornwall were willing to act contrary to the authority of the social hierarchy for the betterment of their own position within it. As the plot unfolds, the actions of the aforementioned characters get progressively more desperate and destructive as they realize their lack of success in attaining their personal goals. The goals vary, however the selfish motivation does not. With Edmund, Goneril, Reagan and Cornwall as examples, Shakespeare portrays the social hierarchy as a self-defeating system because it fosters desires in its members that motivate them to act against the authority of the hierarchy to benefit themselves. A consideration of each characters actions in chronological order and the reasons behind such actions reveals a common theme among the goals for which morality is abandoned.
What is team communication? Team communication is the process of conveying information to a group of people in a way that everybody understands. The first step in team communication: how you will react in different situation. Maybe you are prone to anger could you objectively look at the problem with an open mind (Paul Rutter). Team leader and member should understand their limitations, better they understand teams can communication effectively. Team leader must understand People communicate better when they feel more comfortable with each other. Team member must understand their role clearly or the team will never achieve anything if you are not on the same page. One important thing is communication of any Teams is you should know your audience, who you talking with. Team member should always know each other background. Beside moral or ethical standard, can destroying communication of any team Leader and members.
On its first day in orbit NASA engineers came to the conclusion that the foam debris that hit the left wing might have caused severe damage to the shuttle and could prevent it from a safe reentry.
The tragedy King Lear by William Shakespeare ought to be seen as a lesson on what not to do as a parent. By picking favorites, King Lear and the Earl of Gloucester leave a lasting impact on their children 's psyche, ultimately leading to them committing horrible crimes. The rash judgments, violent reactions, and blindness of both Lear and Gloucester lead to both their and their children 's demise. As a result, all of the father-child relationships in the play begin to collapse.
The setting of King Lear is one spoiled with materialism, and is portrayed clearly within the first scene. King Lear is demanding his daughters proclaim their affections towards, in order to divvy up the land of his kingdom upon his retirement. Upon this forcefulness, Regan and Goneril are willing to falsely profess their love towards Lear, with clearly negative intentions. Their deceit is established early in the play. Cordelia, Lear’s third daughter, refuses to comply immediately. She will not participate because she understands the vanity, although her feelings towards her father are the most genuine; she believes that there are no words to accurately express her love. Lear’s inflamed insecurities cause him to dismiss Cordelia, refusing her an inheritance. Her initial refusal is minimal as a means to convey the depth of concern she has for her father, as she witnesses her sisters fake their admiration for material wealth and power.
In Shakespeare's “King Lear”, the tragic hero is brought down, like all tragic heroes, by one fatal flaw; in this case it is pride, as well as foolishness. It is the King's arrogant demand for absolute love and, what's more, protestations of such from the daughter who truly loves him the most, that sets the stage for his downfall. Cordelia, can be seen as Lear’s one true love, and her love and loyalty go not only beyond that of her sisters but beyond words, thus enraging the proud King Lear whose response is: "Let pride, which she calls plainness, marry her". Here, Lear's pride is emphasized as he indulges in the common trend of despising in others what one is most embarrassed of oneself.
King Lear as a Tragedy Caused by Arrogance, Rash Decisions and Poor Judgement of Character
King Lear by Shakespeare portrayed the negative effects of power resulting in destruction caused by the children of a figure with authority. Through lies and continual hatred, characters maintained a greed for power causing destruction within their families. The daughter’s of Lear and the son Gloucester lied to inherit power for themselves. Edmund the son of Gloucester planned to eliminate his brother Edgar from his inheritance.
How the Sub-Plot Mirrors the Main Plot in King Lear by William Shakespeare One can say that the sub plot does mirror the main plot to some extent. Some are in subtle ways and some are in the more obvious ways. Shakespeare has two plots in order to intensify the main theme of tragedy that runs throughout this play. The main plot is in which King Lear is the tragic hero however it is clear that just by misfortune he is deprived of something very valuable to him by error of judgment and this is immediately highlighted in the first scene of Act one where he goes through a rapid transition of loving to hating his only truly loyal daughter Cordelia.
Lear's relationship with his three daughters, Goneril, Regan and Cordelia, is, from the beginning, very uncharacteristic of the typical father-daughter relationship. It's clear that the king is more interested in words than true feelings, as he begins by asking which of his daughters loves him most. Goneril and Regan's answers are descriptive and sound somewhat phony, but Lear is flattered by them. Cordelia's response of nothing is honest; but her father misunderstands the plea and banishes her. Lear's basic flaw at the beginning of the play is that he values appearances above reality. He wants to be treated as a king and to enjoy the title, but he doesn't want to fulfill a king's obligations. Similarly, his test of his daughters demonstrates that he values a flattering public display of love over real love. He doesn't ask "which of you doth love us most," but rather, "which of you shall we say doth love us most?" (I.i.49). It would be simple to conclude that Lear is simply blind to the truth, but Cordelia is already his favorite daughter at the beginning of the play, so presumably he knows that she loves him the most. Nevertheless, Lear values Goneril and Regan's fawning over Cordelia's sincere sense of filial duty.
Hollows, P 2002, 'Essentials of a smooth-running network', Communications News, vol. 39, no. 7, p. 16.