King Lear - Family: A Medium For A Betrayal

This exposes the evil habits in both domestic and political jurisdictions as brothers deceive brothers and children betray fathers. For instance, Goneril and Regan’s betrayal of their father enables them to ascend to power while in Britain where Edmund also joins them after deceiving Edgar and Gloucester (Shakespeare and Alan 301). This act of betrayal is a manifestation of greed and selfishness in Lear’s kingdom where ... ... middle of paper ... ...s that the parents trusted their families since they thought the children were always loyal. It is apparent that betrayal led to the demise and disintegration of families when the unwise and greedy children had to suffer. The author shows the theme of betrayal through a family medium to expose the significance of having a strong familial bond free from political inclinations.

Kent was able to see Cordelia’s love for her father and tried to make Lear see the same thing. But instead he got punished for it. As the play progressed, Lear slowly came to clear vision. he realized that that his two eldest daughter did not truly love him after they locked him out of the castle during a tremendous storm. He also finally saw through that Cordelia’s love for him was so tremendous that she was not able to put it in words.

He feels betrayed because his daughters who claimed they “loved” him the most went against his orders. It is like as if Lear views himself weak and not powerful anymore. In Act I, Lear commands his daughters to promote their love for him but in respect for her father Cordelia refuses to. Since Cordelia did not obey his orders Lear throws her out. He becomes furious because to him he feels as if his daughter has no love for him.

He deliberately betrayed his father so he could gain his title, and he let it go about harsh measures. He is a more evil parallel to Goneril and Regan in this sense that he doesn’t truly love his father, and cares more about himself rather than anyone else. Edgar is a parallel to Cordelia. Edgar loves his father throughout the play, although his confusion clouds his thoughts at times. Edgar is virtuous and comes to his father’s aid, when needed, and he even prevents him from committing suicide.

In the first act King Lear commands his daughters to profess their love to him as payment for their part of the kingdom. The conflict starts when Lear’s youngest daughter Cordelia refuses to respond to the king’s request, due to the fact that she does not want to lie to her father. Lear comes across as a very egotistical man who has to have everything his way. Therefore, due to Cordelia’s response it would make sense for him to become so enraged that he would ruin her marriage with Burgundy. Lear makes it very apparent that he wants all of Cordelias love and isn’t satisfied with Cordelia’s words which are not offensive, but hurtful to her father who desires all of her love.

Edmund wanted the respect and love that Edgar received even though he was Gloucester’s bastard son. He claimed that he was not much younger or “moonshines lag of a brother” therefore he should be considered just as smart and able-minded as any legitimate son. He built up hatred toward Edgar and in order to get rid of him he convinced his father that Edgar had betrayed him through a letter. The letter that Edmund made read, “If our father would sleep till I waked him, you/ should enjoy half his revenue for ever, and live/ the beloved of your brother, Edgar”(1.2.55-57). Edmund portrayed Edgar as the son that would kill Gloucester only to inherit his money and share his inheritance with Edmund.

In conclusion, B.S. Field Jr.’s analysis is an interesting take on Willy Loman’s affect on his sons, as a crime requiring punishment, but it does not go far enough to see all the implications of his crime or depth of his crime. Not only has he corrupted both his sons, he has only gifted suffering to his wife all in a vain attempt to be a successful well liked man who is treated better than others, without earning their respect. Due to everything his family has went through over the years, Willy Loman’s crime will extend past his life through his children who share his defects and through the pain his wife can’t escape.

Lear shows poor judgment when he banishes his favorite daughter and leaves her without a dowry. His two other daughters, Goneril and Regan knew of their father?s weak point, and they worked it to their own advantage. This way, Lear was satisfied at hearing what he wanted and at being flattered by his own daughters. But he also puts upon his daughters the responsibility for his happiness, and thus he will blame them when he?s unhappy. We see this in Scene 3 when Goneril is unhappy with her father.

Betrayal in William Shakespeare's King Lear A kingdom without order is a kingdom in chaos (Bradley). William ShakespeareÂ’s play King Lear is a play full of deception, betrayal, and insincere promises. ItÂ’s a tragic play that demonstrates what happens when children are concealed by greed and loose their love and respect for their parents. Goneril, Regan, and Edmund declare their affection to their loved ones for their ambition for power and to raise there status in Britain. After they get what they want they reveal their heartless characters by disowning their loved ones.

In other character’s eyes they see Edmund as a good guy and that he has done nothing wrong. The way the William Shakespeare Describes Edmund is a surprise to Glouscter and Edgar. He is said to be a good brother and a loyal son to Glouscter. Edmund sees himself as what he is doing is ok and acceptable to do. He thinks that he can get away with anything if he jus... ... middle of paper ... ... manage to throw him out they started to fight over Edmund, he had started to mess around with both daughters, later Albany decided to say that Edmund and Goneril have been planning to kill him and that he is a traiter.