Legitimacy and Illegitimacy

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Shakespeare utilizes a lot of family themes in most of his plays. Most of the family dilemmas he presents are directly correlated to disputes over power, whether it deals with sibling rivalry, parent rivalry, or some type of oedipal pairing. One of his compelling ideas surrounds the issue of legitimacy and illegitimacy when it comes to children and their parents. This dilemma continues to present itself in modern media, presenting a clear thematic imprint that describes a power dispute between the behaviors of legitimate and illegitimate sons, leading to the fate of the parent and the overall resolution of the work. Specifically dealing with Shakespeare’s play King Lear, and the latest Marvel film franchise surrounding the hero Thor, there is a direct correlation between the themes of these works and the presence of both a legitimate, and an illegitimate, son.
Shakespeare’s character Gloucester has two sons, Edmund and Edgar. Edmund is the illegitimate son, the result of Gloucester’s affair with his mother. Gloucester doesn’t let this idea rest, as even when he introduces his bastard son to Kent at the beginning of the play it’s mentioned. “Though this knave came something saucily to the world before he was sent for, yet was his mother fair, there was good sport at his making, and the whoreson must be acknowledged” (I.I.21-24). Gloucester openly denotes Edmund and puts him in his place as illegitimate and unfitting to take his crown. Edgar, however, is the more beloved son, and is the next in line to receive the father’s land and power. This battle between legitimacy and illegitimacy is difficult, because other than the fact that Gloucester is married to Edgar’s mother, the two boys are considered moderately equal. Edmund argue...

... middle of paper ...

...e biological son is interrupted by the presence of an illegitimate child, or one that is not biologically related.

Works Cited
Beauregard, David N. "Human Malevolence and Providence in King Lear." Renascence 60.3 (2008): 199-226. Literature Online. Web. 1 Dec. 2013.
Lee, Chris. "Branagh Meets Comic-Book Hero." Newsweek 157.19 (2011): 59-60. EBSCO. Web. 1 Dec. 2013.
Sahkespeare, William, and G. Blakemore. Evans. The Riverside Shakespeare: The Complete Works. 2nd ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997. Print.
Thor: The Dark World. Dir. James Gunn, Alan Taylor. Perf. Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston. Marvel Studios, 2013. Film.
Thor. Dir. Kenneth Branagh, Joss Whedon. Perf. Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston. Marvel Studios, 2011. Film.
Tiffany, Grace. "Montaigne, Cruel Fathers, and King Lear." Shakespeare Newsletter 62.2 (2012): 44. Academic OneFile. Web. 2 Dec. 2013.

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