The Foolishness of Ignoring Advice

The Foolishness of Ignoring Advice

In Disney’s the little Mermaid, King Triton gives fatherly advice to Ariel. He tells Ariel that she should love whomever she wants to, even if it is a human. .Ariel responds positively to her father, and happily takes his advice. In doing so, Ariel proves she has the intelligence and wisdom to accept her father’s guidance. In Disney’s the lion king, Zazu warns Simba not to play in the Elephant graveyard. Simba ignores this advice however, and plays there anyways. In the end, he falls down a rather large hill and gets hurt. If Simba had chosen to accept the advice, he would not have hurt himself or have disappointed Zazu. Both characters are given advice, but it is their own choice whether they choose to accept or ignore the guidance. Like these instances in classic Disney movies, many characters in King Lear are also given advice that they may choose to embrace or ignore. Throughout William Shakespeare’s play, it is shown that it takes a truly wise person to give advice. As well, those that are foolish choose not to accept the advice. In the end, the foolish will suffer from their ignorance. Throughout the play King Lear, this is shown repeatedly as the characters struggle to gain power and show their loyalty. Evidently, choosing to ignore the advice of others leads to suffering.

To begin, the wise offer crucial advice to those in need. Firstly, advice is used to warn friends. In the beginning of the play, Kent warns King Lear of the consequences of his actions when he cautions Lear to “Reserve thy state/ And in thy best consideration check / This hideous Rashness” (I.i.151-153). Kent feels that Lear is being much to rash in his decision to banish Cordelia. He believes it is a terrible decision, and he is worried about the implications of such a hasty conclusion. Kent is full of insight and perception, and uses his wisdom to help his good friend, Lear when he is in need. Additionally, the wise use advice to warn their masters. For example, the servant in Act III stands up to Regan during her vicious eye gouging, and strongly advises her to stop her monstrous actions. The servant is appalled by Regan’s actions and tells her that although he has served her since childhood, he has never done better service “than now to bid [her] hold” (III.