King Lear

1. King Lear By Shakespeare When we are born, we cry that we are come to this great stage of fools. - Lear, Act IV Scene 4 What does that mean?

2. Dramatis Personae • Lear – king of Britain • Goneril – his eldest daughter • Regan – his second daughter • Cordelia – his youngest and favorite daughter • Albany – Goneril’s husband • Cornwall – Regan’s husband • Kent – a faithful nobleman • Gloucester – another loyal nobleman • Edgar – Gloucester’s rightful son • Edmund – a bastard of Gloucester • Fool – a loyal clown who entertains Lear

3. Our story begins a long, long time ago, in a place far, far away… • Setting: England • Time: ??

4. Lear and his three daughters

5. At Lear’s castle… • Lear decides to give up his throne and divide his kingdom among his three daughters • His daughter, Cordelia, has two suitors – the king of France and duke of Burgundy • Lear asks his daughters how much they love him • Goneril and Regan flatter, but Cordelia says that she loves him no more than a daughter loves her father “Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave my heart into my mouth: I love your majesty according to my bond; nor more nor less.”

6. Angered, Lear disowns Cordelia and divides his kingdom between Goneril and Regan • Kent tries to defend Cordelia, but Lear banishes him from Britain • Lear gives Cordelia to the king of France, and though Cordelia is not happy about leaving her father with her sisters, she leaves England with her husband • Lear gives his power to Albany and Cornwall, the husbands of Goneril and Regan

7. The treachery begins… • Lear settles down to live with Goneril with 100 of his knights • Goneril tells her steward, Oswald, to be disrespectful towards Lear • Kent returns, disguised as a man named Caius and defends Lear • Goneril offends Lear and dismisses 50 of his knights • Lear is angered and storms out of Goneril’s palace with his knights and Fool • He sends Caius (Kent) with a letter to Gloucester

8. Meanwhile… • Edmund shows his father Gloucester a forged letter that said that Edgar was planning to take over his lands • Edmund pretends to help Edgar, but is actually plotting to have Edgar removed • He persuades Edgar to flee and wounds himself to make it seem that Edgar attacked him • Gloucester is convinced and vows to capture Edgar

9. Betrayed! • Kent (Caius) gets into a fight with Oswald • Cornwall and Regan break up the fight • The loyal Caius is placed in the stocks for 24 hours • Lear arrives and demands that Caius; Regan refuses, but allows Lear to stay at her palace • Regan dismisses all of Lear’s knights, and Lear leaves in anger

10. Lear goes insane • Goneril, Regan, and Cornwall are glad that Lear is gone, but Gloucester is worried for his king’s health • A storm approaches and Lear and his last servants (Caius and the Fool) walk into a health • Lear stands in the rain and curses his daughters

11. The storm builds up • Kent sends a man to Dover to tell Cordelia of her father’s plight • Kent brings Lear into a nearby cave, where they meet Edgar, who disguises himself as a madman (“Poor Tom”) • Gloucester then arrives and takes them to a farmhouse • Edmund decides to betray his father

12. He tells Cornwall that Gloucester was helping Lear • At the farmhouse, Gloucester tells Lear, the Fool, and Caius to flee because Cornwall was planning to kill them • Cornwall arrives and captures Gloucester • Gloucester is tortured, his eyes are ripped out • A servant wounds Cornwall and helps Gloucester escape • They meet Edgar (in disguise still as a madman) and Edgar leads his blind father the rest of the way to Dover, where a French army under Cordelia is stationed • Gloucester realizes that he had mistaken Edgar

13. Blind Gloucester

14. The plot tightens • On the way to Dover, Edgar and Gloucester meet Oswald • Edgar fights Oswald and kills him; he finds a letter from Goneril to Edmund, telling him to kill Albany so that she could marry him • We learn that Cornwall had died from the wound, and the Regan is also in love with Edmund… • There is conflict between sisters now

15. The storm breaks… • At Dover, Cordelia sends a sentry to find her father • Father and daughter are finally reunited • Lear is unconscious when they find him, but when he wakes, he recognizes Cordelia and asks for her forgiveness

16. The final battle • The English and French are at war • At the English camp, Goneril argues with Albany and fights with Regan for Edmund • Albany decides to cooperate with Goneril and Regan only because of the French invasion • The French army under Cordelia loses, and she and her father are captured by the evil Edmund • Edmund sends them to jail and orders the captain to have both of them hanged

17. The ending… • Edgar brings Goneril’s letter to Albany, and he decides to fight against Goneril and Regan • Another battle occurs, and in the climactic scene, Edgar fights Edmund and wounds his evil half-brother • Edmund admits to all his crimes and repents • Meanwhile Goneril poisons her sister Regan and commits suicide herself after learning of Edmund’s defeat

18. Edgar and Caius sent people to save Lear and Cordelia • The save Lear, but they are too late for Cordelia • Lear enters, holding Cordelia’s body • Howl, howl, howl, howl! O! you are men of stones: had I your tongues and eyes, I'd use them so that heaven's vaults should crack. She's gone for ever. I know when one is dead, and when one lives; she's dead as earth. - Lear, Act V Scene 3 • Edgar reveals himself to his dying father, Gloucester • Caius reveals himself as Kent to Lear, who in grief over Cordelia finally recognizes his most loyal servant • Lear though is completely mad and dies of grief over his daughter’s death • Albany and Kent are left to restore order following the tragedy

19. Lear carrying Cordelia

20. The End

21. Questions to talk about… • What is Lear’s weakness? • Was Cordelia’s answer to her father appropriate? • Why do you think Lear went insane? • Did Lear deserve what happened to him? • Who do you think displayed the greatest courage in the play? • Who do you feel the most sympathy for? Why? • Who do you think has the most admirable character? • Who is the true hero of the play? • What is the significance of insanity? What does it symbolize? • Do you see a parallel between different characters? • How many people died in this play? • Where is the climax of the story? • What is the theme of the play? • Would the play have the same effect on you if it ended as “they lived happily ever after”? Do you think a tragic ending is better, or a happy one? Why?