Tragedies and Shakespeare's King Lear
Tragedies are various types of misfortunes or catastrophes that are typically referred to as tragedies. Therefore, for such events to happen, a string of violent events like interpersonal disputes must take place. This knowledge and Aristotle's definition lead us to the conclusion that tragedy is a creative work with a plot that mimics the complete and severe actions. According to Smith, the events are sad because of their size. Shakespeare, for instance, portrays the tragedy that befell King Lear when he wanted to split his kingdom into two (Goneril and Regan) based on the declarations of love each of his three princesses made for their father, King Lear. In addition to this aspect, the occasions that proceed within the literary work include the senseless and the grotesque horror (Smith).
The Impact of Honesty
Although honesty is an important virtue, it can sometimes act as a trigger for the crisis among the residents of a specific society. In the play, Shakespeare indicated how the King of Britain (King Lear) disowned his daughter for failing to declare her love for the king (Schafer 1504). Unlike Goneril and Regan who loudly claimed to love their father in order to acquire the share of the wealth the king had during his old age, Cordelia spoke honestly and bluntly with regard to her father’s request to declare her love for him. Thus, one can clearly see the inability of the king to detect falsehood amid the praise from his elder daughters. Instead, according to Holland (598), he disowns the honest and loyal daughter breaking the family tie. The anger that befell the king upon Cordelia’s affirmation of the depth of love for her father confirms that the king was not honest with his query. It thus means that the king expected a statement of respect from his favorite daughter, Cordelia.
The Consequences of Poor Decision Making
The decisions made by the ruling authorities can either trigger chaos or enhance the development of the respective regions. Regardless of King Lear’s long-term service to his subjects, a single mistake he made threatened to destabilize the kingdom. It thus means that his decision to share his country with the two elder girls has created the tension within both his family and the entire area of jurisdiction. Although professionals like Schafer (1510) term the move to be unreasonable to divide the monarchy, King Lear defended his decision. “Tis our fast intent, to shake all cares and business from our age, conferring them on younger strengths, while we unburden’d crawl toward earth,” he said (Holland 599). Without his knowledge, Lear betrayed his empire’s outstanding civilization.
The Threat of Colonialism and Tragic Choices
With the desire to fight against colonialism, governments try as hard as possible to avoid giving power to the visitors to make ultimate decisions that affect the well-being of the states. It is not an exception in Britain, where the residents were afraid of a foreign king taking over the leadership. For this reason, therefore, King Lear’s approval of the French suitors for the marriage of Cordelia is seen as tragic, since it exposes the kingdom to both the political and social crisis. This threat is inevitable because of the king’s pronouncement that Cordelia and her husband would govern the choice center section of the domain (Schafer 1518). Philosophical analysis of King Lear’s move of dividing the kingdom to his girls denies him the responsibility for his happiness. In the end, the Regan and Goneril think of dealing with their father in case he proves to be a nuisance to them.
The Role of Pride in King Lear's Downfall
The pride of King Lear contributes towards the disaster that befell him till the end of the writing. For instance, Kent realizes that the king has made a mistake by sending his daughter out. Following this step, Lear becomes furious with his honest disregarding of the move to disown his loyal Cordelia. After putting his daughters to take over the kingdoms, Goneril and her servants disrespect him. As a form of response, the king loses his temper when answering Oswald’s address. “My Lady’s father! My lord’s knave, you whoreson dog you slave, you cur!” he exclaimed (Schafer 1519). The only person who remains loyal to King Lear during this time is Kent, who the former once banished from the kingdom amid trying to protect Cordelia from being disowned by her father. When asked who he is, according to the work of Schafer (1521), Kent answers that he is “a man” meaning that he is an ordinary person.
The Tragic Fate of King Lear
In conclusion, the decisions and actions of the King Lear end up haunting him in the later scenes of the play. Goneril turns her servant Oswald against attending to king’s needs. To confirm her defiance of the hierarchy of nature that calls for her to respect her father, Goneril refers to the king as an “idle old man” (Schafer 1521). To react to the demeaning and insulting treatments, Lear decides to respond by cursing and physically attacking his oppressors. The discomfort, therefore, forced the king to succumb to the despair he was exposed to by his daughter and her stewards.
Works Cited
Holland, John. “Lear by Aribert Reimann, and: King Lear by Aulis Sallinen.” Notes, vol. 72, no. 3, 2016, pp. 598-599.
Smith, Emma. “King Lear.” Approaching Shakespeare from University of Oxford Podcasts, 22 Feb. 2012, http://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/king-lear
Schafer, Roy. “Curse and Consequence: King Lear’s Destructive Narcissism.” The International Journal of Psychoanalysis, vol. 91, no. 6, 2010, pp. 1503-1521.
