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King Lear is a Shakespearean tragedy about the re-education of a king and his people. In this, as
many of Shakespeare's plays, appearance does not always correspond to reality. The truth may not always
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be immediately apparent. In order to gain sight, several of the characters must first lose it. The journey is
tumultuous from loss of sight to new-found vision, but results in the realization of self and the nature of
life.
At the beginning of the play, King Lear holds absolute authority over England. He is noble and
respected, and in the highest position. However, he is growing old, and decides that it is time to transfer
ownership of the land to his three daughters. He declares without hesitation, "Know that we have divided
in three our kingdom" (I, i, -40), but he is blind to the consequences that apportioning the kingdom will
have on the country. He also fails to see the threat of impending civil war between the Dukes. Shakespeare
uses the division of the kingdom to set a faulty society, and to show that Lear cannot see the consequences
of his actions. Lear is established from this point as a flawed character. He is not blind as a result of
others' actions, but of his own doing.
Lear is also blind to the false flattery of his daughters, Goneril and Regan. He foolishly accepts
their over-enthusiastic proclamations of love. This demonstrates his self-indulgent behaviour; he would
rather hear flattering lies then the truth. When Cordelia speaks her true feelings and says, "I love your
Majesty according to my bond, no more nor less" (I, i, 4-5), Lear is insulted by her blunt words and
disowns her. Thus, Goneril and Regan are each allotted half of England, and Cordelia goes to France. The
audience realizes that Cordelia represents absolute truth and love. Lear's failure to see this is the tragic
flaw that causes his downfall. Shakespeare uses metaphorical blindness as the trigger for Lear's descent
from an all-powerful king to the most essential form of man. Lear has lost sight of the difference between
appearance and reality.
Soon, Lear realizes the true nature of his daughters, and that they have stripped him of his
authority. He no longer has his men, a symbol of his status. He has nothing, and it is the result of his
inability to see the truth. He is not welcome anywhere, so he heads out into a raging storm that reflects his
furious mood. He is desperate to figure out what went wrong, and at the same time fears going mad. In his
great swell of emotion, however, he stops to think
"Poor naked wretches, wheresoe'er you are,
That bide the pelting of this pitiless storm,
How shall your houseless heads and unfed sides,
Your looped and windowed raggedness, defend
you
From seasons such as these? O, I have ta'en
Too little care of this! Take physic, pomp;
Expose thyself to what wretches feel,
That thou mayst shake the superflux to them,
And show the heavens more just." (III, iv, 8-6)
Lear has had a change in character. Before, he shows little concern for the welfare of others and is very
self-involved. Now, he shows compassion for all mankind. He realizes his duty towards helping others; "I
have ta'en too little care of this!" He also acknowledges his own responsibility in what is happening to his
life. Shakespeare allows his audience to begin to respect Lear once again; they realize Lear is not entirely a
fool. The imagery of poor men makes the audience to see Lear as one. The image of having no protection
from "seasons" is a representation of what Lear feels emotionally. He is out in the storm like a wretch, but
thinks of other people rather than his own afflictions. He is gaining insight into what it is to be a man.
Lear finds Edgar in the hovel, and views him as the epitome of man.
"…Thou art the thing itself; unaccommodated man
is no more but such a poor, bare, forked animal as
thou art. Off, off, you lendings!" (III, iv, 108-111)
He is now stripped of his clothing, which is the last remainder of his former self. The clothing imagery is
employed as a symbol of status. After Lear has removed the bondage of clothing, the audience identifies
that he is liberated from his past mistakes. Shakespeare also uses animal imagery to affect the audience.
Lear is a naked like a beast. He is at the height of his transition from king to man, and has reached the
most primitive state. Although he has nothing, he is free to rise to the status of a great man once again.
This is a key turning point in the play, because from here Lear begins his ascension. Lear has gained sight
about the true nature of man. He is no longer blind.
As a parallel to reinforce the story of Lear, the Earl of Gloucester experiences a similar plight.
This heightens the discomfort and fear of the audience, because such extraordinary circumstances are
occurring simultaneously. Gloucester's bastard son, Edmund, forges a letter from his half-brother, Edgar.
Gloucester believes that Edgar is plotting against him. Like Lear, Gloucester is self-indulgent and believes
false declarations from the evil child. He is rash, and is quick to turn on his son Edgar with little evidence
"O villain, villain! His very opinion in the letter.
Abhorred villain, unnatural, detested, brutish villain;
worse than brutish!" (I, ii, 80-8)
He is blind to both Edgar's innocence, as well as Edmund's intentions. He has lost sight of the truth. This
affects Shakespeare's audience because it creates suspense and fear. The audience awaits what will come
of this falsehood, but remains incapable of stopping the outcome. Gloucester's language is vehement, and
his use of the word villain repeatedly demonstrates his rash and unclear thinking. He is unable to see the
truth partly because of Edmund's trickery, but also because of a character flaw. He has lost sight.
Gloucester's blindness to the truth is the cause of his turn in fortune. Edgar has fled, and
Gloucester remains with Edmund. Edmund desires his father's title and wealth, and tells Cornwall and
Regan that Gloucester is a traitor. Gloucester's blindness to Edmund's true nature has come back to him
full circle. He is tortured by Cornwall, and his eyes are plucked out. He realizes his mistake and Edgar's
innocence, when he desperately declares,
"I have no way and therefore want no eyes;
I stumbled when I saw. Full oft 'tis seen,
Our means secure us, and our mere defects
Prove our commodities. Oh, dear son Edgar,
The food of thy abused father's wrath!
Might I but live to see thee in my touch,
I'd say I had eyes again!" (IV, i, 18-)
4
Gloucester is at the bottom of the Wheel of Fortune. He has no one left to support him, and realizes the
great error he has made. Shakespeare uses Gloucester's tragedy to evoke pity from the audience. The
audience is sympathetic towards him because he is not as evil as the characters who have wronged him, and
because he has fallen from nobility to a lowly man. He regrets his rash banishment of Edgar so much that
he thinks he does not deserve eyes. His physical malady is a result of the metaphorical blindness that he
suffered. To see the true nature of Edmund and Edgar, Gloucester had to literally lose his sight.
Edgar also undertakes a journey in which he gains sight. Like Lear and Gloucester, he is brought
down by a character trait. Edgar, who represents absolute good, is flawed by his naivet. He is blind to
Edmund's scheming until it is too late. He fears Gloucester's wrath, and must flee from the castle. Like
Lear, he heads out into the raging storm. He assumes a new identity
"Whiles I may 'scape,
I will preserve myself; and am bethought
To take the basest and most poorest shape
That ever penury, in contempt of man,
Brought near to beast." (II, iii, 5-)
Later, in the same passage, he says, "Poor Tom, that's something yet Edgar I nothing am." (II, iii, 0-1)
He is now disguised as a madman. When Lear and his followers encounter him, he speaks nonsense. The
image of Edgar as the poorest, most primitive man is a parallel to Lear, but Shakespeare also creates a
contrast to Lear's real madness through Edgar's assumed behaviour. Edgar must participate in Lear's
games to save his disguise, but his asides inform the audience of his real opinion on Lear's state of mind.
His comment, "I nothing am", also sets the tone for Lear's theme of being stripped down to nothing. Edgar
loses sight of the truth, and thus loses everything.
Similar to Lear, Edgar falls to the bottom because he lost sight of Edmund's true nature. He gains
insight from meeting Lear, as Lear does from him. He watches Lear act like a desperate madman, and says,
"My tears begin to take his part so much they mar my counterfeiting." (III, iv, 5-60) He feels compassion
for Lear, and later says
5
"When we our betters see bearing our woes,
We scarcely think our miseries our foes.
Who alone suffers most i' th' mind,
Leaving free things and happy shows behind;
But then the mind much sufferance doth o'erskip
When grief hath mates, and bearing fellowship.
How light and portable my pain seems now,
When that which makes me bend makes the
King bow." (III, vi, 101-108)
His encounter with Lear has left him humbled. He realizes that he is not as poorly off as he once thought,
and also that Lear is a true friend, which Shakespeare returns to later in the plot. Although Edgar still feels
pain, he can now bear it. The effect on the audience is that Lear is again reinforced as a noble character.
The new fellowship between Lear and Edgar also establishes that the king's fortunes are starting to turn.
Edgar realizes that fortune is changeable. He has gained insight into the nature of life itself.
Through the trials and tribulations of these three characters, the audience comes to pity their
afflictions, and simultaneously fears that such things could happen to them. The characters fall from the
highest ranks into the lowest depths because they are blind to truth. They are only able to gain insight when
they have reached the bottom, and having nothing, open their eyes to reality.
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