Criticisms - Worrall, Rutter, and O'Toole

Worrall, Rutter, and O'Toole

Cordelia

________ dies at the end of Act 5, the needlessness of her death prompting many critics to express frustration at the ‘ injustice of King Lear, perhaps because this prevents it from fulfilling any didactic means.

Edmund

________ presents an oxymoron between Kents ‘ crime and his punishment in saying ‘ and the noble and true- hearted Kent banished.

Britain

________ is a divided land, and would have been so at the time of Shakespeares writing, between four countries, and this is significant as, during the Jacobean period, there was an interest in historical tales and folklore explaining the formation of Britain today.

Goneril

‘as you are old and reverend, should be wise (Act 1, Scene 4)

Fool

‘if thou were my fool, nuncle, Id have thee beaten for being old before thy time/ ‘thou shouldst not have been old till thou hadst been wise (Act 1, Scene 5)

we can tell that Lear intended for the most bountiful and generous land to be given to Regan and Gonerils sister Cordelia in his inattentiveness to them which is juxtaposed with a warmth towards his youngest daughter that is elicited by no one else

‘Goneril, our eldest-born, speak first (Lear) / ‘whom even but now was your best object, the argument of your praise, the balm of your age, the best, the dearest (France)

there is constant reference to mythological stories of children eating their parents

‘he that makes his generation messes to gorge his appetite (Lear, Act 1, Scene 1)

the verb ‘digest carries with it connotations of devouring and hunting

‘with my two daughters dowers digest the third (Lear, Act 1, Scene 1)

there is much use of derogatory language that compares Goneril and Regan to animals, especially birds of prey

‘detested kite, thou liest (Lear to Goneril, Act 1, Scene 4); by comparing Goneril to a bird of prey such as a ‘kite, Lear also compares himself to carrion, as these birds often scavenge

This is shown in the elaborate and ceremonial language they adopt similar to their father in the love test

Gonerils ‘a love that makes breath poor and speech unable; beyond all manner of so much I love you, and Regans ‘I am alone felicitate in your dear highnesss love, are highly exaggerated statements

It is as Rutter explains

they learn to ‘manage words, and, in ‘managing words, they manage their father

The world of this play is anachronistic

it refers to God and it refers to the Gods

However, this could alternatively be part of the metaphor for the new replacing the old, as paganism in the play is mostly associated with the older characters, such as Gloucester or Lear, and scorned by the young

especially Edmund, who sees pagan understanding of predestination as outdated and sees that morality can be chosen, as people have free will

However, his repentance is not rewarded with salvation

instead he dies of a broken heart

the night comes on, and the bleak winds do sorely ruffle; for many miles about theres scarce a bush, Act 2, Scene 4)

we see that the natural world is rules by chaos

OToole argues that the ending is made even more unsatisfactory and Shakespeares point emphasised further by the undermining of the conclusive denouement that exists in Edmund and Edgars fight

‘the ending of the play is in a sense a second ending