Reading the novel King Lear is similar to trying to identify the good in the bad , which
for other reasons is why readers get so hooked to its plot. This tragedy written by
William Shakespeare depicts King Lear as a changed man as consequence of the
many outside and inside challenges he faces throughout the play. Such as losing the
trust of his beloved daughters, all of his material possessions, and let alone, he became
insane.
As King Lear, is the tragic hero of the play, Shakespeare decides to enlighten the
audience at the very beginning of the novel by giving Lear one of his hardest outside
challenges he will be facing throughout his development, which will, as a matter of fact,
shape the whole plot of the story. As Lear divides his kingdom between his three
beloved daughters, he decides to put his daughters through a silly test, they must each tell him how much they love him. However, as this test enrolls, the audience
finds out that his truthful daughter, Cordelia is the one to be blamed for not loving him the most as she speaks simple and truthful words from her heart. Whereas his two other daughters, Regan and Goneril who are rather not so trustworthy, simply speak what he would like to hear. Hence the reason why both acquired all of his inheritance. However, Lear only realizes he chose poorly after he finds himself stranded outside in a storm. Commenting to himself, “O Regan, Goneril,/ your old kind father whose frank heart gave all!” (Shakespeare, III.iv.22-23) In this event, the audience could clearly tell that Lear’s mood changed from being confident of the decisions he hath chosen earlier, to almost certain that he should not have betrayed his truthful daughter Cordelia. Leading to the audience questioning, who will trust him? Who will he lean on from now on? No one, due to the consequences of the horrible choice he hath done. As a matter of fact the consequences are so bad, that now, he could not even trust his daughters that they are gonna provide him a roof after all that he hath given them. The audience comes to a quick realisation that “I [King Lear is] am a man/ More sinned against than sinning.” (III.ii.62-63) However here is the catch, the audience eventually noticed a dramatic irony going on. While Lear thought his choices are going perfectly as he hath planned, the opposite is happening, where all this time, all the other characters around him and the audience, know the intentions of his daughters. Given these points, Lear is now then fully aware of the hell he hath done, but most importantly, with this terrible outside challenge, the audience and the king himself learn that family love does not need to proven through words, but by just simply felt through actions.
Secondly, Shakespeare is able to show his audience the root of Lear’s current challenge is not only about family love and trust, but indeed about material things as portrayed. Which consequently leads to the climate of selfishness and greediness in the novel. Although once again, Lear failed to recognize that his daughters spent their whole life not having to do anything difficult at all, as well as a side material things, which said in other words “[P]lay’s excessive materiality in terms of Lear’s physical/ possessions” (Liao, The Disruptive Identity Superflux in King Lear) that is to say, a materialist love is what is in fact what is going through Lear’s head, instead of a pure, raw family love that does not require material things. However, everything has a consequence, being good or bad. The first time the audience noticed the King started to lose part of his wealth is when Lear got stranded outside the castle on a big thunderstorm notably stated on the paragraph above his dearest servant Kent stated, “Repose you there while I to this hard house – More harder than the stones whereof ‘tis raised” (III.ii.68-69) The audience however does not take long to notice such irony of ruling land to being homeless taking shelter inside of a big rock. Showing the audience that Lear is now the enemy of his old source of love, which are indeed, all material things. As his fate enrolls throughout the play, the audience notices Lear finally loses his last straw of power as he finally loses his crown in both the physical and figurative way, which as a matter of fact is what gives a king all of his power. As he is spotted walking around fields “[C]rowned with rank fumiter and furrow weeds,/ With hardocks, hemlock, nettles, cuckooflowers,/ Darnel, and the idle weeds that grow/ in our sustaining corn.” (IV.iv.3-6) The audience basically notes “The weedy crown represents the promise of an alternative political order. to represent an alternative way of imaging and living in the world.” (Hamilton, Crown Of Weeds) demonstrating to the public how attached he is to all of his material possessions which eventually however, Lear notably learned, that his goal of avoiding not dividing his inheritance before his death would not make a difference whatsoever if the mindset of his daughter’s was not different, showing the King that material possessions will only create temporary love, subsequently making him prone to humbleness and kindness.
Lastly, as Lear’s tragedy evolves throughout the play, the audience currently notices that the challenges faced previously now leads Lear to face not an outside challenge, but rather an inside one. The King is now mentally unstable, meaning the new challenge is now, himself. As soon as Lear steps his foot in the storm madly in rage “Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage, blow!/ You cataracts and hurricanoes, spout/ Till you have drenched our steeples, drowned the/ cocks.” (III.ii.1-4) Lear speaks thou words as he is filled with rage for the reason that he wanted the horrible thunderstorm he is currently standing below to bring the end of planet earth so no more ungrateful beings such as his daughters were created, giving us an insight of how insane he is becoming with his mind. As Lear reencounters once again with his trustworthy daughter Cordelia he admits “I[He] am[is] a foolish old man,/ Fourscore and upward, not an hour more nor less,/ And to deal plainly,/ I fear I am not in my perfect mind.” (IV.vii.69-72) However half of this quote is spoken with insanity as he speaks about age, but at the same time he speaks about how big of a mistake he hath done with his dear daughter Cordelia. Notably “Lear’s insanity was actually a benefit to many people in the play, instead of harmful which would be expected. It showed to Lear how to be a humble and caring ruler to his subjects” (Other, King Lear’s Insanity) not to mention how this changed the whole mood of the play. At last Lear, comes to a realisation that true insanity would be doing the same thing over and over rather than becoming humble and with his own self and others around him.
In conclusion William Shakespeare wrote this timeless tragedy proving that ‘King Lear’ is after all a changed man due to the many challenges he faces which are family, materiality and one’s mindset. In conclusion, Lear notices that power, wealth and pride is not true happiness is, he comes to a real realisation that real happiness are the basic emotions inside of humans.