King Lear and The Duchess of Malfi In the plays, King Lear by William Shakespeare and The Duchess of Malfi by John Webster, one can contrast the central brutality with the punishment of Gloucester and the torture of the Duchess. During the brutality certain characters show characteristics that obtain the audience’s sympathy. While other characters decide to evaluate their actions and rectify their mistakes.
When simply reading, William Shakespeare's King Lear and John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi, one can clearly see harsh brutality in both plays. However, the forms of brutality, and the ways the characters deal with brutality in the two stories are completely different. In Shakespeare's King Lear brutality is a form of revenge, and a
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In King Lear, Gloucester being captured by Cornwall accepts his fate, does not cower down and still tries to be strong, “I am tied to the stake, and I must stand the course” (Shakespeare 3.7. 57). The way he states “I must stand the course” has the audience sympathizing with him, while feeling compassion for what was to come. Similarly, in The Duchess of Malfi, after being locked in with the madmen the Duchess expresses, “To hear of greater grief would lessen mine;” hearing the cries of the madmen the Duchess is trying to remember that even through all her troubles she still has a better life than others, as well it being a distraction from her own grief. (Webster 4.2. 10).
The Duchess also finds sympathy with the audience when she asks Cariola to, “look thou giv'st my little boy/ Some syrup for his cold, and let the girl/ Say her prayers” (Webster 4.2. 183-185). This motherly cry would definitely compel emotions in all parents. While the characters of both stories are being brutally attacked both physically and mentally the characters gain the audience's sympathy through these