In William Shakespeare’s tragic play, King Lear, Shakespeare illustrates how lies and treachery can rip apart a family and their trust of one another. As Edgar concedes to the death of his friends and family, he recognizes that the distrust and manipulation among each member caused the downfall of the kingdom, which they could have avoided by speaking truthfully and communicating their feelings with one another. As Shakespeare confronts the contrast between deceit and honesty and how these adversaries destroyed the families’ relationships throughout King Lear, he also tackles the unfortunate consequence of death that one must pay as a result of another’s sinful leadership in his play Measure for Measure.
Torn apart by greed and lies, Lear and Gloucester’s children fell victim to
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After Lord Angelo orders his second-in-command man, Escalus, to oversee Claudio’s execution, Escalus remarks, “Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall” (Measure for Measure 2.1.41). Filled with remorse over the sentence of an innocent man, Escalus deplores the idea that Lord Angelo still remains in power despite his strict and immoral demands while benign, virtuous people like Claudio must suffer. Similar in both plays, Shakespeare addresses the question of gaining power through manipulation and deceit to overtake those that remain true to their morals. Like Lord Angelo, Regan, Goneril, and Edmund rose to power through the destruction of others, such as Claudio, along with Lear and Cordelia who maintained pure intentions. Though both sides eventually meet their ends, Shakespeare ties both plays together as they comparably discuss the conflict of good versus evil and bring forth the debate about the impact goodwill and honesty have on one’s