Pride In King Lear

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In spite of everything that is done in Shakespeare’s tragic play, ‘King Lear’, we empathise with King Lear and view him as the victim - whether it be of his own folly or that he is at the mercy of his ‘two eldest daughters’. However this itself is not entirely true as Lear is as much of a sinner as his daughters, Lear blindingly plays a part in the his own downfall. Unbeknownst to Lear, as he is blinded with his divine rule, kingship and immense pride, we see him cause an imbalance in the order thus starting a chain reaction of chaos. By causing this imbalance, Lear creates a weakness in his sovereignty, through his own actions as he has allowed those who oppose him to take the opportunity to pry at his weakness and slowly break him down in order to rise and act against him and successfully take him down for their own personal gains.

Shakespeare’s ‘King Lear’ depicts a brutal and unequal world where the natural order is distorted and humans dangerously walk the thin line between sanity and madness. Lear’s catastrophic decision to abdicate and split the kingdom highlights his diplomatic …show more content…

Even if they had nothing to gain, they would feel pressure of custom to behave as good daughters in front of the whole community.” emphasising how Lear has such an immense influence over the girls and the aftermath of treating them as though they are his subjects is his punishment. This love contest forces the girls into a corner, and in accordance with the Elizabethan patriarchal system they are obligated to comply with their father’s wishes. This act causes the girl’s to retaliate against Lear as he has publicly embarrassed them with a foolish contest of love. Paul Cantor’s critic further stresses the point that Lear is the instigator - the