Essays on Plays

1749

The Concept of Nature and Its Subjective Connotations in King Lear

3 pages / 1670 words

The Christian kings of England could suppose a "divine right" imposed by "natural order" in order to legitimize their place in the feudal hierarchy, a view bolstered by Christ's admonishment to "Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's" (Matthew 22:21) and various other Biblical...

King Lear

1750

Detailed Analysis of King Lear, V.iii.8-26 and V.iii.305-9

4 pages / 2109 words

Throughout most of Shakespeare’s King Lear, the hero is mad; when not, he is deluded. In his gorgeous speech of V.iii.8-26, Lear displays a newfound, optimistic view of his future with Cordelia moments before Edmund orders her death. Lear’s discovery of his own humanity and...

King Lear

1751

Insanity and The Three Forms It Takes in King Lear

5 pages / 2560 words

This essay concentrates on Act 111, Scene 4 of Shakespeare’s King Lear, a tragic and powerful scene in which we witness Lear’s mind tragically giving way to the menace of madness, which has relentlessly pursued him throughout the play. However, the character of Lear only...

King Lear

1752

The Controversial Case of Cordelia's Death in King Lear

3 pages / 1316 words

In Shakespeare’s King Lear, the titular ruler undergoes multiple trials in his wish to pass the kingdom on to his three daughters and their betrotheds. After the disownment and banishment of his youngest daughter Cordelia, Lear’s elder daughters Goneril and Regan soon begin attempting to...

King Lear

1753

Character's Journey Through Madness to Maturity in King Lear

2 pages / 1149 words

As one of the most significant moments in Shakespeare’s King Lear, the scene described in Act 4, Scene 6, lines 131-146 provides insight into the parallels within the play and offers a definition of true meaning through irony. King Lear is the focus of this...

Character King Lear

1754

King, Destiny and Circumstances

3 pages / 1318 words

Why, in spite of everything do we like Lear and are on his side? Made-to-order essay as fast as you need it Each essay is customized to cater to your unique preferences + experts online Get my essay Ultimately any pathos that lies with Lear...

Destiny King Lear

1755

Shakespeare's Literalization of Metaphors in King Lear

5 pages / 2524 words

‘Nothing, my lord.’ Made-to-order essay as fast as you need it Each essay is customized to cater to your unique preferences + experts online Get my essay ‘Nothing!’ ‘Nothing.’ ‘Nothing will come of nothing…’ King Lear (I.1.78-81) Shakespeare saturates King Lear with metaphors which, in...

King Lear

1756

Intelligence Versus Power in King Lear

3 pages / 1524 words

In Shakespeare’s King Lear, the characters in a position of power are most often the ones who are blindest to the truth. Only after losing that power are they able to gain a clear understanding of the events occurring around them and to realize who...

King Lear

1757

Erotic and Female Discourses of Shakespeare’s King Lear

6 pages / 2860 words

As the audience gears up for King Lear’s death, as they bite their nails at the coming sword fight between the two separated brothers, they notice that within all this royal drama a silly cat fight has developed between Regan and Goneril. We can trace...

King Lear

1758

Action and Observation in Shakespeare's King Lear

5 pages / 2321 words

Auden once asserted that Shakespearean tragedy is necessarily parabolic, pertaining to the only myth that Christianity possesses: that of the ‘unrepentant thief’. We as the spectators are thus implicated in the action since each of us ‘is in danger of re-enacting [this story] in his...

King Lear

1759

Dualistic Concept of Worth in King Lear

2 pages / 1114 words

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) defines worth (n.) as the position or standing of a person in respect of property. On the other hand, worth is also defined as the character or standing of a person in respect of moral or intellectual qualities; esp. high...

King Lear

1760

The Concept of Fool's Wisdom in King Lear

2 pages / 866 words

In a story of a king’s treacherous demise by his unfaithful, scheming daughters, Shakespeare leaves little room for lightheartedness, laughter, or even reason. Family turns on each other as sisters plot out of jealousy, a truly dedicated daughter is executed, and the king dies of...

King Lear

1761

The Villains and The Ends They Meet: The Question of Justice in King Lear

4 pages / 2030 words

Questions of personal responsibility, free will, and justice move our sympathies through a work of literature, causing readers to relate with or despise characters as they are shaped within a piece. In The Tragedy of King Lear, William Shakespeare draws our support for his villains...

King Lear

1762

A Cheerful Tragedy: Multiple Interpretations of King Lear

3 pages / 1349 words

‘All’s Cheerless, Dark and Deadly’ Are Kent’s Words a Fair Summary of The Tragedy of King Lear? Made-to-order essay as fast as you need it Each essay is customized to cater to your unique preferences + experts online Get my essay Samuel Johnson asserted that...

King Lear

1763

The Gap Between Generations in King Lear

3 pages / 1640 words

A key motivator to the horrific violence and machiavellian betrayal that is present in King Lear is inter generational rivalry. In modern England the older generation held power and authority over the young, yet in Shakespeare’s Jacobean tragedy one can see the younger generation, led...

King Lear

1764

Authority Without Power in King Lear

3 pages / 1411 words

In all of Shakespeare’s tragedies, sudden change and transformations are the catalysts of the disaster that will soon become the plot. Lear, King of England, holds great power and status as King, but blindly he surrenders all of this power to his daughters as reward...

King Lear

1765

The Reason in Madness in Shakespeare's King Lear

2 pages / 1226 words

As in his Hamlet, Shakespeare uses “reason in madness” throughout King Lear by using unexpected characters to help with his overall theme of recognition and realization. However, reason in madness can also refer to Shakespeare himself, because in all the chaos and tragedy throughout King...

King Lear

1766

Analysis of Humanistic Themes Resolved in King Lear

2 pages / 1153 words

Like all Shakespearean tragedies, “King Lear” has several prevailing humanistic themes. Certainly, the plot revolves around the obvious themes of parent-child relationships, sibling rivalries and pride as the downfall of man. However, one common theme incorporates all of these elements: A quest for love. In...

King Lear

1767

Insanity and Social Roles in King Lear

4 pages / 1987 words

In Reflections on the Revolution in France, Edmund Burke described the effect a complete perversion of social order had on its citizens. He watched as the French Revolution shredded a monarchy, publicly slaughtered tens of thousands, and replaced the old order with a new one....

King Lear