King LearStandard Ebooks King Lear is a tragedy by Shakespeare, written about 1605 or 1606. Shakespeare based it on the legendary King Leir of the Britons, whose story is outlined in Geoffrey of Monmouth’s pseudohistorical History of the Kings of Britain (written in about 1136). The play tells the tale of the aged King Lear who is passing on the control of his kingdom to his three daughters. He asks each of them to express their love for him, and the first two, Goneril and Regan do so effusively, saying they love him above all things. But his youngest daughter, Cordelia, is compelled to be truthful and says that she must reserve some love for her future husband. Lear, enraged, cuts her off without any inheritance. The secondary plot deals with the machinations of Edmund, the bastard son of the Earl of Gloucester, who manages to convince his father that his legitimate son Edgar is plotting against him. After Lear steps down from power, he finds that his elder daughters have no real respect or love for him, and treat him and his followers as a nuisance. They allow the raging Lear to wander out into a storm, hoping to be rid of him, and conspire with Edmund to overthrow the Earl of Gloucester. The play is a moving study of the perils of old age and the true meaning of filial love. It ends tragically with the deaths of both Cordelia and Lear—so tragically, in fact, that performances during the Restoration period sometimes substituted a happy ending. In modern times, though, King Lear is performed as written and generally regarded as one of Shakespeare’s best plays. This Standard Ebooks edition is based on William George Clark and William Aldis Wright’s 1887 Victoria edition, which is taken from the Globe edition. This book is part of the Standard Ebooks project, which produces free public domain ebooks. |
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William Shakespeare. DRAMATIS PERSONAE Lear , king of Britain King of France Duke of Burgundy Duke of Cornwall Duke of Albany Earl of Kent Earl of Gloucester Edgar , son to Gloucester Edmund , bastard son to Gloucester Curan , a courtier ...
... Duke of Albany than Cornwall . GLOUCESTER KENT GLOUCESTER KENT GLOUCESTER KENT GLOUCESTER EDMUND It did always seem so to us : but now , in the division of the kingdom , it appears not which of the dukes he values most ; for equalities ...
... Duke of ALBANY's palace GONERIL OSWALD GONERIL OSWALD GONERIL ( Enter GONERIL , and OSWALD , her steward . ) Did my father strike my gentleman for chiding of his fool ? Yes , madam . By day and night he wrongs me ; every hour He flashes ...
... Dukes of Cornwall and Albany ? Not a word . You may do , then , in time . Fare you well , sir . ( Exit . ) The duke be here to - night ? The better ! best ! This weaves itself perforce into my business . My father hath set guard to take ...
... Duke of Cornwall? He's coming hither: now, i' the night, i' the haste, And Regan with him: have you nothing said Upon his party 'gainst the Duke of Albany? Advise yourself. I am sure on't, not a word. I hear my father coming: pardon me ...