"As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods; / They kill us for their sport." 4.2.37-38. Gloucester speaks these words after he is blinded, cast out, and betrayed by his son. By the end of the play, both good and bad characters have died. In the world of the play, is the universe indifferent to matters of good and evil? Is there just punishment for evil? Is virtue rewarded? What do you think, based upon your reading of King Lear?
The universe doesn’t play favorites. It keeps stars shining and gravity working and the earth spinning around the sun. It doesn’t change those rules to favor someone in particular or to spite them. In King Lear, this is clearly demonstrated throughout the play. The universe didn’t care who the so-called villains or heroes of the story were or give preferential treatment based on moral character. All of the fates of the characters were based on their own actions. Every choice they made and words they spoke throughout the play was what eventually led them to their fate. The traditionally good characters suffered just as much as the bad ones for the choices they made.
ReplyDeleteThis is most clearly demonstrated through the fates of the three sisters. Cordelia, who was the most innocent and upstanding of the sisters, chose to be honest rather than submit to her father’s pride. Then she chose to come back to England to try to save her father. These two decisions may have been moral, but in the context of the play, they are what led to Edmund to order someone “To hang Cordelia in the prison (5.3.253).” Regan and Goneril were manipulative and vindictive, abusing their father and their sister and their husbands to achieve their desires. They chose to join forces to maintain control over their father and his land. They chose to seduce the same man, though one was married and the other newly widowed. They were corrupt and manipulated everyone around them, and eventually “The one the other poisoned for [Edmund’s] sake,/ And after slew herself (5.3.240-241).” In the end, it didn’t matter whether the sisters and their choices were immoral or honorable; they all suffered the consequences of their poor choices and their lives ended in tragedy. The universe doesn't care.
Within the play King Lear we learn that family can be deceiving, and that people can have alternative motives that are not necessarily shared with everyone. In Act 5, we learn that two of King Lear’s daughters have been plotting behind his back to ensure that they will get the greatest inheritance. In this play, karma comes into affects when King Lear asks his daughters to fight over who loves their father the most. He does not know it yet, but he is creating tension between sisters because they have alternative motives when they answer his question. This example goes to show that there is punishment for evil, and that the evil was asking his daughters how much they love him instead of them showing their loyalty naturally. Also, another example of punishment for evil is when Gloucester gets blinded by Cornwall. The quote “out vild jelly, where is thy luste now” describes how Cornwall blinded Gloucester in one eye and was going to do the other but then had a change of heart. Another character that their virtue was rewarded was Cordelia. She was King Lear’s daughter that refused to flatter her father, and was considered the “good daughter”. Even though her father banished her, she was the only character that would truly love her father and show it in a more natural and humble way. Many times in stories, the good characters are not always rewarded for their good principles and this is shown in this story with Cordelia.
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ReplyDeleteWithin the play King Lear we learn that family can be deceiving, and that people can have alternative motives that are not necessarily shared with everyone. In Act 5, we learn that two of King Lear’s daughters have been plotting behind his back to ensure that they will get the greatest inheritance. In this play, karma comes into affects when King Lear asks his daughters to fight over who loves their father the most. He does not know it yet, but he is creating tension between sisters because they have alternative motives when they answer his question. This example goes to show that there is punishment for evil, and that the evil was asking his daughters how much they love him instead of them showing their loyalty naturally. Also, another example of punishment for evil is when Gloucester gets blinded by Cornwall. The quote “out vild jelly, where is thy luste now” describes how Cornwall blinded Gloucester in one eye and was going to do the other but then had a change of heart. Another character that their virtue was rewarded was Cordelia. Zarathustra and I have similar ideas when it comes to King Lear’s three daughters. She explains how Cordelia is looked up to because she did not give into her father’s. She was King Lear’s daughter that refused to flatter her father, and was considered the “good daughter”. Even though her father banished her, she was the only character that would truly love her father and show it in a more natural and humble way. Many times in stories, the good characters are not always rewarded for their good principles and this is shown in this story with Cordelia.
I agree with Zarathustra with the universe not playing favorites. The universe does not change the way it works in order to accommodate a particular person. Regardless of the way people may act, the universe has no effect of that particular situation. In King Lear, the good and the evil characters were not based on how the universe works, but treated on the characters actions. I do not believe there is only punishment for the evil, I think the good can be punished as well just in a different way than the evil characters. Although, I do believe that virtue can be rewarded but it is not as noticeable.
ReplyDeleteLike Zarathustra mentioned Cordelia was the loyal daughter who was honest with her father about the way she felt. Her virtue is what ultimately killed her in the end. "To lay the blame upon her own despair, that she fordid herself (5.3.254-55)." Regan and Goneril were the cold hearted manipulators of the story. Their goal was to to manipulate everyone in their lives in order to get what they wanted which was power and land. Their decisions to achieve control over the people proved to be more of a challenge then they originally thought. By the end of the play, it did not matter whether or not the character was evil or good. The majority of characters all ended with some sort of a tragedy. I think in King Lear, it shows that evil is punished but also honor and virtue are punished as well instead of rewarded.
-sunflower92
Zarathustra and sunflower are right it does not matter if you are bad or good. Who is the judge of that? Some peoples view on bad and good are completely different. It is a point of view. The universe does not care about if you are good or bad. Your outcomes are already pre determined.
ReplyDeleteIts like Edgar said "The weight of this sad time we must obey; speak what we feel, not what we ought to say. The oldest hath borne most; we that are young shall never see so much, nor live so long. (5.3,323-326) Its pretty much going against that cliche "only the good die young", were is he is saying do not say things you do not mean, be yourself and express your feelings to others. He is pointing out why would we not? We do not know what tomorrow brings so don't live life doing or saying things that goes against the way we feel.Your actions are not dependent on the universe. The universe is going to deal you whatever it wants to.
Since the universe does not decide who lives and who dies then punishment for evil is prevalent here on earth but does not necessarily mean that the universe is going to kill you for it. Same for virtue, it is rewarded here on earth but not rewarded by the universe.
Taking an unconventional perspective, I'm going to say the "universe" or "gods" in context were actually infatuated with the frameworks of mankind-their roles, their beginnings, and their end being that which they crafted. For example, shown in Edgar's response to Gloucester..."What, in ill thoughts again? Men must endure their going hence as their coming hither. Ripeness is all. Come on"(5.2, p. 1215). Simply saying you don't choose when you die no more when your birthed. We live and die when our time comes. But I do agree with Zarathustra, in that the universe does not play favorites. The paths of others were not wrapped around the special stamp of one person. Fates were brought by action and choice, both good and evil had an end. But taking this notion further back into relation with the gods, both good and evil died, but good and evil died instead for specific purposes. Those being evil: Regil, Goneril, Edmund, Cornwall...etc. They died obviously for the reasons of their foul and conscious decisions. The common denominator for them all was ambition, pride, conceit, jealousy, hate, indifference, and we could go on. But for the evil it was nothing other than the fruit sown that was later reaped. Interestingly enough, before you could have added King Lear to this list, but his heart was changed through the process, being purposed. So one might ask, what about the good that died? Well looking at Cordelia, Gloucester, King Lear, etc, you have to take a step back to conceive the magnitude of this story. The gods in context have used both good people and bad, in the hope that mankind would grasp its significance-this tale is truly the story of how one man's decision(King Lear) destroyed a nation, a kingdom, and all those close enough to him. Out of his pride, and desire for flattering words of worship, he made a choice that put not just those who deserved it at risk, but even the innocent, even those he loved. The good played that role, by purpose. And even so, some of them found their own truth in the madness, Albany saw the devilish intentions of his wife-Gloucester saw the true identity of Edmund who he thought he loved, and even Lear, he met the deceptions of his daughters, and at a high cost.
ReplyDelete-Annie08