King Lear by William Shakespeare

Title: King Lear
Author:  William Shakespeare
Genre: Tragedy
Length:  384 Pages
Weight:  0.9 lbs
Date of Completion:  March 17, 2013

Thoughts:

William, William, William.  In my opinion, Shakespeare has no equal.  His understanding of human nature and his ability to bring it life, both in the pages of his work and on stage, is unparalleled.  When I decided on this challenge, I made a short list of books I wanted to make sure I completed.  The entire collected works of Shakespeare was very near the top.  So, while I have been working my way through the unread stack of books by my bed, I had to sneak in one by Will.  I have so much of my soul in his books, that I feel almost a personal connection with him, so much so that I will refer to him in an overly friendly manner, and call him Will. I wish more people could write with the grace, ease, and wit that is found in Shakespeare's books.  

Reading King Lear brought back so many memories, but more importantly it reignited my indignation at living in such an uncultured society where I cannot go see any of his works performed at any time other than the Shakespeare Festival in the fall.  It is at times like this that I wish I lived in a city with a more active theater community.  I'm a huge fan, but there aren't too many shows.

That short rant aside, I pulled out King Lear at random off of the shelf in a hurry while I was packing my bags.  So, while I was sitting by the pool, enjoying some sun (and more importantly HEAT) for the fist time in months, imagine my surprise to find I had picked one of the books I had read and annotated way back in high school.  I have several versions of different works, including a fancy, leather-bound edition, but I like the Folger library version the best.  I'll be the first to admit that I like Sparknotes while I;'m reading.  There are people much more intelligent and knowledgeable than I am who can expound and clarify where my understanding may fall short.  I will take any assistance to receive greater enjoyment while reading.  

Whenever I read Shakespeare  I am drawn back to my favorite scenes, soliloquies or images.  In this book, my favorite scene is Lear's decent into madness as he wanders amidts a terrible storm.  Particularly, I love the echo of unhinged destruction in the weather.  I can imagine one of those dark and stormy nights with wind that skins your face and hands raw whipping sleets of rain against you.  Thunder crashing as lightning etches across the sky, the only light as Lear crawls away from his cruel family and the remnants of his sanity.  This continues onto the tribunal of Goneril and Regan in a cave.  While Edgar and Lear egg each other on in their madness, you can almost forget that Edgar is only acting.  He presents a convincing loon that fools his own father. 

This madness is my favorite part of the story. I think Will does such an incredible job of showing how a certain sort of clarity often accompanies madness.  It can be like losing your filter, where the simple truth can hold the greatest wisdom.  Gloucester only sees the truth once his eyes have been put out. There is a tragic and poignant beauty in the scene where Edgar, disguised as a madmen leads his now blinded father to his suicide "at the top of the cliffs of Dover."  

With a wonderful insight into the human psyche, I think King Lear does a great treatment of old age.  It is both terrible and fascinating.  Of greater terror is the function of Regan and Goneril.  As they sin against nature to plot the death of their father (and each other), Will portrays them as the ultimate evil.  Afterall, Cornwall only puts our Gloucester's eyes after Goneril suggests it.  That is also something I noticed while reading this.  The tragedies of Shakespeare are incredibly violent, as well as deadly.  You don't exactly get this when all you read is stage directions that say his eye was forced out.  In a play, you can a get a better image of this grisly scene, but even so-that would be a terrible and bloody reality.  

On a happier note, I want to talk about my favorite characters, the Fool and Kent.  The Fool is wise and honest, a perfect foil to the foolish actions of Lear.  His position allows him the freedom to speak frankly with the King, even if it does no good.  As for Kent, his loyalty is the greatest attribute a friend can have.  We all have that friend who is kind and loyal no matter what we do, the friend that we never deserve.  That is Kent, and I think Lear is never thankful enough.