Action and Observation in Shakespeares King Lear Essay

Action and Observation in King Lear 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 own way.1 The sufferings of the hero could be our own sufferings, whereas in Greek tragedy, such a notion is precluded precisely because the misfortunes of a character can be traced back to the discontent of the gods. Hippolytus is not a moral agent; Hamlet is. The aesthetic of Shakespearean tragedy is therefore dynamic, with an audience that, to a certain extent, are also participants. Auden proposes a model of†¦show more content†¦Throughout the play his response to the action parallels the audiences own. Kent is the mouthpiece of the spectators when he entreats Lear to see better (I.i.159), and his dismay at Cordelias death, Is this the promised end? (V.iii.264), speaks volumes. However, this sho uld not hide the fact that Kent as a character is ineffectual. His final words do not embody an attempt to resolve or rectify, they are truly fatalistic. Kent then, is the Aristotelian observer. He participates in the action only by way of pity for Lear, and the result is that he shares his masters fate. His observations lead him to emotionalise events, and much like Dr Johnson, who found King Lear too horrid to be endured, he sees feelingly.3 But King Lear is a play of antitheses, and one might find a second, opposing model of observation in the character of Edgar. In Act III, disguised as Poor Tom, he is confronted by his aberrant, rain-beaten godfather, and though he fears that his distress may betray his counterfeiting (III.vi.59-60), he does maintain his composure. Equally, in the following Act, when presented with the even more excruciating image of the blinded Gloucester, Edgar refrains from revealing his identity. Physically he is a chameleon, but emotionally he is unfaltering: GLOUCESTER Knowst thou the way to Dover? EDGAR Both stile and gate, horse-way and foot-path. (IV.i.56-57) Edgars matter-of-fact reply contains sixShow MoreRelatedEssay on King Lear/Inferno1246 Words   |  5 PagesAssignment #2 (Inferno / King Lear) Both Shakespeare’s King Lear and Dante’s Inferno explore the reasons for and results of human suffering. Both works postulate that human suffering comes as a result of choices that are made. That statement is not only applicable to the characters in each of the works, but also to the readers. The Inferno and King Lear speak universal truths about the human condition: that suffering is inevitable and unavoidable. While both King Lear and the Inferno concentrateRead MoreHuman Suffering in Inferno and King Lear Essay example1555 Words   |  7 PagesBoth Shakespeare’s King Lear and Dante’s Inferno explore the reasons for, and results of, human suffering. 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