King Lear: Lear's Language, Beginning vs. End of the Play

Seminar paper from the year 2002 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 2 (B), Martin Luther University (Anglistics), course: Shakespear's Plays, language: English, abstract: King Lear was first published in 1608 and is one of the numerous tragedieswritten by William Shakespeare. However, it is not just any of his tragedies, thetragedy of King Lear stands like a colossus at the centre of Shakespeare sachievement as the grandest effort of imagination , says Foakes who is the Editorof the Arden Edition (Foakes 1997, 1). In its social range it encompasses a wholesociety, from king to beggar, and invites us to move in our imagination between aroyal palace and a hovel on a bare heath (Foakes 1997, 1). Nevertheless, complications have been kept to a minimum (Brown 2001, 229) byShakespeare. Still, this tragedy is as demanding as any of the others in someways, it is the most epic of them all (Brown 2001, 229). Between all the commotion in the plot, Lear s story is the one clear andindisputable element (Brown 2001, 229). From the beginning to the end, Lear sstory is presented in stark and unavoidably physical terms (Brown 2001, 231). The threefold dignity of a king, an old man, and a father, isdishonored by the cruel ingratitude of his unnatural daughters; theold king, who out of a foolish tenderness has given awayeverything, is driven out into the world a homeless beggar; thechildish imbecility to which he was fast advancing changes into thewildest insanity, and when he is rescued from the destitution towhich he was abandoned, it is too late. (Bates 1906))In a way that was new to himself and almost unknown in the theatreof his time, Shakespeare constantly drew attention to what his heroundergoes in body as well as in mind, in his senses as well as in histhoughts and feelings, achievements, and relations with otherpeople. (Brown 2001, 231)In this paper I am trying to follow Lear s state of mind and thought. The Kinggoes from power to madness and from royalty to peasantry. But how does hearticulate his deep thoughts and feelings through language? How can the readerunderstand his change in mood? The following pages will give some insight onthese topics and will help to a better understanding of the character of King Lear.