Comparing Lear and Gloucester in Shakespeares King Lear Essay

In Shakespeares classic tragedy, King Lear, there are several components who do non control the reality of their situation. Two such characters are Lear and Gloucester. Both characters discover a blindness to the world around them. Lear does not catch out all the way the truth of his daughters mentions, temporary hookup Gloucester is also blinded by Edmonds treachery. This failure to see reality leads to Lears intellectual blindness, which is his insanity, and Gloucesters physical blindness that leads to his trusting tendencies. Each character achieves inner awareness at the end as their surreal blindness is lifted and they realize the truth. Both Lear and Gloucester are characters used by Shakespeare to make the relevance of having a clear vision in life.Lears vision is scarred by lack of direction in life, poor foresight and his inability to predict the consequences of his actions. He cannot look far enough into the future to see the consequences of his actions. This, in addition to his lack of insight into other people, condemns his relationship with his nearly be honeyd daughter, Cordelia. When Lear asks his daughters, who loves him most, he already thinks that Cordelia has the most love for him. However, when Cordelia says I love your Majesty according to my bond, no more nor less. (I, i, 94-95) Lear cannot see what these words sincerely mean. Goneril and Regan are only putting on an act. They do not truly love Lear as much as they should. When Cordelia says these words, she has seen her sisters facade, and she does not want to agree her true love with their false love. Lear, however, is fooled by Goneril and Regan into thinking that they love him, while Cordelia does not. This is when Lear first shows a sign of becoming blind to those around him. He snaps and disowns herLet be so Thy truth then be thy portionFor, by the sacred radiance of the sun,The mysteries of Hecate and the nightBy all the doing of the orbsFrom whom we do exist and cea se to beHere I renounce all my paternal care,Propinquity and property of blood,And as a fantastic to my heart and meHold thee from this for ever. The barbarous Scythian,Or he that makes his generation messesTo stuff his appetite, shall to my bosomBe as well neighboured, pitied, and relieved,As thou whitethorn sometime daughter. (I, i, 110-123)Not only does he disown her, but he also banishes her fro... ...not truly be seen with the centerfield, but with the heart. The physical world that the eye can detect can accordingly hide its evils with physical attributes, and thus clear vision cannot emergence from the eye alone. Lears downfall was a result of his failure to comprehend that expressions do not always represent reality. Gloucester avoided a similar demise by learning the relationship between appearance and reality. If Lear had learned to look with more than just his eyes before the end, he might have avoided this tragedy. These two tragic stories unfolding at the afores aid(prenominal) time gave the play a great eminence.Work CitedShakespeare, William, Barbara A. Mowat, and Paul Werstine. The disaster of King Lear. New York Washington Square, 1993. Print.Works ConsultedBradley, A.C. King Lear. Shakespearian Tragedy. Lectures on Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth. Macmillan and Co., London, 1919. Project Gutenberg. Web. 26 Apr. 2015. Bengtsson, Frederick. King Lear by William Shakespeare. Columbia College. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2015.Blind. The New Oxford American Dictionary. 3rd ed. 2011. Print..