3. Main:
King Lear: The aging king of Britain and the
protagonist of the play.
Goneril: Lear’s ruthless oldest daughter and the
wife of the duke of Albany.
Rigan: Lear’s middle daughter and the wife of the
duke of Cornwall.
Cordelia: Lear’s youngest daughter.
4. Secondary:
Gloucester:A nobleman loyal to King Lear.
Edgar: Gloucester’s older, legitimate son.
Edmund: Gloucester’s younger, illegitimate son.
Kent: nobleman of the same rank as Gloucester who is
loyal to King Lear.
Albany: The husband of Lear’s daughter Goneril.
Cornwall: The husband of Lear’s daughter Regan.
Fool:Lear’s jester.
Oswald: The steward, or chief servant, in Goneril’s
house.
6. King Lear decides to divide his kingdom equally
amongst his three daughters and steps down
from his throne. However he asks, Goneril,
Regan and Cordelia to express how much they
love him to earn their share of his land. The
greedy sisters falsely flatter the King however
the youngest Cordelia stays silent.
7. Enraged by Cordelia’s silence, King Lear divides
her land amongst the other two sisters and
disowns her. The tale tells of Lear’s fate, once
he has given up his kingdom and destroyed his
relationship with his daughters.
8. King Lear is likened to a morality tale and
Shakespeare explores themes such as family
ties and selfless love.
Shakespeare this work is impressive for its
style and contrast between the characters.
The author brings in each of his texts
reflections. Shelley called this work “the
most perfect specimen of dramatic art
existing in the world”.
I think so that a family can be divided by
the money and haughtiness.
