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AS and A Level: King Lear

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61 AS and A Level King Lear essays

  • Marked by Teachers essays 6
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  1. Marked by a teacher

    How effectively does Shakespeare present Lear's loss of power in the play?

    4 star(s)

    This is a thoughtful essay, which explores the range of linguistic and dramatic techniques Shakespeare employs to convey Lear's loss of power.
    The writer moves confidently around the play,…

    • Essay length: 2822 words
    • Submitted: 26/05/2009
    • Marked by teacher: (?) Val Shore 26/09/2012
  2. Marked by a teacher

    Consider the role of the Fool in King Lear. How important is he to the play as a whole?

    4 star(s)

    This essay has many strengths. It is generally well written and well structured. Effective reference is made to background reading and to productions of the play, and there is a…

    • Essay length: 2163 words
    • Submitted: 21/10/2003
    • Marked by teacher: (?) Val Shore 14/02/2112
  3. Marked by a teacher

    The influence Act 1 has on the rest of the play in King Lear

    3 star(s)

    This essay has some valid points to make in answer to the question posed in the title.
    However, its effectiveness is reduced by over-lengthy paragraphs and meandering sentence structure, combined…

    • Essay length: 2350 words
    • Submitted: 28/10/2009
    • Marked by teacher: (?) Val Shore 01/01/1970
  4. Marked by a teacher

    King Lear: Act I Scene IV

    3 star(s)

    An essay such as this which focuses on just one scene requires a more thorough approach. Here the writer picks on fairly random lines and ignores significant chunks of text…

    • Essay length: 1190 words
    • Submitted: 23/01/2011
    • Marked by teacher: (?) Val Shore 26/09/2012
  5. Marked by a teacher

    King Lear. The seeds of tragedy are sewn in Act 1 scene 1. To what extent are the events inevitable with reference to the opening?

    3 star(s)

    The writer makes several potentially interesting statements, some of which are controversial, but does not develop them or explain them clearly to the reader.
    Similarly, there is evidence of interesting…

    • Essay length: 1602 words
    • Submitted: 25/05/2010
    • Marked by teacher: (?) Val Shore 01/01/1970
  6. Marked by a teacher

    Villains in King Lear

    This essay shows the dangers of taking a descriptive and narrative approach. The writer mostly describes the villains, and tells us what they did, illustrating these points with appropriate quotation.…

    • Essay length: 1360 words
    • Submitted: 10/02/2008
    • Marked by teacher: (?) Val Shore 26/09/2012

  7. King Lear as a Tragic Hero

    • Essay length: 1066 words
    • Submitted: 29/04/2012

  8. King Lear. Shakespeare does not allow any of his characters to have a peaceful end and all are affected by the betrayal and loyalty shown by each of his characters.

    • Essay length: 589 words
    • Submitted: 08/04/2012

  9. Many definitions of tragedy claim that at the end of the play positives have emerged. Is it possible to see anything positive in the ending of King Lear?

    • Essay length: 1593 words
    • Submitted: 23/08/2011

  10. King Lear. Within the script Shakespeare presents characters of great greed and ambition in the effort to gain power. Their struggle towards power is followed,

    • Essay length: 1055 words
    • Submitted: 05/07/2011
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Writing about tragedy in 'King Lear'

  1. 1 While reference to Aristotle’s ‘guidelines’ on tragedy is valid, remember that Shakespeare had not actually read the ‘Poetics’ in which Aristotle’s views are expressed. These were not published in England until a later date.
  2. 2 Consider why there are comic scenes, such as those with the Fool, in tragedies.
  3. 3 Does Lear have one ‘tragic flaw’ or several?
  4. 4 Is Lear’s the only tragic outcome in the play? Consider others, such as Gloucester, Cordelia, Kent.
  5. 5 Spell ‘tragedy’ and ‘tragic’ correctly.

Five recurring patterns, references or motifs in 'King Lear' that you need to consider when writing your essay

  1. 1 Blindness.
  2. 2 Madness.
  3. 3 Parent/child relationships.
  4. 4 Honesty/dishonesty.
  5. 5 Clothing/nakedness.

Key themes of 'King Lear'

  1. 1 Justice.
  2. 2 Authority and power.
  3. 3 Self knowledge.
  4. 4 Compassion.
  5. 5 Apperance versus reality.

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Conclusion analysis

Good conclusions usually refer back to the question or title and address it directly - for example by using key words from the title.
How well do you think these conclusions address the title or question? Answering these questions should help you find out.

  1. Do they use key words from the title or question?
  2. Do they answer the question directly?
  3. Can you work out the question or title just by reading the conclusion?

  • To What Extent Can King Lear Be Described as the Tragic Hero of Shakespeares King Lear?

    "Did Shakespeare set out with Aristotle's blue print in mind when he created Lear? We will never know but in my opinion he does seem to fit the main characteristics Aristotle outlined. The only argument against this I can see is the fact the audience does not witness Lear's great, admirable qualities before we are introduced to his 'tragic flaw'. If we look at our first introduction to Macbeth, one of Shakespeare's other 'tragic hero's' for example; The audience is told of how he fought bravely for his country and we see him promoted to Thane of Cawdor before we learn about his 'tragic flaw'. Despite this however I believe King Lear is one of the all time great tragedies and Lear himself most definitely deserves the title 'tragic hero'."

  • King Lear. The seeds of tragedy are sewn in Act 1 scene 1. To what extent are the events inevitable with reference to the opening?

    "In conclusion to my essay it is important for the seeds of tragedy to be sewn in act 1 scene 1, as this provides the audience with a sense of the inevitability of tragic events keeping them engaged with the play. Further more, by foreshadowing tragic events in the opening, the play takes into account the perception of a good tragedy made by Aristotle. However, it could be argued that the seeds of tragedy in the opening are not necessary as this makes a tragic ending more unexpected and therefore the modern day reader may find this more exiting."

  • To what extent is King Lears flaw the infirmity of his age?

    "I have thus attempted to explore several pernicious faults integral to Learâs character, for Shakespeare had a phenomenal understanding of human psychology, and to pinpoint one sole personality trait or action of Learâs to his downfall is to be guilty of a reductionist treatment of a writer of such stellar genius as Shakespeare. (On a similar note, King Lear can certainly be called a universal allegory; however, the word allegory does justice to neither the depth nor the dynamicity in the experience it presents. One must be careful with the treatment of language, as that would only be fair considering Shakespeareâs own careful, passionate and inventive use of language that characterizes all his indisputably great works). To conclude, I have above shown the elements which ascribe Learâs development as a character and I have considered and explored a range of different hubristic facets which together amount to and portend King Learâs ultimate calamity."

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