The fool is dressed as a poor man, which is significant, since a part of the plot is on the loss of status. King Lear employs the fool for entertainment. The Fool often revealed much truth during these comedic moments, when he was making jokes about king lear. In the Fool we have someone who articulates our feelings. We wonder how the Fool will eventually demonstrate the folly to the King. Also, a twist of irony certainly exists in the Fool calling the king a fool.
Who would be better to represent the foolishness of the king than a fool? He represents the king's foolishness throughout the play via wit, enthusiasm, and intellect. He uses these tools to interrupt the mounting tension while making his points at the same time. It is evident to everyone but the king how foolish he is.
At this point in the play, not only does Lear respect The Fool, but he also treats him as a loved one. He expresses the concern for his needs and well being. As an example, Lear states when addressing The Fool, "How dost, my boy? Art thou cold?" The challenge for Lear is to recognize that the highest wisdom often comes in the most humble of forms. The Fool represents this humble form of wisdom exactly.
The Fool is able to speak out against madness because of his function in Lear's court. He is to entertain the king with his songs, quips, puns, songs, and riddles. The Fool was able to use his sharp jokes and wit to entertain the king as well as inform him.
Once the king abdicates his throne, the fool follows him even though he is angry at the disinheriting of Cordelia. The Fool functions quite admirably as a teacher throughout the play. The Fool uses cruel jokes to get his messages across. Thus he tells Lear, “thou madest thy daughters thy mother: for… thou gavest them the rod and puttest down thine own breeches. When Lear asks, “Dost thou call me fool, boy”, the Fool replies, “ All thy other titles thou hast given away; that thou was born with”(Act 1, Scene IV).
The fool throughout this act also refers to Lear as a fool himself and many times offers him his coxcomb.
Shakespeare does a great job of illustrating this saying through the Fool's character. The Fool is being loyal and honest to his master Lear no matter how painful the truth may sound. In Act 1, Scene 4, in the introduction of his character, the Fool is playing with his hat and tells the king, “…thou must needs wear my coxcomb,” stating that the king is a fool for dividing his kingdom in such a way after a ridiculous love test (line 101).
However, where was the Fool when the King made his decision to divide the kingdom? Obviously the King did not think it was important for the Fool to be employed in political or family matters. Important matters as such were none of his business. Thus, the Fool did not have any influence over King’s decision and therefore, over the major plot of the play. In the following scene the Fool tries to convince Lear of his mistake again and informs him that Regan will, “…taste as like this as a crab does to a crab,” meaning that Regan and Goneril are of the same nature and that there is no need for him to go to her after Goneril has rejected his knights (Act1, Scene 5, line 18). However, this does not stop the King from going to meet with his other daughter. The Fool again had no influence over King’s actions and he follows
In King Lear, there are only three people with the ability to stand up to Lear. Cordelia, Kent and the Fool. During the play Lear threatens to have the Fool whipped for what he says, when Cordelia and Kent get banished from the Kingdom for speaking their minds. This just shows the special relationship the Fool and Lear have during the play. This point is emphasised later in the play when Lear shows concern and compassion towards the Fool, “Come on, my boy. How dost my boy, art thou cold?”
All the characters in King Lear, apart from the Fool, are interconnected and of great importance to the story of King Lear and his daughters and the story of Edmund, Edgar and Gloucester. The character of the Fool did not have influence over Lear’s decision to divide the kingdom, nor did the Fool have any connection with the subplot. Perhaps, for this reason many directors argue over the importance of his character. One should be able to realize that the presence of the Fool did not influence the overall impact of the play and that the two major plots would have occurred with him or without him.
Shakespeare gives the most unlikely character, The Fool, the
greatest amount of wisdom and insight. This device works well because The Fool is a peripheral character, as such, he acts as a sought of narrator pointing out the foolishness and folly going on around him. Shakespeare uses The Fool to be a commentator on the action of the play as well as a character in the play.
In the Fool we have someone who articulates our feelings. We wonder how the Fool will eventually demonstrate the folly to the King. Also, a twist of irony certainly exists in the Fool calling the king a fool.
Who would be better to represent the foolishness of the king than a fool? He represents the king's foolishness throughout the play via wit, enthusiasm, and intellect. He uses these tools to interrupt the mounting tension while making his points at the same time. It is evident to everyone but the king how foolish he is.
. The Fool is dressed as a poor man, which becomes significant, since a focus of the plot is on the loss of status and position. King Lear employs The Fool to provide entertainment for himself. It was not uncommon for Lear to be at the blunt end of many of The Fool's jokes. In such fashion, The Fool often revealed much truth during these comedic moments, using base language as a tool.
At this point in the play, not only does Lear respect The Fool, but he also treats him as a loved one. He expresses the concern for his needs and well being. As an example, Lear states when addressing The Fool, "How dost, my boy? Art thou cold?" The challenge for Lear is to recognize that the highest wisdom often comes in the most humble of forms. The Fool represents this humble form of wisdom exactly.
The Fool often presented serious information in the form of his light humor. For example, when The Fool addresses Lear and criticizes him for splitting his land in two and giving away his power, he did so in a way that was mocking, yet humorous. The Fool makes statements like, "Lear placed the cart before the horse," implying that Lear had inverted his position in life by surrendering his power, now only to become dominated by his children. Though, one should not underestimate the seriousness of The Fool's message and role what so ever. The Fool served as an instrument of truth, and for his love was subject to a tragic death.
conclusion
The Fool is not just a servant to Lear but is also a friend and the son Lear never had. The name “Fool” means nothing. He is the most intelligent and insightful character in the play and provides simple and clear reasoning for a one sighted King. The Fool is loyal to the bitter end and provides the little bits of humour in this play. He has honesty and integrity that is only found in a few other characters in the play.
. One should be able to realize that the presence of the Fool did not influence the overall impact of the play and that the two major plots would have occurred with him or without him.
Fool is the joining between the 2 wealth of the royalty and having nothing
Personally, I believe that his character should not be excluded from the play as this would damage the balance of tragedy versus comedy that was deliberately set up by Shakespeare, which would result in a loss of audience.
However, where was the Fool when the King made his decision to divide the kingdom? Obviously the King did not think it was important for the Fool to be employed in political or family matters. Important matters as such were none of his business. Thus, the Fool did not have any influence over King’s decision and therefore, over the major plot of the play. In the following scene the Fool tries to convince Lear of his mistake again and informs him that Regan will, “…taste as like this as a crab does to a crab,” meaning that Regan and Goneril are of the same nature and that there is no need for him to go to her after Goneril has rejected his knights (Act1, Scene 5, line 18). However, this does not stop the King from going to meet with his other daughter. The Fool again had no influence over King’s actions and he follows
The Fool follows the King through his misery like a shadow until he realizes that Lear has erred in his judgment of his daughters and in giving away his kingdom. The Fool’s exit from the play and his last line, “And I’ll go to bed at noon,” is appropriate as it is ridiculous as King’s previous behaviour in the storm (Act 3, Scene 6, line 84). The Fool does not reappear later in the play. He was needed to be Lear’s guide and conscious during his fall. There is no doubt at this point that Lear has been driven to insanity and is beyond the help of the Fool and his truth telling and eye opening remarks. After all, the Fool did not have any control over King’s behaviour or his actions. Perhaps, this final exit is due to Lear’s madness. The Fool’s character jumps into the play at the end of Act 1, and in the same manner disappears out of the play at the end of Act 3. Subsequently, the presence of the Fool did not change the rules of the game and his disappearance did not affect the consequences of the war and death that followed. Thus, the Fool’s character had no influence over the final impact of the play.
Since the Fool’s character had no influence over King’s actions and no connections with the subplot of the play, his removal would therefore not influence the overall impact of the play. However, through his bewildering statements the Fool adds an intriguing essence to the play in foreshadowing coming events and in amusing the King and the audience. When directing his own plays, Shakespeare made sure to include the character of the Fool, as in this way, he managed to bring his tragedy to equilibrium and his play to appeal to all the socio-economic groups of the audience. Also, there aren’t many plays or movies that suggest the connection between the King and the jester in his court. I believe that this play reveals much of that friendly connection that the audience is asking for. Therefore, for all these reasons, I believe that the character of the Fool should not be taken out of the play even though it doesn’t have a role in the two major plots of the play