‘‘Tis the infirmity of his age; yet he hath ever but slenderly known himself’ (Act 1.1 290-291) Discuss the portrayal of King Lear’s character in the first act of King Lear.
‘King Lear’ was written by the world-renowned English playwright William Shakespeare in the years 1604-1605. It is one of Shakespeare’s most tragic plays where both good and evil characters suffer horribly and die grisly deaths. The play tells the story of an old King whose irrational behaviour leads to his downfall and his road to redemption.
In the first act of the play King Lear is portrayed as an arrogant man who basks in his own self importance and expects only praise and assent from his peers. His decision to give away his kingdom to his daughters before his death while keeping the title of King shows that he values words and titles over power and authority. What makes this decision worse is his choice of dividing his kingdom: awarding the finest portion to the daughter that answers the question “which of you shall we say doth love us most?” the best. Lear disregards his older daughters’ previous actions but accepts their hyperbole filled proclamations of love blindly, while taking offence for his youngest and favourite daughter’s plain and truthful answer. His choice to disown her and split the kingdom between the older two prove to be a foolhardy decision which leads to his fall from grace.
