A progression from denial to rage to isolation is the eventual path that the main character King Lear takes from the beginning of Act 2 onwards throughout the novel to his eventual death. Through Lear's actions and uncontrollable emotion, he slowly becomes insane and loses everything that he ever thought was important to him in his life. The destruction of his kingdom is not only due to his family's greed and selfishness, but it is also self-inflicted as well.
The progressive destruction of King Lear's kingdom is evident through his actions as well as the actions of his three daughters. The destruction of the family does not actually occur until his favourite daughter proclaims these words,
"Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave
My heart into my mouth. I love your majesty
According to my bond; no more nor less." (Act 1, Scene 1, lines 73-75)
Lear's reaction to this brought him into an awful rage after his youngest daughter’s speech. Due to her speech, Lear disowns her and splits up her share of the kingdom between her two sisters. His reason for doing so was because he saw her reply as to how much she loves him as an insult to him and his pride. This rage and spiteful action against Cordelia, shows the destruction of family old order. By Lear denying Cordelia of what is rightfully hers, he has pitted her against her two sisters because they have received her share of the kingdom. The two other daughters of Lear, Goneril and Regan, paid "lip service" to him when he was in charge of the kingdom; yet when they got their turn, they showed him nothing but disrespect and hatred. This is an example of the destruction of social order in King Lear, because it shows how two people can be so conniving, even when it pertains to a family member. The destruction begins when Lear asks Mother Nature for her not to bear any heirs, which affects her status as a wife and a future mother, as well as a queen. Lear wanted to be surrounded by ‘yes’ men, and if an honest person who was once very close to him creates an uproar, Lear would decide that he did not make a proper decision. Afterwards, Lear decides to exile the earl of Kent under rash and inappropriate circumstances. This was not a smart decision, because Kent was a very intelligent man who knew what Lear was doing to his family is wrong, and tried to show him that. Edmund continued to destroy Edgar's position in their father’s life by writing a letter outlining the death of their father, and by convincing Edgar to walk around with a sword as to confirm the father’s suspicions about Edgar’s plans. Lear does not reward his faithful daughter by making her queen of a part of England, but instead he disowns her and marries her off to the King of France. Lear’s other two daughters whittled away his status in the kingdom by shaving down his administration of soldiers by half. It is fate that intercepts and shows Lear via his jester what a huge mistake he has made by handing over his country to his ungrateful, conniving, evil daughters. This decision would prove to be costly to Lear.
