King’s Lear’s Character

At the very beginning of the play the Lear’s character is revealed. The first lines tells us that his mind is beginning to fail with age, formerly he had perceived how different how different were the characters of Cornwall and Albany, but now ne seems either to have lost this perception or to be unwisely ignoring it. The rashness of his division of the kingdom troubles us and we cannot but see with concern that its motive is mainly selfish.
The absurdity of the pretence of making the division depend on protestations of love from his daughters, his complete blindness to the hypocrisy which is patent to us at a glance, His piteous delight in these protestation, the openness of his expressions of preference for his youngest daughter all make us smile, but as well pain us. But pity begins to give way to another feeling when we witness the precipitance and the uncontrolled anger of injustice to cordellia and Kent and the hideous rashness of his persistence in dividing the kingdom after rejection of his one dutiful child. We feel now the presence of force as well as weakness, but moreover we feel the presence of death. The consciousness that decay of old age contributes to his condition deepens our pity of Lear and of human infirmity, it certainly does not leads us to regard the old king as irresponsible harsh and prejudice. This can be illustrated in these words to cordellia
Let it be so, thy truth then be thy dower.
For, by the sacred radiance of the sun,
The mysteries of Hecate and the night,
By all the operation of the orbs
From whom we do exist and cease to be
Here I disclaim all my paternal care,
Propinquity and property of blood
And as a stranger to my heart and me
Hold thee from this for ever. The barbarous Scythian
Or he that makes his generation messes
To gorge his appetite, shall to my bosom
Be as well neighbour’d, pitied and relieved
As thou my sometimes daughter.
The dramatic effect of this passage is repeated again to his daughter Goneril who had done no more than to require him a little disquantity and reform his train knights. Certainly her manner and spirit in making these demands are hateful and probably her accusations against the knight are false, as well we should have expect from any father in Lear’s position passionate distress and indignation. But surely he famous words from Lears immediate reply were meant to be nothing more short of frightful:
Hear nature, hear, dear goddess, hear!
Suspend they purpose, if thou didst intend
To make this creature fruitful
Into her womb convey sterility
Dry up in her the organs of increase
And from her derogate body never spring
A babe to honor her! If she must teem
Create her child of spleen that it may live
And be thwarted disnature torment to her
Let it stamp wrinkles in her brow of youth
With cadent tears fret channels in her cheeks
Turn all her mother’s pains and benefits
To laughter and contempt, that she may feel
How sharper than a serpent tooth it is
To have a thankless child!!
The question is not whether Goneril deserves these appalling imprecations but what they tell us about Lear, they show that although he has already recognized his injustice towards Cordellia, he is secretly blaming himself and is endeavoring to do better. As well he is at a stage where there is no turning back from what he is doing. If he needs to invoke nature, the gods or any other form of deity with some extreme supreme higher power he is saying let is come forward and deal with his daughter as well in the rest of the play.
In conclusion King Lear’s character can be said to be “a man more sinned against sinning”. He is very evil and selfish. His suffering is very cruel but the recollection of the wrongs that he did to Kent and his dutiful daughter Cordelia and to the realm has been well night effaced. The last four acts have inspired in us, together with this pity much admiration and affection. The force of his passion has made us feel that his nature was great, his frankness and generosity, his herotic efforts to be patient. The depth of his shame and repentance, and the ecstasy of his re-union with Cordelia have melted our hearts and thus provide a balance with King Lear’s character and his role in the play.