Working Title: Complexities of Character: Edmund’s Inner Struggles
Working Thesis: Because Edmund attempts to save Lear and Cordelia, he should not be read as a flat, heartless character but rather as a complex man with conflicting interests and even redemptive qualities.
Annotated Bibliography (Social and Performance)
Arnold, Judd; Expert
I read an article that he wrote
concerning King Lear’s support system in the play, and how this ultimately
helps to redeem him.
I have emailed Arnold concerning
Edmund- how he had virtually no support system and no encouragement during the
play. I wanted to know his thoughts on whether that makes Edmund a more
sympathetic character or not. If Lear was only saved due to his friends and
family, should we be merciful to Edmund since his father constantly brought up
his bastard nature?
Muratore, Christopher; Peer
Chris is a member of my Shakespeare
class. We have actually been in a few classes together, and we worked together
on reading A Merchant of Venice.
Chris spoke of writing a paper
regarding Edmund’s sexuality. His comments on Slack have been rather
interesting, and I have actually started collecting them in order to compare
Chris’ homosexual/asexual readings of Edmund with other readings of Edmund as a
stereotypical womanizing heterosexual.
Perry, Alex; Friend
Alex is my fiancé, and he enjoys discussing
different moral dilemmas.
Alex and I talked about the
effectiveness of deathbed repentance. We both agree that it all depends on the
sinner’s sincerity; if Edmund truly wished to save Lear and Ophelia, he could
be considered repented of his sins.
Renaissance Theatre Company. “King
Lear by William Shakespeare (1994)- Starring Sir John Gielgud and Kenneth
Branagh.” Youtube, uploaded by Roman
Styran, 15 June 2015, https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JylxvHvdtA
This audio
version of the play phenomenally portrays the emotion in each character. I
especially love the final scenes between Edmund and Edgar because I can hear
the urgency in Edmund’s voice while he tries to save Lear and Cordelia, and
then his urgency switches to desperation as people do not immediately run to
follow his suggestions.
Roberts, Sinéad, The Costume Room;
Enthusiast
Sinéad Roberts runs her own
business called The Costume Room, and she therefore has plenty of interaction
with different portrayals of Shakespearean characters. I found her by searching
Pinterest for images of Edmund.
Roberts comments on one photo of
Edmund that she loves this particular portrayal. In the photo Edmund is gazing
down rather lovingly at Goneril, and he appears to be pushing her hair back
behind her ear. This photo shows an entirely different interpretation of Edmund
than the interpretation that Chris suggests.
Sutton, Montgomery. “Edmund, ‘King
Lear’-‘Thou, Nature, art my goddess.’” Youtube,
uploaded by Montgomery Sutton, 25 August 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
bEpwrjpDpJs
This short
recitation of Edmund’s soliloquy ‘Thou, Nature, art my goddess” emphasizes
Edmund’s feelings of inferiority. Not only is there a focus on Edmund’s god
being nature (he is humanist, and this supports my paper), but Sutton also
portrays Edmund and his goals as an underdog “comeuppance” story that most
people love to see.
No comments:
Post a Comment