Throughout the play I observed how Edmund and Edgar interacted. I found it interesting that in the beginning Edgar barely got in a few words while Edmund spoke well-versed lines. By the end of the play, Edmund listens more and Edgar speaks out quite often.My Analyzing and Annotating
Initially, my analysis of Shakespeare focused on theme and character development; I placed more emphasis on content than on form. Yet as time passes I find myself observing how the two influence and almost play with each other. By understanding content I can discuss Shakespeare, but by understanding form I can discuss Shakespeare as literature.
Peer and Source Influences
One major help in my journey through this Shakespeare class has been the Slack conversations among students. Videos, graphics, and images give me more clarity concerning the plot, while debates concerning duty, sanity, and love stimulate ethical conversations. Numerous themes and interpretations fill King Lear; thus, a very social group study helps bring out all those different themes and ideas.
My Working Claims
[policy claim] Because Edmund attempts to save Lear and Cordelia, he should not be read as a flat, heartless character.
[definition claim] Though she remains absent most of the play, Cordelia acts as a guide and omnipresent character in King Lear due to her relationship to the king and her connections with the fool.
[comparison claim] While their courses of action and eventual fates are completely different, Edgar and Cordelia fulfill the ideal gender roles of a son and daughter, respectively, from the Elizabethan Era.
[evaluation claim] Despite a massive critical backlash against it, Cordelia's murder actually improves the quality of the play due to its unpredictability and faithfulness to cold reality.
[causal claim] The amount of characters using disguise in King Lear causes an uneasy environment containing both the creation and resolution of conflict, despite each character's individual intentions.
I like your comparison claim, and I was curious to hear more about what the ideal roles for children would have been in this era. Are you talking mostly about loyalty and forgiveness that they show their parents or their attempts to take care of them or something else?
ReplyDeleteI was originally thinking about how Cordelia fulfills the role of staying out of sight and not being a burden on society. She responds to her father's rantings and ravings by submissiveness. Whereas Edgar does initially run away (out of confusion), but he, like a good Elizabethan era male should, confronts his attackers and actively pursues redemption.
DeleteYou're statements above are very well put. I really want to hear about the causal claim, because the use of disguises is very evident but seems unexplained. I wonder what it might also have to do with thinks like blindness (especially since the two characters who are always disguised might seemed to sometimes be the less misguided, but the more misjudged).
ReplyDelete