Reading King Lear
1. Take notes on the following motifs by marking
down the motif(s), speaker(s), act, scene, lines.
Example notes from 1.1:
Gloucester,
parenthood/sex/unfaithfulness, 1.1.8-24
Goneril, Regan, Cordelia, saying v. truth, 1.1.60+
Cordelia, Lear, “nothing” 1.1.96
Lear, appetite/savagery 1.1.131, 136
Kent,
loyalty, madness, flattery, wisdom, emptiness, hollowness,161-174
What
is the relationship between literal and figurative imagery, on the one hand,
and thematic development on the other?
Is
what is said understood? Is what is
said true? (flattery, lies, etc.)
Is
what is seen or (otherwise sensed:
touched, smelled) understood? Is it true?
(Eyes
are very important!)
What
is natural? What is unnatural (or monstrous)?
What
is sane? What is mad?
What
is wisdom? (What is reasonable?) What
is foolishness? (What is excessive?)
What
is loyalty and faithfulness? What is
betrayal and unfaithfulness?
What
is kindness? What is cruelty?
How
are these related to age and youth?
How
are these related to parents and
children?
How
are these related to rank and status?
How
are these related to property and wealth?
How
are these related to the line between animals
and humans?
How
are these related to storms and calms?
How
are these related to planets, stars, fates?
What
is the significance of nothingness, emptiness,
hollowness, loss, and nakedness in the play?
What
is the significance of eating,
appetites, consuming in the play?
What
is the significance of sex and lust
in the play?
What
is the significance of blood (both
as a signifier of family and of violence)?
All of the aforementioned motifs interact, weaving in and out of each other to form a matrix of association. So when Lear denies Cordelia her inheritance, he doesn't say "get away from me; you're no longer my daughter" (in Elizabethan English and iambic pentameter). He evokes several motifs and images that are echoed in other parts of the play: "Thy truth, then, be thy dower" "For by the sacred radiance of the sun... by all the operation of the orbs" "paternal care" "property of blood" "gorge his appetite" "avoid my sight" (1.1.120-139).
Also be on the look out for inversions: the natural becoming unnatural, the truth that is false, the sight that is a lie, the fool that is wise, etc. & look out for parallels. ("Monster" is tagged on both Cordelia and Edgar in Act One.) Look out for motif-words with ambiguous multiple or shifting meanings (especially "nature" and "nothing"). Listen for playfulness and for echoes. Figurative associations often haunt the literal meanings. And repetitions often reveal the play's obsessions.
2. Choose a particular monologue or passage of dialogue to analyze. (1) In your analysis demonstrate an understanding of the passage’s meaning within its context. (2) Also, identify and discuss the significance of (at least two) motifs within the passage. What does the use of the motifs reveal, particularly about characters, conflicts, and themes? (3) Finally, discuss the relationship between how the motifs are presented in the passage and how the motifs are presented elsewhere in the play. Post your response below. At the beginning of your post include your name, name the motifs, and quote the passages (include act.scene.line). [Note: In the right margin of the blog you'll find links to searchable etexts of King Lear and to video recordings of performances. These resources may be of help.]
All of the aforementioned motifs interact, weaving in and out of each other to form a matrix of association. So when Lear denies Cordelia her inheritance, he doesn't say "get away from me; you're no longer my daughter" (in Elizabethan English and iambic pentameter). He evokes several motifs and images that are echoed in other parts of the play: "Thy truth, then, be thy dower" "For by the sacred radiance of the sun... by all the operation of the orbs" "paternal care" "property of blood" "gorge his appetite" "avoid my sight" (1.1.120-139).
Also be on the look out for inversions: the natural becoming unnatural, the truth that is false, the sight that is a lie, the fool that is wise, etc. & look out for parallels. ("Monster" is tagged on both Cordelia and Edgar in Act One.) Look out for motif-words with ambiguous multiple or shifting meanings (especially "nature" and "nothing"). Listen for playfulness and for echoes. Figurative associations often haunt the literal meanings. And repetitions often reveal the play's obsessions.
2. Choose a particular monologue or passage of dialogue to analyze. (1) In your analysis demonstrate an understanding of the passage’s meaning within its context. (2) Also, identify and discuss the significance of (at least two) motifs within the passage. What does the use of the motifs reveal, particularly about characters, conflicts, and themes? (3) Finally, discuss the relationship between how the motifs are presented in the passage and how the motifs are presented elsewhere in the play. Post your response below. At the beginning of your post include your name, name the motifs, and quote the passages (include act.scene.line). [Note: In the right margin of the blog you'll find links to searchable etexts of King Lear and to video recordings of performances. These resources may be of help.]
Comments on act one are due by pumpkin time on Sunday, February 5.
Comments on act two are due by pumpkin time on Sunday, February 12.
Comments on act three are due (for Mr. Cook's class) before A-block on Monday 27Feb.
