King Lear's devastation of a great kingdom

Essay by tmac8666High School, 12th gradeA-, February 2005

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In Shakespeare's tragic play, King Lear, the audience witnesses the devastation of a great kingdom. Disorder engulfs the land once King Lear transfers his power to his daughters, but as A. C. Bradley wrote, "The ultimate power in the tragic world is a moral order" . By looking at the concept of order versus disorder in the setting, plot, and the character King Lear, the idea of moral order is clearly shown by the outcome of the play.

The idea of moral order is clear from the setting of the play. An good example from the play would be that of the storms. By using the technique of pathetic fallacy, Shakespeare creates a storm raging in the sky to reflect the storm raging inside of Lear. Upon the heath, Shakespeare combines this idea of disorder in the universe and disorder within Lear. King Lear says, "Rumble they bellyful! Spit, fire! spout, rain! Nor rain, wind thunder, fire, are my daughter: I tax you not, you elements, with unkindness; I never gave you kingdom, call'd you children..."

Lear's feelings in this passage are comparable to the disorder of the storm. To bring order to the universe, Lear must start by bringing order to himself. This occurs when he becomes lawful and puts his daughters on trial. Soon after, Lear says, "When the rain came to wet me once and the wind to make me chatter, when the thunder would not peace at my bidding, there I found 'em, there I smelt 'em out". Here, Lear explains how the storm actually helped him see the truth. Soon after this happens, the storm is no where to be found. Lear clears himself of his inner rage which calms both the inner storm and the storm raging on earth, which brings order...