King Lear And The Tempest - 1586 Words

While King Lear was more of a focus on a Jacob-like character and the consequences of his actions, The Tempest is more of a focus on what an Esau-like character would do when confronted with the power they have over their brother. Prospero knows that part of the reason he is on this island is his fault because â€Å"And Prospero the prime duke, being so reputed In dignity, and for the liberal arts Without a parallel; those being all my study, The government I cast upon my brother And to my state grew stranger, being transported And rapt in secret studies† (1.2.72-77). Like many other of Shakespeare’s characters, Prospero shirked his duty to his people and willingly let his brother take over. Now, Prospero wrestles with the fact that his†¦show more content†¦Prospero’s forgiveness of his brother is set up so that he comes out to be the bigger person and to satisfy his ego, when his brother and the people who helped betray him should be locked up so that they won’t do it again. Antonio does not react to being forgiven, and Shakespeare does not tell the audience what Antonio is thinking now that he is seeing his brother after so many years. Of course, in a lot of Shakespeare’s plays, forgiveness is never reached after a betrayal. Such is the case between Don Pedro and Don John in Much Ado About Nothing and Hal and Hotspur in King Henry IV, part I. Both are also odd exceptions to the rule of brotherly betrayal. Indeed, we have a Jacob figure, Don John and Hal, and an Esau figure, Don Pedro and Hotspur, but in one case, the bastard is not out for his brother’s birthright, and in the other the brother is not just not a bastard or his enemy’s blood brother. While there is a clear betrayal between John and Pedro, it is odd to consider Hal the Jacob-figure in his story because Hotspur is the one doing the actual betraying. However, this is coming from the assumption Hotspur has that since he has become the best soldier, he should be allowed to succeed Henry when he dies. Don John wants to cause mischief and trouble for his brother. Like Edmund, he is discontent with being a bastard, but his ultimate goal during their time in Messina is to cause as much trouble as he can. He is quoted asShow MoreRelatedEssay Comparing The Tempest and King Lear1338 Words   |  6 PagesComparing The Tempest and King Lear      Ã‚  Ã‚   This essay will focus on the similarities and differences of the plays The Tempest and King Lear in general, as well as looking at comparisons of Prospero and Lear in somewhat more detail. Prospero and Lear are, without a doubt, the two most compelling mature figures in Shakespeare. In a way, one is the flip side, so to speak, of the other. Each represents an aging mans relationship to family, environment, and, most importantly, himself. One mightRead MoreDramatic Scene Illustrated in Shakespeares King Lear - Storm Scene891 Words   |  4 PagesShakespeare’s King Lear offers its audience an impossible number of dramatic and memorable scenes, but I have chosen the storm scenes in Act III Scenes 1, 2 and 4 as my key dramatic scenes. The storm provides a dramatic centre to the play. It is used to bring about change, to represent Lear’s inner unrest, to symbolise the power of nature and to expose the play’s characters under the intolerant conditions of thunder and lightning. The scenes in which the storm takes place are very different toRead More Suffering In Shakespeares Plays Essay1873 Words   |  8 Pagespain and trauma, and emotional suffering, where the character suffers an emotional trauma or loss. In The Tempest, the physically traumatized characters, are Trinculo and Stephano. They are chased by dogs but their physical trauma has not induced any sign of remorse or guilt. Ferdinand, on the other hand, is overcome by emotional suffering at the quot;lossquot; of his son. In King Lear, Lear is plagued emotionally. He feels that he has lost the love of his favorite daughter Cordelia, and he feelsRead More plotlear Parallel Plots of Shakespeares King Lear Essay1881 Words   |  8 PagesThe Parallel Plots of Shakespeares King Lear   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Many works of literature contain parallel plots in which similar actions taken by various characters precipitate identical results.   Upon careful examination, it is evident that â€Å"such plots exist in Shakespeares play King Lear with the deaths of King Lear, Cordelia, Edmund, and Goneril, among others† (Curry 17).   The betrayal of a commitment to an authority figure is the cause behind each of the above characters death.   Likewise, the consistentRead More William Shakespeares King Lear Essay1571 Words   |  7 PagesWilliam Shakespeares King Lear The locations in Shakespeare’s King Lear fall into three categories: inside a court, out in nature, and in-between nature and civilization. Lear himself also wavers between three states: sanity, senility, and the fine line between the two. These states of consciousness relate directly to the scenes’ locations. However, Lear’s insanity is not the fault of his location in the world; for the most part, he has control over his situation. The series of events inRead More Shakespeares King Lear - The Redemption of King Lear Essay746 Words   |  3 PagesThe Redemption of King Lear It is said that no other playwright illustrates the human condition like William Shakespeare. Furthermore, it is said that no other play illustrates the human condition like King Lear. The story of a bad king who becomes a good man is truly one of the deepest analyses of humanity in literary history; and it can be best seen through the evolution of Lear himself. In essence, King Lear goes through hell in order to compensate for his sins. LearsRead MoreSuffering in Shakespeares Plays1910 Words   |  8 Pagesand trauma, and emotional suffering, where the character suffers an emotional trauma or loss. In The Tempest, the physically traumatized characters, are Trinculo and Stephano. They are chased by dogs but their physical trauma has not induced any sign of remorse or guilt. Ferdinand, on the other hand, is overcome by emotional suffering at the loss of his son. In King Lear, Lear is plagued emotionally. He feels that he has lost the love of his favorite daughter Cordelia, and he feels theRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Family Dynamics1560 Words   |  7 Pagescenter of nearly all his plays. Shakespeare must have known that relations between members of shared bloodlines were ripe for drama, suspense, and highly emotional content. However, despite the many fathers depicted, and plays named for them, fathers King Lear and Titus Andronicus stand as share contrasts to one another. Both have their plays named ominously for them, insinuating that they are the center of the events, as was expected in during the period when these plays were written and published. DespiteRead MoreEssay about The Character of Prospero in Shakespeares The Tempest1310 Words   |  6 PagesThe Character of Prospero in The Tempest      Ã‚   The presence of Prospero is felt continuously in The Tempest, even in those scenes in which he does not appear personally. He is the manipulator of the action of the play, and occupies the center of the stage very markedly, especially if one compares his position with that of the central characters of, say, most of Shakespeares history plays. For in the latter plays, England itself becomes the hero - the English crown, in its resistance to civilRead MoreChaos in King Lear - as Reflec Essays981 Words   |  4 Pagessupernatural anomalies and animal imageries. In King Lear, these devices are used to communicate the plot, which is summarized by Gloucester as: #8230;This villain of mine comes under the prediction: there#8217;s son against father. The King falls from bias of nature: there#8217;s father against child. (Act 1, Sc.1, 115 - 118) The #8220;bias of nature#8221; is defined as the natural inclination of the world. Throughout the play King Lear, the unnatural inclination of nature, supernatural