King Lear
William Shakespeare (1606)
“A king gives away everything and discovers, too late, that power was all he was — and that the children who flattered him were never his children at all.”
Short Summary
Aging King Lear divides his kingdom among his three daughters based on who can flatter him best. Cordelia, who loves him honestly, refuses to play along and is banished. Goneril and Regan, the flattering daughters, systematically strip Lear of his retinue and dignity until he is cast out onto a storm-swept heath, descending into madness. Meanwhile, the Earl of Gloucester is blinded by Lear's daughter's husband and his illegitimate son Edmund betrays him. Both old men are destroyed by children they trusted. Cordelia returns with a French army but is defeated. She and Lear are captured; Cordelia is hanged. Lear dies of grief over her body. The stage is left strewn with corpses.
Detailed Summary
King Lear of Britain, old and tired, decides to divide his kingdom among his three daughters according to how much they profess to love him. Goneril and Regan deliver elaborate speeches of devotion. Cordelia, the youngest and most beloved, says simply that she loves him as a daughter should — no mor...