| author | William Shakespeare |
| main characters | Lear and 3 daughters: Goneril, Regan, Cordelia; Gloucester and 2 sons: Edgar (good), Edmund (bastard) |
| main idea | deals with conflict between fathers and children’ also has implications relating to pride and its consequences |
| Lear had intended to give all his kingdom to Cordelia until she refused to praise him | false |
| Burgundy will not marry Cordelia bc he thinks her refusal to praise Lear is cold and unnatural | false |
| Both Edmund and Gloucester believe that the stars rule man’s destiny | false; Edmund thinks he can change his fate; Gloucester’s old man’s value |
| Albany respects Lear and is genuinely distressed by Goneril’s behavior | true |
| Regan and Cornwall come to Gloucester’s castle bc they want to avoid a visit from Lear | true |
| Lear resents Cornwall’s punishment of Kent bc Cornwall is lower in rank than Kent | false |
| When Lear angrily departs from Gloucester’s castle into the stormy night, his daughters make no effort to stop him | true |
| Lear’s own troubles make him kinder and more considerate of others who suffer | true |
| Lear goes mad when he learns that Gloucester has been blinded | false |
| In Dover, Lear refuses to see Cordelia bc he still has not forgiven her | false |
| Edgar kills Oswald when Oswald tries to murder the king | false |
| Albany decides to fight against France bc he fears that Lear will assume power again if France wins | false |
| Edmund is not sure of which of Lear’s daughters he wants, so he encourages both Goneril and Regan | true |
| Cordelia’s troops lose, but Lear is not depressed because he is happy just to be with Cordelia | true |
| Though Edmund later repents of his orders, both Lear and Cordelia are killed by his soldiers | false; Lear dies of sadness |
| After Lear disowns Cordelia, she | marries France and goes with him |
| Kent is banished for | protesting Lear’s disinheriting of Cordelia |
| Edmund cannot inherit Gloucester’s estate bc | Edmund is younger than Edgar; Edmund is illegitimate; (not bc Lear intents to give the land to Goneril) |
| General says Lear must dismiss his knights bc | the knights are rowdy and impolite; the knights are an ever-present threat to her power; (not bc the knights are sympathetic to the king of France) |
| the disguised Kent is hired by Lear bc Kent | beats up the insolent Oswald |
| Lear seeks out Regan and Cornwall bc he | hopes to find better treatment form them |
| The Fool’s major duty is to remind Lear of the | folly of the king’s own behavior |
| Edmund tricks Gloucester into believing that Edgar had been | plotting against Gloucester’s life |
| Goneril accuses her husband of being | weak and foolishly kind |
| Kent is put in the stocks by Cornwal for | attacking Oswald |
| Goneral and Regan enrage Lear when they | demand he dismiss all of his knights |
| Gloucester defies Cornwall by | concealing France’s plans to invade; aiding Lear; (not by hiding Edgar from Cornwall’s soldiers) |
| Edmund wins Cornwall’s favor and trust by | betraying Gloucester |
| Lear welcomes the storm bc it | keeps him from brooding on the wrongs done to him |
| Edgar disguises himself as a | mad beggar |
| Goneril is attracted to Edmund bc | he seems manly to her in comparison with Albany |
| Cornwall is morally wounded | by a servant who tries to protect Gloucester |
| Goneril is disturbed by the news of Cornwall’s death bc | Regan is now free to marry Edmund |
| The king of France does not fight against Regan and Goneril’s troops bc he | must return to France to take care of vital business |
| Edgar saves Gloucester from committing suicide by | pretending that Gloucester miraculously survived a fall |
| From the letter Oswald carried, Edgar discovers that General | wants Edmund to murder Albany |
| When Lear awakens in Cordelia’s camp, he is | sane again and deeply ashamed |
| Edgar gives Goneril’s letter to | Albany |
| Which is false? | Regan stabs Goneril –> Goneril actually stabs Regan then kills herself bc Edmund dies(Goneril poisons Regan and Edgar mortally wounds Edmund in a fight are both true); |
| At the end of the play, the kingdom is turned over to | Edgar and Kent |
| Edmund | scheming bastard son |
| Goneril | plots her husband’s death |
| Gloucester | old earl who misjudges his sons |
| Lear | old man who foolishly gives up his power |
| Kent | loyal earl disguised as commoner |
| Cordelia | the “last and least” of Lear’s daughters |
| Cornwall | hot-tempered, brutal duke |
| Edgar | heir disguised as madman Tom |
| Albany | Goneril’s moral spouse |
| Regan | poisoned by her rival |
King Lear
July 3, 2019