A Bleak Hope in King Lear, a Play by William Shakespeare . Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In his play King Lear, Shakespeare presents a society in which no one can emerge victorious. The end of the play serves in a certain sense to teach that tragedy makes no distinction between those who are good and those who are evil; for example, despite the constant contrast presented between Lear's daughters, they are all subject to death in the end. Suffering is a recurring theme of the work, shown not only through the deterioration of the characters' mental state, but also through depictions of brutal graphic violence to symbolize physical suffering. Hope for humanity is not explicitly present in the work, but is still represented through the change of heart and the development of some characters. AG Bradley argues that "the whole story beats the prosperity charge to the brain." Indeed, Hope appears to be doomed at some points in the play, perhaps most notably through the dramatic irony of Cordelia's death, immediately after Albany declares "the Gods defend her!" Such cruelty on the part of the Gods is a recurring theme in King Lear, and since the Gods can be seen as the epitome of hope, a world with negligent gods could therefore represent a world in which hope is utterly futile. The final loss of hope is represented by Gloucester's loss of faith; as a character who seemed to have abiding faith, exclaiming “kind Gods,” even as he was humiliated by Regan, it is surprising and somewhat disturbing to see Gloucester admit that “As flies to wanton boys are we to the Gods; They kill us for their sport." It demonstrates Gloucester's complete loss of faith in attempting to commit suicide, the most unforgivable of sins in Shakespeare's time. The idea that in King Lear, even the most hopeful character becomes desperate, suggests that the play is set in a world without hope. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Personalize EssayHowever, it must be recognized that while some characters lose faith due to circumstances, others improve as a result of them. The protagonist of the work is a significant example of this, since before enduring the suffering, he seems to have been a negligent and perhaps cruel man. At the beginning of the play it was difficult to sympathize with the violent and narcissistic king; initiating the "darker purpose" of love's trial confirmed his inability to rule pragmatically, and his cruelty toward Cordelia and Kent, the play's most loyal characters, depicts his faulty judgment of others. Later, however, Lear declares that he will "kneel down and ask pardon of you [Cordelia]", showing his immense development in his ability to accept guilt and feel compassion. This implies that suffering was necessary for Lear to improve himself; a Christian audience would support this message as it promotes hope, rather than destroying it, as redemptive suffering was an important aspect of the religion. Edmund is also seen to change his ways by the end of the play. He says "something good I intend to do, despite my nature", which denotes the attempt to defy his typically evil personality to regain morality. The act of redemption before death suggests that hope is indeed present in King Lear's world.

Topic > A Bleak Hope in King Lear, a Play by William Shakespeare . Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In his play King Lear, Shakespeare presents a society in which no one can emerge victorious. The end of the play serves in a certain sense to teach that tragedy makes no distinction between those who are good and those who are evil; for example, despite the constant contrast presented between Lear's daughters, they are all subject to death in the end. Suffering is a recurring theme of the work, shown not only through the deterioration of the characters' mental state, but also through depictions of brutal graphic violence to symbolize physical suffering. Hope for humanity is not explicitly present in the work, but is still represented through the change of heart and the development of some characters. AG Bradley argues that "the whole story beats the prosperity charge to the brain." Indeed, Hope appears to be doomed at some points in the play, perhaps most notably through the dramatic irony of Cordelia's death, immediately after Albany declares "the Gods defend her!" Such cruelty on the part of the Gods is a recurring theme in King Lear, and since the Gods can be seen as the epitome of hope, a world with negligent gods could therefore represent a world in which hope is utterly futile. The final loss of hope is represented by Gloucester's loss of faith; as a character who seemed to have abiding faith, exclaiming “kind Gods,” even as he was humiliated by Regan, it is surprising and somewhat disturbing to see Gloucester admit that “As flies to wanton boys are we to the Gods; They kill us for their sport." It demonstrates Gloucester's complete loss of faith in attempting to commit suicide, the most unforgivable of sins in Shakespeare's time. The idea that in King Lear, even the most hopeful character becomes desperate, suggests that the play is set in a world without hope. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Personalize EssayHowever, it must be recognized that while some characters lose faith due to circumstances, others improve as a result of them. The protagonist of the work is a significant example of this, since before enduring the suffering, he seems to have been a negligent and perhaps cruel man. At the beginning of the play it was difficult to sympathize with the violent and narcissistic king; initiating the "darker purpose" of love's trial confirmed his inability to rule pragmatically, and his cruelty toward Cordelia and Kent, the play's most loyal characters, depicts his faulty judgment of others. Later, however, Lear declares that he will "kneel down and ask pardon of you [Cordelia]", showing his immense development in his ability to accept guilt and feel compassion. This implies that suffering was necessary for Lear to improve himself; a Christian audience would support this message as it promotes hope, rather than destroying it, as redemptive suffering was an important aspect of the religion. Edmund is also seen to change his ways by the end of the play. He says "something good I intend to do, despite my nature", which denotes the attempt to defy his typically evil personality to regain morality. The act of redemption before death suggests that hope is indeed present in King Lear's world.