How was the work of William Shakespeare "King Lear"? The plot of the great playwright borrowed from a medieval epic. One of the legends of Britain tells about the king, who divided his possessions between the eldest daughters and left the youngest without inheritance. Shakespeare put on a straightforward story in a poetic form, added several details to it, an original storyline, introduced a couple of additional characters. The result was one of the greatest tragedies of world literature.
History of creation
Shakespeare was inspired by the medieval legend to write King Lear. But the history of this legend begins in ancient times. Around the 14th century, the legend was translated from Latin into English. Shakespeare wrote his tragedy in 1606. It is known that at the end of the 16th century in one of the British theaters the premiere of the play “The Tragic History of King Lear” took place. Some researchers believe that this is the work of Shakespeare, which he later renamed.
One way or another, the name of the author who wrote the tragedy at the end of the 16th century is unknown. However, according to some historical sources, Shakespeare completed work on King Lear in 1606. It was then that the first performance took place.
A summary of King Lear is set out as follows:
- Section of the inheritance.
- In exile.
- War.
- The death of Lear.
Inheritance section
The main character is a king who is tired of dominating. He decided to retire, but first he should pass the reins to the children. King Lear has three daughters. How to divide ownership between them? The main character takes, as he thinks, a wise decision. He is going to bequeath to each of his daughters a possession commensurate with her love, that is, the one who loves him most of all, will get most of the kingdom.
Older daughters begin to compete in flattery. The younger, Cordelia, refuses to be a hypocrite and claims that love does not need proof. Stupid Lear is angry. He drives Cordelia out of the yard, and divides the kingdom between his elder daughters. Count Kent, who tried to intercede for his youngest daughter, is also in disgrace.
Time passes, King Lear realizes that he made a terrible mistake. The attitude of daughters is changing dramatically. They are no longer as courteous with their father as before. In addition, a political conflict is brewing in the kingdom, which also upsets Lyra a lot.
In exile
Daughters drive their father away just as he once drove Cordelia. Accompanied by the jester, Lear goes to the steppe. Here he meets Kent, Gloucester and Edgar. The last two heroes are absent in the British legend, these are characters created by Shakespeare. Ungrateful daughters, meanwhile, are developing a plan to eliminate the father. In addition to the main storyline, in Shakespeare's tragedy there is one more - the story of Gloucester and his son Edgar, who diligently poses as a madman.
War
Cordelia finds out how cruel the sisters did to her father. She collects the army and leads him to the kingdom of sisters. The battle begins. King Lear and his youngest daughter are taken prisoner. Suddenly, Edmund appears - the illegitimate son of Gloucester, whom the author mentions at the beginning of the tragedy. He is trying to organize the murder of Cordelia and her father. But he manages to implement only part of the plan, namely to kill the youngest daughter of Lear. Then Edmund dies in a duel with his brother Edgar.
Death of Lear
All the daughters of King Lear in the finale die. The elder kills the middle, and then commits suicide. Cordelia is strangled in prison. King Lear goes free and dies of grief. By the way, Gloucester is also dying. Edgar and Kent remain alive. The latter also does not feel love for life, but thanks to the entreaties of the Duke of Alban, he refuses the idea of stabbing himself with a dagger.