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Return to King Lear In Plain and Simple English
King Lear
King Lear is based upon a mythical character who may have been an early monarch of Britain in pre-Christian time. The myth was still commonly known in England during Shakespeare’s lifetime. In Shakespeare’s play, the King is old (in his eighties) and has decided to divide his kingdom among his three daughters. He becomes angry with his youngest daughter so divides it between the two older daughters, Goneril and Regan. This in time leads to his downfall and his tragic death.
Goneril
Goneril is the eldest of King Lear’s three daughters and the wife of the Duke of Albany. After flattering her father and conniving to convince him to give up his kingdom in all but name, Goneril turns against her father once she has her portion and begins treat him poorly and in time, to plot his demise. Her husband turns against her before the end of the play as she falls in love with Edmund, the son of the Earl of Gloucester.
Regan
Regan is the second and middle daughter of King Lear and is much like her sister Goneril. She plays up to and flatters her father who believes she and Goneril truly love him. After she receives her portion of her father’s kingdom, she also turns against him and feels little compassion for his miserable state. Regan is married to the Duke of Cornwall, a nasty and vindictive man. Regan dies by poison at the end of the play at the hands of her sister Goneril, who then kills herself.
Cordelia
Cordelia is the youngest of the three daughters of King Lear. At the beginning of the play, she is being courted by the King of France and the Duke of Burgundy. She decides to marry the King of France. When Lear is dividing up his kingdom in the first scene of Act 1, Cordelia refuses to flatter him, but behaves as she has always done. Lear banishes her and leaves her no land. In the end, Cordelia is reunited with her father shortly before he dies.
Duke of Albany
The Duke of Albany is married to Goneril, King Lear’s oldest daughter. As a man in that time period, he has as much, if not more, influence in their portion of the kingdom as his wife does. Albany is torn between supporting his wife and supporting her father, but his sense of ethics and strong character win out in the end as he turns against Goneril and supports Lear.
Duke of Cornwall
He is married to Regan, Lear’s middle daughter. As a man in that time period, he has as much, if not more, influence in their portion of the kingdom as his wife does. Unlike his brother-in-law Albany, Cornwall joins in his wife’s scheming against her father to usurp his power. He also allies himself with Edmund, son of Gloucester. In the end, he loses his life due to his scheming.
Earl of Gloucester
The Earl fights against the corruption of the daughters of his King but never gives up his loyalty to Lear, even after losing his sight in an assault by the Duke of Cornwall. A subplot of the play, Gloucester’s divided loyalties of his sons Edmund and Edgar, mirror the machinations of Lear’s daughters against him. He goes to Dover with his “good” son, disguised as a peasant, to lend support to his king.
Earl of Kent
A faithful supporter of the King, Kent gets wind that treachery is in the air, and is placed in the stocks for hitting Goneril’s servant. Lear banishes him but Kent stays in the area, taking on a disguise and getting himself hired as a servant to the King. Throughout the play, he serves as Lear’s faithful servant and intervenes on the old King’s behalf when necessary. At the end, he expresses his feelings about his demise – the King is dead and he will soon die too as his work on Earth is done.
Edgar
Edgar is the legitimate son of the King of Gloucester and is slightly older than his half-brother Edmund. Edmund tricks their father into thinking Edgar is plotting against him (the Earl) and Gloucester banishes Edgar. Edgar lives rough and when his shelter is found by the King, Kent, and the Fool, pretends to be a peasant (“Poor Tom”) who is out of his mind. In time, he rescues his father who has been blinded.
Edmund
Edmund is the illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester, the result of a brief romance. Gloucester maintains he treats him no differently than his son Edgar, who is legitimate. Edmund begrudges his brother his inheritance (he is not due anything because he is illegitimate) and swears he will get rid of Edgar so he may take what is “rightfully” his, as he feels he is the better man. Edmund sides with Goneril and Regan and leads them both on, and his having an actual affair with Goneril is almost certain.
Oswald
Goneril’s faithful steward, Oswald plots against her father for their King’s downfall. He serves as a go-between and a spy. Oswald is seen as a weak person without ethics, one who would sell anyone down the river to better his own position. This is the Earl of Kent’s opinion of Oswald and Kent finds himself banished when he expresses what he thinks. Oswald is the perfect obsequious servant and dies for his mistress, Goneril.
Fool
The King’s Fool, who was originally Cordelia’s before she went to France, takes over her role as Lear’s protector. He spends much of his time in the play spouting nonsense doggerel and silly rhymes – disguised as pithy observations of what is going on around him. The Fool accompanies Lear when he leaves the castle and wanders around the heath and makes sure he comes to no harm.
King of France
Early in the play Lear mentions the King of France as a possible husband for Cordelia and, in fact, he is staying with the court while he competes with another suitor. Although Lear cuts Cordelia’s dowry down to a minimum, France still wants to marry her, for he has grown to love her. Later he invades Lear’s kingdom when it is threatened by those who have turned against the King.
Duke of Burgundy
The Duke of Burgundy is competing for Cordelia’s hand with the King of France. He has no interest in her once Lear decides his youngest daughter will be cut out of her share of his land and holdings. He serves as a contrast to the King of France, who loves Cordelia despite her lack of dowry.
Servants
Various servants and other retainers appear in the play. In one pivotal scene, after Cornwall blinds Gloucester, the Duke of Albany’s servants leave in disgust, deserting their master for such heinous actions against an innocent man.
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