When Ego Blinds!

King Lear is a tragedy and fictional play, written by the English playwright William Shakespeare. One of the main themes in the play is sight vs. insight and is conveyed through the consequences of misjudgements and lack of wisdom portrayed by the play’s characters, such as the protagonist Lear. Lear is the king of pre-Christian England, who decides to divide the kingdom between his three daughters: Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia, according to the one that publically flatters him the most. Consequently, the two eldest daughters are only happy to oblige his request and are awarded their shares of the land; unfortunately, the youngest and once the favourite of Lear, refuses to indulge her father in his charade and is thus expelled and disclaimed by the bitter Lear. Subsequently, this mistake leads to many misfortunes for Lear. Hereafter, the dynamic character Lear reveals a critical development throughout the course of the play and transforms him from an egoistic, oblivious and arrogant king to a mad, poor, and despised man, until ultimately reaches a state of complete self-awareness and moral awakening. 

At the beginning of the play, Lear is revealed as a narcissist and powerful king who is simply blinded with ego and pride. His desire to fulfil and feed his self-esteem leads to a blindness and lack of logical judgements. For instance, he declares that he will divide the kingdom to the daughter that can mostly flatter him, “which of you shall we say doth love us most? That we our largest bounty may extend where nature doth with merit challenge” (I, i, 51-52). This simply and directly indicates his naivety and lack of sense in making decisions, and demonstrates his utter selfishness. Moreover, his irrationality and impulsiveness that follow when he disowns Cordelia and deprives her from her dowry, shows his lack of vision, his oblivion, and mostly his impulsiveness. His words “Be as well neighbour’d, pitied, and reliev’d, as thou my sometime daughter.” (I: i:119) reveal the consequences of the ego against his former beloved daughter, as it declares to us as audience he is only attends events and gives decisions without perceiving their long term outcomes; due to his high arrogance. Subsequently, the surrounding environment events such as the expulsion from Goneril and Regan’s palaces and understanding his new social status at the kingdom changes, Lear’s arrogant personality changes during the middle course of the play. 

As the play progresses and circumstances change, Shakespeare portrays Lear’s character traits from a different light, and is seen as a mad and poor man that can observe his judgements. After both Goneril and Regan divest from Lear his hundred soldiers and accommodation, it deprives him from power and control too, this radical change turns to be beneficial to him by changing his character. For example, earlier, he thinks that he still has the power, but Goneril proves to her father that he is powerless and what is done is an indiscretion, “Does any here know me? This is not Lear” (I, iv, 215). As obviously this quote demonstrates Lear’s exclamation and astonishment after discovering his own new identity in the palace; powerless, and he realises that his previous decision to give this daughter a share of the kingdom is a mistake. Consequently, after he identifies his new character again from Regan’s attitude he tries to speak with the clouds needing assistance, “here I stand, your slave, a poor, infirm, weak, and despis’d old man.” (III, ii, 20). Which displays his sensations of humiliation from his two daughters; he discovers his own new identity, unfortunate and insane. At the same time, he speaks with the clouds in rhymed verse style, which reveals Lear’s high social status and the hope he has in recovering the previous power and dignity; in other words, he admits his wrong decision and confess it to the clouds full of pride. Afterwards, Lear regains his title with the assistance of Cordelia after attaining the wisdom and insight. 

Lear’s final character is completely exposed and crystalized in the last two acts of the play, after a development from an arrogant king to a mad man. After he discovers his new identity from the two spiteful daughters, he decides to go where the wind blows by ending with seeking to the youngest, Cordelia. Asking her for forgiveness and mercy after understanding his own wrong misjudgement. “You, must bear with me. Pray you now, forget and forgive: I am old and foolish.” (IV, vii, 84). Which fully reveals that he has the wisdom and maturity in thinking as what is done before is wrong: the banishment of Cordelia, and feeding and fulfilling his ego only. Furthermore, he recovers from his mistake of being led by his ego, and regretting it to all the noblemen at the court showing the gain of the insight. 

All in all, William Shakespeare the playwright of the tragic play King Lear characterized the protagonist Lear as a dynamic character that develops through the play’s course. The king of the play shows his transformation from an egoistic blind king to a mad man, and finally, to regretful, mature, and wise again. Shakespeare demonstrated Lear’s character development using the theme of sight vs. insight. Therefore, Shakespeare's King Lear is a legendary play that fits in any date and time. 

References/ Play: Shakespeare, William, and Roma Gill. King Lear. Oxford University Press, 2012.