King Lear and The Burial at Thebes
Taking Heaney’s lecture as your standing point, how far do you agree that politically and social speaking Burial has much more to say to a modern audience than King Lear.
From reading and analysing Heaney’s lecture, we can see the modern relevance of the characters in The Burial at Thebes to modern figures and situations to this date. King Lear as a play, adopts many modern teachings and plots which relate to issues going on in the world today.
The character Antigone had become an accumulation of issues. The theme in which Heaney built his play around is the contemporary Margaret Thatcher. Creon represents Thatcher- the hot-headed ruler who denies the burial rights of the hunger strikers, just like Creon denying the burial rights of Polyneices. The story of this modern history was told through the ancient story of Antigone. The political outlook of this play altogether was very controversial and provided profound modern relevance to the readers today. This play altogether was described by Heaney himself in his lecture that “how often the play or its heroine could be adduced in the cause of liberation movements of many different kinds” Antigone was the individual against the state, something which happens day to day around the globe. In the storyline Antigone believed she was doing what she thought was right and was subsequently murdered for this. The issue of being killed for what you believe is right is an issue that arises frequently among history and today. INCLUDE FEMINIST RESEARCH?!
King Lear too includes modern issues that occur worldwide. The idea of terrorism and plot is weaved through the storyline even due to the time period in which it was written. King Lear is a man who is plotted wildly against; his own daughters Goneril and Regan have formed alliances and turned against him. Their plots are devious and cruel- something that is relevant to todays society. Terroism is a subject that is occurring more and more due to the ISIS executions and
From reading and analysing Heaney’s lecture, we can see the modern relevance of the characters in The Burial at Thebes to modern figures and situations to this date. King Lear as a play, adopts many modern teachings and plots which relate to issues going on in the world today.
The character Antigone had become an accumulation of issues. The theme in which Heaney built his play around is the contemporary Margaret Thatcher. Creon represents Thatcher- the hot-headed ruler who denies the burial rights of the hunger strikers, just like Creon denying the burial rights of Polyneices. The story of this modern history was told through the ancient story of Antigone. The political outlook of this play altogether was very controversial and provided profound modern relevance to the readers today. This play altogether was described by Heaney himself in his lecture that “how often the play or its heroine could be adduced in the cause of liberation movements of many different kinds” Antigone was the individual against the state, something which happens day to day around the globe. In the storyline Antigone believed she was doing what she thought was right and was subsequently murdered for this. The issue of being killed for what you believe is right is an issue that arises frequently among history and today. INCLUDE FEMINIST RESEARCH?!
King Lear too includes modern issues that occur worldwide. The idea of terrorism and plot is weaved through the storyline even due to the time period in which it was written. King Lear is a man who is plotted wildly against; his own daughters Goneril and Regan have formed alliances and turned against him. Their plots are devious and cruel- something that is relevant to todays society. Terroism is a subject that is occurring more and more due to the ISIS executions and