King Lear: Lack of Insight
Lacking Insight due to Emotion
Many people around the world lack insight because of emotion. This means that their judgment is being blocked due to strong feelings. There are many situations in Shakespeare's King Lear play where characters lack insight due to their emotions. Shakespeare shows this in three characters; King Lear, Gloucester and Albany. In every regard, the characters in this play tend to lack insight because of strong emotion.
Early on in the play, King Lear shows lack of insight because of strong emotion by banishing Cordelia, his youngest daughter. When Lear asks his three daughters who loves him the most he believes Cordelia will say that her love is the greatest, which it is. We see this when Cordelia herself says "I love your Majesty/According to my bond, no more nor less"(1.1.97-98). . Since Lear does not understand the underlying meaning of what Cordelia is trying to say, about how her sisters are just putting on an act and that their love is false,he lacks insight because of anger and believes that his youngest daughter does not love him and decides to banish her. Cordelia’s banishment then leads to the banishment of Kent. King Lear is not the only character in the play that displays lack of insight.
Unlike Lear and his three daughters, Gloucester suffers from blindness as well, his blindness prevents him from seeing the evil of Edmund,his son, and the goodness of Edgar. Gloucester’s blindness begins when Edmund convinces him that Edgar,Gloucester’s other son, is planning to kill him. This causes Gloucester to have lack of sight and believe that Edmund is the good son and Edgar is the evil one. This leads to Gloucester announcing that Edgar is a criminal and puts a price on his head. Gloucester says “...That he which finds him shall deserve our thanks,/Bringing the murderous coward to the stake.”(2.1.).
Many people around the world lack insight because of emotion. This means that their judgment is being blocked due to strong feelings. There are many situations in Shakespeare's King Lear play where characters lack insight due to their emotions. Shakespeare shows this in three characters; King Lear, Gloucester and Albany. In every regard, the characters in this play tend to lack insight because of strong emotion.
Early on in the play, King Lear shows lack of insight because of strong emotion by banishing Cordelia, his youngest daughter. When Lear asks his three daughters who loves him the most he believes Cordelia will say that her love is the greatest, which it is. We see this when Cordelia herself says "I love your Majesty/According to my bond, no more nor less"(1.1.97-98). . Since Lear does not understand the underlying meaning of what Cordelia is trying to say, about how her sisters are just putting on an act and that their love is false,he lacks insight because of anger and believes that his youngest daughter does not love him and decides to banish her. Cordelia’s banishment then leads to the banishment of Kent. King Lear is not the only character in the play that displays lack of insight.
Unlike Lear and his three daughters, Gloucester suffers from blindness as well, his blindness prevents him from seeing the evil of Edmund,his son, and the goodness of Edgar. Gloucester’s blindness begins when Edmund convinces him that Edgar,Gloucester’s other son, is planning to kill him. This causes Gloucester to have lack of sight and believe that Edmund is the good son and Edgar is the evil one. This leads to Gloucester announcing that Edgar is a criminal and puts a price on his head. Gloucester says “...That he which finds him shall deserve our thanks,/Bringing the murderous coward to the stake.”(2.1.).