Unregistered
05-24-2005, 06:07 PM
King Lear is indeed very tragic, possibly the most of the four (King Lear, Hamlet, Macbeth and Othello), but it seems inaccessible. Shakespeare goes to great measures to 'mess' the play up (Edgar's multiple roles, Cordelia'sabsence and then the forgetting of her marriage to France, along with many other dramatic techniques). <br><br> Hamlet is renowned for it's philosophical nature (with the 7 Great Soliloquies), Macbeth for it's supernatural element, Othello for it's domesticity and 'closeness' to the reader and King Lear for it universal meaning and impact. I personnaly prefer Othello, as it is the most real and possible in the eyes of today's audience. However, King Lear's contemporary audience may well have been devastated a the thought of their kingdom being split up and the civil war that would ensue.