Femininity in "King Lear"

Paper Summary:

The paper describes each female character and their specific role in the play, "King Lear". The paper also examines the absence of a mother figure and how that may have affected each of the female characters. The paper further points out that the sisters' unseemly and unladylike behavior was a challenge to the norms of the time. The paper stresses that this makes the play not boring and monotonous and then shows how the absence of femininity is key to the unfolding of the play.

From the Paper:

"Goneril, the most unscrupulous of the sisters is by far the leading force of selfishness and greediness in the play. Her ideas are closely followed by her sister Regan, she wants to have the most control, and is possibly the cleverer of the two. Goneril is definitely portrayed as being out of control and lacking the right intellectual tools for being a leader. One could also say it is simply because she in not a man that Shakespeare portrays her as completely incapable. Many male rulers in subsequent time were indeed greedy and selfish but their ability to rule was not questioned. Goneril does not fall into the role women played is his time as subordinates who were only able to raise children and had no business in political affairs. In seeking to uproot this norm, however, she becomes so caught up in getting what she wants, she falls back into the stereotypical role of a woman who has no place in the political realm and plunges her country into chaos and turmoil."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Adelman, Janet. ed. Twentieth Century Interpretations of King Lear. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1978.
• Booth, Stephen. King Lear, Macbeth, Indefinition, and Tragedy. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1983.
• Bradley, A. C. Shakespearean Tragedy, New York: St. Martin's Press, Inc., 1992.

More papers on Femininity in "King Lear":

• Book Review # 91507 : "King Lear" and Female Disorder"
• Analytical Essay # 56090 : "Shakespeare's Feminine Evil"
• Analytical Essay # 27209 : "Book Comparison"

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