Author: Rachael Gracyalny

King Lear Acts III and IV

I feel like I really started to understand King Lear in Acts 3 and 4. I had a general idea of what was going on in the story while reading the first two acts, but now I understand the deeper meaning. Some topics that stuck out to me were the focus on the storm and the idea of divine intervention.

King Lear and the Fool in the storm

I have been surprised throughout the whole play with how much     Shakespeare discusses the storm. Sure, it makes a good setting for a dramatic story, but why else would he put so much effort into describing it? There must be a deeper meaning. I think that the storm may represent the excess of chaos and disarray in all aspects of the story. Also, the storm and King Lear’s sanity seem to mirror one another. Lear’s fall from sanity begins when he is locked out in the terrible storm. He raves directly to the storm, such as when he says “And thou, all-shaking thunder, smite flat the . . . world” (3.2.6-7). Lear also asks the storm to punish ungrateful men. I think that after being stuck out in the storm for a while, Lear is beginning to realize that he has been ungrateful for certain things in his life. He is starting to gain humility for his actions, especially against Cordelia. I think realization of what he’s done leads his mind further into chaos.

Lear also wishes divine punishment against those who have wronged him and begins to tell the storm how he doesn’t blame it for destruction like he blames his daughters. The theme of divine intervention and punishment continues into Act 4, when Gloucester tells Regan he wishes to see “winged vengeance overtake such children” (Regan and Goneril). Most characters in this story seem to believe in such things as fate and divine punishment. It is interesting to me that divine intervention and punishment is such a big theme in a tragedy like this, which usually focuses on human actions. The characters in King Lear seem to put most of the blame for tragic events on the cosmos, instead of on their own decisions.

Paradise Lost, Book 1

Paradise Lost surprised me. Before I read it, I knew that it was an epic poem to do with the fall of humanity into sin. However, I was surprised to find that it focused so much on Satan. In a classic epic, there is always a hero, a protagonist who is usually outlined very early on in the story. This hero is often a proud warrior or leader. In this case, Satan seems to be painted as the hero. His second-in-command Beelzebub calls him as “leader of those armies bright” (line 272), referring to how he led the army of opposition in the war of heaven. Later, Satan calls out “warriors . . . repose your wearied virtue” (lines 316-20) in the way that a valiant, brave general would call out to his troops. This is interesting because Satan is unanimously considered the antagonist in Christian belief. I believe he will turn out to be the antagonist in Paradise Lost, but it is definitely odd that Milton seemed to place Satan in the position of protagonist to begin with.

This is a drawing of Satan in Paradise Lost, depicted as a warrior.

Milton also surprised me by the styling of his epic. He clearly wanted to keep with tradition since he wrote a classic introduction calling to the muse, started the story “in the midst”, and included a catalogue element. However, he peppered some rhyme into it, which is unheard of in epics. Several lines in Satan’s speech rhyme: “tend . . . there . . . offend . . . repair . . . despair” (lines 183-191). This makes me think that Milton didn’t just want to write an epic, he wanted to write the best epic. He wanted his work to stand out and be remembered by adding unique qualities like rhyme and taking on such a daunting, important topic.