Money And Power In Shakespeare's King Lear

As the human race continues to evolve there has been one common theme that stays the same. Humans are driven by money and power. It is just the nature of humans. We tend to thrive off of the thrill of having materialistic objects and control of others. In the Shakespearean tragedy King Lear it portrays two fathers who put too much blind trust into their kids. As King Lear creeps to an end of his reign, he decides to divide his kingdom into three parts dependent on which one of his daughters has devoted the most love to him. When the kids betray their fathers for control of money and power Lear and Gloucester soon realize that they were distracted by their careless emotions. Readers are introduced to King Lear in the prime of his arrogance. He is a typical king who thinks that the world revolves around him. As Lear begins to realize that he is becoming too old

When Edmund states this the audience can clearly see that he is the primary antagonist because he is going to sell his father out to the duke. Edmund’s decision to snitch on his father leads to gruesome consequences for Gloucester. Once the Duke of Cornwall finds out about Gloucester’s knowledge of the troops and the division he brings him in for punishments. Gloucester ultimately gets both of his eyes plucked out and can no longer see. Immediately after he has lost all vision he calls for Edmund to come save him. Cornwall replies with, “Thou call'st on him that hates thee: it was he/ That made the overture of thy treasons to us” (3.7). Gloucester answers, “O my follies! then Edgar was abused./ Kind gods, forgive me that, and prosper him!” (3.7). This quote demonstrates the blindness that Gloucester has finally realized when he says that “Edgar was abused”. Once he realizes his wrongdoing he calls out to the gods that they need to prosper Edgar and not Edmund. This is ironic because Gloucester realizes that he made a blind decision only when he is actually