King Lear [Mass Market Paperback]

King Lear stands alongside Hamlet as one of the most profound expressions of tragic drama in literature. Written between 1604 and 1605, it represents Shakespeare at the height of his dramatic power. Drawing on ancient British history, Shakespeare constructs a plot that reads like a fable in its clear-sighted but terrifying simplicity. The ageing King Lear calls his daughters, Goneril, Regan and Cordelia, to witness that he wishes "to shake all cares and business from our age" and divide his kingdom between his three children. When Cordelia refuses to flatter her father with sycophantic words of love, her banishment leads to chaos and civil war as Lear's disastrous "division of the kingdom" gives free reign to the greed and ambition of his two remaining daughters.

As Lear sinks into rage and madness he is deserted by everyone except his "bitter" Fool, the loyal Kent and the exiled Cordelia. The play descends into a nighmarish theatre of cruelty and absurdity as Lear realises he has "ta'en/Too little care" of the poverty and corruption of his kingdom, and his loyal but foolish friend Gloucester has his eyes gouged out. Metaphors of monstrosity and perversions of nature structure the dramatic action, and the play's ending remains one of the most harrowing in all of Shakespeare. Many see a profound despair and nihilism in King Lear, and would agree with Kent's conclusion that "All's cheerless, dark, and deadly". Other writers have identified a radical but pessimistic critique of contemporary conceptions of kingship and absolutist authority, yet it remains a remarkable tragedy of public misjudgement and intensely private grief and anguish. --Jerry Brotton --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

"...an exemplary consideration of all the new bibliographic explication...Halio has done an admirable job. If all editions of Shakespeare and his contemporaries were similarly conceived and presented, study and understanding of Elizabethan-Jacobean-Caroline drama would be greatly improved." William B. Long, TEXT: Transactions of the Society for Textual Scholarship --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Completely re-edited, the New Folger Library edition of Shakespeare's King Lear is based on the best early printed edition of the play. Includes a section on reading Shakespeare's language, information on his life, explanatory notes, annotated reading lists, and a Modern Perspective essay which assesses the play in light of today's interests and concerns.

The is the first fully annotated critical edition of King Lear to appear for forty years. Unlike previous editions, this one does not present a conflation of the Quarto and the Folio, but offers the latter as the authoritative text. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

A king foolishly divides his kingdom between his scheming two oldest daughters and estranges himself from the daughter who loves him. So begins this profoundly moving and disturbing tragedy that, perhaps more than any other work in literature, challenges the notion of a coherent and just universe. The king and others pay dearly for their shortcomings--as madness, murder, and the anguish of insight and forgiveness that arrive too late combine to make this an all-embracing tragedy of evil and suffering. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

REA’s MAXnotes is an insightful series of literature study guides covering over 80 of the most popular literary works.

MAXnotes study guides are student friendly and provide all the essentials needed to prepare students for homework, discussions, reports, and exams.

Our MAXnotes for William Shakespeare’s King Lear study guide includes an overall summary, character lists, explanation and discussion of the plot, overview of the work’s historical context, and a biography of the author. Each section of the work is individually summarized and includes study questions and answers.

Our William Shakespeare’s King Lear MAXnotes study guide is a handy resource when preparing for exams or doing homework, and it makes a great companion to the original work.

William Shakespeare’s King Lear MAXnotes is also an invaluable resource for English teachers who are teaching the original work and need a refresher. Each MAXnotes includes topics for term papers with sample outlines.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

William Shakespeare lived between 1552-1616, but his work endures and is enjoyed the world over. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

The Modern Library brings the BBC's radio production of King Lear to audio cassette. Alec Guiness is a splendid Lear, expert in his transition from a demanding and majestic father/king to a solitary, lunatic soul on a stormy mountain. Sarah Badel's Cordelia is astute and reflective. The combination of talents makes this tragedy one of the most poignant in all of Shakespeare's works. R.A.P. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.