King Lear Research Paper

Words: 210
Pages: 1

In Shakespeare’s King Lear, an obstacle many characters face is madness. Madness comes about when a someone is faced with intense stress or pain and it used as an escape from reality for those who have suffered too much. King Lear is the pinnacle of someone who uses his madness to escape reality. Madness is a method used by those who have suffered immensely as an escape from their guilt. At the end of the play Lear has reached the peak of madness. The guilt caused by the death of Cordelia for which Lear blames himself causes him to hallucinate that she still has life in her. By saying “This feather stirs. She lives.”(5,3,319) Lear is holding a feather to her lips almost begging for her to live. Lear in his delusion imagines her life as he