Goneril and Regan have no problem coming up with elaborate expressions of their love for their father. Goneril states, "Beyond all manner of so much I love you." Regan states, "I am alone felicitate in your dear Highness' love." It is possible that Goneril and Regan are not being honest. They can be saying that they love their father, but they might not truly mean it. Cordelia is asked to express her love for her father following her sisters. She is the daughter that unconditionally loves Lear, yet she is the daughter that finds it to be difficult to express her love in words. In an aside Cordelia states, "I am sure my love is more ponderous than my tongue." Cordelia knows she loves her father more than words can express. Cordelia has always proved her love for her father through her actions; She does not believe she has to prove her love through words. In my opinion, true love can only be showed through actions, not words because words cannot always be trusted.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Actions vs. Words
The first act of the play King Lear by Shakespeare poses the questions: Is love showed through actions or words? When King Lear is deciding how he wants to devide his land amongst his three daughters, he asks them to express their love for him in words. After reading this part of the play I asked myself the following questions: If love has to be proved through words, is it really love? Is it even possible to express true love through words? Is love proved through words or actions?
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While I agree with you that words cannot always be trusted, as shown by the example of King Lear, but I feel that words should be used as a supplement to actions for the expression of love. In the beginning of the play as Lear asks his daughter to express their love through words Cordelia is shown to be able to express her love for her father in both words and actions, as she says “ That lord whose hands must take plight shall carry half my love with him, half my care, and duty. Sure I shall never marry like my sisters to love my father all” (I.I, 13). Cordelia is able to express love for her father through words, but not as elaborate and well-versed as her sisters. Instead Cordelia makes up for her lack of verbal expression through physical actions to show her love for her father. Lear however is unable to understand the difference between Cordelia’s acts of love, and her sister’s words of love. It is not until Goneril wishes to deplete Lear’s army that he realizes the worthlessness of Goneril and Regan’s words, in comparison to Cordelia’s actions.
ReplyDeleteKent also faces a problem similar to Cordelia. Kent expresses his genuine love for King Lear with quotes such as, “ My life I never had but as a pawn to wage against thine enemies, nor fear to lose it, thy safety being motive” ( I.I, 17). These words show his devotion to Lear and show that he values Lear’s life greater than his own. It is this desire to protect Lear that leads Kent to risk returning to serve King Lear after he has been banished. Kent then manifest the love portrayed in his words by helping Lear beat up Oswald for disrespecting him. Ultimately Lear’s inability to listen to both the words and actions of those around him leads him unable to decide who truly cares about him.
Hey Jessie, I totally responded to your post, but then it tied into Leslie's post above - so check out my full response there.
ReplyDeleteI think Conor makes some valid points and so I kind of elaborate on it there.