In order to fully appreciate the text, we need to delve into the relevant social and historical context that surrounds King Lear. Create a blog post and do some research into the following: The Elizabethan/Jacobean world view The Divine Right to Rule The state of England under Elizabeth I and James I Shakespeare’s education and additional plays […]
Aristotle had very distinct ideas about how an effective tragedy should be constructed and this right here, is the place where I disagree with him. It sounds odd to say that I disagree with a man credited with establishing a huge chunk of our Western philosophy, however, on the matter of plot over character, I […]
Thought The ‘thought’ of a tragedy refers to the key ideas that the play presents. You may have called them “themes” or “ideas” previously. They are, in essence, the same thing and the important thing to remember with the key ideas in the text is that they should be universal. If you need a refresher on just […]
The diction of a play is another way of saying the language that the characters use. There are several important things to note about the language devices employed by Shakespeare. The first is the use of verse and prose. If you are unsure about these devices, please read the following post that clearly outlines the differences and intended effects of each. […]
Discuss, as a class, what is meant by melody and spectacle as defined by Aristotle is Poetics. Brainstorm some instances where these elements are used to convey or support an idea in the script of King Lear. The fool’s songs act as a voice of reason and are part of the melody, meaning that we can listen to it due to the […]