This Fall Semester I am teaching Shakespeare Conquest, a LEMI scholar class. It has been so fun. My class of sixteen homeschooled kids amazes me every week.
We are studying King Lear in depth. For those of you who are familiar with the Bard’s plays, you may relate to this quote by Jan Kott, “Doubtless King Lear is still recognized as a masterpiece, besides which even Macbeth and Hamlet seem tame and pedestrian. King Lear is compared to Bach’s Mass in B Minor, to Beethoven’s Fifth and Ninth Symphonies, to Wagner’s Parsifal, Michelangelo’s Last Judgement, or Dante’s Purgatory and Inferno. But at the same time King Lear gives one the impression of a high mountain that everyone admires, yet no one particularly wishes to climb.” My goal for the year has been to inspire these budding scholars to climb the mountain…and they are! King Lear is a great story of the unraveling of society, order and relationships. As we read we have to confront the altered morality of those seeking power and position. We recognize deception and loyalty. I think the subject matter is perfect for the rising generation.
Here are some of the questions we are asking in our discussions:
Act I Scene 1
Discuss the characters introduced in this scene.
Why does King Lear decide to ask his daughters to profess their love?
Does Lear act or react to his daughters’ professions? Explain.
How does Lear define love? Goneril? Regan? Cordelia?
What difference exists between the minds and hearts of Burgundy and France?
What character traits or character flaws have we encountered so far?
Act I Scenes 2-3
Who are the new characters introduced in these scenes?
Who was your favorite character?
Describe Edmund’s character. Do you know anyone like Edmund? How do you deal with people like that?
Describe Edgar’s character.
Describe Gloucester’s character.
What value does Gloucester place on family? Edmund? Goneril? Explain your answer.
What value does King Lear place on family?
Act I scenes 4-5
Are there any new characters in these scenes? What development of the characters has occured?
How does Goneril behave toward Lear? Is she justified? Do we know about her feelings about family?
How does Lear behave toward Goneril? Is he justified? Has Lear learned anything yet? How do we know?
Read the lines between the Fool and Lear (40-43). What does the Fool mean?
Does wisdom come with age? experience?
Are elders always wiser than youngers? Do you know anyone older than you who doesn’t seem as wise? Do you know someone younger than you who seems to have more wisdom?
Act II scenes 1-3
What connections so you see between the sub-plot of Gloucester and his sons and the main plot of Lear and his daughters?
How does Edmund trick his brother into fleeing?
How do Kent’s actions with Oswald characterize him as a “plain dealer”?
Are there any new characters in these scenes? What purpose do they play?
What do we learn about Edmund in these scenes?
