The scene of the tragedy is Britain, the time of action is the ninth century of our era. The plot is based on the story of the British King Lear, who is inclined to divide his own kingdom between his three daughters. In order to determine who gets what part, he asks them to say how strong their love for their father is. The older daughters take advantage of the given chance, and the younger one refuses to go for it. In a fit of anger, the father expels his daughter and the Earl of Kent from the kingdom, who tried to intercede for her.

However, over time, the king realizes that the love of the older daughters was only prudent, and the tension between them aggravates the political situation in the kingdom.

An additional plot is also woven - the Earl of Gloucester and his son Edmund. The latter slandered the legitimate son of the count, who barely managed to avoid reprisal.

The older daughters drive Lear out, he goes to the steppe. Gloucester, Kent and Edgar join him. The daughters hunt the king. The youngest daughter, having learned about everything, leads the French troops. The battle is coming. So they are taken prisoner. Edmund, having bribed the officers, wants them to be prisoners. However, the Duke of Albany brings Edmund to light, reveals his atrocities, but Edgar still kills his brother in a duel. Before his death, Edmund wants to do one good deed - to thwart the plan to kill the prisoners. But he doesn't succeed. As a result, Cordelia is strangled, both of her sisters also die. Lear dies of grief. The Earl of Kent also wanted to die, but the duke strengthens him in all rights and leaves him near the throne.

History of Shakespeare's tragedy "King Lear"

The tale of King Lear and his three daughters is considered the most legendary legend in Britain. The first literary processing of this legend was made by the Latin chronicler of Monmouth. Layamon borrowed it in the language in the poem "Brutus".

In the House of Booksellers in May 1605, a publication was recorded under the title "The Tragic History of King Lear". Then, in 1606, the story of W. Shakespeare came out. It is believed that this was one and the same play. For the first time in the Rose Theater, she walked in 1594. However, the name of the author of the pre-Shakespearean tragedy is still unknown. The text of the plays has been preserved, which makes it possible to compare them. The text of Shakespeare's play is also available in two versions, both subsidized in 1608. However, the researchers took one of the editions as illegal, allegedly the publisher printed it already in 1619, but put an earlier date on it.

Location - Britain. Time of action - XI century. The powerful King Lear, sensing the approach of old age, decides to shift the burden of power onto the shoulders of his three daughters: Goneril, Regan and Cordelia, dividing his kingdom between them. The king wants to hear from his daughters how much they love him, "so that we can show our generosity during the division."

Goneril goes first. Scattering flattery, she says that she loves her father, "as children have not loved / Until now they have never loved their fathers." Sweet-tongued Regan echoes her: “I know no joys other than / My great love for you, sovereign!” And although the falsity of these words hurts the ear, Lear listens favorably to them. The turn of the younger, beloved Cordelia. She is modest and truthful and does not know how to publicly swear her feelings. "I love you as duty dictates, / No more and no less." Lear does not believe his ears: "Cordelia, come to your senses and correct the answer so that you do not regret later." But Cordelia cannot express her feelings better: “You gave life to me, good sir, / Raised and loved. In gratitude / I pay you the same. Lear is furious: "So young and so callous in soul?" “So young, my lord, and straightforward,” replies Cordelia.

In a blind rage, the king gives the entire kingdom to the sisters of Cordelia, leaving her only her straightforwardness as a dowry. He allocates for himself a hundred guards and the right to live for a month with each of his daughters.

Count Kent, a friend and entourage of the king, warns him against such a hasty decision, begs him to cancel it: "Cordelia's love is no less than theirs Thunders only what is empty inside ..." But Lear had already bitten the bit. Kent contradicts the king, calls him an eccentric old man - which means he must leave the kingdom. Kent replies with dignity and regret: "Since there is no bridle for your pride at home, / Then the link is here, and the will is in a foreign land."

One of the contenders for the hand of Cordelia - the Duke of Burgundy - refuses her, who has become a dowry. The second applicant - the king of France - is shocked by the behavior of Lear, and even more so by the Duke of Burgundy. All Cordelia's fault is "in the fearful chastity of feelings, ashamed of publicity." "A dream and a precious treasure, / Be a beautiful queen of France ..." - he says to Cordelia. They are removed. In parting, Cordelia turns to her sisters: “I know your properties, / But, sparing you, I will not name you. / Look after your father, He is anxious / I entrust to your ostentatious love.

The Earl of Gloucester, who served Lear for many years, is upset and puzzled that Lear "suddenly, under the influence of a minute" made such a responsible decision. He does not even suspect that Edmund, his illegitimate son, is intriguing around him. Edmund planned to denigrate his brother Edgar in the eyes of his father in order to take possession of his part of the inheritance. He, having forged Edgar's handwriting, writes a letter in which Edgar allegedly plots to kill his father, and arranges everything so that his father read this letter. Edgar, in turn, he assures that his father is plotting something unkind against him, Edgar suggests that someone slandered him. Edmund wounds himself easily, but presents the case as if he was trying to detain Edgar, who was attempting on his father. Edmund is pleased - he deftly slandered two honest people: “The father believed, and the brother believed. / He is so honest that he is above suspicion. / Their innocence is easy to play with.” His intrigues were successful: the Earl of Gloucester, believing Edgar's guilt, ordered to find him and seize him. Edgar is forced to flee.

The first month Lear lives with Goneril. She is only looking for an excuse to show her father who is now the boss. Upon learning that Lear killed her jester, Goneril decides to "restrain" her father. “He himself gave power, but wants to rule / As before! No, old people are like children, / And a lesson in rigor is required.

Lear, encouraged by the hostess, is openly rude to Goneril's servants. When the king wants to talk to his daughter about it, she avoids meeting her father. The jester bitterly ridicules the king: "You have cut your mind on both sides / And left nothing in the middle."

Goneril comes, her speech is rude and impudent. She demands that Lear dismiss half of his retinue, leaving a small number of people who will not "forget and rage." Lear is smitten. He thinks that his anger will affect his daughter: “Insatiable kite, / You lie! My bodyguards / Tested people of high qualities ... ”The Duke of Albany, the husband of Goneril, is trying to intercede for Lear, not finding in his behavior what could cause such a humiliating decision. But neither the anger of the father, nor the intercession of the husband touches the hard-hearted. Disguised Kent did not leave Lear, he came to be hired into his service. He considers it his duty to be close to the king, who is obviously in trouble. Lear sends Kent with a letter to Regan. But at the same time Goneril sends a messenger to her sister.

Lear still hopes - he has a second daughter. He will find understanding from her, because he gave them everything - "both life and the state." He orders the horses to be saddled and in his hearts throws Goneril: “I will tell her about you. She / She-wolf scratches with her nails, / Your face! Do not think, I will return / To myself all the power, / Which I lost, / As you imagined ... "

Before the castle of Gloucester, where Regan and her husband arrived to resolve disputes with the king, two messengers collided: Kent - King Lear, and Oswald - Goneril. In Oswald, Kent recognizes Goneril's courtier, whom he dismissed for disrespecting Lear. Oswald raises a cry. Regan and her husband, the Duke of Cornwall, come out to the noise. They order to put stocks on Kent. Kent is enraged at Lear's humiliation: "Even if I were / Your father's dog, and not an ambassador, / You shouldn't treat me like that." The Earl of Gloucester tries unsuccessfully to intercede for Kent.

But Regan needs to humiliate her father so that she knows who has the power now. She's from the same mold as her sister. Kent understands this well, he foresees what awaits Lear at Regan's: "You got out of the rain and under the drops ..."

Lear finds his ambassador in stocks. Who dare! It's worse than murder. “Your son-in-law and your daughter,” Kent says. Lear doesn't want to believe it, but he realizes it's true. “This attack of pain will suffocate me! / My longing, do not torment me, retreat! / Do not approach the heart with such force! The jester comments on the situation: “The father in rags on the children / Induces blindness. / A rich father is always nicer and on a different account.

Lear wants to talk to his daughter. But she is tired from the road, she cannot accept it. Lear screams, is indignant, rages, wants to break the door...

At last Regan and the Duke of Cornwall come out. The king tries to tell how Goneril kicked him out, but Regan, not listening, invites him to return to his sister and ask her forgiveness. Before Lear had time to recover from a new humiliation, Goneril appears. The sisters vied with each other to slay their father with their cruelty. One proposes to reduce the retinue by half, the other - to twenty-five people, and, finally, both decide: none is needed.

Lear is crushed: “Do not refer to what is needed. The poor and those / In need have something in abundance. / Reduce all life to necessity, / And man will become equal to the animal ... ".

His words seem to be able to squeeze tears out of a stone, but not out of the daughters of the king ... And he begins to realize how unfair he was to Cordelia.

A storm is coming. The wind howls. Daughters leave their father to the mercy of the elements. They close the gate, leaving Lear on the street, "... he has a science for the future." These words of Regan Lear can no longer hear.

Steppe. A storm is raging. Streams of water fall from the sky. Kent in the steppe in search of the king runs into a courtier from his retinue. He trusts him and tells that there is "no peace" between the Dukes of Cornwall and Albany, which is known in France about abuse"with our good old king." Kent asks the courtier to hurry to Cordelia and tell her "about the king, / About his terrible fatal misfortune", and as proof that the messenger can be trusted, he, Kent, gives his ring, which Cordelia recognizes.

Lear wanders with the jester, overcoming the wind. Lear, unable to cope with mental anguish, turns to the elements: “Howl, whirlwind, with might and main! Burn lightning! Lei downpour! / Whirlwind, thunder and downpour, you are not my daughters, / I do not reproach you for heartlessness. / I didn’t give you kingdoms, I didn’t call you children, I didn’t oblige you to do anything. So let it be done / All your evil will is over me. In his declining years, he lost his illusions, their collapse burns his heart.

Kent comes out to meet Lear. He persuades Lear to take refuge in a hut, where poor Tom Edgar is already hiding, pretending to be crazy. Tom engages Lear in conversation. The Earl of Gloucester cannot leave his old master in trouble. The cruelty of the sisters is disgusting to him. He received news that a foreign army was in the country. Until help arrives, Lear must be sheltered. He tells his plans to Edmund. And he decides once again to take advantage of Gloucester's gullibility to get rid of him. He will denounce him to the duke. “The old man is gone, I will move forward. / He lived - and enough, my turn. Gloucester, unaware of Edmund's betrayal, seeks out Lear. He comes across a hut where the persecuted have taken refuge. He calls Lear to a haven where there is "fire and food." Lear does not want to part with the impoverished philosopher Tom. Tom follows him to the castle farm where their father hides. Gloucester retreats briefly to the castle. Lear, in a fit of madness, arranges a trial for his daughters, offering Kent, the jester and Edgar to be witnesses, the jury. He demands that Regan open her chest to see if there is a heart of stone ... Finally, Lear manages to lay down to rest. Gloucester returns, he asks the travelers to go to Dover faster, as he "overheard a conspiracy against the king."

The Duke of Cornwall learns about the landing of French troops. He sends with this news to the Duke of Albany Goneril with Edmund. Oswald, who has been spying on Gloucester, reports that he helped the king and his followers escape to Dover. The Duke orders the capture of Gloucester. He is captured, tied up, mocked. Regan asks the earl why he sent the king to Dover against orders. “Then, in order not to see, / How you will rip out the old man’s eyes / With the claws of a predator, like a tusk of a boar / Your fierce sister will plunge / Into the anointed body.” But he is sure that he will see "how the thunder will incinerate such children." At these words, the Duke of Cornwall rips out the helpless old man's eyes. The count's servant, unable to bear the spectacle of mockery of the old man, draws his sword and mortally wounds the Duke of Cornwall, but he himself is wounded. The servant wants to console Gloucester a little and encourages him to look with his remaining eye at how he is avenged. The Duke of Cornwall plucks out his other eye before dying in a fit of rage. Gloucester calls his son Edmund to revenge and learns that it was he who betrayed his father. He understands that Edgar has been slandered. Blinded, heartbroken, Gloucester is pushed out into the street. Regan accompanies him with the words: “Drive in the neck! / Let him find his way to Dover with his nose.

Gloucester is escorted by an old servant. The count asks to leave him, so as not to incur wrath. When asked how he will find the way, Gloucester replies bitterly: “I have no way, / And I don’t need eyes. I stumbled / when I was sighted. My poor Edgar, unfortunate target / of blind anger / deceived father...” Edgar hears this. He volunteers to be the guide of the blind. Gloucester asks to be taken to a cliff "large, hanging steeply over the abyss" in order to take his own life.

Goneril returns with Edmund to the palace of the Duke of Albany, she is surprised that the "peacemaker-husband" did not meet her. Oswald talks about the duke's strange reaction to his story about the landing of troops, the betrayal of Gloucester: "What is unpleasant, then it makes him laugh, / What should please, then saddens." Goneril, calling her husband "a coward and a nonentity" sends Edmund back to Cornwall to lead the troops. Saying goodbye, they swear to each other in love.

The Duke of Albany, having learned how inhumanly the sisters acted with their royal father, meets Goneril with contempt: “You are not worth the dust, / Which the wind showered on you in vain ... Everything knows its root, and if not, / It dies like a dry branch no juices. But the one that hides “the face of an animal under the guise of a woman” is deaf to the words of her husband: “Enough! Pitiful nonsense! The Duke of Albany continues to appeal to her conscience: “What have you done, what have you done, / Not daughters, but real tigresses. / Father in years, whose feet / The bear would lick reverently, / Driven to madness! / The ugliness of Satan / Nothing before the ugliness of an evil woman ... ”He is interrupted by a messenger who reports the death of Cornwell at the hands of a servant who came to Gloucester’s defense. The Duke is shocked by the new atrocities of the sisters and Cornwall. He vows to thank Gloucester for his loyalty to Lear. Goneril is concerned: her sister is a widow, and Edmund stayed with her. This threatens her own plans.

Edgar leads his father. The count, thinking that the edge of a cliff is in front of him, throws himself and falls in the same place. Comes to himself. Edgar convinces him that he jumped off the cliff and miraculously survived. Gloucester will henceforth submit to fate until she herself says: "Go away." Oswald appears, he is instructed to remove the old man of Gloucester. Edgar fights him, kills him, and in the pocket of the "flatterer of the servile evil lady" finds Goneril's letter to Edmund, in which she proposes to kill her husband in order to take his place herself.

In the forest, they meet Lear, whimsically decorated with wildflowers. His mind left him. His speech is a mixture of "nonsense and meaning." The courtier who has appeared calls Lear, but Lear runs away.

Cordelia, having learned about the misfortunes of her father, the hardness of her sisters, hurries to his aid. French camp. Lear in bed. The doctors put him into a life-saving sleep. Cordelia prays to the gods "who has fallen into infancy" to restore the mind. Lyra is again dressed in royal vestments in a dream. And so he awakens. Sees Cordelia crying. He kneels before her and says: “Don't be strict with me. / Sorry. / Forget. I am old and reckless."

Edmund and Regan - at the head of the British troops. Regan asks Edmund if he has an affair with his sister. He swears his love to Regan. Enter Duke of Albany and Goneril, drumming. Goneril, seeing her rival sister next to Edmund, decides to poison her. The Duke proposes to convene a council in order to draw up a plan of attack. Edgar in disguise finds him and hands him a letter from Goneril found at Oswald's. And he asks him: in case of victory, "let the herald To you call me with a trumpet." The Duke reads the letter and learns of the betrayal.

The French are defeated. Edmund, rushing forward with his army, captures King Lear and Cordelia. Lear is happy to have found Cordelia again. From now on, they are inseparable. Edmund orders them to be taken to prison. Lyra is not afraid of imprisonment: “We will survive in a stone prison / All false teachings, all the great ones of the world, / All their changes, their ebb and flow Like birds in a cage we will sing. You will stand under my blessing, / I will kneel before you, begging for forgiveness.

Edmund gives a secret order to kill them both.

The Duke of Albany enters with an army, he demands that the king and Cordelia be handed over to him in order to dispose of their fate "in accordance with honor and prudence." Edmund tells the duke that Lear and Cordelia have been taken prisoner and sent to prison, but he refuses to give them up. The Duke of Albany, interrupting the sisters' obscene squabble over Edmund, accuses all three of treason. He shows Goneril her letter to Edmund and announces that if no one comes to the call of the trumpet, he himself will fight Edmund. On the third call of the trumpet, Edgar enters the duel. The Duke asks him to reveal his name, but he says that for now it is "polluted with slander". The brothers are fighting. Edgar mortally wounds Edmund and reveals to him who the avenger is. Edmund understands: “The wheel of fate has completed / Its turn. I'm here and defeated." Edgar tells the Duke of Albany that he shared his wanderings with his father. But before this duel, he opened up to him and asked for his blessing. During his story, a courtier comes and reports that Goneril has stabbed herself, having poisoned her sister before that. Edmund, dying, announces his secret order and asks everyone to hurry. But it was too late, the deed was done. Lear enters carrying the dead Cordelia. He endured so much grief, but he cannot come to terms with the loss of Cordelia. “My poor thing has been strangled! / No, not breathing! / A horse, a dog, a rat can live, / But not for you. You are gone forever...” Lear dies. Edgar tries to call the king. Kent stops him: “Don't torture. Leave his spirit alone. / Let him depart. / Who do you have to be to pull him up again / Him on the rack of life for torment?

“What kind of longing the soul is not smitten, / Times force them to be persistent” - the words of the Duke of Albany sound the final chord.

retold

Scene 1

In the throne room of King Lear's palace, the Earl of Kent and the Earl of Gloucester are discussing the division of the kingdom. Gloucester introduces Kent to his natural son, Edmond. King Lear appears in the hall with his daughters, the Dukes of Cornwall and Albany and his retinue. He orders Gloucester to fetch the King of France and the Duke of Burgundy.

King Lear asks his daughters how much each of them loves him? Goneril, the wife of the Duke of Albany, gives an eloquent and poetic declaration of love, for which she inherits a huge part of the kingdom. Regan, the wife of the Duke of Cornwall, says that she and her sister are “of the same breed” and know no other joys than love for her father. As a reward, the girl receives an equally beautiful part of the kingdom. Cordelia, for whose hand the King of France and the Duke of Burgundy argue, admits that she loves her father as her duty tells her, and after marriage, she will be forced to give part of her tenderness to her husband. King Lear becomes angry and disowns his youngest daughter. He gives a third of Cordelia's inheritance to his elder sons-in-law and says that he will live for a month with each of his daughters. The Earl of Kent tries to reason with the king, but Lear does not want to listen to anything. He orders him to leave the kingdom in five days, otherwise the traitor will die.

The Duke of Burgundy does not want to marry the disinherited Cordelia. The King of France sees in the girl, who was once the beloved daughter of Lear and suddenly fell into disfavor, a precious treasure of purity and sincerity and gladly makes her his queen. Saying goodbye to her sisters, Cordelia asks them to be merciful to their father. Goneril and Regan agree to weaken Lear's power in order to keep their inheritance.

Scene 2

In the hall of the castle of the Earl of Gloucester, Edmond, with a letter in his hands, discusses his right to his father's inheritance. A young man plans to commit a forgery to frame his brother Edgar.

When his father appears, Edmond hastily puts the letter in his pocket. The Earl of Gloucester begs his son to give him a letter from "Edgar", in which the latter writes about his desire to manage his father's finances without waiting for his death. Edmond promises his father to bring Edgar to clean water, and Edgar turns against his father.

Scene 3

In the palace of the Duke of Albany, Goneril asks his butler Oswald whether it is true that King Lear killed one of her courtiers for scolding his jester? Having received an affirmative answer, the eldest daughter of the king says she is sick and gives Oswald the order to treat her father's servants as coolly as possible.

Scene 4

A disguised Kent is hired as a servant to Lear. The royal jester is moping. Oswald treats the king without due respect. The jester who came to the call of Lear calls him a fool for having given his power into the hands of those who do not love him. Goneril asks her father to pacify the rampage of his people by dismissing a significant part of the retinue. King Lear is furious at his daughter's words. He curses her with infertility. The Duke of Albany tries in vain to understand the reason for his father-in-law's displeasure. As he prepares to leave, King Lear discovers that out of a hundred people in his retinue, he has fifty left. Goneril sends Oswald with a letter to Regan.

Scene 5

Courtyard in the castle of the Duke of Albany. King Lear sends Kent with a letter to his daughter. The jester amuses his master.

Act II

Scene 1

Courtyard in the castle of the Earl of Gloucester. The court Quran tells Edmond about the upcoming visit of the Duke of Cornwall with his wife and a possible war between him and the Duke of Albany.

Edmond, who was ordered by his father to arrest Edgar, arranges a mock fight with the latter, allegedly necessary for his escape. He tells Gloucester about his brother's desire to kill his father and the attempt on his, Edmond's, life. The Count sends servants in pursuit of Edgar.

The Duke of Cornwall and Regan sympathize with Gloucester and offer Edmond a place in his retinue. The count promises his natural son the transition to the status of a legitimate heir.

Scene 2

In front of Gloucester Castle, Oswald asks Kent where the horses can be parked. Kent insults the vile scoundrel and draws his sword against him. Masters and servants run to the noise. Having found out the cause of the quarrel, the Duke of Cornwall orders Kent to be put in stocks before dinner. Regan says that this is not enough, and stretches the sentence until the morning. Gloucester asks the duke to write about what happened to the king and give Lear the opportunity to punish his servant himself. The Duke of Cornwall refuses. Gloucester apologizes to Kent. Falling asleep in the stocks, the latter reads Cordelia's letter.

Scene 3

Hiding in the forest, Edgar decides to change his appearance and become a crazy beggar.

Scene 4

King Lear asks Kent, chained in stocks, who dared to do this to him? The faithful servant tells of the treachery of Oswald, who interrupted Kent's report and caused the Duke of Cornwall and Regan to flee to the Earl's domain.

Gloucester conveys to the king the words of the duke and Regan that they are sick and tired from the journey. Lear demands to be accepted. The Duke of Cornwall and his wife go out to the king. Regan believes that her father should return to Goneril and ask her forgiveness.

The Duke of Cornwall confesses that Kent was put in stocks on his orders. Regan gladly meets Goneril, invites her father to dissolve part of the retinue and live, as he planned, now with one, then with another daughter. Lear does not want to return to Goneril. Regan refuses to accept her father, citing the fact that she did not have time to prepare the palace for his arrival, and asks to visit her with a retinue of twenty-five people. Arguing about how many personal servants a father should have, the daughters gradually come to the conclusion that there are none: King Lear, in their opinion, will have enough servants of Goneril or Regan.

A storm is coming. King Lear with his retinue retires. Goneril and Regan justify their actions to each other.

Act III

Scene 1

Steppe. The courtier tells Kent how King Lear fights the storm alone. Kent explains to him that France has decided to conquer a kingdom weakened by ducal disputes. The courtier, at the request of Kent, goes to Dover to inform Cordelia of the unfortunate fate of the king.

Scene 2

At the other end of the steppe, King Lear summons thunder and lightning to his head. The jester invites him to return to the dry house of his daughters. Kent finds King Lear and invites him to wait out the storm in a hut. The jester prophesies that when people become noble, then the end of the world will come.

Scene 3

A room in Gloucester Castle. Gloucester complains to Edmond about the heartlessness of the dukes, talks about the army that landed in the country and the mysterious letter that he locked in his room. The count asks his son to distract the attention of the dukes while he helps King Lear. Edmond immediately decides to give his father to his new master in order to clear his way to the inheritance.

Scene 4

Kent persuades King Lear to hide from the weather in a hut. Frustrated by his daughter's ingratitude, the lord wants to be left alone with the storm, as it helps him not to think about the misfortune that happened to him. The jester finds Edgar in the hut, pretending to be crazy Tom. King Lear believes that the latter suffered the same misfortune as himself. Edgar reveals that in the past he was a pleasure-loving rake. King Lear admires the fact that poor Tom is a real person.

Gloucester appears in the hut. He offers King Lear shelter. The latter refuses to leave the hut without "his philosopher".

Scene 5

The Duke of Cornwall thanks Edmond for his loyalty and makes him the new Earl of Gloucester.

Scene 6

Gloucester brings King Lear to a farm adjacent to the castle. The lord, who has gone out of his mind, arranges a funny trial of his daughters, appointing Edgar as a judge, noise as a sage, and Kent as a juror.

Gloucester tells Kent of a plot against the king. Together they put the sleeping Lear on a stretcher and go to Dover. Edgar feels better at the sight of royal grief.

Scene 7

The Duke of Cornwall orders Edmond to accompany Goneril to her husband. He asks the Duke of Albany to begin to arm himself in order to give a worthy rebuff to the French troops. Oswald reports the betrayal of Gloucester and the flight of the king to Dover.

Servants bring Gloucester to the castle. The Duke of Cornwall orders the "traitor" to be bound. Regan, in a fit of anger, pulls at his beard. Enraged by the disobedience of a subject, the Duke of Cornwall rips out his eye.

The first servant comes to Gloucester's defense. The Duke of Cornwall draws his sword. The servant hurts his master. Regan snatches the sword from another servant and kills the first. The Duke of Cornwall deprives Gloucester of his second eye. From Regan, the Earl learns of Edmond's betrayal and realizes that Edgar has been slandered. The second and third servant take away the blinded Gloucester.

Act IV

Scene 1

Edgar meets his blinded father in the steppe. Gloucester asks the guide to find clothes for the beggar. He takes the latter for himself as guides and asks to bring him to a large cliff hanging over the abyss.

Scene 2

In front of the palace of the Duke of Albany, Goneril is surprised that her husband did not meet her. Oswald reports to the hostess about the strange behavior of the lord. Goneril orders Edmond to return to the Duke of Cornwall to lead the troops. In return, she offers him her love.

The Duke of Albany reproaches his wife for misbehaving towards her father. Goneril insults her husband. The latter is hardly restrained, so as not to tear it to pieces.

A messenger brings news of Cornwell's death. Goneril leaves to compose a letter to her sister. The Duke of Albany promises to do justice to the unfortunate Gloucester and King Lear.

Scene 3

In the French camp near Dover, Kent asks the courtier what made the king of France leave the army (state affairs), who is now in command of the last (Marshal of France - Mr. Lafar) and what impression the received letter made on the queen (she cried).

Scene 4

Cordelia orders an officer to send soldiers in search of her father. The doctor says that only rest and healing herbs can restore the mind to the patient. A messenger reports to Cordelia that British troops are approaching.

Scene 5

Regan asks Oswald to show her her sister's letter to Edmond, to whom she became engaged after her husband's death. Goneril's butler does not give the message, but promises Regan support in eliminating Gloucester.

Scene 6

Edgar allows his father to make an imaginary jump from a cliff and repent of his desire for death. On the plain, they meet King Lear, decorated with flower wreaths, carrying nonsense full of deep meaning.

King Lear flees from a courtier with servants. Oswald wants to kill Gloucester. Edgar stands up for his father. Before his death, Oswald asks Edgar to deliver a letter to Edmond, in which Goneril asks the latter to kill her husband.

Scene 7

King Lear sleeps inside a French tent. Cordelia thanks Kent for his help. Awakened King Lear gradually begins to recognize those around him. Kent and the courtier are talking about the upcoming battle with the British.

Act V

Scene 1

In the British camp near Dover, Edmond swears to Regan that he never had any sight of Goneril. Edgar in disguise gives the Duke of Albans Goneril's letter to Edmond. Edmond reflects on his plans for the future before the battle.

Scene 2

The British are winning. Edmond captures King Lear and Cordelia. He orders the officer to take them to the fortress and hands him a letter with further instructions regarding the captives.

The Duke of Albany wants to control the fate of the captives. Edmond opposes him on the grounds of an alleged brotherhood. Regan and Goneril argue over a potential husband. The Duke of Albany accuses Edmond of high treason. Regan gets sick.

The story of the tragic fate of the British king and his three daughters has become a classic of world literature. The dramatic plot has earned high popularity: there are many theatrical productions and adaptations of the work.

The dramatic work was created on a legendary basis - the story of the British King Lear, who, in his declining years, decided to transfer power to children. As a result, the monarch fell victim to the neglect of his two eldest daughters, and the political situation in the kingdom worsened, threatening him with complete destruction. Shakespeare supplemented the well-known legend with another storyline - relations in the family of the Earl of Gloucester, whose illegitimate son, for the sake of power and position, did not spare either brother or father.

The death of the main characters at the end of the work, intense pathos, a system of characters built on contrasts, are absolute signs classic tragedy.

"King Lear": a summary of the play

The British king Lear is going to marry off his three daughters, divide the lands into three parts and give them as a dowry, transferring the reins of government to their husbands. He himself plans to live out his life, a guest in turn with his daughters. Before the division of the lands, the proud Lear wanted to hear from the children how much they love their father, and give them what they deserved.

The two eldest daughters Goneril and Regan swore to their father in their unearthly love for him and, having received land in equal shares, became the wives of the Dukes of Albany and Cornwall. The youngest daughter Cordelia, to whom the king of France and the Duke of Burgundy wooed, sincerely loving her father, was pure in heart and did not want to flaunt her feelings. She didn't answer. When the king was indignant at such disrespect, she said that she would not marry, since she would have to give most of her love to her husband, and not to her father.

The king, not seeing the disinterested purity of his daughter, renounced her, depriving her of her dowry and dividing the land between her elder sisters. The earl of Kent, a loyal subject of the king, stood up for Cordelia, for which Lear expels him from Britain. The Duke of Burgundy refused a landless bride, and the wise king of France, seeing the purity of the girl, gladly took her as his wife. The eldest daughters, believing that the father is out of his mind, decide to stick together and remove the king from power as much as possible.

The illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester Edmund decides to get rid of his brother Edgar in order to get his father's love, inheritance and honorary title. He shows his father a letter, allegedly written by his brother, where Edgar persuades him to kill his father together. And he tells his brother that the count wants to destroy him. The gullible Gloucester renounced his own son and put him on the wanted list. Edgar is forced to hide, pretending to be crazy Tom.

The king is staying with Goneril, who has reduced the staff of his servants by half, and ordered her own not to indulge her father. Exiled Kent, disguised as Kai, becomes a faithful servant of the king. The dismissive attitude of the daughter and her court offended the father. Cursing her, the king went to Regan. She drives her father out into the street on a stormy night. The king, the jester and Kent take refuge from the weather in a hut, where they meet Edgar, who pretended to be crazy.

Goneril plots with Regan and her husband to get rid of the king. Overhearing this, Gloucester secretly decides to help Lear, who has lost his mind from grief, by sending him to Dover, where the headquarters of the French forces that attacked the decapitated Britain is located. Edmund, trying to serve the king's daughters, reports on his father's plans. Mad with anger, Regan's husband the Duke of Cornwall gouges out Gloucester's eyes. The servant, trying to stop the duke, wounds him and Cornwell dies. The guide of the exiled Earl of Gloucester becomes Edgar under the guise of crazy Tom and leads him to the king.

Goneril returns home with Edmund and learns that her husband does not support their behavior. She promises her heart to young Gloucester and sends him back. Regan's widow also shows her love to Edmund. To each of them he swears to be faithful.

Kent delivered the king to Cordelia. She is shocked by her father's insanity and persuades the doctors to heal him. Waking up, Lear asks for forgiveness from his daughter. Edgar meets Goneril's servant Oswald, who is tasked with destroying Gloucester. After fighting him, Edgar kills him and takes Goneril's letter. With this letter, he goes to the Duke of Albany, from which it becomes known about the connection between his wife and Edmund. Edgar asks the duke if the British win the opportunity to get even with his brother.

Both armies prepare for battle. As a result of the battle, the victory was won by the British army, led by Edmund and Regan. Goneril, having guessed about her sister's plans for Edmund, is jealous and decides to get rid of her sister. Edmund rejoices in capturing Cordelia and the king. He sends them to prison and gives special note guard. The Duke of Albany demands the extradition of the king with his youngest daughter. However, Edmund disagrees. While the sisters are quarreling over Edmund, the duke accuses all three of treason and, showing Goneril's letter, summons the one who can fight the traitor. Edgar comes out and, having defeated his brother in battle, calls his name.

Edmund understands that retribution has come for what he did to his brother and father. Before his death, he confessed that he ordered the king and Cordelia to be killed, and ordered that they be urgently sent for them. Unfortunately, it was too late. The dead Cordelia, who was hanged by a guard, was carried out in his arms by the unfortunate king, and the courtier reported that Goneril, having poisoned her sister, stabbed herself.

Unable to bear the death of Cordelia, the life of the king, full of suffering and torment, is interrupted. And the surviving loyal subjects understand that you need to be persistent, as required by the rebellious time.

Character characteristics

"King Lear", according to critics, is more of a work to read than staged. The play is full of events, but the main place in it is occupied by the philosophical reflections of the characters.

Rich world of characters
Each character, created by the author skillfully and truthfully, has a special character, an inner world. Each hero has his own personal tragedy, into which Shakespeare initiates the reader.

The king from the first scenes is strong and confident. However, at the same time, he is selfish and blind, which is why he loses his crown, power, respect and his own children. His mind comprehends the truth as much as possible at the moment of insanity of reason. The creation of the rest of the images of the work is close to the system of the classic division of characters into positive and negative ones.

The main idea of ​​the play

The work is based on the eternal problem of fathers and children, depicted on the example of two families - King Lear and the Earl of Gloucester. In both cases, the fathers are humiliated and betrayed by their children. But it cannot be said that they are innocent victims of what happened. The pride and arrogance of King Lear, the inability to see the truth, the tendency to rash and categorical decisions led to a tragic denouement. The illegality of the conception of a son who felt second-rate and tried by any means to win a position in society is the reason for Edmund's behavior.

The story of the tragic fate of the British king and his three daughters has become a classic of world literature. The dramatic plot has earned high popularity: there are many theatrical productions and adaptations of the work.

The dramatic work was created on a legendary basis - the story of the British King Lear, who, in his declining years, decided to transfer power to children. As a result, the monarch fell victim to the neglect of his two eldest daughters, and the political situation in the kingdom worsened, threatening him with complete destruction. Shakespeare supplemented the well-known legend with another storyline - relations in the family of the Earl of Gloucester, whose illegitimate son, for the sake of power and position, did not spare either brother or father.

The death of the main characters at the end of the work, intense pathos, a system of characters built on contrasts are absolute signs of a classic tragedy.

"King Lear": a summary of the play

The British king Lear is going to marry off his three daughters, divide the lands into three parts and give them as a dowry, transferring the reins of government to their husbands. He himself plans to live out his life, a guest in turn with his daughters. Before the division of the lands, the proud Lear wanted to hear from the children how much they love their father, and give them what they deserved.

The two eldest daughters Goneril and Regan swore to their father in their unearthly love for him and, having received land in equal shares, became the wives of the Dukes of Albany and Cornwall. The youngest daughter Cordelia, to whom the king of France and the Duke of Burgundy wooed, sincerely loving her father, was pure in heart and did not want to flaunt her feelings. She didn't answer. When the king was indignant at such disrespect, she said that she would not marry, since she would have to give most of her love to her husband, and not to her father.

The king, not seeing the disinterested purity of his daughter, renounced her, depriving her of her dowry and dividing the land between her elder sisters. The earl of Kent, a loyal subject of the king, stood up for Cordelia, for which Lear expels him from Britain. The Duke of Burgundy refused a landless bride, and the wise king of France, seeing the purity of the girl, gladly took her as his wife. The eldest daughters, believing that the father is out of his mind, decide to stick together and remove the king from power as much as possible.

The illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester Edmund decides to get rid of his brother Edgar in order to get his father's love, inheritance and honorary title. He shows his father a letter, allegedly written by his brother, where Edgar persuades him to kill his father together. And he tells his brother that the count wants to destroy him. The gullible Gloucester renounced his own son and put him on the wanted list. Edgar is forced to hide, pretending to be crazy Tom.

The king is staying with Goneril, who has reduced the staff of his servants by half, and ordered her own not to indulge her father. Exiled Kent, disguised as Kai, becomes a faithful servant of the king. The dismissive attitude of the daughter and her court offended the father. Cursing her, the king went to Regan. She drives her father out into the street on a stormy night. The king, the jester and Kent take refuge from the weather in a hut, where they meet Edgar, who pretended to be crazy.

Goneril plots with Regan and her husband to get rid of the king. Overhearing this, Gloucester secretly decides to help Lear, who has lost his mind from grief, by sending him to Dover, where the headquarters of the French forces that attacked the decapitated Britain is located. Edmund, trying to serve the king's daughters, reports on his father's plans. Mad with anger, Regan's husband the Duke of Cornwall gouges out Gloucester's eyes. The servant, trying to stop the duke, wounds him and Cornwell dies. The guide of the exiled Earl of Gloucester becomes Edgar under the guise of crazy Tom and leads him to the king.

Goneril returns home with Edmund and learns that her husband does not support their behavior. She promises her heart to young Gloucester and sends him back. Regan's widow also shows her love to Edmund. To each of them he swears to be faithful.

Kent delivered the king to Cordelia. She is shocked by her father's insanity and persuades the doctors to heal him. Waking up, Lear asks for forgiveness from his daughter. Edgar meets Goneril's servant Oswald, who is tasked with destroying Gloucester. After fighting him, Edgar kills him and takes Goneril's letter. With this letter, he goes to the Duke of Albany, from which it becomes known about the connection between his wife and Edmund. Edgar asks the duke if the British win the opportunity to get even with his brother.

Both armies prepare for battle. As a result of the battle, the victory was won by the British army, led by Edmund and Regan. Goneril, having guessed about her sister's plans for Edmund, is jealous and decides to get rid of her sister. Edmund rejoices in capturing Cordelia and the king. He sends them to the dungeon and gives special instructions to the guard. The Duke of Albany demands the extradition of the king with his youngest daughter. However, Edmund disagrees. While the sisters are quarreling over Edmund, the duke accuses all three of treason and, showing Goneril's letter, summons the one who can fight the traitor. Edgar comes out and, having defeated his brother in battle, calls his name.

Edmund understands that retribution has come for what he did to his brother and father. Before his death, he confessed that he ordered the king and Cordelia to be killed, and ordered that they be urgently sent for them. Unfortunately, it was too late. The dead Cordelia, who was hanged by a guard, was carried out in his arms by the unfortunate king, and the courtier reported that Goneril, having poisoned her sister, stabbed herself.

Unable to bear the death of Cordelia, the life of the king, full of suffering and torment, is interrupted. And the surviving loyal subjects understand that you need to be persistent, as required by the rebellious time.

Character characteristics

"King Lear", according to critics, is more of a work to read than staged. The play is full of events, but the main place in it is occupied by the philosophical reflections of the characters.

Rich world of characters
Each character, created by the author skillfully and truthfully, has a special character, an inner world. Each hero has his own personal tragedy, into which Shakespeare initiates the reader.

The king from the first scenes is strong and confident. However, at the same time, he is selfish and blind, which is why he loses his crown, power, respect and his own children. His mind comprehends the truth as much as possible at the moment of insanity of reason. The creation of the rest of the images of the work is close to the system of the classic division of characters into positive and negative ones.

The main idea of ​​the play

The work is based on the eternal problem of fathers and children, depicted on the example of two families - King Lear and the Earl of Gloucester. In both cases, the fathers are humiliated and betrayed by their children. But it cannot be said that they are innocent victims of what happened. The pride and arrogance of King Lear, the inability to see the truth, the tendency to rash and categorical decisions led to a tragic denouement. The illegality of the conception of a son who felt second-rate and tried by any means to win a position in society is the reason for Edmund's behavior.