Ms. Andrea Solomon, Ms. Mary Edsall
Colloquium F2003x
Assignment #13 – William Shakespeare
9 November 1999
The Subplot in King Lear
The subplot of Gloucester, Edmund, and Edgar in King Lear serves three primary functions. The main plot is the betrayal of King Lear by his two elder daughters Goneril and Regan, to whom he abdicates his power in the play’s first scene. The subplot is the similar story of the betrayal of the Earl of Gloucester by his illegitimate son Edmund. In both cases, the other victim of the malevolent children is the one child who was truly faithful to the father: Cordelia in the case of the king and Edgar in the case of Gloucester. Both betrayals occur because the fathers foolishly believe their sinister children who trick them into believing that their good-hearted siblings are the villains.
The first function of the subplot in King Lear is to resonate with the main plot. It reinforces the theme that fathers should be wary of children who flatter them too much and try to convince them that their other children are plotting against them. The second function of this particular subplot is to contradict the main story’s resolution. Because the main plot is a tragedy and ends on a very negative note (with King Lear dead and Cordelia murdered at the order of her old sisters), it is necessary for the subplot to end on a positive note. The provides an important release of tension and the emotional satisfaction that at least some injustices are resolved. For this reason, Edmund is killed at the end and Edgar is restored to power and is reconciled with his father, who dies in his arms. The third function this subplot has is as a complication to the main plot. Gloucester, Edgar, and Edmund are all important characters within the main plot. Regan and Goneril both try to gain favor and marry Edmund when he is unjustly made Earl of Gloucester which is ultimately their undoing. Regan’s husband is murdered by his own guards for gouging out Gloucester’s eyes, and Goneril’s husband turns against the two sisters when he learns of their fancies after Edmund and of their conniving. The two stories are tightly woven together and give the play an energetic rhythm by alternating when they climax and develop. They also intensify and validate each other’s themes in order to give the play a solid, dramatic thrust.