Loyalty Over Power
Throughout William
Shakespeare’s work one common theme is "loyalty" which calls upon the
audience's attention, due to its misinterpretation throughout most characters
in King Lear. Loyalty is very hard to find
among people, it is something that is demonstrated not just throughout words
but throughout actions as well. Loyalty
is seen throughout the characters of Cordelia, Kent, and the Fool. They have truly shown and demonstrated
loyalty to King Lear in both his good and bad conditions. King Lear misreads
most of the loyal people’s actions, for dishonor and disrespect; when
truthfully those same people are those who help him and are loyal to him. King Lear in the end of the play realizes who
had been loyal to him all along; too bad it took a bad situation to make him
see people's true intentions.
One character who had
remained loyal to King Lear is Kent, Lear's servant, he remained by King Lear's
side even though Kent was banished from the land forever, and was to be killed
if found in the land after a week. Kent
has never been afraid to speak his mind if King Lear is wrong, and for that
same reason is why King Lear banished Kent, thinking that he had dishonored and
betrayed him. In fact, Kent would rather speak the truth to King Lear about his
actions, rather than lying to him and letting him make a mistake "Royal
Lear, whom I have ever honored as my king, loved as my father, as my master
followed, as my great patron thought in my prayers../ Let it fall rather,
though the fork invade the region of my heart. Be Kent unmannerly when Lear is
mad....Think'st thou that duty shall have dread to speak when power to flattery
bows? To plainness honor's bound when majesty falls to folly. Reserve thy
state..." (1.1. 139/ 144). Kent's
exile gave him even more reason to betray King Lear, however he did not, he
disguised himself remained loyal and followed King Lear throughout the entire
play "If but as well I other accents borrow, that can my speech diffuse,
my good intent may carry through itself to that full issue for which I razed my
likeness. Now, banished Kent, if thou
canst serve where thou dost stand condemned, so may it come thy master, whom
though lovest, shall find thee full of labors" (1.4.1-7). Kent didn't have an obligation to help King
Lear, but his love and loyalty towards his King is too strong to lead him
towards betraying his King. When King
Lear is homeless, Kent helps him find a temporary shelter "...Gracious my
lord, hard by here is a hovel. Some
Friendship will it lend you 'gainst the tempest. Repose you there..."
(3.2.59-61). Kent not only remains loyal
to King Lear, but he also remains loyal to Cordelia, by informing her about her
father's condition and by leading her to Lear's location.
Loyalty is also
demonstrated through the character of the Fool, who is also full of wisdom, and
is not afraid to tell things how they are and how he sees it. The Fool is another character who does not
care about the consequences of his words nor actions; he simply speaks his mind
and stays by King Lear’s side through his bad experience. The Fool’s purpose is to lighten up the mood,
but in reality, through his bluntness he opens King Lear’s eyes about the
wrongs he had done by giving up his kingdom and power “…Nay, an thou canst not
smile as the wind sits, thou’lt catch cold shortly. There, take my coxcomb.
Why, this fellow has banished two on’s daughters, and did the third a blessing
against his will. If thou follow him, thou must needs wear my coxcomb”
(1.4.87-92). Since King Lear did not
want to listen to everyone else’s warnings the good way, the Fool harshly tells
him his mistakes in order to make Lear see and hear his actions. “Fools had ne’er less wit in a year, for wise
men are grown foppish. They know not how their wits to wear, their manners are
so apish” (1.4. 149-152). Later on,
the Fool decides that he is better off being with King Lear, and accompanies
him through his miserable journey to help guide him. The Fool shows his loyalty and appreciation
through his bluntness, but he speaks and acts with good and true intentions
towards King Lear. He is fully loyal to
King Lear, even though his economic status is not as high as the royalty, the
Fool is so full of both wisdom and knowledge, and eventually his loyalty to the
King leads him to his own death. Having
power means nothing compared to loyalty and King Lear in the end realizes
that. The Fool’s character is an example
of that, because he is not royalty, nor does he have any money, but his loyalty
towards King Lear is highly more appreciated than those who have power with no
good intentions.
In King Lear, King Lear
believes that his two daughters Goneril and Regan are his only loyal children
since their spoken speeches said so, as for his third and youngest daughter,
Cordelia is disowned because of her lack of speech."...by all the
operation of the orbs from whom we do exist and cease to be here I disclaim all
your paternal care, propinquity, and property of blood, and as a stranger to my
heart and me hold thee from this forever" (1.1.111-116). Although Cordelia is disowned as Lear's
daughter, she has all the reason to hate Lear, but does not; instead she
chooses to demonstrate her love and loyalty towards her father throughout her
actions. As Lear's daughter, Cordelia is a great example of how loyalty is
portrayed in the play; having all the reasons to ignore and hate her father,
she chooses to pick him up from his tragic misery and insanity and says:
"O you kind gods, cure this great breach in his abused nature, th' untuned
and jarring senses, O, wind up, of this child-changed father!"
(4.7.12-15). Without taking advantage of Lear's condition, she tries to restore
his sanity and clarifies to Lear “no cause, no cause" ( 4.7.74). Cordelia demonstrates her loyalty by actions
and words, by saying that she does not hate him nor does she have a cause
to. Instead she chooses to help, clothe,
and shelter her father rather than banishing him like her two sisters did. Cordelia is one of the people who care for
King Lear after giving up all his power, his land, and his home. That is the true meaning of loyalty, to
provide help to another in their time of need, and standing by them forgiving,
and forgetting the past. Cordelia’s actions speak for her; she does not hold
any grudges against her father and still honors Lear as her father, and as
royalty. Loyalty does not have a price,
or economic status, nor can it be replaced with power.
In the end,
"loyalty" is a common theme of King Lear, Shakespeare throughout the
play shows that loyalty does not just mean saying kind words, but by also
demonstrating it. Shakespeare also
emphasizes that those who King Lear thought less of, were those who were truly
loyal to him until the end. Throughout
many characters, Shakespeare shows that through the thick and thin situations,
those who King Lear had banished were the ones who stuck by his side until the
end. No matter if King Lear had power or
not, that did not change the loyal people around him, in fact those people
helped him in Lear's time of need. Loyalty is very rare in some people, which
is why it has no price, and why it is greater than any kind of power.
