Friday, December 20, 2019

Essay about King Lear and Madness in the Renaissance

King Lear and Madness in the Renaissance It has been demonstrated that Shakespeares portrayal of madness parallels Brights A Treatise of Melancholie (Wilson 309-20), yet, the medical model alone is insufficient to describe the madness of Shakespeare’ s King Lear. Shakespeare was not limited to a single book in his understanding of madness; he had at his disposal the sum total of his societys understanding of the issue. Since Lears madness is derived from a mixture of sources, it can only be effectively described in this larger context. Because much of Renaissance medical theory was based on premises from the Middle Ages, a starting point for our understanding of Lears madness can be found in the 1535†¦show more content†¦(1.2.294-298) In Bartholomeus model madness caused by an excess of choler is called the frenesie. Its signs are woodnes and contynual wakynge, mevynge and castynge aboute the eyen, ragynge... (3). It is caused by the red choler made lyght with heate of it self... ravysshyd upwarde by veynes, synewes, wosen and pypes (2). The cure involves bleeding the patient, shaving his head and applying vinegar and ointment to the head. However it also recommends creating a calm environment for the patient, feeding him a sparse simple diet, and above all things... men shall labour to bringe hym a slepe (3-4). Kent seems to be aware of this most important part of the cure, and through him we realize that Lears madness may have been shortlived had he been able to rest before fleeing to Dover: Oppressed nature sleeps. This rest might yet have balmed thy broken sinews, Which, if convenience will not allow, Stand in hard cure. (3.6.94-98) However, not all contemporary models of madness relied solely on humours. Timothy Brights model simplifies Bartholomeus categorization of madness by calling all madness melancholy, but diversifies it by distinguishing two separate types ofShow MoreRelatedEssay on Lears Character in William Shakespeares Play1216 Words   |  5 Pages The view of Lear being bent on his own destruction from the beginning of the play is an acceptable claim. The way he begins in the play, dividing up his country for his daughters, in essence, this spelt disaster. Unlike other renaissance dramatists, who used ‘mad scenes’ for comic use, Shakespeare seems intent on displaying madness in a more sinister portrayal. In favour of the claim, much can be said.Read MoreThe Mind of the Mad: Analysis of Hamlet1552 Words   |  7 Pagesit to be mad? Is it related to something of biological background? Or is it to do with the complex breakdown of one’s emotions? Or is it both? These questions are important to keep in mind when understanding whether Hamlet is truly mad or feigning madness as part of his ‘plan’ in which Shakespeare builds up throughout the play. This relates to the second aspect which must also be looked at when comprehending the fictional play Hamlet. This aspect is the certain ‘key’ events that take place, and howRead More17th Century Witers: The Age of Reason Essay1139 Words   |  5 Pagesof Reason†, along with the final years of the artistic and cultural movement, the Renaissance. Writers at this time were influenced by these social revolutions, along with other historical events. Theories about emotion and reason sprung during this time period, which were expressed in literature by poets and authors such as Robert Herrick, William Shakespeare, and Thomas Hobbes. Shakespeare’s play, King Lear is a great representation on the relationship of reason and emotion. The designRead More Locating Macbeth at the Thresholds of Time, Space and Spiritualism 2629 Words   |  11 PagesFolie et dà ©raison, Michel Foucault unmistakably locates madness at the limen of cultural identity: European man, since the beginning of the Middle Ages has had a relation to something he calls, indiscriminately, Madness, Dementia, Insanity. †¦ [It is] a realm, no doubt, where what is in question is the limits rather than the identity of a culture. (Foucault xi) By describing madness in this way, he demonstrates his understanding of madness as a cultural phenomenon, defined not by the analysisRead MoreThe Shakespearean Canon1325 Words   |  6 PagesLear’s Fool and Cymbeline’s Cloten and Their Social Significance Clowns and Jesters abound throughout the Shakespearean canon, and the Bard’s later plays are no exception. In this paper I plan to examine the later Shakespearean fool, particularly King Lear’s Fool and Cymbeline’s Cloten and how they represent various political and social ideas. First, I will examine the historical significance of both Fool and Cloten’s station, their historic relevance, and similarities to other socio-politicalRead MoreShakespeares use of the Renaissance Idea of Fatalism and Imagery in King Lear3108 Words   |  13 PagesShakespeares use of the Renaissance Idea of Fatalism and Imagery in King Lear In a play about individual tragedies, fatalism plays an important part. Shakespeare effectively uses cosmic imagery to define his characters and to explore the idea of journeys linked to self-discovery by relating it to the imagery of rotating circles. Shakespeare uses Renaissance theology to explain character motivation. In the 16th century there was a great belief in astronomy. People believedRead MoreShakespeares Greatness: Much Ado About Nothing, and King Lear1425 Words   |  6 Pagesplay and the course of the story is thrown from the norm and into the conflict. Shakespeare was a master of this art in the work he produced throughout his life and was able to create stories of humor and those of tragedy. For example, his play King Lear is a terrible tragedy in which many awful things take place and the story ends by disastrous means. While in the play Much Ado About Nothing, very little conflict is present and if it is, it is resolved quickly and the play concludes with the joyfulnessRead MoreShakespeaerian Tragedies: The Link to Aristotles Ideas Essay1783 Words   |  8 Pagesof Shakespeares tragedies, we must examine how men looked at the problem of evil in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Much of the philosophy which under-pinned the English Renaissance can be traced to the ideas of Aristotle. It can be argued that the central concern of King Lear is the nature of a particular form of evil: anger. Aristotle defined anger as: ... an impulse, accompanied by pain, to a conspicuous revenge for a conspicuous slight directed withoutRead MoreThe Changing View of Man, The Cosmos and His Place1351 Words   |  6 Pages Throughout the middle ages, people have viewed the cosmos as a basis for the social order here on Earth. The celestial layers were representations of the medieval society and the church. The hierarchy of the Kings and Pope over their subjects was justified by the hierarchy of the heavenly bodies; it was considered natural and no one questioned it because it has been like that for so long. Medieval life was centered on God, abiding by the doctrines of the Catholic Church, and the strengthening ofRead MoreAnalyzing the Characteristics of Kind Lear Essay4690 Words   |  19 PagesCharacteristics of Kind Lear Lear is the protagonist, whose willingness to believe his older daughters’ empty flattery leads to the deaths of many people. In relying on the test of his daughters’ love, Lear demonstrates that he lacks common sense or the ability to detect his older daughters’ falseness. Lear cannot recognize Cordelia’s honesty amid the flattery, which he craves. The depth of Lear’s anger toward Kent, his devoted follower, suggests excessive pride—Lear refuses to be

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.