questions and answers for act 1 scene 1 and 2

1. in the opening scene of the play we are able to find out that king lear is very easily flattered, and not very wise as he is unable to see when he is being fooled/played. we are able to see this when he gives his two older daughters large portions of his kingdom just because he thought the words they spoke were true expressions of their love for him.



2. both gonerill and regan make a very large show of their "love" for their father. goneril claims to love him more than words can say, more than her freedom, more than anything that could be had under the sun. regan choses to say she feels exactly as her sister does except that she loves him more than goneril does as she loves no one else as much as she loves him and rejects any joy that could be had except the joy of loving him. it is quite obvious however that their words are nothing but empty flattery.



3. kent is justified in calling king lear mad because he has accepted flattery and has abnished the daughter who truly loves him in favor of his lying, money loving dauhters.



4. shakespear uses rhyming lines in kents final speech to ensure that his speech is given attention and also so persons can remember it.



5. the king of france' words are calculated to heal the ounds inflicted by lear as he says that it is because of her honesty to her father bout her love for him that he has truly fallen for her, he calls her valuable though she has been rejected . he also insults the duke of burgandy by calling him a whimp for letting go such a treasure as cordellia is. obviously, by employing falttery he is attempting to comfort her.



6. the moral state of affairs at the close of the first scene is that all the nobles are shaken by king lears reaction to such a small matter, king lear is seemingly hurt, his two older daughters pretend to be truly upset that cordellia has ''disrespected'' their father is such a way, while kent and the king of france are entirely disappointed in king lear when his own daughters are lying to him through flattery.



7. edmund uses the excuse that he is a bastard and it is in his nature to be wicked. it is what society expects of him so he will do what is expected of him. this is the excuse shakespear allows edmund to make for the course of villany he is about to pursue.

8. edmund strengthens his plot by defending his brother as by doing so, he projects an image of innocence and loyalty; while others may be looking for a villan they would never think to look at him because he has fooled them into believing he is truly good.

9. glochesters gulability plays into edmunds hand as gluchester believes everything he is told especially as it is from his beloved son, instead of checking to se if what he hears and sees is fact. edgar predictability plays into edmunds hand as edmund is aware that his brother will believe him and take his suggestion of going into hiding, indoing so, edgar only makes himself look guilty while edmund looks like a truly loyal son.