The Royal Family
The aging King who decides to divide his kingdom among his three daughters.
Who is King Lear?
The illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester who plots to claim his brother's inheritance.
Who is Edmund?
The character who offers sharp, cynical truth to Lear through riddles and songs.
Who is the Fool?
The country that invades Britain to rescue Lear and restore him to his throne.
What is France?
A recurring motif throughout the play that underscores the "storm" in Lear's mind.
What is the weather (or the storm)?
The youngest daughter who refuses to flatter her father and is subsequently disowned.
Who is Cordelia?
The legitimate son of Gloucester who is framed by his brother for attempted patricide.
Who is Edgar?
The location where Lear wanders during a massive storm, descending further into madness.
What is the Heath?
The primary reason for the conflict that leads to Lear’s downfall.
What is the division of the kingdom (or Lear’s vanity/pride)?
The specific human sense that is cruelly violated in act 3, scene 7.
What is sight (blinding)?
The two eldest daughters who initially flatter Lear to gain their inheritance.
Who are Goneril and Regan?
The nobleman who is blinded by the Duke of Cornwall and Regan.
Who is the Earl of Gloucester?
The type of "madness" Edgar pretends to suffer from to survive.
What is Tom o' Bedlam (or "Poor Tom")?
The character who kills Cordelia while she is imprisoned.
Who is Edmund (by his order/the captain)?
The literary term for the speech Lear delivers to the storm, reflecting his internal turmoil.
What is a soliloquy?
The husband of Goneril, who eventually expresses horror at the actions of his wife and her sister.
Who is the Duke of Albany?
The disguise assumed by the Earl of Kent to remain near the King.
What is Caius?
The person Lear believes is a "learned Theban" or "philosopher" while he is in his delirious state.
Who is Poor Tom (Edgar)?
The manner in which Goneril eventually dies.
What is suicide (by stabbing herself)?
The animal metaphor Lear uses to describe Goneril’s ingratitude.
What is a "serpent's tooth"?
The daughter who is married to the Duke of Cornwall.
Who is Regan?
The method Edmund uses to turn Gloucester against his loyal son, Edgar.
What is a forged/fake letter?
The specific phrase used to describe Lear's mental state when he reconciles with Cordelia.
What is "child-changed" or "old, foolish fond man"?
The nobleman who remains loyal to Lear despite being banished for defending Cordelia.
Who is the Earl of Kent?
The emotional state Lear experiences as he carries the body of his dead daughter at the end of the play.
What is grief (or agony/despair)?