When was King Lear written by William Shakespeare?
William Shakespeare crafted King Lear in late 1605 or early 1606. The earliest known performance of this play occurred on Saint Stephen's Day in 1606 before the court of King James I at Whitehall.
Common questions about King Lear
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who are the three daughters of King Lear in the play?
King Lear has three daughters named Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia. Goneril and Regan offer extravagant speeches to win territories while Cordelia refuses to play the game and is disowned by her father.
What happens to Gloucester in King Lear?
The Duke of Cornwall gouges out Gloucester's eyes as punishment for his loyalty to King Lear. This act of blinding serves as a powerful metaphor for the play's central motif where characters who are physically blind see the truth most clearly.
How did the ending of King Lear change over time?
The original text ends with the death of Cordelia and the grief-stricken death of Lear. This tragic ending was replaced for over 150 years by a version written by Nahum Tate in 1681 that gave the play a happy ending until 1838.
What are the different versions of the King Lear text?
The play's text is derived from three distinct sources: the 1608 quarto, the 1619 quarto, and the 1623 First Folio. These versions differ significantly with the quarto containing 285 lines not found in the folio and the folio containing around 100 lines absent from the quarto.