Symbols in King Lear

“Visage” means “face.” Lear curses Goneril by comparing her to an animal; in this case, her face to a wolf. In doing this, Lear states that Goneril is no better than an animal in her disposition and behavior—she does not have the respect for family ties that a human should.

A “whoreson” is a bastard son, and a “cur” is a low-bred dog. Lear uses references to various animals to insult and degrade others. Throughout the play, Shakespeare will use animals to symbolize the lowest status to which humans can descend.

A “coxcomb” is a fool’s hat, which has a red crest resembling a cock’s comb. As the Fool attempts to place his coxcomb on the Earl of Kent’s head, the coxcomb becomes a symbol of Kent’s foolishness for following King Lear despite Lear’s irrational political choices.

Shakespeare again uses animals to symbolize the natures of different characters. The Fool cleverly points out that Goneril and Regan are both similar in their cruel and savage character, and Lear’s assumption that Regan will be any different from Goneril is somewhat comical. Once again, the Fool shows himself as one of the most insightful characters, which leads us to question who the real “fool” is.

Edgar’s disguise transforms his appearance into one that is almost animal-like. Edgar’s removal of his fine clothes symbolizes his being stripped down in power and status.

Lear draws attention to how Regan and Goneril take each other’s hands when Goneril enters the area. This physical act serves as a symbolic blow to Lear, who sees that his daughter Regan stands with, and supports, Goneril instead of him.

Having both his daughters show him such disrespect, Lear has just invoked the heavens to keep him sane. However, now he threatens to live as an animal in the woods, a claim that suggests nature values justice and family bonds more than Lear’s present company. Since comparing people to animals has been used for insults, this sentiment complicates the symbol because it suggests that while beasts, animals are still less corrupt than humans.

While Lear’s speech appears nonsensical, he makes a salient argument here. Lear complicates the notion that humans and animals are not really very different, stating “Man’s life is cheap as beast’s.” This means that humans really require no more to live on than animals. The use of the word “cheap” also suggests that even the poorest people have things that the rich may deem unnecessary, leading us to wonder what truly makes a person rich.

Lear’s daughters have systematically stripped him of his remaining knights, removing nearly all of his remaining power and authority in the process. In response to this, Lear again invokes the heavens to intervene; however this time, Lear asks for patience and sanity, fearing that he’s losing both. Goneril and Regan’s cold and unjust treatment of their father has severed the family ties, and has left Lear on the brink of madness.

Upon seeing Kent, the Fool immediately starts to ridicule him. He calls the stocks Kent’s “cruel garters” (garters being a band worn to keep socks or stockings up one’s leg) and his “wooden nether-socks.” Since clothes often represent station in Shakespeare’s plays, the Fool uses such language to portray Kent’s pitiful position.

The verb “couch” means to lie down. The Gentleman uses language that associates Lear’s state of mind with nature and animals. Lear’s wild shouts parallel the raging storm, and even the fiercest animals would not dare to make themselves vulnerable to natural forces as Lear does. Lear’s savage fury at the storm emphasizes how his daughter’s betrayal and cruelty has caused him to lash out against nature, an irrational action that reveals his growing madness.

During Shakespeare's time it was commonly believed that pelican young fed off of their mother’s own blood. Lear is suggesting that he has been a good father, charitable and kind, and Goneril and Regan have been incredibly ungrateful. Notice again, the use of animals to symbolize Goneril and Regan’s lack of basic compassion and humanity.

Notice that Lear describes his clothes as “lendings” before stripping them off, reminding the audience that they are not an essential part of him. His nakedness underscores the theme of disintegration; the stripping away of excess and returning to nature. Lear then describes Poor Tom’s madness as being the nature of “unaccommodated man,” suggesting that the human being in this state is more natural than those deemed “sane” in civilization.

Revealing just how far he has descended into his madness, Lear begins to carry out an imaginary trial against Goneril and Regan for their betrayal of what Lear considers his gratitude. There are some parallels between the way Lear goes about this imaginary trial and the ceremony in Act I, scene i. However, one noticeable difference is that he refers to his daughters as “she-foxes,” bringing in more animal symbolism and revealing how he is now more aware of their cunning and heartlessness.

Notice that while Regan calls for Gloucester’s death, Goneril instead states that they should remove his sight. While blindness and insight largely have been figurative and metaphorical in the play to this point, this call for physically blinding Gloucester raises the stakes of the political climate, emphasizing the cruelty of Lear’s daughters and their boundless ambition.

Albany’s greater insight into Goneril and Regan’s complete disregard for social order, familial bonds, and basic human compassion, provokes him to look to the gods and heavens above for divine justice. This parallels Lear and Gloucester’s invocation of the gods, and underscores Britain’s descent into chaos and disorder.

Albany now sees Goneril and Regan’s true colors and compares them to animals to characterize them as vicious and barbarous. Note that he states that not even a bear would hurt their “gracious” and kindly father in the way that they do, suggesting that Goneril and Regan’s cruelty is even more brutal than animal life. Goneril and Regan’s greed and senseless violence brings them down to a level of savagery that even the most lawless beasts would not descend to.

Having just heard the account of how Gloucester lost his eyes and Cornwall perished, Albany calls out to the heavens and praises them for how quickly they exacted retribution against Cornwall for his treatment of Gloucester. Albany now makes restoring the land to just authority and political order his purpose, much like Kent and Gloucester have. His belief in divine order and justice parallels the beliefs of Lear and Gloucester.

Kent has revealed that while Lear is experiencing moments of clarity, he refuses to see Cordelia because he is so ashamed of how he treated her. Note the language here and how it represents Lear’s view of his children: Cordelia has “dear rights,” with “dear” not only meaning cherished or beloved, like a father might feel for his daughter, but also “treasured” or “valuable,” like the value of the estate she was owed. In contrast, the other daughters are described with animal imagery, emphasizing their base desires and lack of filial commitment.

Like many of the older characters in the play, Kent has faith in fate and the divine power of the heavens. In this scene, he uses this faith to explain the difference between Cordelia and her sisters rather than call for divine retribution. The idea is that the stars were in a different alignment than her sisters when Cordelia was conceived, making her into such a kind-hearted person. Many used to believe that being born under particular signs and constellations in the sky gave people their particular characters.

Cordelia is not only describing what the crown on Lear’s head is composed of, but also she is telling the group where Lear can be found. Of these plants mentioned, many of them are weeds (fumiter, furrow-weeds, hardocks), several are poisonous (hemlock, nettles), and others are benign (darnel is a type of grass, for example, but the ancient Romans and Greeks used the cuckoo-flowers as a cure for mental illness). While making wreaths out of flowers is fairly innocent, it’s worth noting that Lear has made a wreath crown of plants that are largely poisonous and not commonly picked. This threat of the natural world on his head perhaps provides a visual indication of the chaos that has caused him to largely lose his wits.

With these words, Gloucester asks the gods to forgive him for his attempted suicide and for them to watch and guide over his actions in the future, reaffirming the belief that Gloucester has had in the gods and fate. This declaration proves to be a pivotal moment for Edgar, who after hearing this approaches his father and addresses him as his son.

Since clothing is a symbol of status, “tattered clothes” is a metaphor for the poor and “robes and furred gowns” is a metaphor for the rich. When Lear says, “Plate a sin with gold/ And the strong lance of justice hurtless breaks,” Lear is essentially saying that the corruptions and “sin[s]” of the rich are much more easily veiled than those of the poor due to their wealth and stature. Clothing again becomes a symbol of character. The rich can hide their ugly nature beneath jewels and gold, and not be forced to answer for their misdeeds—the poor cannot.

Cordelia is asking Kent to take off his disguise, which she refers to both as weeds, to emphasize the low quality of his clothes, and as bad memories, to recall his and her banishment from the kingdom. Since clothes have served as a symbol of status in the play, Kent’s refusal to take them off illustrates that he does not yet feel comfortable resuming his position as earl quite yet; there is still the battle to be fought.

The repetition of “no” at the start of this passage along with the question marks convey Lear’s tone as soft and surprised. His words should be read as being hesitant and slow, asking these confused questions much as an innocent child would. He compares the innocent lives of animals to Cordelia, which shows how he cannot make sense of human injustice, believing that his daughter deserves to be alive simply because other creatures are allowed to live. This infantile questioning recall’s Goneril and Regan’s earlier assumption that as one ages, one reverts to a child-like state.

Lear evokes an image of an animal in this moment that portrays a more romantic vision of their prison experience that will keep them safe from harm. The connection to animals is appropriate, as Lear has insisted earlier that humans are no more special than animals, so being a caged bird would not be a problem for him. Lear’s desire for this also reflects his hope of fulfilling his initial desire to give away his responsibilities and live without concerns in his old age.