Act 5 Scene 3 Flashcards
(11 cards)
everything has life but cordelia
🗣 Lear: “Why should a dog, a horse, a rat have life, and thou no breath at all?”
• AO1 (Meaning and Argument): Lear’s grief over Cordelia’s death erupts in this raw outcry, questioning cosmic justice and the value of life.
• AO2 (Method): The list of animals and enjambment reflects Lear’s descent into existential despair; animal imagery reduces humanity to base form.
• AO5 (Interpretations): Some critics argue Lear finally gains full empathy and humanity here; others see it as bleak nihilism where no moral order prevails.
wheel of fortue
🗣 Edmund: “The wheel is come full circle; I am here.”
• AO1: Edmund reflects on the inevitability of fate and his downfall; a moment of tragic recognition.
• AO2: The circular metaphor invokes the medieval Wheel of Fortune; suggests poetic justice or karmic return.
• AO3: Edmund, the Machiavel, finally admits he cannot escape the cosmic order, echoing ideas of tragic retribution.
• AO5: Some critics argue this is forced redemption; others claim it is too little too late — a hollow realisation after irrevocable harm
heart break
🗣 Edgar: “His grief grew puissant and the strings of life began to crack.”
• AO1: Gloucester’s offstage death is attributed to emotional pain .
• AO2: The metaphor “strings of life” implies a musical instrument breaking, evoking fragility and tragic beauty.
• AO5: Seen as tragic release — some argue this dignifies Gloucester’s suffering, others see it as pathos, highlighting injustice.
lear justice
🗣 Lear: “I killed the slave that was a-hanging thee.”
• AO1: Lear takes brief agency in Cordelia’s death, killing her executioner in a futile gesture of justice.
• AO2: The monosyllabic line and active verb “killed” contrast with his usual helplessness — momentary heroic action.
• AO3: Lear dies moments later, making this act feel tragically irrelevant in the face of loss.
• AO5: Some see this as Lear’s final moment of masculine assertion; others highlight its futility — violence too late.
wanted good incured bad
🗣 Cordelia (earlier line recalled): “We are not the first who with the best meaning have incurred the worst.”
• AO1: Cordelia foreshadows her tragic fate, suggesting moral intent doesn’t shield one from suffering.
• AO2: The antithesis of “best meaning” and “worst” outcome is laced with dramatic irony and fatalism.
• AO3: This line links personal tragedy to universal human experience; a hallmark of classical tragedy.
• AO5: Feminist critics read Cordelia as a sacrificial figure — silenced, moral, and doomed by patriarchal systems.
kent goes to die
🗣 Kent: “I have a journey, to go; my master calls me.”
• AO1: Kent’s final line implies he will die soon, possibly by suicide, to follow Lear in death.
• AO2: The euphemism “journey” is gentle but chilling; a common tragic trope of faithful servants following their masters.
• AO3: Loyalty to the bitter end — Kent’s arc completes the tragic theme of duty versus survival.
• AO5: Some critics view Kent as the moral centre of the play — his death seals the tragedy’s bleak conclusion.
edmund lust or love
Quote: “Yet Edmund was beloved.” – Edmund
• AO1: In death, Edmund seeks comfort in being loved, revealing his emotional void.
• AO2: Past tense “was” underscores the irreversibility of loss; simple declarative reveals vulnerability beneath his scheming.
• AO3: Challenges the Machiavellian archetype – even villains long for love and validation.
• AO4: Contrast with Cordelia’s quiet, selfless love; he was “beloved” lustfully, not loyally.
• AO5: Some critics view this as ironic – love doesn’t redeem him; others argue it humanises him in the end.
let him die escape suffering
Quote: “He hates him that would upon the rack of this tough world stretch him out longer.” – Kent
• AO1: Kent rejects prolonging Lear’s suffering; he believes Lear has endured enough.
• AO2: The image of the “rack” (a torture device) metaphorises emotional and existential pain.
• AO3: Stoic or fatalistic view of death – better rest than continued agony.
• AO4: Links to Gloucester’s despair and Edgar’s refusal to prolong his father’s life too.
• AO5: Some see this as a dignified end; others as hopeless and tragic – no comfort in the new world.
nothing learnt
Quote: “Friends of my soul, you twain / Rule in this realm, and the gored state sustain.” – Albany
AO1 (Meaning & Argument): Albany relinquishes power, entrusting Edgar and Kent to restore order. This signals hope for political repair after personal devastation.
• AO2 (Method): The alliterative “rule… realm… gored… state… sustain” reinforces the weight of responsibility. “Gored” is visceral — the state is not just broken, but bleeding.
• AO3 (Context): In a play obsessed with power’s misuse, this act of delegation marks a rare moment of political humility. It contrasts the autocracy that began the tragedy.
• AO4 (Textual Links): Unlike Lear, Albany recognises his limitations. His gesture suggests the possibility of restorative justice, however fragile.
• AO5 (Critics): Some see Albany as a moral centre emerging too late; others argue this handover lacks real promise given the overwhelming loss.
edmund complexity
Some good I mean to do, despite of mine own nature.” – Edmund
• AO1 (Meaning & Argument): Edmund expresses a last-minute desire for redemption, showing a rare glimpse of guilt and internal conflict.
• AO2 (Method): The antithesis of “good” and “mine own nature” stresses his inner division. The hesitant modal “mean” undercuts the strength of his repentance.
• AO3 (Context): In Jacobean England, deathbed repentance was spiritually crucial. Shakespeare subverts this — Edmund’s remorse comes too late to matter.
• AO4 (Textual Links): Unlike Lear, whose self-awareness is tragic but transformative, Edmund’s shift feels futile.
• AO5 (Critics): Some view this as failed redemption; others see a humanising moment that complicates his villainy.
