On: Why Wearing Flowers in One’s Hair Does Not Necessarily Indicate Madness
-or-
King Lear – Tragedy Through Sanity


Andrea
Walsh
EN 185
10/14/5

The first words the image of a barely clothed old man, twirling around, with wildflowers and vines entwined in his hair bring to mind are probably not “sane,” or “in touch with reality.” But perhaps it should. Or at the very least, perhaps judgment should not be passed so hastily. For in Shakespeare’s King Lear, the title character changes from a mighty, almost tyrannical leader into a softhearted old man who prefers a circlet of flowers to a crown. However, he is merely trying to adjust to a reality he had been avoiding his whole life. By the end of the play, King Lear is not a madman, he in fact is more sane and in touch with reality than when we were introduced to him in the beginning, making his loss, betrayal, and eventual death, much more tragic than if he had been.
As opposed to the King Lear of the final scenes, the Lear we meet in the first scene of the first act is not tragic whatsoever. He is stern and cruel, and egocentric. The only basis he has for dividing up his kingdom is “Which of you shall we say doth love us most (1.1 ll 53),” in other words, whomever boosts his ego most. When Cordelia refuses to flatter him, he does not merely act hurt, nor even merely chastise her. Instead, he completely offends her, saying, “Better thou not been born than not t’ have pleased me/ better (1.1, ll 235-236).” There are few worse insults a father can give a daughter than to wish they had never been born. Lear is searing his daughter’s heart merely because she will not please his every whim. Not only that but he tries to ruin her future, telling her suitors that she probably doesn’t love them either (1.1 ll 207-214). These are not the words of a stable, loving father, these are the words of a man so wrapped up in himself and his power that he does not realize what he is saying.
And why was Lear dividing his kingdom in the first place? Because “’tis our fast intent/ To shake all cares and business from our age, / Conferring them on younger strengths, while we/Unburthened crawl toward death (1.1 ll 38-42).” He doesn’t care for what’s best for his country, just so long as he is not in charge if something goes wrong. Here we see a conflict. Does he want to have power, or does he want to ‘shake all cares and business?’ If Lear were to die in the first act, the play would not be a tragedy. One might even be tempted to find joy in his death, at the very least because he would no longer have the burden of ‘crawl[ing] toward death….’
Toward the middle of the play, Lear’s world is turned upside down. Those who flattered him most now treat him the worst. In addition, he also must deal with the fact that being king is not permanent, or assured by the gods as he once believed. Power and kingship are things that can be taken away from him. Through this, Lear is forced to come to terms with the idea and therefore grow as a person. For example, he does appear to speak and barter with the storm that brews throughout Act 3. But this is not merely insanity, Lear’s gods are Pagan gods, they are from and of nature and he must deal with the fact that they may not always favor him – or even whether or not they exist at all. For example, when he challenges, “let fall/Your horrible pleasure. Here I stand your slave, /A poor, infirm, weak, and despised old man (3.2 ll 18-20).” These are not the words of a madman; they are the words of a confused man whose life has been turned completely upside-down. Not only is he testing his gods by tempting them to inflict their wrath upon him, but he is also humbling himself and realizing that just because one is (or was) king does not mean everyone automatically loves one – something he would never have thought of as the commanding monarch of the earlier scenes.
Lear still tries to hold on to some shreds of his former life, however. For example, when he holds the mock trial of Regan and Goneril in act three, scene six. The fool concludes that only a madman holds their offspring in high regard, but Lear is not so quick to judge, his response is that “I’ll see their trial first. Bring in the evidence (3.6, ll 35).” By doing this, he is not only attempting to understand why his daughters turned on him, but also to restore some of the order his life once contained. The strict rule of the courtroom is that of calculated, logical steps. The filter of law and justice helps to clarify situations (such as his own) that might otherwise seem overwhelmingly haphazard.
One might argue for Lear’s insanity by citing act four, scene six, in which Lear enters the scene “fantastically dressed with wild flowers.” But in actuality, Lear is becoming more in touch with reality than ever. He is coming to realize that being king only helped him to avoid the real world and his faults, “Through tattered clothes small vices do appear;/ Robes and furred gowns hide all. (4.6 ll 166-167).” Since he is no longer king, he knows all those remaining loyal to him are his true friends. Among true friends one is free to show their faults, and Lear is coming to see the value in cultivating relationships, not dictating them. This King Lear is much more tragic than the Lear at the beginning of the play. By realizing that his status was a privilege, not a gods-given right, he also becomes more human, and humble. We can now see that Lear has weakness and flaws, as well as that many of his misfortunes were self-inflicted, and thus feel sad for him. However, although Lear has expressed sympathy and compassion for others, he has not yet demonstrated it. If Lear were to die at this stage in the play, it would almost certainly be considered very sad and dramatic, but since he does not completely have our trust and empathy, most likely not a tragedy.
In the final scenes of the play, Lear confronts and reconciles with his daughter, Cordelia. It is here we see him finally adjust to reality and come to terms with his place in society – his most sane moments in the play. For example, in act five, scene three, when he is being taken to jail with Cordelia. In his old life, he would have been depressed and even irate if he were to be incarcerated. But since he now realizes he is not the center of the universe, that this is not the worst thing that could possibly happen in his life, he goes to jail with little hesitation,
Let’s away to prison:
We two alone will sing like birds I’ th’ cage….
So we’ll live,
And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh
At gilded butterflies, and hear poor rogues
Talk of court news; and we’ll talk with them too
5.3, ll 8-14.
He has realized his dream of no responsibilities. This also is a demonstration of his shift from self-focus to selflessness. He would rather be reconciled with Cordelia in a prison than free and separated.
However we see Lear’s greatest display of affection and sanity when he deals with Cordelia’s death.
Howl, howl, howl, howl! O, you are men of
Stones:
Had I your tongues and eyes, I’d use them so
That heaven’s vault should crack. She’s gone for
Ever.
5.3, ll 258-263

These are not the rantings of a madman. This is a normal, human display of a father’s grief and sorrow over his cherished daughter’s death. He is grieving in his own way. A crazy man would not know to grieve at all, much less entertain the concept that others should mourn with him. When Lear now dies, his death is truly tragic.
Even his last words are unselfish. With his final breaths he hopes for Cordelia’s safety and life, not his own. This is the final element that makes the play truly and immensely tragic. Not only has Lear caused the suffering that has destroyed his life, but he has become aware of that fact, used it to try and become a better person by showing sympathy, caring and selflessness, and still in the end failed. If he were still the blind tyrant he was at the beginning of the play, this incident would most likely be passed off as merely unfortunate. But since he has now developed into a conscious, kind, sane person, King Lear is truly, and immensely, tragic.