Goneril Flashcards
Goneril expressing her love for Lear
Reference to swords and violence presents duality of new order - that their words are the weapons instead!
‘more than word can wield the matter’
Link to ‘self-mettle’
Goneril expressing her love for Lear
All abstract concepts to describe depth of Goneril’s love for Lear - seems like she puts a lot of value on this love, but as part of new order, she only cares about material wealth and power
Ironic - abstract concepts cannot be proved - Goneril using the unprovable to prove her love for Lear
‘dearer than eyesight, space and liberty’
Goneril talking to Oswald about Lear’s behaviour
Ironic if Lear is the established power - Goneril can almost be absolved of responsibility bc she’s only following her father’s example. Lear is to blame for new order
‘he flashes into one gross crime or another’
‘sets us all at odds’
Goneril commanding Oswald to tell Lear she is sick
Appearances changing to manipulate the situation and not allowing nature to take its course - link to belief in providence evaporating and move towards secularisation
‘put on what weary negligence you please’
Goneril telling Lear his behaviour is not to be tolerated - like mother
Plosive and dental sounds portray Goneril’s disgust at old order (that has become corrupt over time perhaps) - also Goneril trying to wake Lear from his delusions
‘men so disordered, so debauched and bold’
Lear’s reply to Goneril’s ‘men so disordered, so debauched and bold’
dentals in reply to Goneril - denial of Goneril’s words and Lear’s resolve to stay in darkness of old order where devil still exists in physical sense - criticism of JI’s belief in wc
‘darkness and devils’
Goneril is called this by Lear
disruption of natural order by denouncing legitimate heir
‘degenerate bastard’
Lear uses animal imagery to refer to Goneril
Misogyny - presents women as animals which degrades them to the fundamental need of power
‘wolvish visage’
Albany talking with Goneril
‘pierce’ is a masculine verb and Goneril becomes the penetrator which emasculates Albany - presents new order as so corrupt it needs to eventually destroy itself
Reinforced by Albany’s failure to prevent Goneril cheating
‘how far your eyes may pierce, I cannot tell’
Albany’s morally didactic rhyming couplet
Albany tells Goneril not to get too power hungry but Goneril ignores this and attempts to speak after - sense of hopelessness for future - like father
Also bc it’s not at the end which presents lack of morality
‘how far your eyes may pierce, I cannot tell: striving to better, oft we mar what’s well’
Goneril’s aside towards the end
Her asides invoke sympathy from us as we are exposed to the fact that she has emotions and feelings - she really loves Edmund but Regan has no asides and her language, which is indicative of madness, suggests she’s doing it to keep power - plus repeats self when talking of sin - has Edm slept with Goneril - sexual woman
Parallels Lear here - both give up kingdom out foresight of consequences for smtn uncertain and finite - love - could link to shakespeare’s son Hamnet’s death 1596
‘I had rather lose the battle then that sister should loosen him and me’
