Second paragraph

Question 1

First sentence

Answer 1

Some of the most recent interpretations of King Lear tend to identify it as a ‘Christian’ play through its quasi- allegorical narrative

Question 2

The personal

Answer 2

‘Pilgrimage’ of Lear, a quest frequently generalised into the journey of oppressed humanity in the path to salvation through the agency of the holy figure (Cordelia)

Question 3

Cordelia has, by many critics

Answer 3

Been regarded as a Christ-like and holy figure. Her name Cordelia being made up of ‘Cor’ Greek for heart, and ‘delia’, an anagram of the ideal

Question 4

In the eyes of

Answer 4

Geoffrey L. Bickersteth, Shakespeare ‘was unconsciously inspired by a story taken…from Christian mythology’, with Cordelia in the part of Christ. through presenting Cordelia as the agent of Lear’s regeneration, and idealised as a saintly figure, or an embodiment of love, their relationship becomes even more significant as, Lear, through enduring suffering and misery receives salvation from his youngest daughter

Question 5

The Quarto version

Answer 5

Of the play has encouraged some critics to attribute Cordelia a halo by emphasising her saintliness and associating her with Christian devotion, ‘the holy water from her heavenly eyes’, in order for her to pose as a sacrificial victim who’s death is mitigated by the prospect of her ascension to heaven

Question 6

Gardener suggests

Answer 6

That the image of Lear bending over the dead Cordelia at the end of the play could be an image of ‘Secular Pietà’, an image of the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus

Question 7

However, this theory has been

Answer 7

Criticised by Frye who suggests there is no evidence that Elizabethans would have regarded Cordelia as a Christ figure. He concludes that Shakespeare’s predominant dramatic concerns are ‘universally human’ and, if he was to create a character expressing Christian ideal, he made sure to use them in terms which were ‘readily recognisable to the standards of sixteenth century theology’

Question 8

Moreover,

Answer 8

If the play were to be Christian, surely the death of both Lear and Cordelia would be a contradiction of Christian theology

Question 9

Therefore, the play

Answer 9

Invokes questions around Christian doctrine in relation to the concept of suffering and need for patience in adversity. The reconciliation of the intimate relationship shared between Lear and Cordelia is somewhat undermined by the harsh reality of their deaths