Blindness Yields Clarity // Emma Landry

     King Lear ends on a very dark note, but the path to this ending is characterized by a key paradox that carries major irony. Gloucester's loss of his eyes, while gruesome and disturbing, was the turning point for his character development that caused him to gain greater clarity of mind toward the end of his life. A man who had previously experienced no serious infirmities, he was still blind to the trickery of Edmund and devoured the deceitful tales of Edgar's betrayal. At this point in time, he had perfect literal eyesight; however, he would not have been able to see the truth of his circumstances had it slapped him in the face, so to speak. Gloucester laments that "our means secure us, and our mere defects prove our commodities" (4.1, 21-22). It is quite significant that this earl, who had for most of the play concerned himself only with how his situations were affecting him (with the exception of trying to save Lear from the plot against him), seems to be acknowledging that perhaps he has been cocky and could grow through his circumstances. Even though he is in anguish, he knows that good may yet come from it. He has not been the best father by any means with his blatant favoritism of Edgar, his devaluing and disrespect of Edmund, and his flimsy faith in his more pure-hearted son. However, being humbled to the point of not being able to manage himself without the guidance of another, "lower" member of society gives him the chance to experience a transformation. Gloucester's misfortune is a reminder that everything we think we have secured in life can be taken away in the blink of an eye. It is up to us how we respond to loss and heartbreak. 

    "Let the superfluous and lust-dieted man / That slaves your ordinance, that will not see / Because he does not feel, feel your pow'r quickly / So distribution should undo excess / And each man have enough," Gloucester proclaims in lines 69-73 of Scene 1. The generous spirit he displays and his ultimate reunion with Edgar after the Poor Old Tom persona has been shed help to build the eucatastrophe in Gloucester's life. He ultimately passes away, but he does so after gaining more sympathy for the poor and performing the selfless act of giving away riches. Before Gloucester offers his riches to Edgar, he says, "...That I am wretched // Make thee the happier" (4.1, 67-68). Even though none of the characters in this play associate with Christianity, the class discussions about Lear's Christlike parallels led me to notice one with Gloucester. He has fallen from greatness to humiliation, and this line shows that he does not mind the suffering that he bears if giving what he has can provide hope to one desperately looking for it. Though certainly not an identical parallel, this gift is evocative of what Jesus did for us. He has greater clarity of what is important in life, especially as he expresses how he misses Edgar before Edgar reveals himself to his father. He does not fully know what Edmund has done, but he is more concerned about his loved one (Edgar) than about holding onto possessions (his power) in this moment. His care for other people has surpassed want for material things.

I commented on Elijah Mahn and Isabelle Ferguson's posts.