King Lear

William Shakespeare

W. A. Moore and C. S. Bernard, 1860 - Drama - 58 pages

Popular passages

Page 47 - is Gloster. Thou must be patient ; we came crying hither ; Thou know'st, the first time that we taste the air, "We wail and cry. I'll preach to thee : mark me. Edg. Break, lab'ring heart ! Lear. When we are born, we cry that we are come To this great stage of fools. Enter PHYSICIAN and two Knights,

Page 44 - bark Seems lessened to her cock ; her cock, a buoy Almost too small for sight; the murm'ring surge Cannot be heard so high. I'll look no more, Lest my brain turn, and the disorder make me Tumble down headlong. Glos. Set me where you stand.

Page 51 - I am a very foolish, fond old man, Fourscore and upward; and, to deal plainly, I fear I am not in my perfect mind. Cor. Nay, then, farewell to patience ! Witness for me Ye mighty pow'rs, I ne'er complained till now ! Lear. Methinks, I should know you, and

Page 51 - Yet I am doubtful; for I'm mainly ignorant What place this is; and all the skill I have Remembers not these garments ; nor do I know Where I did sleep last night.—Pray, do not mock me ; For, as I am a man, I think that lady To be my child Cordelia.

Page 37 - it not pleasant to have a thousand with red-hot spits come hissing in upon them ? . Lear. The little dogs and all, Tray, Blanch, and Sweetheart, see, they bark at me. Come, march to wakes, and fairs, and market towns. Edg. Tom will throw his head at 'em : 'vaunt, ye curs ! Be thy mouth or black, or white,

Page 28 - think I'll weep ; No, I'll not weep :— I have full cause of weeping ; but this heart Shall break into a hundred thousand flaws, (1) Or ere I'll weep.— (Rain and thunder.) 0, gods, I shall go mad ! [Exeunt, King Lear, Kent, and the Knights, LH — Cornwall, Regan,

Page 13 - dinary men are fit for, I am qualified in ; and the best of me, is diligence. Lear. How old art thou ? Kent. Not so young, sir, to love a woman for singing ; nor so old, to dote on her for any thing ; I have years on my back forty-eight. Lear. Thy name ? Kent.

Page 29 - never gave you kingdoms, called you children ; You owe me no obedience.—Then let fall Your horrible pleasure !—Here I stand your slave, A poor, infirm, weak, and despis'd old man.— (Rain, thunder, and lightning.) Yet I will call you servile ministers, That have with two pernicious daughters join'd Your high engender'd battle 'gainst a head So old and white

Page 27 - Let shame come when it will, I do not call it; I do not bid the thunder-bearer strike, Nor tell tales of thee to avenging heaven. Mend when thou canst: be better at thy leisure ;— I can be patient, I can stay with Regan, 1, and my hundred knights. Reg.

Page 38 - what is the cause of thunder? Glost. Beseech you, sir, go with me. Lear. I'll talk a word with this same learned Theban. What is your study ? Edg. How to prevent the fiend, and to kill vermin. Lear. Let me ask you a word in private Kent. His wits are quite unsettled ; good sir, let's

About the author

William Shakespeare, 1564 - 1616 Although there are many myths and mysteries surrounding William Shakespeare, a great deal is actually known about his life. He was born in Stratford-Upon-Avon, son of John Shakespeare, a prosperous merchant and local politician and Mary Arden, who had the wealth to send their oldest son to Stratford Grammar School. At 18, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, the 27-year-old daughter of a local farmer, and they had their first daughter six months later. He probably developed an interest in theatre by watching plays performed by traveling players in Stratford while still in his youth. Some time before 1592, he left his family to take up residence in London, where he began acting and writing plays and poetry. By 1594 Shakespeare had become a member and part owner of an acting company called The Lord Chamberlain's Men, where he soon became the company's principal playwright. His plays enjoyed great popularity and high critical acclaim in the newly built Globe Theatre. It was through his popularity that the troupe gained the attention of the new king, James I, who appointed them the King's Players in 1603. Before retiring to Stratford in 1613, after the Globe burned down, he wrote more than three dozen plays (that we are sure of) and more than 150 sonnets. He was celebrated by Ben Jonson, one of the leading playwrights of the day, as a writer who would be "not for an age, but for all time," a prediction that has proved to be true. Today, Shakespeare towers over all other English writers and has few rivals in any language. His genius and creativity continue to astound scholars, and his plays continue to delight audiences. Many have served as the basis for operas, ballets, musical compositions, and films. While Jonson and other writers labored over their plays, Shakespeare seems to have had the ability to turn out work of exceptionally high caliber at an amazing speed. At the height of his career, he wrote an average of two plays a year as well as dozens of poems, songs, and possibly even verses for tombstones and heraldic shields, all while he continued to act in the plays performed by the Lord Chamberlain's Men. This staggering output is even more impressive when one considers its variety. Except for the English history plays, he never wrote the same kind of play twice. He seems to have had a good deal of fun in trying his hand at every kind of play. Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, all published on 1609, most of which were dedicated to his patron Henry Wriothsley, The Earl of Southhampton. He also wrote 13 comedies, 13 histories, 6 tragedies, and 4 tragecomedies. He died at Stratford-upon-Avon April 23, 1616, and was buried two days later on the grounds of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford. His cause of death was unknown, but it is surmised that he knew he was dying.

Bibliographic information

• Title: King Lear; Issue 3 of Edwin Forrest edition of Shakspearian and other plays
• Author: William Shakespeare
• Edition: large print
• Publisher: W. A. Moore and C. S. Bernard, 1860
• Original from: Harvard University
• Digitized: Feb 13, 2006
• ISBN: 0758313233, 9780758313232
• Length: 58 pages
• Subjects: Drama / European / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh