ACT III - Scene.iii
(Inside Gloucester’s castle)
Summary
Gloucester complains to his son Edmund about the offhand way he has been
treated by Regan and Cornwall.
They have ordered him not to assist King Lear, and Edmund agrees with his father that this is a strange request. Gloucester tells Edmund that he has a letter containing details of a plan to put right the injustice suffered by the King, and that this will pose a threat to the Duke of Cornwall.
When Gloucester exits, Edmund plans to warn Cornwall of the impending danger.
Interpretation
Remember that Gloucester is elderly himself, like Lear, and has been slow to
react to the crisis facing the Kingdom and Lear.
Clearly he is basically a loyal and true servant of the King, and this is fully revealed in this scene. Unfortunately, he confides in his traitorous son Edmund, details of the plan to aid Lear.
Gloucester is practically a prisoner in his own home, but we see an
indication that he is going to fight back. The battle that has been waged so far in the story between young and old, good and evil, order and chaos has been very much one-sided. Hopefully, the tables
will the reversed, starting with Gloucester’s actions.
We again see another event that the opportunist Edmund will take full
advantage of.
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