King Lear Essay | Critical Essay #11

King Lear Critical Essay #11

Although Northrop Frye refers to the Fool as a "natural," Robert Hillis Goldsmith asserts that Lear's attendant is not a simpleton. Both Goldsmith and Enid Welsford identify him as one of Shakespeare's "wise fools." Welsford emphasizes his role as a neutral observer, an authoritative commentator on the sources of Lear's tragedy. Goldsmith distinguishes Lear's Fool from the traditional satirical or ironical fool, pointing to his unflagging devotion to, and sympathy for, the king. Goldsmith argues that the Fool begins the process of restoring Lear's sanity, but lacks the capability to com p lete his conversion. Welsford suggests that the Foo leaves the stage when Lear, in the throes of madness, himself becomes a "wise fool."

Both Northrop Frye and William Empson have remarked on the number of times the word "fool" appears in King Lear. During the course of the play, Frye points out, the word is used in...
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