William Shakespeare king Lear is a tragedy play that received a lot of reviews over the years regarding its

unnatural plot and extra ordinary use of language. The play explores theme of mortality and how blind
fathers can be, this shows how Gloucester was naïve about his son Edmund because he didn’t clarify
that his words were true or not. At the beginning of the play Gloucester is shown as a credulous, foolish,
and spineless. At the end of his life, he brings the audience to feel sympathy for him. Using
foreshadowing, metaphors, and imagery, to clarify Gloucester’s traits and how he went from having
everything to have nothing in the end.

As the play begins, Gloucester is displayed as a character who is credulous to the audience, one that
believes anything that he has not seen, and this was demonstrated through the employment of
foreshadowing. When Gloucester reads what the letter Edmund was hiding, he was shocked because he
never thought that his legitimate son would do such a thing to him, because he thought that he treated
his son with his love and tenderness all his life and that was shown in “to his father, that so tenderly and
entirely him. Heaven and earth! Seek him out; wind me into him, I pray you: frame the business after
your own wisdom. I would unstate myself to be in a due resolution” (Shakespeare, I, ii,91-95) this quote
demonstrated how much Gloucester loved Edgar. Edmund was clever enough to make his credulous
father believe that his legitimate son betrayed him through “this policy and reverence ---- and to live the
beloved of your brother, EDGAR” (Shakespeare, I,ii,45-52) this shows how Edmund deceived his dupable
father by making him believe that Edgar his legitimate son is planning on betraying him and killing him
for his inheritance, this shows how Gloucester was an easy believing man that would trust anyone’s
words. William Shakespeare uses foreshadowing to show how Edgar will be treated because of this
letter and this was concluded in the quote “O villain, villain! His very opinion in the letter! Abhorred
villain! Unnatural, detested, brutish villain! Worse than brutish! Go, sirrah, seek him: ill apprehend him.
Abominable villain! Where is he?” (Shakespeare,I,ii,71-74) this quote foreshadows what will happen to
Edgar and presents what is present in Gloucester mind about Edgar and shows how he thinks of Edgar as
if he did some out of his ordinary self because he knows that Edgar is a kind hearted man who does not
seek for violence or fame or murder for his inheritance, also Gloucester says that Edgar is worse than
brutish, telling the audience that Edgar is someone who is hurting his fathers heart not his physical body.
This use of foreshadowing makes the audience empathize with Edgar because of Gloucester predictions
for Edgar’s future. Shapeware perspective about how old age affects the senses of a person and how
would it affect him negatively when having deceitful sons.

During the mainstream of the play, while the storm was outside raging even more and king Lear was
outside, Gloucester while being in his castle was insulted and kicked out of his own castle, also he
conveyed his foolishness through the theme of blindness vs insight. He trusted Edmund and told
Edmund that he would go and help king Lear, he wants king Lear to have shelter in such a storm and
wanted him to go back to his castle. Gloucester was blind enough to trust Edmund blindly, but he didn’t
know that he would go betray him, this was in “these injuries the king now bears will be revenged
home; there is part of a power already footed; we must incline to the king” (Shakespeare,III,iii,10-12),
Gloucester is saying that king Lear’s home which is his family are giving him injuries inside him and giving
his feelings a hard time to accept what happened to him. Shakespeare demonstrated the trait of
foolishness for Gloucester through the use of metaphor in “ the younger rises when the old doth
fall”(Shakespeare,III,iii,23), Shakespeare uses this metaphor to show how Gloucester was foolish and
making Edmund take advantage of him he says that for him to rise he needs his father to go down for his
sake, which shows how Edmund would do anything to make people recognize him. This metaphor
affected the audience by making them feel a connection and empathy towards Gloucester and making
them understand how Gloucester is just being credulous and unwise. This describes Shakespeare’s
perspective about how Gloucester has become foolish and unwise like king Lear when they’re aging

At the end of the play, Shakespeare introduces the last development in Gloucester which was being
spineless, Gloucester showed the audience this trait from the beginning of the play till the end while at
first he was always messy and unorganized because when Edmund gave Gloucester the letter from as
Edmund says from Edgar then he believed it right away, he didn’t want to believe that was his legitimate
sons words but at the end he did believe that but at the end of his life, Gloucester realizes that his life
was all making mistakes. He then organized his thought and made everything look senseful about how
Edmund would cheat him like this and how he treated Edgar with respect and believe that Edgar would
never do something like this to him, Gloucester realizes all his mistake before dying and this was shown
in” I have no way, and therefore want no eyes; I stumbled when I saw. Full oft tis seen, our means
secure us, and our mere defects prove our commodities. Oh! Dear son Edgar, the food of thy abused
fathers wrath; might I butt live to see thee in my touch, I’d say I had eyes again”(Shakespeare,IV,I,18-24)
this shows how Gloucester admits his faults and recognizes that he want no eyes because of his
mistakes with them, also he tells Edgar in disguise that he is sorry to him but he did not know that he
was Edgar and Gloucester tells Edgar that If Edgar accepts his apology then he would want his eyes
again. Shakespeare explains this trait using dramatic irony that talks about how Gloucester was finally
able to se the truth but when he is blind which reminds the reader of the theme of insight vs blindness.
Shakespeare uses dramatic irony to affect the audience in a way that makes the reader know more
about a character’s situation and it gives the reader a sense of superiority

Shakespeare using multiple stylistic devices and elements throughout the play, it shows the character of
a foolish and credulous, and spineless. At first Shakespeare shows Gloucester as a character who has
everything and wants to help the king a wise adviser for the king but at the end of the play, he became a
foolish, spineless and credulous character, where he trusted his illegitimate son too much that he took
advantage of that and at the end he betrayed his father and made him lose his eyes.