In Aesop’s fable The Eagle and the Arrow an eagle who has been shot with an arrow discovers that the fletchings are made of his own feathers. The moral of this fable is that we often provide our enemies with the tools to destroy us. In William Shakespeare’s King Lear, we see many examples of this same theme. Lear dividing his kingly powers between his two selfish daughters, Goneril writing about her love for Edmund in a letter anyone could read, and Gloucester telling Edmund where he has stashed a letter containing news of the French army all show characters giving their enemies the means to their own destruction.
When King Lear is first introduced at the beginning of the play, he is in the process of dividing his kingdom to pass down to his three daughters. This division is very important as this is what leads to Lear’s ultimate destruction. When Lear proclaims that “With my two daughters’ digest the third… I do invest you jointly with my power,” (I. i. 144-146) he is giving any power he has to Goneril and Regan. Lear’s loss of power opens up many opportunities for his enemies. For example, it allows his daughters to gain authority over him. With no power and no one to aid him there is nothing Lear can do when Goneril and Regan decide to cast him aside, leaving him alone in a storm to die. It also …show more content…
Just like the eagle in Aesop’s Fable the Eagle and the Arrow King Lear, his daughter Goneril, and Gloucester all made the mistake of giving their enemies a way to destroy them. Whether the mistake was intentional or not all three of them, in the end, payed for the mistake with their lives. King Lear giving up his power, Goneril writing the letter to Edmund, and Gloucester telling Edmund where he hid the letter about the French army all prove that the moral of this story is that people often give their enemies the means to destroy
When King Lear is first introduced at the beginning of the play, he is in the process of dividing his kingdom to pass down to his three daughters. This division is very important as this is what leads to Lear’s ultimate destruction. When Lear proclaims that “With my two daughters’ digest the third… I do invest you jointly with my power,” (I. i. 144-146) he is giving any power he has to Goneril and Regan. Lear’s loss of power opens up many opportunities for his enemies. For example, it allows his daughters to gain authority over him. With no power and no one to aid him there is nothing Lear can do when Goneril and Regan decide to cast him aside, leaving him alone in a storm to die. It also …show more content…
Just like the eagle in Aesop’s Fable the Eagle and the Arrow King Lear, his daughter Goneril, and Gloucester all made the mistake of giving their enemies a way to destroy them. Whether the mistake was intentional or not all three of them, in the end, payed for the mistake with their lives. King Lear giving up his power, Goneril writing the letter to Edmund, and Gloucester telling Edmund where he hid the letter about the French army all prove that the moral of this story is that people often give their enemies the means to destroy