However, by the end of Act IV they have split their partnership and become rivals in order to gain the affection of Edmund, signifying he is no longer just the illegitimate son but a man of power, the Earl of Gloucester. “My lord is dead. Edmund and I have talked, and more convenient is he for my hand than for your lady’s” (IV.5.35-37). Regan tries to persuade Oswald, Goneril’s steward, into understanding that she is the better choice for Edmund rather than Goneril because she no longer has a husband while her sister is still married to Edmund. It can be assumed that Regan does not actually want Edmund to choose her for love, but rather for power. In Act III when Cornwall is injured in a fight, Regan kills two servants and proceeds to ask Cornwall why he looks the way he does rather than just running to his aide (IV.7.11) She seems not to care much about him and simply tells Oswald that her husband is dead, quickly wanting to jump onto another man of power without mourning the loss of her
However, by the end of Act IV they have split their partnership and become rivals in order to gain the affection of Edmund, signifying he is no longer just the illegitimate son but a man of power, the Earl of Gloucester. “My lord is dead. Edmund and I have talked, and more convenient is he for my hand than for your lady’s” (IV.5.35-37). Regan tries to persuade Oswald, Goneril’s steward, into understanding that she is the better choice for Edmund rather than Goneril because she no longer has a husband while her sister is still married to Edmund. It can be assumed that Regan does not actually want Edmund to choose her for love, but rather for power. In Act III when Cornwall is injured in a fight, Regan kills two servants and proceeds to ask Cornwall why he looks the way he does rather than just running to his aide (IV.7.11) She seems not to care much about him and simply tells Oswald that her husband is dead, quickly wanting to jump onto another man of power without mourning the loss of her