The Shakespeare Conference: SHK 10.0874  Wednesday, 19 May 1999.

[1]     From:   Sean Lawrence <
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        Date:   Tuesday, 18 May 1999 09:21:10 +0000
        Subj:   Re: SHK 10.0872 Assorted Responses

[2]     From:   Kristine F. Batey <
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        Date:   Tuesday, 18 May 1999 14:15:56 -0500
        Subj:   Re: Lear and Suffering


[1]-----------------------------------------------------------------
From:           Sean Lawrence <
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Date:           Tuesday, 18 May 1999 09:21:10 +0000
Subject: 10.0872 Assorted Responses
Comment:        Re: SHK 10.0872 Assorted Responses

>In my opinion, this could be
>connected with the four daughters of Lear: having no son to unify the
>kingdom it was divided up among daughter.  The four daughters of Lear
>may also be connected with the four daughters of Raymond Berengar, who
>has his own connection with the legend of the sinner king.

Leaving aside the number of daughters (How many children had King Lear?
Does the fool count?) not having sons isn't the same thing as being
impotent.

If I were looking for historical analogies, I'd start with the earlier
King Leir play, the account of Lear in The Faerie Queene, and portions
of the chronicles reproduced in the Arden 2.

Cheers,
Se