Tragedy of King Lear (version 3)

Known for its heartrending emotion and shocking violence, The Tragedy of King Lear is seen as one of Shakespeare's towering masterpieces. It tells the tale of the ageing King Lear, a British monarch who disposes of his vast kingdom by giving bequests to his two eldest daughters when they flatter his vanity. Unbeknown to him, these daughters hide cold and unfeeling hearts; the only daughter truly worthy of his grace, Cordelia, is shunned and later exiled when she refuses to play her sisters' game. Lear's rash decision precipitates a series of events that all cascade into the realm of overbearing misery. Madness (both real and feigned), torture, stormy weather, sibling rivalry and the threat o…