King Lear | Modern Connections

Modern audiences of King Lear often observe the recurrence of images and references not only the eyes but things associated with the eyes, like crying, looking, and seeing. The numerous references to the eyes and their associated functions contribute to a thematic development which is almost certainly more than accidental to Shakespeare's purpose. We can look at several specific references to elaborate further the significance of this theme of "eyelessness" or ''blindness" in the play.

First, and most obvious is Gloucester's "I stumbled when I saw" (IV.i.19). He comes to believe...

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