1. Aninda Shafayet
Character Development ―Goneril and Regan‖
The two eldest daughters of Lear, Goneril and Regan, are portrayed as villains from
the start of the novel. From the flattering of love to Lear for the part of his kingdom, to the
poisoning of Regan and the suicide of Goneril, the developments in villainy of both the
sisters increase with every scene. This increase in villainy is the result of their lust for power
throughout the novel.
Goneril, the oldest daughter, develops drastically as the story progresses. She is
ruthless, amoral and jealous. “Sir, I love you more than words can wield the matter;/Dearer than
eye-sight, space, and liberty;/Beyond what can be valued, rich or rare;/No less than life, with grace,
health, beauty, honour;” (1.1.60-64)If we look at Act 1, Scene 1, when Lear was dividing his land,
she praises him an extra bit, however not true, for a little extra of his land. As readers, we
can pick up on the fact that she is not true of her saying, and is overzealous for power and
land. However at the end of the scene, after Cordelia and France leave, she and her sister
plan of how to get Lear out of their homes.
In Act 1, Scene 3, Goneril tells her steward, Oswald, “Put on what weary negligence you
please/you and your fellows; I'll have it come to question:/If he dislike it, let him to our sister”(1.3.13-
15). We read here that, Goneril doesn’t want to bother with Lear in her castle, so she tells
Oswald to ignore Lear and his knights and to let him leave if his service does not please Lear.
As Lear enters the castle, his knights start to cause a scene before Oswald enters and tells
them to quiet down. As they start harassing Goneril’s servants, she tells Lear to either
dismiss all his knights or to leave. Here, the readers are given to think that she is evil and just
wants to get rid of Lear; however her argument can be justified. Think of Lear's knights as
out of control party boys – breaking her furniture and harassing Goneril's female servants.
When Lear loses his composure and prays to the gods that she won't be able to have children
for criticizing his entourage and telling him to leave, it looks like he's the one being
unreasonable, not Goneril. However, any sympathy that the audience can muster for them
evaporates quickly, first when they turn their father out into the storm at the end of Act 2.

2. Aninda Shafayet
REGAN
This house is little: the old man and his people
Cannot be well bestow'd.
GONERIL
'Tis his own blame; hath put himself from rest,
And must needs taste his folly.
REGAN
For his particular, I'll receive him gladly,
But not one follower.
GONERIL
So am I purposed.(2.4.330-335)
Regan, on the other hand, is slightly less evil as the readers find out near the end of
the novel. She is very similar in characteristics as Goneril except slightly more passive and
she gets other men to do her dirty work for her. We see this is Act 3, Scene 7, when Regan
begs for Cornwall, her husband, to gouge out Gloucester’s eyes. However, she does kill the
servant that tries to defend Gloucester herself. Near the end of the novel, Regan is poisoned
out of jealousy by Goneril in order to win Edmund for herself. Here, the readers find out
truly who the more evil sister is as Goneril kills herself instead of facing the consequences
that she would have been punished for as Edgar rises to power.
Goneril and Regan are, in a sense, personifications of evil in King Lear—they have no
conscience, only hunger for power. It is this lustfor power that drives them to crush all
opposition and make themselves mistresses of England. However, this lust ultimately
unravels their binding. Their desire for more power and their sexual attraction and desire to
Edmund eventually turns them against each other. It is as if Shakespeare suggests to the
readers that the lust for power and villainy eventually turns on itself.

3. Aninda Shafayet
Key Passage:
Goneril
Sister, it is not a little I have to say of what
most nearly appertains to us both. I think our
father will hence to-night.
Regan
That's most certain, and with you; next month with us.
Goneril
You see how full of changes his age is; the
observation we have made of it hath not been
little: he always loved our sister most; and
with what poor judgment he hath now cast her off
appears too grossly.
Regan
'Tis the infirmity of his age: yet he hath ever
but slenderly known himself.
Goneril
The best and soundest of his time hath been but
rash; then must we look to receive from his age,
not alone the imperfections of long-engraffed
condition, but therewithal the unruly waywardness
that infirm and choleric years bring with them.
Regan
Such unconstant starts are we like to have from
him as this of Kent's banishment.
Goneril
There is further compliment of leave taking
between France and him. Pray you, let's hit
together: if our father carry authority with
such dispositions as he bears, this last
surrender of his will but offend us.
Regan
We shall further think on't.
Goneril
We must do something, and i' the heat.(1.1.329-355)

4. Aninda Shafayet
Key Passage Analysis:
In the final part of Act 1, Scene 1, as Cordelia leaves with France, the two older sisters,
Goneril and Regan are let alone in the room after Lear has finished dividing the land between
them. In this excerpt, Goneril and Regan are planning what they are going to do when Lear
comes to live with each of them for one month, and plan to act soon, as shown by the words
“i’th’ heat”, meaning ―with heat‖ or quickly. In the parts before, Lear had declared that he will
keep 100 knights with him and live with Goneril for one month and then Regan for one
month.
This excerpt foreshadows the future incidents that follows suit later on in the novel.
Even after Lear had given them each half of the kingdom to divide amongst themselves, they
are still greedy for power. All Lear asked for is that he lives with both of them for a month
each with 100 knights by his side. However, Regan and Goneril think this is too much to
ask.“The unruly waywardness that in firm and choleric years bring with them”(1.1.344-345) contain
hyperbaton, which indicates the flaw and the haste in the judgment of Lear. Also, while they
talk, they justify that letting Lear keep any form of authority with him (i.e. his 100 knights)
would not be beneficial, but rather harmful for them, as he would still have a little power left
with him. When Goneril says, “this last surrender of his will but offend us”, we learn that they
sisters plan to strip Lear of all his powers so that in the future, Lear wouldn’t be a threat to
their power.
Later, in Act 2, Scene 4, Goneril and Regan ask Lear to banish all 50 of his knights
that are left, as Goneril has already banished the other 50 before Lear came to stay with
Regan. “Hear me, my lord:/What need you five-and-twenty, ten, or five, /to follow in a house where
twice so many/Have a command to tend you? /What need one?”(2.4.300-304).As the sisters get
greedier, they seek to destroy the little power that he has left. The declining numbers here,
from twenty-five to one, are metaphorically representing Lear’s dwindling power and his
dignity and pride, as he is brought down to the status of a beggar, with no home and money.
Goneril and Regan’s lust for more power leads them to commit more and more
horrendous acts against Lear and anyone else who comes in between them and their wealth
throughout the novel. This excerpt relates a lot to our theme of power and villainy, as with

5. Aninda Shafayet
the power given to them by Lear himself, they slowly destroy Lear’s power and dignity
throughout the novel. It also demonstrates Lear’s fall throughout the novel as he loses his
power and dignity little by little with each scene. It makes the readers wonder, if Lear had
not been foolish and not given his kingdom to the sisters or if he had given it all to Cordelia,
would the final outcome and the sisters be different?