By JH Sayyar
Lear is such as a play where all the aspects of nature are discussed and along with it all the external and internal forces of nature are shown as the teacher of human beings. The most important thing is that a close relationship of man and nature is shown in a beautiful way. Therefore Wilson Right says, “ In K. Lear humanity is shown as akin to earth and winds and animals that teach the person who stay there.
The natural forces remind of human mistake in a pure philosophical way and give its solution how to solve the past mistakes.” On the other hand the internal nature of humanity is discussed with the help of a keen, profound and a balance observation is shown in a realistic way.
The word Nature has different meanings and interpretations such as: macrocosm, microcosm, orthodox, heterodox, but with the passage of time the theme of Nature has been changing. According to the Bible this Universe is also called Nature. Wordsworth preached all the positive aspects of Nature while Hardy preached all the negative aspects of Nature.
But it was Shakespeare who deals with every aspects of Nature in his plays, especially in King Lear. The play opens with microcosmic nature. Gloucester and Kent are busy discussing Edmund as his bastard son. Here Shakespeare presents the prevailing concept of nature among the people. In this respect the storm scene is the most important. Lear is discarded by his selfish daughters and had to face the storm out of the palace that taught him the reality of life. So nature leads Lear to the point where he feel that he had made a horrible mistake in the past. He divided the Kingdom unequally among his daughters.
In K. Lear nature is presented as a helper of men in the evolution and development of human personality. There are three graduated stages of improvement of man: a civilized, uncivilized and an ideal stage. All may be seen in K. Lear in a beautiful way. In this respect Lear and Gloucester both are uncivilized because they are unable to differentiate between appearance and reality. Lear considers Goneril and Regan are sincere to him. Therefore Lear had to say:
“She may feel
How sharper than a serpent’s teeth it is
To have thankless child, away, away”
Lear maltreats Cordelia and Gloucester trust in Edmund and misbehaves Edgar ignoring the facts. Now they realize their mistakes and Gloucester accepts reality in these words”
“I am almost mad myself, I had a son
Now out law from my blood he sought my life.
But at the same time he realizes his mistake in these words;
“If Edgar live, O bless him
Now fellow, fare thee well.”
In the beginning of the storm scene he curses the entire world in these words:
“I shall be the pattern of all patience
I shall say nothing.”
After this he accepts his committed sin in these words;
“I am a man more sinned
Against than sinning.”
It is a fact that Lear could not keep balance between his mental power and worldly power and makes a wrong decision. At the end he moves to the civilized stage and says in these words:
“O Regan, Goneril,
Your kind old father whose flank heart
Gave all
O, That way madness lies.”
Now the king ponders over his folly to enjoy crown and leisure at the same time and does avoid responsibilities. At the end Lear becomes the ideal character and wins the sympathy of the readers and the audience. On the other hand Gloucester wins the readers’ hearts recognizing his mistake. In this way Shakespeare shows how the storm in the external nature mingles with the outer nature and man’s personality as a whole. Harbinger calls it the play of human nature. Shakespeare adopts the middle way in K. Lear in showing human nature.
He shows two natures in the play a selfish nature and the other selfless nature and leaves the effects on the prevailing circumstances. Gloucester, Cordelia and Edgar represent selfless nature while Goneril, Regan and Edmund represent selfish nature in the real world. On the other hand Kent and the Fool represent human wisdom and are against the division of the Kingdom.
Regan and Goneril show the meanest human nature because Regan plucks the white beard of Gloucester that was equal to his father age wise. At the both the sister s plan to kill each other and show real human nature.
Edmund’s plan to kill his brother shows real human practical nature. Edmund type people may be seen even today in this modern world that calls itself full of all types of
civilized manners and etiquette. Here Dover Wilson says,” Shakespeare shows macrocosmic nature in microcosmic nature and put both the natures in king Lear. So Lear represent both the natures
To sum up, King Lear is the best play that reveals human nature in the best way. Shakespeare knew human nature more than any other writer did. On one side he shows female getting powers they neglect their father. On the other side he shows a male who tries to get powers killing his brother and deceiving his father in the garb of the oily tongue. So here Shakespeare means that male or female human nature cannot be changed at any cost. Shakespeare’s characters are universal like Chaucer’ characters are. He mingles macrocosmic world with the microcosmic world in human being’s mind and then he observes the reaction of the both in the men’s minds.
He believed in the natural force influence on human personality that shapes his trends according to situation. The created situation compels men to do something according to the prevailing circumstances. As we see in K. Lear Lear’s reaction is according to situation: dividing the Kingdom and curse his daughters. All these things are situational.
Man is not at large in doing everything according to his will and wishes. The unseen natural laws are working behind human fate. The main function of reason is to defend itself but the push power of the reason is emotions. All men follow their emotions as the dog follows his nose. See Lear thinks of his defense in dividing the Kingdom. It was his reasoned decision but it fails.
On the other hand he under the state of emotions rejects Cordelia’s truth of life. Gloucester emotionally issues orders of killing Edgar and reasonably accepts the proposal of his bastard son, Edmund. So all the decisions made under the light of reason may not be correct. Therefore, Shakespeare says in Hamlet, “Horatio, there is divinity that shape our trends and the stars control our fate.”
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I'm not sure the “graduated stages” are in correct order. I think we begin our lives at the “ideal stage”. Dependent on our human judgment we end up either “civilized” or “uncivilized”. :)
There is no ideal stage of men on earth because very man's ideal is different than other that is every body thinks about ideal. The same formula may be applied as we Keats used to say, "Beauty is truth and truth beauty". Beauty never dies or changes into nothingness but everyone's ideal changes everyday at every step with the passage of time all over the world.
Thus Nature and its laws never change in the whole universe that is why nature teaches men if no one can tame the man. All the scientific laws are the reflections of nature and proof of nature tat nature the justice of God and teaches men in a technical way even men cannot think of it.
When men become uncivilized it the nature that makes men civilized on earth. All the prophets' teaching show this and all the books and scientific theories also show this theory that nature makes men civilized than any other person earth.
Nature is great mentor of human being since its creation. But we ignore this fact that going to utter destruction following mad made laws are turning paradise into hell.
1.The mother of love is the pillow of head
2. The pillow of head is the worship of god.
3.the rare decisions is the owner of nature.
4.So everything goes behind nature.
5. Being well with true source of love.
6.the young is the nature the young is the population
Thanks for appreciating the pic I posted for my article title.
Yes nature does plays an important role, and sometimes, we have to face the things even if they are not going well, and wait for the right time to come to us.
One more advice: You can perhaps publish such a post in two parts for better readability.
Yes you say right, my friend there are two things happening earth some people have contact with nature and some peoples do not have contact with nature the third rejects nature as a whole. When we say Nature it means, the four power of God, Fire, Earth, Water and Air. These are the forces of nature that create changes in human nature means habit and entirely change entirely human thinking power.
the process of teaching nature is very slow when man starts thinking nature process of teaching starts according to your knowledge.It is a fact that those who have no knowledge and those who have knowledge there is a great difference about the concept of God.
The soul that has link with Nature remains on the right path but those who do not have link with God follow the wrong path knowingly. All things are in human and is fixed a micro chip copy of macro chip that is why we take interest in everything.
The main function of man on earth is to what is the right time to do something nature will support you at every step. As wee see farmers know the timings of sowing different vegetables if they know not the timings they cannot sow anything and will starve.
A deep thinking in loneliness leads men to God and right path.
When we say someone is good natured or bad natured it has nothing to do with nature per se. It is one's nature or character. This is inbuilt and the exposure changes it either way.
No tell me from where he or she get good or bad nature what is the source of getting good or bad nature on earth? Listen, when we say that someone has good nature and other has bad nature actually means the sayer's thing has the sense of right and wrong living among human beings.
It is heredity that transfers the seed of goodness heredity we get from parents and we cannot choose parents. The heredity genes are brought up in the environment of all ready present because neither we can choose our parents nor environment and good or bad nature is the production of human made environment that we all get from parents and parents got from their parents.
If human interaction has power over human nature why Jesus Christ did not get any effect of environment in whole life? Human mind is a mixture of three things reason, emotions and wisdom. Emotions man has bad character, and wise man has good character on earth. Its ratio decides what type of this man is.
In human beings' mind there is a chip fixed by God on his birth of all macro world in shape of micro world that 24 link with God and we call in common language Nature.
Scientific laws are got from the research of nature these are the laws that effect human life and we see but actually it is effect of Natural laws that effect men on earth.
When with the passage of time human beings' knowledge will increase he will change his mind about God and Nature.
Everybody talks or discuss within the range of acquired knowledge and beyond the acquired knowledge boundary he or she cannot go out of it. Think what our forefathers used to think, we think on their pattern or not.
I personally feel that there is no need to refer to any works of Shakespeare or Milton to decide certain things in life.
I think it is not only nature which is a master of all human lives. But the social interactions that teach many things whether it is love, beauty, anger, or hatred which are again dependent on nature.
But a doubt will arise how can a blind person interact with nature? This is a point for discussion or argument.
A normal person can identify a pot placed before him or shown to him. But a blind person can not know except knowing its name. Someone should describe and explain him what a pot is and what it is made of.
Here the social interactions play a vital role. The person explaining him about the pot should explain properly. If he gives wrong information he can not know about it. Here nature has nothing to do but it is only the social interactions that prove helpful.
1. We all must keep in mind in the light of wisdom that on earth man has three kinds of relationship: 1. man's relation with man, 2. man's relation with universe, 3 man's relation with God. No body can prove fourth link the world over.
2. The seed of heredity we get from our parents and the environment, we get ready mane these two things built human character good or bad on earth living human beings of different nature.
3. Man cannot make moral codes for man we all get moral codes fro the above ready made given by God to the holy prophets for the betterment of peoples of the whole world.
4. Social interaction is the seed we get ready made not God made because we cannot choose two things self parents and environment on birth. Think, rain, thunder, fire, storm, dust storm... all types of natural catastrophes teach us. Heavy rain teaches us to make umbrellas, flood teaches us to make walls to control water...the more you think the more you learn the the teaching of nature on earth.
5. On earth you know well what the peoples are doing but we all do not follow earthly peoples because most of them are going wrong path. What the we stop us following the wrong path is called human nature, conscious ego or sense o wright and wrong.
6. When human and universal nature combines man teaches everything on earth.If no misery or problem on earth no man will pray to God because in problem everyone reminds of God in their own language because we all know that God is our Creator.
7. It is Shakespeare who combined three links in his plays nature men and social interaction to teach human beings the sense of right and wrong.
My friend think... or I will explain more for your knowledge.
NATURE HAS the value of love.Love is the well being.Caring nature is sharing.
the carry bag of excellence must be learnt from nature.
Everyone has to do the same.
I am taking the context on the philosophy point of view of nature. I am thinking the nature which God has created. The natural phenomena are abounding all over and even in the entire universe. The play which has been presented here as an example on how nature may influence the person's way of thinking in determining what is wrong and what is right is of the highest level of reasoning. Ordinarily we could comprehend these things the macrocosm, microcosm, orthodox, heterodox, or whatever.
In an ordinary man's parlance, nature is what God has the sole command and control. What was happening to the world like the deadly tornado, the super typhoon, the tsunamis, and everything which is beyond man's control is caused by nature. And nature is connected with God. As we are created by God and placed here on earth, we have the responsibility to take care for ourselves, for our family, for the whole community, and even the world and the universe in the course of our way of living as we expand our knowledge to highly advanced technology. Yet it sounds confusing. Let's forget about it what nature wants, the people are adapting.
Yes Shakespeare has presented the highest level of reasoning. It is Shakespeare who wrote for kings, queens and princess not for common man. If we do not understand the levels of nature it means our education is faulty that could not raise man's reasoning level and we say they something is very difficult.
Actually nature means the influence of the machinery that is influencing human being on earth from the above with the decree of God. Why does so is the point of question in human mind.
Scientists say that storms and earthquakes appear on earth according to the laws of nature and god does not take part in it is a wrong thinking because daily earthquakes do not appear why?
Everything on this universe is working according to the programs of God in heaven and on earth. Changes in the chemistry of fire, earth, water and air is called phenomena in modern language.
I think that we must increase our knowledge so that we could easily understand human nature and universal nature that Shakespeare has presented in all his plays.