King Lear

Old age and pride collide in one of Shakespeare’s darkest tragedies. An aging king decides to divide his realm among his three daughters, demanding first that they prove their love in words. When his honest youngest, Cordelia, refuses to flatter him, he banishes her and hands power to her scheming sisters, Goneril and Regan. What follows is a slow, harrowing descent into madness, betrayal, and a storm-lashed wilderness where Lear at last sees the truth about his children and himself. A parallel story of the Earl of Gloucester and his sons deepens the play’s study of blindness, both literal and moral. This free PDF and EPUB edition brings home a work that still ranks among the most devastating in English drama.