Both King Lear and Prospero break their family, their kingdom, their seat of power. Both misuse the people who support them. Both have a beloved daughter who they hurt and manipulate. Both dream of revenge but move towards reconciliation. Through these two plays we will look at Shakespeare's portrayal of the damaging possibilities of power in early modern Europe. This course is a 10-session course and must be taken with W210Am02 in Week 2.
Course details
Tutors
Aims
This course aims to:
- appreciate Shakespeare's interest in the psychology of revenge
- see the way Shakespeare creates a social world
- find similarities between these two different plays
Content
King Lear was written in 1606 and The Tempest in 1611. King Lear is part of the cluster of tragedies that includes some of Shakespeare's most famous plays, such as Macbeth or Othello. These tragedies deal with the chaos and destruction that ensues from an unbridled sense of entitlement that recognises no limitations or shared morality. Lear shows us a figure whose self-belief allows him to envision a world that depends entirely upon his will even after he has demoted himself to a mere subject of his daughters’ kingdoms. The clash between his desire for power and his relinquishing of it lets loose a disorder that engulfs and kills most of the characters. From the beginning, Lear is savage in his acts of or hopes of revenge, disinheriting his youngest daughter, banishing his chief courtier, fantasising the destruction of his remaining daughters' bodies. He also learns tenderness and empathy, recognises the corruption of his regime and finally comes to a renunciation of revenge. But this solves nothing, the whole family dies.
The Tempest was called a comedy in Shakespeare's first collected edition, though now it is called a romance. The word is not used in its modern sense but means a narrative that includes the supernatural and ends with some form of harmony rather than a tragedy’s destructiveness. It is interesting to realise that Shakespeare revisits the idea of a king stripped of power, plotting revenge against a family member, but allows it to end with the king's voluntary renunciation bringing about some kind of peace. The social justice that Lear so vehemently realises is missing from his kingdom is partly enacted by Prospero when he frees his slave, Ariel. The change in Lear that created nothing, in The Tempest gives a faint hope of, if not the different form of society dreamt of by Prospero's courtier, Gonzalo, then at least a future world that can allow the idealised love of Miranda and Fernando in it.
Two very different plays, both fascinated by how power corrupts.
Presentation of the course
The course will mix lecture with guided questions and class discussion.
Course sessions
- King Lear - Lear : every inch a king or a dragon and his wrath
- King Lear - Lear's family : Cordelia, Goneril, Regan
- King Lear - Lear's court : Gloucester, Kent, Edgar, Edmund
- King Lear - The derogate body and unaccommodated man
- King Lear - The gods are just - the play's climax
- The Tempest - Prospero and the tempest
- The Tempest - Prospero's family : Miranda, Antonio
- The Tempest - Ariel
- The Tempest - Caliban
- The Tempest - Revenge and reconciliation
Learning outcomes
You are expected to gain from this series of classroom sessions a greater understanding of the subject and of the core issues and arguments central to the course.
The learning outcomes for this course are:
- to appreciate Shakespeare's interest in the psychology of revenge
- to see the way Shakespeare creates a social world
- to find similarities between these two different plays
Required reading
Shakespeare, William, King Lear (any edition)
Shakespeare, William, The Tempest (any edition)
Typical week: Monday to Friday
Courses run from Monday to Friday. For each week of study, you select a morning (Am) course and an afternoon (Pm) course. The maximum class size is 25 students.
Courses are complemented by a series of daily plenary lectures, exploring new ideas in a wide range of disciplines. To add to your learning experience, we are also planning additional evening talks and events.
| c.7.30am-9.00am | Breakfast in College (for residents) |
| 9.00am-10.30am | Am Course |
| 11.00am-12.15pm | Plenary Lecture |
| 12.15pm-1.30pm | Lunch |
| 1.30pm-3.00pm | Pm Course |
| 3.30pm-4.45pm | Plenary Lecture/Free |
| 6.00pm/6.15pm-7.15pm | Dinner in College (for residents) |
| 7.30pm onwards | Evening talk/Event/Free |
Evaluation and Academic Credit
If you are seeking to enhance your own study experience, or earn academic credit from your Cambridge Summer Programme studies at your home institution, you can submit written work for assessment for one or more of your courses.
Essay questions are set and assessed against the University of Cambridge standard by your Course Director, a list of essay questions can be found in the Course Materials. Essays are submitted two weeks after the end of each course, so those studying for multiple weeks need to plan their time accordingly. There is an evaluation fee of £75 per essay.
For more information about writing essays see Evaluation and Academic Credit.
Certificate of attendance
A certificate of attendance will be sent to you electronically after the programme.