... of the play that explains that greatness. In the delightfully insouciant way in which Groucho projects himself into the world of King Lear, he unwittingly reveals the problem with many interpretations of the play. In our eagerness to identify with Shakespeare's characters, we run the risk of bringing them down to our own level. The Lear described in many critical essays ... and the Graeco-Roman Heroic Tradition (New York: Oxford University Press, 1971), 415. For a more recent statement of this position, see Barbara Everett's essay, "King Lear: Loving," in her Young Hamlet: Essays on Sha...

• Word Count: 8939
• Approx Pages: 36
• Grade Level: High School

William Shakespeare's King Lear: Film production by Richard Eyre or Michael Elliott? King Lear today rivals Hamlet as the most frequently performed William Shakespeare play. King Lear is a timeless tale of human greed, lust for power and lost loyalties. Directors" Richard Eyre and Michael Elliott have produced ... such an ungrateful old fool. Sir Laurence Olivier has taken his character straight out of the original play and drawn a direct connection between Shakespeare's portrayal of Lear and his own interpretations. Sir Laurence enters the final scene screeching and waling emphasising Lear'...

• Word Count: 1073
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate