King Lear

King Lear is known as being a tragedy, and as I read this play for the second time I realized and understand why Shakespeare and its critics would say this . This play is filled with betrayal, jealousy, lies, and death .In the play King Lear devises a plan to see which of his three daughters love him most. Lear tells his daughters that he will divide his powers to them after they have pronounced their love for him. In act 1 scene 1 (95) Cordelia says” Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave /My heart into my mouth. /I love your majestyAccording to my bond; no more nor less.” In this scene Cordelia is basically letting her father know that her love for him is that of a daughter and that she can not love anymore or less. A couple of lines down she explains to him why she can only love him as a daughter should ,because half of her love is reserved for her husband . After this statement Lear banishes her from the castle with no dowry or any rights. Lear's other two daughters Goneril and Reagan tell him what he wants to hear, it is obvious that They are being false and insincere.
Gloucester and his two sons Edgar and Edmund, also have their share of problems. Edmund is the illegitimate son and is resented because of it, and plots against his father. He also manipulates his brother Edgar. At the end of this play all of the main characters have a tragic ending. A blind Gloucester dies, Reagan is poisoned and Goneril commits suicide. Cordelia is killed, Lear dies, and Edmund dies. In other words the last scene is about a whole lot of corpses, so how can King Lear not be a tragedy.