act one

• act 1, scene 1

  The play opens with the Earl of Kent and Earl of Gloucester talking about King Lear's plans for 'the division of the kingdom'. Kent meets Gloucester's illegitimate son Edmund and learns he is a year younger than Edgar, Gloucester's 'son by order of law'. The King and all his court arrive and King Lear announces his plan to 'shake all cares and business from our state, / Conferring them on younger years' and calls on his three daughters to express their love for him before he rewards them with a share of his kingdom. His two older daughters, Goneril and Regan, offer poetic speeches but his youngest and favourite daughter Cordelia refuses, declaring 'I love your majesty / According to my bond, no more nor less'. Lear is angry and disowns Cordelia, giving her share of the kingdom to her sisters' husbands to divide between them. Kent, out of loyalty to both Lear and Cordelia, speaks up to tell Lear he is wrong, but Lear does not listen and banishes Kent from the kingdom.

  
  

  The King of France and the Duke of Burgundy, rivals to marry Cordelia, are brought in and Lear tells them that she is 'new adopted to our hate / covered with our curse and strangered with our oath'. Hearing what has happened, Burgundy is no longer interested in marrying her but France declares 'Thy dowerless daughter, King, thrown to my chance, / Is queen of us, of ours, and our fair France.' After Lear and his court have left, Cordelia says goodbye to her sisters and leaves for France. Left alone, Goneril and Regan discuss their father's 'poor judgement' and 'unconstant starts'.
• act 1, scene 2

  Edmund speaks to the audience about his 'bastardy', asking 'Wherefore should I / Stand in the plague of custom'. He resents the fact that he is treated differently to his brother and declares 'Legitimate Edgar, I must have your land'. He has forged a letter from Edgar that he hopes will make his 'invention thrive'. Gloucester arrives and believes that Edmund is trying to hide the letter from him. Gloucester insists on reading the letter and finds a plot suggesting that Edmund work with Edgar to get rid of their father and share his wealth. Edmund tells his father 'It is his hand, my lord, but I hope his heart is not in the contents.' This helps to convince Gloucester that Edgar is plotting against him and that 'These late eclipses in the sun and moon portend no good to us'. When Gloucester has gone, Edmund makes fun of his father's superstition, telling the audience 'we make guilty of our disasters the sun, the moon, and the stars, as if we were villains by necessity.'

  
  

  Edgar then arrives and Edmund tells him that their father is very angry with him. Edgar believes 'Some villain hath done me wrong'. When he is gone, Edmund turns once more to the audience to laugh at his 'credulous father, and a brother noble, / Whose nature is so far from doing harms / That he suspects none'.
• act 1, scene 3

  King Lear, his hundred knights and their squires are all staying with Goneril. She complains to her servant Oswald about her father and his 'riotous' companions, saying 'By day and night he wrongs me'. She tells Oswald to 'Put on what weary negligence you please' when called on to serve Lear and says her sister is also not prepared to tolerate them.
• act 1, scene 4

  The Earl of Kent tells the audience that he has disguised himself in order to return and serve King Lear. He introduces himself to Lear as 'A very honest-hearted fellow.' Lear is impressed and tells him 'Follow me, thou shalt serve me: if I like thee no worse after dinner.' When Oswald does not behave as Lear expects him to, Kent helps Lear to punish Oswald and Lear thanks him. Lear's Fool then arrives and offers Kent his coxcomb 'for taking one's part that's out of favour'. Through his word play and songs, the Fool suggests that Lear has been a fool to give his kingdom away, saying 'thou hast pared thy wit o'both sides and left nothing i'th'middle.'

  
  

  Goneril enters and complains to Lear about his 'all licensed fool' and his 'insolent retinue' who do 'hourly carp and quarrel, breaking forth / In rank and not-to-be endured riots.' She asks him 'a little to disquantify your train'. He grows angry and curses her, saying 'Into her womb convey sterility', and hopes that if she does have a child it teaches her 'How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is / To have a thankless child.' He sets off to stay with Regan, believing she will be 'kind and comfortable'. When Lear has gone, Goneril calls Oswald and sends him with a letter to Regan.
• act 1, scene 5


  Lear sends his new servant, the disguised Kent, on ahead to take letters to Regan and let her know he is coming to stay. Kent promises 'I will not sleep, my lord, till I have delivered your letter.' Lear is left with his Fool who tells him that a snail has a shell 'to put's head in, not to give it away to his daughters and leave his horns without a case.' Lear confesses 'I did her wrong' and worries that he may be going 'mad'.