King Lear Quotes

The weight of this sad time we must obey,
Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say.

– William Shakespeare

King Lear, Act 5, Scene 3. Speaking from the heart, the now wise Edgar offers some hope after all the tragedy and heartbreak. Lamenting the state of the kingdom, he advocates for everyone to move forward with honesty, openness and no deception. He ushers in a new era of transparency for when he becomes king, suggesting that we stop saying what we ought to say, and express what we feel. It is an appeal for people to act with integrity and be genuine, rather than hide behind the cloaks of artifice or procedures. There is a certain irony here as Edgar himself felt the need to hide behind the mask of the mad beggar Poor Tom.

The oldest hath borne most: we that are young,
Shall never see so much, nor live so long.

– William Shakespeare

King Lear, Act 5, Scene 3. In the last words of the play, Edgar calls on us all to have regard for our elders. The oldest have suffered the most and those who are young will never witness so much or live as long, he says. Edgar’s statement is certainly true in the case of Lear and Gloucester, yet it is made by a young man who has himself experienced all the woes of the world. He is the apocalyptic survivor who has been betrayed by his brother, forced into beggary, seen what has happened to the banished Kent, lived through the deaths of Lear and Cordelia and others. It could be said that the young Edgar has seen far more than anybody else in the play. So there is an irony to his words about the oldest suffering the most.
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