y charge. I have so often blushed to acknowledge him that now I am brazed to ‘t.” (Act I, Scene I, Line 9). Again, depending on the audience the attitudes displayed in the play by the characters and Shakespeare himself by his writing can be interpreted in a variety of ways depending on the observer. Originally Shakespeare’s played were viewed by people alive during the Elizabethan era. One can assume that in Elizabethan society there were more taboos and rules of social conduct then there are in present day. Even in modern times people do express surprise at the way Gloucester discusses his illegitimate son so lightly. One can only imagine the gasping and murmuring that went through the audience following the Earl of Gloucester’s announcement that he had a son out of wedlock. The upper classes attending the play were probably the most shocked while the lower classes may have found it amusing that an Earl, a member of the upper class was in such an unbecoming situation. Whatever their reaction may have been it is fair to say that the audience’s interest and attention was most certainly attained. In modern times some people are interested by and a little surprised at Gloucester’s admittance of an illegitimate son but are probably not as shocked or aghast at the events portrayed in the play as members of the Elizabethan audience most likely were. Possibly Shakespeare was trying to draw his audience in by opening his play with such a shocking and yet intriguing opening. By raising the issue of illegitimacy in King Lear, Shakespeare poses some interesting questions about fatherhood. Questions such as: should a son be treated differently by his father if he born out of wedlock? And what are the consequences of that treatment? In the play Gloucester statements seem to imply that he loves both sons equally and is proud of Edmund though he does admit that there was a time when he was ashamed. It seems b...
