!THE TRAGEDIE OF KING LEAR (2nd version ca. 1610)
The Folio’s text of KING LEAR appears to have been set from, both, a marked-up copy of Q2 THE HISTORY OF KING LEAR and another MANUSCRIPT altogether (possibly a promptbook).
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F contains so many substantive variants that the play appears to have undergone a considerable re-write in the interim between the publication of Q1 & 2 in 1608 and the 1623 publication of the F. So much so, that the Oxford editors — instead of conflating their text of LEAR — rather chose to provide both THE HISTORY OF KING LEAR (ca. 1605) and THE TRAGEDIE of KING LEAR (ca. 1610) in their 1987 edition of THE WORKS.
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!!X AXIS (abscisses): 3820 lines
Subdivisions of ACTS & SCENES are according to the FOLIO.
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1.1: line 1 (reads "Act 1 scene 1 begins at line 1")
1.2: line 333
1.3: line 505
1.4: line 529
1.5: line 873
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2.1: line 926
2.2: line 1074
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3.1: line 1614
3.2: line 1654
3.3: line 1751
3.4: line 1776
3.5: line 1969
3.6: line 1996
3.7: line 2057
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4.1: line 2177
4.2: line 2266
4.3: line 2348
4.4: line 2382
4.5: line 2429
4.6: line 2743
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5.1: line 2844
5.2: line 2917
5.3: line 2937
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!!Y AXIS: ENTRANCES & EXITS
Entrances & exits of Characters
According to their order of appearance.
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• (2,81) reads "enters at line 2, exits at line 81".
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• DISGUISED as CAIUS (530,3302)”)
is inserted at the end of a character’s list (in this case Kent’s) to indicate “duration” of said disguise.
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• (3216 [rip 3283] 3302)
reads “enters at line 3216, dies on line 3283, corpse exits on line 3302”.
RIP at the end a character’s list indicates (or confirms) his/her decease.
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• (corpse 3184,3302)
indicates that a character’s corpse (i.e. Regan’s) is “carried on”;
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• PRINCIPAL CHARACTERS are capitalized.
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KENT
(2,201) (530,803) (874,881) (1075,1586) (1615,1653) (1687,1733) (1777,1968) (1997,2056) (2744,2843) (3182,3302) /
DISGUISED as CAIUS (530,3302)
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GLOSTER
(2,40) (202,291) (357,446) (970,1073) (1117,1236) (1358,1396) (1403,1586) (1596,1613) (1752,1770) (1890,1968) (1997,2000) (2039,2056) (2088,2171) (2188,2265) (2430,2742) (2920,2936) RIP
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EDMUND (Bastard son of Glouster)
(2,504) (927,1073) (1117,1227) (1752,1775) (1970,1995) (2893,2894) (2058,2081) (2267,2293) (2845,2879) (2896,2916) (2938,3215) RIP
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LEAR
(37,291) (538,803) (809,829) (874,925) (1273,1332) (1358,1596) (1655,1733) (1777,1968) (2003,2056) (2526,2645) (2771,2843) (2918,2919) (2938,2968) (3216 [rip 3283] 3302) RIP
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CORNWALL
(37,291) (1024,1073) (1117,1227) (1403,1613) (1970,1995) (2058,2176) RIP
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ALBANY
(37,291) (768,872) (2299,2347) (2864,2901) (2983,3302)
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GONERIL
(37,332) (506,528) (702,872) (1476,1613) (2058,2081) (2267,2334) (2864,2879) (2983,3117) (rip 3184,3302) RIP
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REGAN
(37,332) (1024,1073) (1117,1227) (1403,1613) (2058,2076) (2383,2428) (2845,2879) (2983,3056) (rip 3184,3302) RIP
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CORDELIA
(38,309) (2349,2381) (2744,2843) (2919,2919) (2939,2968) (rip 3216,3302) RIP
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France
(202,309)
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Burgundy
(202,291)
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EDGAR
(462,497) (948,965) (1251,1272) (1818,1968) (2003,2056) (2178,2265) (2430,2742) (2880,2894) (2920,2925) (2927,2936) (3067,3302) /
DISGUISED as POOR TOM (1818,2481)
DISGUISED as A FRIEND (2486,2686) (2704,2742) (2920,2936)
DISGUISED as WEST COUNTRY YOKEL (2687,2703)
DISGUISED as “man so poore” (2880,2894)
DISGUISED as Champion (3067,3130)
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OSWALD (Steward of Goneril)
(506,528) (575,576) (608,621) (856,864) (1075,1227) (1468,1613) (2072,2081) (2267,2298) (2383,2428) (2675 [rip 2703] 2742) RIP
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FOOL
(624,841) (874,925) (1273,1586) (1655,1750) (1777,1807) (1818,1968) (2003,2056)
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A Gentleman
(874,925) (1273,1586) (1615,1653) (2349,2381) (2630,2661) (2744,2843) (3170,3302)
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Curan
(927,942)
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Old man
(2188,2239)
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Captain
(2939,2982)
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Herald
(3050,3302)
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Messengers
(2312,2347) (2372,2381) (3264,3302)
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!!PLOTS & COLOURING
KING LEAR has two intermixed plots. The first is that of LEAR himself, which involves:
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KENT
LEAR
ALBANY
CORNWALL
GONERIL
REGAN
CORDELIA
OSWALD
FOOL
A GENTLEMAN
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The second plot concerns GLOUSTER, it involves:
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GLOSTER
EDMUND
EDGAR
CURAN
OLD MAN
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!!ACTION SEQUENCES
Act 5 Scene 2 is the final battle: (2917 to 2925).
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!!METATHEATRE
As indicated in the ENTRANCES & EXITS above two characters are DISGUISED
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KENT: DISGUISED as CAIUS (530,3302)
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EDGAR:
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DISGUISED as POOR TOM (1818,2481)
then
DISGUISED as A FRIEND (2486,2686) (2704,2742) (2920,2936)
then
DISGUISED as WEST COUNTRY YOKEL (2687,2703)
then
DISGUISED as “man so poore” (2880,2894)
then
DISGUISED as Champion (3067,3130)
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And GLOUSTER’S LEAP over the Cliffs of Dover (4.5) is certainly worth framing as some form of play-within-the-play: (2430,2525).
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