King Lear
Shakespeare wrote the bleakest play in the English language — a king who gives away his kingdom and discovers that the world without power is savage, indifferent, and absurd.
“Nothing will come of nothing.”
Why It Matters
Shakespeare wrote the bleakest play in the English language — a king who gives away his kingdom and discovers that the world without power is savage, indifferent, and absurd. Lear on the heath, raging at the storm, is the most iconic image of human suffering in all of theater. Many consider it the greatest play ever written, and it is hard to argue.
The 
Take
Personal reviewMaybe my favorite Shakespeare plots. The disguised good guy Kent pulling strings, the evil Edmund plotting against his own family, even more devious than lears 2 daughters, the mad ramblings of the king mixed with wisdom, Edgar as poor tom leading his blind father. Absolute banger.
Notable Quotes
“As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods; they kill us for their sport.”
“The weight of this sad time we must obey; speak what we feel, not what we ought to say.”