Book contents
- The Cambridge Companion to the Bible and Literature
- Cambridge Companions to Religion
- The Cambridge Companion to the Bible and Literature
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 Literature in the Ancient Near East and the Bible
- 2 The Primary Narrative (Genesis through 2 Kings)
- 3 Reading Biblical Literature from a Legal and Political Perspective
- 4 Biblical Law and Literature
- 5 Kings, Prophets, and Judges
- 6 Prophetic Literature
- 7 Wisdom Literature
- 8 The Gospels
- 9 Paul’s Letters
- 10 Apocalyptic Literature
- 11 Shakespeare’s King Lear and the Bible
- 12 The Bible and John Milton’s Paradise Lost
- 13 The Bible, Shelley, and English Romanticism
- 14 Herman Melville and the Bible
- 15 The Song of Songs and Two Biblical Retellings
- Index
- Other Titles in the Series
- References
11 - Shakespeare’s King Lear and the Bible
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 March 2020
- The Cambridge Companion to the Bible and Literature
- Cambridge Companions to Religion
- The Cambridge Companion to the Bible and Literature
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 Literature in the Ancient Near East and the Bible
- 2 The Primary Narrative (Genesis through 2 Kings)
- 3 Reading Biblical Literature from a Legal and Political Perspective
- 4 Biblical Law and Literature
- 5 Kings, Prophets, and Judges
- 6 Prophetic Literature
- 7 Wisdom Literature
- 8 The Gospels
- 9 Paul’s Letters
- 10 Apocalyptic Literature
- 11 Shakespeare’s King Lear and the Bible
- 12 The Bible and John Milton’s Paradise Lost
- 13 The Bible, Shelley, and English Romanticism
- 14 Herman Melville and the Bible
- 15 The Song of Songs and Two Biblical Retellings
- Index
- Other Titles in the Series
- References
Summary
One of the great Reformation debates during Shakespeare’s lifetime focused on the nature of “repentance” as represented in the Bible. The Biblical concept embraced the idea of a turn away from error and a return to righteousness (mostly as interpreted in later translations of the Hebrew Testament) and the idea of an interior change of mind or revision of one’s attitude toward patterns of behavior (mostly in the Christian Testament likewise as interpreted in later translations). Shakespeare dramatized these ideas in histories, comedies, tragedies, and romances throughout his career. This essay focuses on the dynamics of repentance in King Lear, where turning away and changes of mind engage with competing – but also sometimes complementing and mutually reinforcing – claims of ancient pagan Stoicism and Epicureanism in regard to fate, destiny, free will, and random change.
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- The Cambridge Companion to the Bible and Literature , pp. 181 - 199Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020