“For mankind, it is not survival of the fittest, it is survival of the cruellest.” Has this been your interpretation after reading King Lear? The characters Gonerill, Regan and Edmund could be categorised as the cruelest in Shakespeare’s play, King Lear. Gonerill, Regan and Edmund’s deception to their friends and family is ultimately for their own gain and survival. The end of King Lear however, sees Gonerill, Regan and Edmund all dead. Cruelty …showed first 75 words of 1007 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1007 total…a result of the ‘evil’ characters actions. Gloucester, Lear and Cordelia were not cruel enough to survive in the situation they were in. Albany and Edgar are the main saviours. Albany and Edgar both possess honest and kind characters but were able to be cruel in order to survive. To be the cruelest Edgar sleighed Edmund and Albany arrested the evil sisters. This ultimately led to their survival and the re-establishment of justice in Britain.