Expression is Powerful

Kahn's essay for her argument on King Lear is very agreeable. King Lear holds his emotions in and never lets his emotions show, until he is deeply hurt and betrayed by his daughters. He may believe at first, that men showing emotion makes them appear weak and feminine. He is king, making him believe that he has to be strong and not let his emotions get the best of him.

Once he feels hurt, vulnerability and anger, he no longer holds any emotion back and finds that expressing emotion doesn't necessarily strip him of power. I especially agree with Kahn's first point in her argument. She says, "When Lear begins to feel the loss of Cordelia, to be wounded by her sisters, and to recognize his own vulnerability, he calls his state of mind hysteria, 'the mother,' which I interpret as his repressed identification with the mother." I feel that since the mother is absent, King Lear replaces the feminine traits with much masculinity. Kahn also points out that Lear feels that the needs and traits associated with women are supposed to be hidden. It's as if King Lear believes there is no place for feminine traits in his kingdom.

King Lear probably never wanted to give in to his feelings and express them with tears but the anger and hurt he felt toward his daughters overwhelmed him. Instead of being masculine and hiding his emotions, he finally puts that aside unconsciously, as he cries and finds that he can still defend himself by expressing his emotion. King Lear learns that everyone is human and expressing himself gives him more power than he had before.