King Lear

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choosing to, “express our darker purpose” (I, i,
35). There is no mention of any of the three daughters’ childhood. In contrast, Smiley
makes a point of adding description to her novel. She constantly describes the three
girls’ childhood, their ancestors, and other memories from the past. In the beginning of
the novel, Ginny elaborates upon her great-grandparents and, “when they came the first
time to Zebulon County, in the spring of 1890, and saw that half the land they had
already bought was under two feet of water” (Smiley 14). Ginny also remembers when
she used to take care of Caroline, “I had such hope for her, such a strong sense that when
we sent her out, in whatever capacity, she would perform well, with enthusiasm and
confidence that were mysteriously hers alone” (Smiley 262). The description of the past
is the most powerful part in A Thousand Acres. It reveals hidden roots that shape and
define behaviors of the characters. This hidden knowledge and ...

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lines that are
recited in the play. Occasionally, a soliloquy or an aside is given for further insight, but
these do not occur frequently in King Lear. The reader only knows what he or she is
told. The characters do not express deeper and darker concerns. Goneril talks about
always disliking her father for his playing favorites among the daughters, “The
observation we have made of it hath not been little” (I, i, 288-89). This is the reader’s
only insight in the story about a possible disagreement or other catastrophic event that
happened in the past. Jane Smiley provides a background in A Thousand Acres that gives
the reader a whole different attitude toward the character of ...

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