Father and child relationships in King Lear, Pride and Silas Marner

father and child relationships

The theme of father and child relationships in' King Lear' is important in this text 

I will be discussing the importance of Father and Child relationships in 'King Lear' it is seen between Goneril and King Lear, Cordelia and King Lear and lastly Edmund and Gloucester. It is a constant and recurring theme in this play.

King Lear and Goneril have a very important father and child relationship in this play.While Goneril  is gushing to her father about how much she adores him in return he will give her his land, this is severely contrasted by the end of the play where King Lear has been thrown out and Goneril couldn't care less about what would happen to him.I personally think that this is a very negative relationship, King Lear has a favourite daughter causing his relationship to become strained with Goneril. She's treated quite differently to her other sisters as when they turn their backs on King Lear he seems to not be so harsh but he curses Goneril for the rest of her life. I think that this is because she is one of the last to reject him and he's genuinely hurt by this, King Lear is also very irrational and doesn't have very realistic expectations of his daughters. He expects Goneril to love him no matter how he treats her and how cruel he can be. But he changes, King Lear seems to be taking a metaphorical journey through the text and he seems to be humbled by his fall from grace he also sees who is willing to stand by him through the hard times, Goneril not being one of them. I think that in this relationship there is fault on both sides that they both have to hurt the other as badly as they themselves have been hurt. Their relationship is important in this text because they don't make peace at  the end like most of the relationships there is no act of forgiveness between them before they both die.

Another key father and child relationship in this text is between Cordelia and King Lear they have a very different relationship in comparison with King Lear and his other daughters he never tries to reconcile with them the same way he tries to salvage what is left of his relationship with Cordelia. This is seen in his last act before he dies where even though Cordelia is dead, King Lear still pretends that she is alive. In my opinion this is because he couldn't cope with the unbearable truth of his daughter being dead, Cordelia was the youngest child and clearly her father's favourite, this causes her to be alienated from her older sisters. King Lear is so distraught by the trauma of losing his daughter that he dies. In the opening scene he asks Cordelia to tell him how much she loves him when she refuses to do so because she sees it irrelevant and mean. That he should know how much she loves him already. King Lear despite all his actions and stupidity he really does love Cordelia but this costs him his relationship with his other two daughters some of his decisions can be seen as bad parenting. Throughout the text he is seen as quite selfish and mean but by the end he seems to have changed his ways although it is too late as he's about to die and all three of his daughters are already dead. King Lear despite all his bad decisions and cruelty but he does really love Cordelia. Throughout the play King Lear is quite selfish and mean but by the end of the play he seems to have transformed into a much kinder person but it's too late all three of his daughters are dead and he himself is about to die. In my opnion King Lear and Cordelia's relationship is arguably the most important Father and Child relationship in the text as she seems to really change him sometimes for worse.

One of the Father and child relationships in this text that seems to be different to the rest is Gloucester and his illegitimate son Edmund. Edmund is the result of an affair Gloucester had outside his marriage. At this time in society childen who are born outside of wedlock don't have any rights. Edmund always seems to be playing second fiddle to his father's favourite his legetimate son Edgar. Edmund decides to plot against everyone he becomes cunning and sy to get what he wants and take revenge for all his mistreatment. An example of their relationship is when Edmund so easily lies to Gloucester and tells him about Edgars fake conspiracy to kill him and that he was asked to join in on this plot to kill Gloucester he even goes as far to cut his arm to make this story more belivable. Gloucester easily believes him. Edmund does all this in an effort to gain control of his Father's land by cutting out his brother, what really amazes me is how easily Edmund is able to fool people and wrap them around his finger to get them to do exactly what he wants them to do. Edmund is especially cruel to his own father and as he feels that Gloucester is the root of his problems. This is a great example of a Father and child relationship in this text and really contrasts the other relationships  as they don't get a chance to reconcile their differences.

The theme of Father and child relationships in 'Pride' 


I will be discussing the importance of Father and Child relationships in' Pride' it is seen between Joe and his father. It is a striking theme in this text.

This is the only Father and child relationship in this text. In my opinion it's very interesting the relationship that Joe has with his father as throughout the text his father does seem to have the slightest interest in Joe until he hears about his involvement in the LGSM group. He doesn't seem to care about the way his son feels and is only worried about what other people may think.  An example of this is when Joe's parents find to about him being a key member of the LGSM group. In this scene there is no sound b and the camera zooms across the living room where you see his father screaming abuse at him. His father knows that he has really lost Joe when he leaves home a little while later. This shows how difficult it must have been for Joe having a father who had no interest in any of the good things he was doing but only to focus in on the negative things. Joe and his father don't seem to have anything in common, making it difficult for them to have a relationship. This relationship is quite similar to Cordelia and King Lear in 'King Lear' and Godfrey and Eppie in 'Silas Marner'. The thing that all three parents seem to have in common is that they abandon their children either physically or emotionally and don't seem to care what is best for their child and what would make them truly happy. This is a good example of a father and child relationship in this text.


The theme of Father and child relationships in 'Silas Marner' 

I will be discussing the importance of Father and Child relationships in' Silas Marner' it is seen between Silas and Eppie this is contrasted by Godfrey and Eppie. It is a constant and recurring theme in this text.

A lovely Father and child relationship in this text is one between Silas and Eppie. This is a real contrast of the relationship that she has with her real Father. Silas adopted Eppie when he found her near his house one New Years evening, he took her in and loved her as if she were his own child. At this time it would have been highly unusual for a single man to take in a child and be a Father by himself.  In my opinion it's a relationship of mutual happiness because Silas cares for Eppie when no one else is there and treats her well, Eppie brings Silas so much joy and seems to replace the void that was left by the money had but unlike the money she gives him love in return. It is only after Eppie arrives that we really see a change in Silas where he is truly content, Eppie also forces Silas to be more friendly with the locals of Raveloe and make an effort with them for her sake. An example of this relationship is when  Godfrey Cass tries to separate Silas and Eppie and take her for his own daughter as he wasn't able to have any children. Silas lets Eppie make the decision for herself even though he would be truly broken hearted if she were ever to leave him but Eppie chooses him over the wealth and luxury that Godfrey offers. This shows how much she loves Silas that she couldn't bear to live without him and she wouldn't be able to see him live in such pain. Eppie would be happier to stay and take care of her father and marry a working man. Silas also shows how much he loves Eppie as he would be willing to let her go and sacrifice his own happiness for hers but it shows that he trusts her to make the right decision for her. In all of the texts I have studied this is in my opinion the most heart warming Father and child relationship as they really do love each other.

A contrasting Father and child relationship in this text is between Eppie and her biological father Godfrey Cass. Throughout the text Godfrey is very selfish and cold hearted, he was willing to abandon his own daughter if it meant he could be with the woman who he truly loved. He didn't seem to think twice about his decision until it suited him. The relationship between Godfrey and Eppie in my opinion is very interesting as Godfrey almost doesn't see her as a person but an object that he can use and discard and later pick it up again. An example of this is when Eppie and ,Molly come to Raveloe to confront Godfrey that he's been hiding them but when Molly dies it seems for Godfrey that all his problems are solved in hindsight. Godfrey is delighted when Silas takes her in. This shows how callous and cold Godfrey is to his own daughter. Godfrey's actions this night will later haunt him as he wasn't able to have any children but he could have if he had of told the truth and just taken Eppie in that night. Instead he left her and thought it would be better not to acknowledge her so he could finally marry Nancy his true love and nothing is in his way anymore this is a really selfish action on his behalf. This shows even though Godfrey is related to Eppie it more or less means nothing to her and she finds true happiness with Silas similar to Joe in 'Pride'. This is a great example of a Father and child relationship in this text.