King Lear context

Context- King Lear

• Written in 1606 and set in the same period, Shakespear wrote a play influenced by society around him.
• Beliefs at the time were strongly influenced by the chain of being- this means God has a plan for everyone and where they are on the chain: breaking from this chain and therefore straying from Gods path had catastrophic results. Shakespear based his tradgedy upon this belief as Lear, Rega & Goneril as well as Edmund attempt to change their position on the chain. 
• The Wheel of fortune was another belief used by Shakespear in King Lear, it states that people are in different positions on the wheel, when people at the bottom attempt to change their status e.g. Edmund, the wheel turns…