King Lear Act III blog

The scene in which Gloucester's eyes are gouged out is in fact full of violence, however it is also full of symbolism.  All throughout the play, Goucester has been stabbed in the back, mislead, and toyed with, and despite his physical capability to see, has been completely blind to the fact.  Now that he has lost his sight, however, he is able to realize that all along he's been had.  The reason for this graphic violence occuring on stage is more for dramatic purposes than to be gratuitously violent.  During act III, elements of confustion, tension, and malevolence have built up into a certain sort of frenzy.  This gouging out of his eye then stomping on it serves as a parallel to represent all of the ludicrous nature of the behavior in this act thus far.  This act is much more justified in its presence than violence in slasher films and Grand Theft Auto.  Violence in the latter two examples is typically violence for violence's sake.  It is there to be as gory and as gruesome as possible, for little dramatic reason and generally for shock value.  Graphic violence has a place in drama when it actually conveys drama, not when it is there to convey violence.