King Lear by William Shakespeare (Folger Edition)

The authoritative edition of King Lear from the Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers.

Shakespeare's King Lear challenges us with the magnitude, intensity and sheer duration of the pain it represents. Its figures harden their hearts, engage in violence or try to alleviate the suffering of others. Lear himself rages until his sanity cracks. What, then, keeps bringing us back to the play? For all the force of its language, King Lear is almost equally powerful in translation, suggesting it is the story itself that draws us in—a family struggling between greed and cruelty on the one hand, and support and consolation on the other. Old age is portrayed in all its vulnerability, pride and, perhaps, wisdom, which is one reason this most devastating of Shakespeare's tragedies is also perhaps his most moving.

This edition includes freshly edited text based on the best early printed version of the play, full explanatory notes placed on pages facing the text, scene-by-scene plot summaries, a key to the play's famous lines and phrases, an introduction to reading Shakespeare's language, an essay by leading Shakespeare scholar Susan Snyder offering a modern perspective on the play, fresh images from the Folger Shakespeare Library's rare book holdings and an annotated guide to further reading.

The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington DC is home to the world's largest collection of Shakespeare's printed works and a magnet for scholars from around the globe. Beyond publishing, the Folger offers exhibitions, performances and programs throughout the year.

This book is featured on The Book Club with Michael Knowles, PragerU's show dedicated to the great books of Western civilization. In this episode, Michael Knowles is joined by author and commentator Douglas Murray to discuss how King Lear's themes of power, justice, blindness and chaos play out through the severed relationship between a father and his children, and why broken families carry such lasting consequences.

📺 Watch the episode: Douglas Murray — King Lear by William Shakespeare

Own the Folger edition of one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies and discover why King Lear still speaks so directly to family, power and the human heart.