Date of Award
Spring 5-4-2018
Document Type
Honors Project
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
English, Linguistics, and Communication
Department Chair or Program Director
Richards, Gary
First Advisor
Mathur, Maya
Major or Concentration
English
Abstract
In William Shakespeare’s great tragedy, King Lear, Lear’s three daughters, Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia, betray their father at different points in the play and die as a result. Jane Smiley reimagines the story of King Lear in her novel, A Thousand Acres, by combining new plot material with material from the original text.
Smiley’s novel is narrated by Larry’s eldest daughter, Ginny, whose voice reorients Shakespeare’s patriarchal narrative and transforms it into a feminist text. Smiley changes the overarching plot to create a more sympathetic link between the daughters and the reader by granting them a level of redemption. Ginny achieves complete independence by leaving her father and the farm behind, creating a self sustaining life in the city for herself. Caroline, the youngest daughter, achieves some independence by cutting geographic bonds with her father and leaving the family farm, yet remains loyal to him during his life and after his death. Rose, the middle child, attempts to free herself by gaining control of the farm from her father, but but is unable to free herself from the shadow of his control and dies bankrupt. By granting the daughters independence from their father, A Thousand Acres reverses the patriarchal narrative of King Lear and transforms it into a feminist one.
Recommended Citation
Caldwell, Zachary, "Reclaiming Independence: Comparing the Daughters in King Lear and A Thousand Acres" (2018). Student Research Submissions. 243.
https://scholar.umw.edu/student_research/243