King Lear and A Thousand Acres: Symmetrical Reflections?

William Shakespeare’s King Lear is considered by many to be one of his most

powerful pieces. It’s universal themes and messages that seep through have inspired
many other works and allowed room for several adaptations. One example is the film A
Thousand Acres which attempts to modernize Shakespeare’s tale through the tale of a
heavily aged farmer in Iowa who faces the task of splitting his farm between his
children. The film, A Thousand Acres, is a respectable adaptation of King Lear as it
holds many fundamentals of the play, with few setbacks. The plot is essentially the
same and the updated setting is successful. The important themes from the play are
also present in the film. Lastly, almost all the characters are present however with a
questionable portrayal.
The setting of the film proved itself to be efficient in many aspects. Firstly the
county in rural Iowa was very appropriate as the dominance of Larry’s family in society
comes through. The family farm is situated upon one thousand acres so the division of
land within the family and the struggles during this process affects the rest of the
community and allows their involvement. This is an accurate small scale representation
of the kingdom that Lear ruled and his family’s problems effect on it. Another advantage
of the rural setting is that the county’s older fashioned environment is more relatable to
the feudal kingdoms of the Elizabethan era in which the play was set, as opposed to if
the story had been set in an urban area. In fact the urban areas in the movie were seen
as the new society which Rose and Ginny often contemplated becoming part of and
eventually emerged with.
This is relatable to another prevalent topic in the play which was that of the
destruction of the feudal empire and surfacing society which Goneril and Regan were
seen to be part of. One last advantage of the setting of the movie is that it allowed the
prominence of nature to be kept as the rural settings gave nature a greater role as the
family depended on it to run their farm and so on. This is a very strong relation to the
play, in which Lear was led to a point where he mentioned, “Blow winds, and crack your
cheeks! Rage, blow! // …Crack nature’s molds, all germens spill at once // That makes
ingrateful man” (3.2.1-11). In general it is undoubtedly clear that the rural setting of A
Thousand Acres created a very similar environment to that in the original play.
The major themes from the play also come through in the movie A Thousand
Acres. One theme which came through in both the play and the film is insanity. In the
play Lear’s experience in the wild led him to gain a deeper understanding of himself and
his position in the world, but at the same time he was also trekking deeper down the
path of insanity. Lear reaches a point where he takes off all of his clothing and states,
“man is no more but such a poor, bare, fork'd // animal" (3.4.107-8). In the movie,
Larry’s progression to madness is made obvious as the court proceedings between him
and his daughters continues and he begins to increase his consumption of alcohol as
he slips into a senile sate. One clear example showing Larry’s unstable state of mind
was during the hearing for his land when he began to shout obscenities towards
Caroline when placed on the stand.
Another primary theme which was portrayed within the adaption is appearances
versus reality. In the play this theme was shown through the development of numerous
characters. For example at the very beginning of the play Goneril and Regan seemed
like loving daughters as they proclaimed, “Sir, I love you more than word can wield the //
matter…” (1.1.60-61), and, “…I profess // Myself an enemy to all other joys // Which the
most precious square of sense (possesses), // And find I am alone felicitate // In your
dear Highness’ love” (1.1.79-81). However as the play progressed the sister’s showed
their true colours as evil, egoistic, and manipulative characters.
In the movie, although the characters were not displayed exactly the same this
theme still came through. For example when Rose and Ginny threw Lear out the
county’s residences came to believe they were horrible daughters even though the
reality was they could not be blamed for the anger which was based on the sexual
abuse they had faced as children. Other themes from the play which were also present
in the film include gender roles, and family relationships. On a whole it is apparent that
important themes from the play were also present in the film making further proving its
success as an adaptation.
Lastly, all the key characters were present in the film; however their portrayal was
questionable in terms of effectiveness creating a major downfall for the film. One
example is the character Larry who from the beginning of the movie shows his stubborn
nature but does not change or progress at all throughout the story. This is a huge
contrast with the play, as Lear himself by the end of the play becomes a changed man
as he realizes his position in the world, reaching a point where he states, “Through
tattered clothes (small) vices do appear. // Robes and furred gowns hide all” (4.6.180-
181). The fact that Larry’s character does not change leaves out the revelation Lear had
in the original script which enlightened his character as he realized his weaknesses.
Another example of a character that was improperly portrayed is Cordelia. In the
play Cordelia was considered a symbol of purity and wholesomeness by almost every
character. At the very beginning of the play Kent defended Cordelia’s admirable
character saying, “Thy youngest daughter does not love thee least, // Nor are those
empty-hearted whose low sounds // Reverb no hollowness” (1.1.171). In the movie
Caroline was a lawyer which is quite ironic as this defeats the purity image completely
and creates a lying, and manipulative image in its place.
One last example of characters taken out of their place is Goneril and Regan’s
position in the film. In the movie these two sisters are shown to be much softer, tender,
and emotional characters that gain the sympathy of the viewer. This is a vast contrast
from the book, in which they were described as, “unnatural hags” (2.4.320). The change
to these aforementioned characters does not work as their original image is lost, and
the antagonists and protagonists seem to switch places. By the end of the movie the
viewer finds themselves more sympathetic towards Goneril and Regan as opposed to
Cordelia and Lear, as happened in the play. This reversal can also be attributed to the
fact the movie is narrated by Ginny, so naturally the viewer becomes biased. It is quite
apparent that although the presence of the characters from the play was not diminished
in the film the changes in portrayal failed to work, providing a great setback.
In general A Thousand Acres holds many similar characteristics making it highly
linkable to King Lear; however its few setbacks prevent it from being considered a
completely accurate portrayal. The main characters from the play were present in the
adaptation, although with a doubtful depiction. The key themes which defined the play
also came through in the film keeping the deeper meanings of the play. Lastly, the
setting was victorious as it highly paralleled the original from the play. Overall although
the two tales do not mirror each other symmetrically, they come quite close as the
meaning and essence of this classic story of power and corruption comes through
giving a deeper understanding of the human condition.

WORKS CITED

Shakespeare, William. King Lear (New Folger Library Shakespeare). New York:
Washington Square Press, 2004.

A Thousand Acres. Dir. Jocelyn Moorhouse. Perf. Michelle Pfeiffer, Jessica Lange.
DVD. Walt Disney Video, 1998.