Future strife may be prevented (1.1.39-47)

KING LEAR

Our son of Cornwall, And you, our no less loving son of Albany, We have this hour a constant will to publish Our daughters' several dowers, that future strife May be prevented now. The princes, France and Burgundy, Great rivals in our youngest daughter's love, Long in our court have made their amorous sojourn, And here are to be answer'd.

Lear continues. Cornwall and Albany are equal in his eyes, but as Kent said before “the king had more affected the Duke of Albany” and during this time the country’s position was stable. His equal view of them will cause a divide in the land. His view of the two “sons” seems to mirror Gloucester’s, with the equity they treat them with despite one son being loving, whilst the other plots behind his father’s back. The use of majestic plural pronouns in Lear’s speech here not only provides him with a sense of authority but could reflect the state of the kingdom itself. At this moment, the plurality of the pronoun shows how different parts of the country are united under one person. The change later to using “I” when the kingdom is divided shows the exact opposite. He goes on to speak of his “daughters’ several dowers” (dowry usually being a gift of money from the daughter’s father to her husband). The fact that the dowers are given to the daughters could foreshadow some of the masculine (and in Goneril and Regan’s case brutal) characteristics they display over the course of the play. The introduction of money also foreshadows Burgundy’s reason for wanting Cordelia. Lear believes that allotting his land now will mean that hostility after his death can be avoided, however, this line becomes ironic upon second hearing as it is this very event that causes most of the conflict in the play. The Elizabethan audience would no doubt be concerned that Lear is giving his most valuable land to French princes, especially when considering that they would be Catholic where most of England in Shakespeare’s time was Protestant. Furthermore, we get yet another case of similarity between Gloucester’s relationship with his sons and Lear’s relationship with his (potential) sons. France truly loves Cordelia but Burgundy only cares for the money that attaining her provides. Apparently, they have been “long in [his] court”, making “their amorous sojourn”. This presumption is of course partially incorrect as Burgundy cares not for Cordelia sexually and serves to make Lear appear more foolish upon second viewing. It seems that they will finally get an answer - with regards to who gets Cordelia - in this meeting.