Edgar and the Nature of Identity in King Lear

In William Shakespeare's play King Lear, the relationship between Edgar, his father the Earl of Gloucester and his half-brother Edmund form the subplot of this play.Edgar is the natural son of Gloucester by marriage while Edmund is an unnatural son or bastard.At Gloucester's death, Edgar, as the legitimate or natural heir of his father, will receive all lands, titles, status and place in the dynastic hierarchy pertaining to an earl.Edmund, unnatural, receives nothing.Edmund wants to replace Edgar as his family's heir and hatches a plot to destroy this natural order.In so doing, Edmund succeeds in turning identity on its head and forces Edgar into questioning the strength of this natural order and even identity as a cultural concept, since it so easily can be manipulated and lead his own father to disown him.The strong natural familial bonds found at the beginning of the play are easily severed.Edmund, as a duplicitous character, is the classic example of the Machiavel, one who manipulates others to ensure that he gets what he wants.This kind of person is driven entirely by self interest.Edgar loses his identity as the heir to his family's earldom thanks to his credulous nature and Edmund's abuse of his naivete.As a result of these circumstances, Edgar has to feign madness in order to escape his predicament.Edgar goes from the son of the Earl of Gloucester at the beginning of the play, into a forced series of disguises in the middle of the play (thanks to Edmund's treachery), only to come out at the other end enhanced, as someone who understands himself and the society he lives in.