Passage of the storm in King Lear Act III

The techniques employed by William Shakespeare enhance a feeling of not only acrimonious irresolution but also of dithering misery. In shunning Cordelia, Lear generates a disruption in the great chain of being, causing both imbalance in his own mind and subsequent anguish upon himself. Feelings of both frustration with Lear and a sympathy for him inevitably come over the reader as they try to understand what Lear is suffering. Lear finds himself in a place …

…done to stop the destruction that was to follow. His foolishness and vanity allow him to violate the parental bond resulting in both physical and spiritual tragedy, and propelling all around him into chaos and cruelty. The stable, hierarchal order that Lear initially represents falls apart and disorder engulfs the realm. Lear must now live through the storm in order to be cured of the evil from his disordered mind, disrupted family, and divided kingdom.