#7 in Drama & theatre
King Lear
- 189
- Pages
- about 3.5 h
- Reading time
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Our view
“King Lear” is among Shakespeare’s darkest tragedies: an old king’s demand for flattery from his daughters sets a catastrophe in motion. Blindness and madness run through every act, and the closing pages are devastating, with no promise of redemption to soften them. The poetry is complex, so an annotated edition helps; readers who give it that care find a play of rare emotional force.
The view of the BookRank editors, written from readers’ ratings and comments. It does not affect the score or the book’s place in a ranking.
About the book
The Tragedy of King Lear, often shortened to King Lear, is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare in late 1605 or early 1606. Set in pre-Roman Britain, the play depicts the consequences of King Lear's love-test, in which he divides his power and land according to the praise of his daughters. The play is known for its dark tone, complex poetry, and prominent motifs concerning blindness, madness and human nature.
Where the score comes from
The sources average 7.8 across 420 ratings — not yet many, so the reader vote carries 74% of the weight and the rest pulls toward the Drama & theatre average of 7.6. That is how 7.7 comes out.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Library | 8.0 | 20 | 5% |
| Hardcover | 7.8 | 400 | 95% |
Frequently asked
How long is King Lear?
It has 189 pages — longer than 84% of the ranked books in Drama & theatre.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
Same shelf — Drama & theatre — with scores between 7.6 and 7.8, closest to this book.
