From Act I to the end of Act IV, what are some realizations that Lear, Gloucester, and Edgar make? Please generalize these lessons and name the Act and Scene where I can find them, if possible.

Example:

Even your closest loved ones are capable of deceiving you. Gloucester learns this at the time of his blinding, Act 3, Scene 7. Lear learns this in Act 2, Scene 4, when Regan and Goneril try to strip him of his leftover power and dignity. Edgar learns this when he discovers that Edmund was behind his character assassination (Act/Scene unknown).

Emotions can negatively impact your behavior, making you turn your back on your biggest supporter or best friend. Lear learns this in the storm, when he realizes the error of his ways for banishing Kent and Cordelia. Gloucester learns this during his blinding, when he realized that Edmund’s plot worked only because it played off his strong feelings of Edgar’s supposed betrayal. Leading him to make a rash decision (death warrant).

Appearances and social position affect the way others treat and view us. Lear learns this in Act 4, Scene 6, while raving about the hypocrisy of human beings. Edgar learns and applies this when his death warrant is issued and he decides to disguise himself as a Bedlam Begger; Act 2, Scene 3.