Jane Smiley A Thousand Acres Analysis

Why might an author decide to reimagine a classic? An author’s intent to reimagine a classic could stem from the idea of reinventing the classic to pertain to modern ideas and society. A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley does this by stemming original ideas off of the classic King Lear by William Shakespeare. Though A Thousand Acres is a recreation it does share commonalities and differences with the original in which was based such as in ways of plot lines, characters, themes, and thesis. Jane Smiley weaves her own intent into the thesis of the original and recreates the classic story to fit her thesis. The similarities and differences as well as the common thesis will be discussed further. In King Lear by William Shakespeare, Shakespeare …show more content…
In King Lear, Albany states that he cannot love a woman who drives her own blood to insanity, “You are not worth the dust which the rude wind Blows in your face/I fear your disposition/ That nature, which contemns its origin/ Cannot be bordered certain in itself/She that herself will sliver and disbranch/From her material sap/perforce must wither/And come to deadly use.” (Act V, III).The Duke of Albany is sympathetic of the King just as he is with Larry which causes a riff in the relationship of himself and Goneril/Ginny. Though the troubles were different the plotting of how to defeat Larry/Lear to keep the land in which they were now in possession of was the same. In King Lear, Albany and Cornwall were ready to go to war with France. In A Thousand Acres, the court case was presented. Both Gonreril/Ginny and Regan/Rose struggled with wanting the same man (Edmund) and were very competitive with each other in both. Edmund and Edgar were also competitive as well over their father’s land which is true in A Thousand Acres. There was only one share of land available and both wanted it for their own advances. “Who’s Harold’s favorite? Me. Even now? Even now.” (Smiley, 125) Like the original, Goneril/Ginny did plot and execute the poisoning of Regan/Rose though it was not successful in the twisted …show more content…
One of the major changes that Smiley made were the characters. In King Lear, Goneril/Ginny and Regan/Rose are awful, corrupt sisters that only want their fathers land and Cordelia/Coroline is the innocent one. However, in Smiley’s version the tables are turned and Cordelia/Caroline is the corrupt one. Also, Gloucester who plays Harold is also corrupt and does not want the best for Lear/Larry and wants to take him down. On page 218, Harold made an announcement during the church event that the family abandoned their father. “Look at ‘em chowing down here, like they ain’t done nothing. Threw a man off his own farm, on a night when you’d let a rabid dog in the barn.” (Smiley, 218) One of the major differences which makes the twisted version work is the change of Lear/Larry’s character. Larry does not become a softer person by the end of the novel like Lear. He is still very much for himself and his land. Lear also gains his senses back at the end of the play where he admits that the war wronged Cordelia, “A plague upon you, murderers, traitors all!/I might have saved her. Now she’s gone forever/Cordelia, Cordelia, stay a little. Ha?/What is ’t thou say’st?—Her voice was ever soft,/Gentle and low, an excellent thing in woman/I killed the slave that was a-hanging thee.” (Act VI, III) Whereas Larry never regains who he is and forgets his daughters in the court