Everybody Plays the Fool: A Comparison of King Lear's Fool and Don Quixote's Squire

The first time the Fool enters in Shakespeare's King Lear he immediately offers Kent his coxcomb, or jester's hat. Lear asks the Fool "My pretty knave, how dost thou?" (1.4.98) This initial action and inquiry of the Fool is representative of the relationship between the Fool and the other characters throughout the entire play. In general, the Fool will say something nonsensical, or act seemingly illogically, and then explain his words and/or actions to let …

…or coxcomb, is typically made of cloth, and is adorned with bells, while a king's crown is made of gold and precious gems. Both hats are gaudy and attract a lot of attention. The king's crown, however is precious and valuable, whereas the flimsy jester's cap just makes noise. As Shakespeare and Cervantes have shown, however, people have a tendency to respect the hat, and not the head beneath it, when judging character and intelligence.