King Lear and conflict with his daughters

The general plot of King Lear revolves mainly around the conflict between the King and his daughters, although there is a definite and distinct sub-plot dealing with the plight and tragedy of Gloucester as well. One of the main themes that Shakespeare chooses to focus on in King Lear is the dysfunctional nature of not only the royal family and Gloucester, but the heartache and emotional strain that goes along with being a parent and …

…the entire play were people who loved him more than life itself, yet his passion and the madness created by that passion would not let him see. Lear's undying love is seen most of all when we are given this extremely vivid mental picture of a despondent father carrying his dead daughter in his arms, tears streaming down his face. At the end both fathers have been destroyed at the hands of their own children.