King Lear: The Quest for Power Shakespeare’ King Lear is a story of treachery and deceit. The villainy of the play knows no bounds. Family lines are ignored in an overwhelming quest for power. This villainy is epitomized in the character of Edmund, bastard son of the Earl of Gloucester. Edmund is displayed as a " most toad-spotted traitor." When we first see Edmund, he is already knee deep in treachery. His need for power has already clouded his mind to the extent that his first act is a double- cross of his own brother. Edmund composes a false letter to his father implicating his brother, Edgar in a plot to kill Gloucester. Edmund then goes to Edg