Tragedy • c. 1600
Hamlet
5 Acts
20 Scenes
4,023 Lines
Tragedy • c. 1605
King Lear
3,499Lines
5Acts
26Scenes
26Characters
85% / 15%Male / Female Lines
Written in Shakespeare’s late-period career (c. 1605), King Lear is a tragedy of 3,499 lines, 5 acts and 26 scenes with 26 speaking roles.
Opens (Act 1, Scene 1) — Kent: “I thought the king had more affected the Duke of”
Closes (Act 5, Scene 3) — Albany: “Shall never see so much, nor live so long.”
Full cast of King Lear by line count
| # | Character | Lines | Share | Acts | Scenes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | King Lear ♂ | 752 | 21.5% | 5 | 10 |
| 2 | Edgar ♂ | 395 | 11.3% | 5 | 10 |
| 3 | Kent ♂ | 369 | 10.5% | 5 | 12 |
| 4 | Gloucester ♂ | 342 | 9.8% | 5 | 12 |
| 5 | Edmund ♂ | 319 | 9.1% | 5 | 9 |
| 6 | Fool ♂ | 227 | 6.5% | 3 | 6 |
| 7 | Goneril ♀ | 202 | 5.8% | 5 | 8 |
| 8 | Regan ♀ | 190 | 5.4% | 5 | 8 |
| 9 | Albany ♂ | 161 | 4.6% | 3 | 5 |
| 10 | Cordelia ♀ | 118 | 3.4% | 3 | 4 |
| 11 | Cornwall ♂ | 108 | 3.1% | 3 | 6 |
| 12 | Gentleman ♂ | 84 | 2.4% | 5 | 7 |
| 13 | Oswald ♂ | 76 | 2.2% | 4 | 7 |
| 14 | King Of France ♂ | 32 | 0.9% | 1 | 1 |
| 15 | Messenger ♂ | 19 | 0.5% | 1 | 2 |
| 16 | Doctor ♂ | 18 | 0.5% | 1 | 2 |
| 17 | Knight ♂ | 14 | 0.4% | 1 | 1 |
| 18 | Burgundy ♂ | 12 | 0.3% | 1 | 1 |
| 19 | Old Man ♂ | 11 | 0.3% | 1 | 1 |
| 20 | Herald ♂ | 10 | 0.3% | 1 | 1 |
| 21 | Curan ♂ | 9 | 0.3% | 1 | 1 |
| 22 | First Servant ♂ | 9 | 0.3% | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Lear ♂ | 6 | 0.2% | 1 | 1 |
| 24 | Captain ♂ | 6 | 0.2% | 1 | 1 |
| 25 | Third Servant ♂ | 5 | 0.1% | 1 | 1 |
| …1 additional speaking roles with fewer than 5 lines | |||||
Scene length across the play
Across 26 scenes: 8 very short (under 50 lines), 10 short (50–149 lines), 3 mid-length (150–299 lines), 5 long (300+ lines).
The shortest scene runs 13 lines, the longest 386 lines, with a mean of about 135 lines per scene.
Line counts act by act
| Act | Scenes | Lines | Speakers | Density |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Act 1 | 5 | 951 | 17 | |
| Act 2 | 4 | 678 | 12 | |
| Act 3 | 7 | 630 | 14 | |
| Act 4 | 7 | 763 | 14 | |
| Act 5 | 3 | 477 | 12 |
Longest scenes in King Lear
| Scene | Lines | Speakers |
|---|---|---|
| Act 5, Scene 3 | 386 | 11 |
| Act 1, Scene 4 | 352 | 7 |
| Act 2, Scene 4 | 339 | 8 |
| Act 1, Scene 1 | 333 | 12 |
| Act 4, Scene 6 | 314 | 5 |
How male and female voices share Act 1 through Act 5
| Act | Male lines | Female lines | Female share | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Act 1 | 766 | 185 | 19% | |
| Act 2 | 573 | 105 | 15% | |
| Act 3 | 609 | 21 | 3% | |
| Act 4 | 624 | 139 | 18% | |
| Act 5 | 417 | 60 | 13% |
Female voices peak in Act 1 (19% of the act’s dialogue) and are quietest in Act 3 (3%).
When each speaker first enters
- Act 1 — 17 new speakers enter: King Lear, Edgar, Kent, Gloucester, Edmund, Fool, Goneril, Regan, Albany, Cordelia (+7 more)
- Act 2 — 1 new speaker enter: Curan
- Act 3 — 3 new speakers enter: First Servant, Third Servant, Second Servant
- Act 4 — 3 new speakers enter: Messenger, Doctor, Old Man
- Act 5 — 2 new speakers enter: Herald, Captain
Line-length signature
Of 3,499 total lines: 100% short (under 60 characters, typical of quickfire exchanges), 0% mid-length (60–180 characters), and 0% extended (over 180 characters). That makes this a fast-cut play — the text is dominated by brief exchanges and retorts.
How King Lear compares to Shakespeare’s other tragedies
| Play | Year | Lines | Acts | Scenes | Speakers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| King Lear (this play) | c. 1605 | 3,499 | 5 | 26 | 26 |
| Othello | c. 1604 | 3,558 | 5 | 15 | 28 |
| Antony and Cleopatra | c. 1606 | 3,565 | 5 | 42 | 54 |
| Coriolanus | c. 1608 | 3,761 | 5 | 29 | 61 |
| Romeo and Juliet | c. 1595 | 3,079 | 5 | 25 | 35 |
Common questions
How long is King Lear?
3,499 lines of dialogue across 5 acts and 26 scenes — roughly 135 lines per scene.
Who speaks the most in King Lear?
King Lear with 752 lines — about 21% of the play.
Which act of King Lear is longest?
Act 1 runs 951 lines across 5 scenes — noticeably heavier than the play’s other acts.