Jane Smiley's novel, A Thousand Acres, is a bold, modern response that parallels William Shakespeare's play, King Lear, both through plot than the characterization choices. King Lear is based on a king's difficult decision to divide his precious kingdom among his daughters, whose names are Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia. Similarly, A Thousand Acres centers on Larry Cook who regretfully signs over his land to his daughters Ginny, Rose, and Caroline. Both fathers make the mistake of leaving their younger daughters out of the split and ultimately end up going mad from the resulting drama. Smiley attempts to recreate King Lear from the point of view of Ginny, the equivalent of Goneril. It alters Ginny by making her much more compassionate and calm than Goneril is portrayed by Shakespeare, while retaining some of her undesirable behaviors. Smiley creates notable discrepancies and similarities in character traits and actions by juxtaposing the protagonist, Ginny, and her Shakespearean counterpart, Goneril, while adapting this famous play into a modern novel. Smiley adds a whole new level of depth to the plot by making Ginny the first-person narrator of the story and changing some details, which results in the character foiling Goneril. Ginny is generally a very pleasant person who wants to please everyone around her. This is clearly depicted when he accepts his father's plan to give up his farm because it is what he and the others want, regardless of initial doubts. He states, “Despite that inner clang, I tried to sound pleasant” (Smiley, 19). Ginny believes it's too hasty a decision, but she cares too much about everyone being happy, so she agrees with the plan. Cont... half the card... he has what little power he has left and you do little to stop him from escaping into a treacherous storm. In contrast, Ginny is a much more likable character than Goneril and fails in her plot to kill her sister. Goneril is ruthless as she strives for ultimate power and kills countless characters, including herself, in the process. Her hatred towards her father is unfair, as Ginny has the right to be angry at him due to his poor parenting and outright abuse. All in all, Smiley added new life to Shakespeare's ancient plot from his play, King Lear, by building on his characters and their behaviors in his modern novel, A Thousand Acres. Works Cited Smiley, Jane. A Thousand Acres.New York, USA: Knopf, 1992. Print. 04/01/2014Shakespeare, William. King Lear.New York, USA: Signet Classic, 1998. Print. 04/01/2014