The greater number of the illustrations to King Lear, whether in frontispieces and other published engravings or in easel pictures, are set on the heath during the storm. Rarely in Shakespeare has costume played so full a part either in direct stage business or in symbolic action as in these scenes on the heath. The argument sways uncertainly in Lear’s mind through a complete circle to revulsion; in compassionate prudence he counsels Edgar:

and this momentary insight into dereliction, in its pity for Edgar's nakedness, is pointed by the contrast with the 'courtly' costumes of the Fool, Kent and Lear himself, who are all indebted to the worm and the beast for their 'lendings'. Edgar's previous speech to Lear had approved in advance his rejection of a garment's 'sophistication', and with precisely Lear's choice of hide and silk: