King Lear's Reaction towards Cordelia

King Lear had decided to divide his kingdom between his three daughters, Goneril, Regan and Cordelia. He decided to allow his daughters to protest their deepest love for him and the one that did it the best would have gotten majority of the kingdom. King Lear favoured Cordelia, his youngest daughter and therefore thought that she would have given the best plea out of the three sisters. So the sisters began professig their love for their father and it was now Cordelia's turn. Cordeilia began by saying,
" Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave
My heart into my mouth. I love your majesty
According to my bond; no more nor less."
This further meaning that she understands her duty to love him as a father and a king. And that she didn't want to "heave" her heart into her mouth due to her integrity restraining her from making emphatic statements of her love towards him. Cordelia thought it was best to be simple and honest towards her father because she knew that she truly loved him.
Unfortunately, King Lear took Cordelia's simple statement as an offense and became furious. As a result, Cordelia was stripped of her title and her inheritance. Goneril and Regan knew exactly the type of person their father was and so in order to get what they wanted - the kingdom and authority, they had to manipulate his perception of their love for him.
King Lear's reaction towards Cordelia seemed harsh to an extent. This may be due to his personality and high status in that society. As a king he fails to understand that there is more to his role than just retrieving high praise and flattery from his people. Since Cordeila had failed to supply him with this and his two elder daughters, Goneril and Regan did, Lear felt that his youngest daughter's sincere words were just not enough for him. In a sense King Lear is viewed as a very arrogant man who is simply blind to the truth.