From an email exchange, the heart of which was a question of just how old King Lear might or should be.

Lear is not old or doddering or losing his sense, but very mindful that time is a harsh and unyielding thing. As such, it is better he divide his kingdom now when he is still possessed of all his faculties. This makes his descent in the play all the more tragic, because it happens not because of time and the necessity of old age, but by tragic circumstance and decisions made.