Kent: The Loyal Man Who Cannot Stop Being Loyal

Kent tells Lear to his face in Act 1 Scene 1 that he is being a fool: Cordelia does not love him less for refusing to perform, Goneril and Regan are flattering him, and he should reverse his decision. Lear banishes him within the scene. Kent returns disguised as a servant called Caius before Act 2 begins.

He cannot leave. He has spent his life in Lear's service and his loyalty does not have an off switch. In disguise, he fights Oswald, accepts the stocks, and follows Lear into the storm. He is the play's moral anchor, not because he is wise, but because he is steadfast when everything else is collapsing.

At the end of the play, when Albany offers to restore his title, Kent declines. He says he is on a journey and must follow his master. He means Lear. Whether he means he will die soon, or that death is the only destination left after what he has witnessed, the play does not say.