An introduction to

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An introduction to
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Ask yourself the following

• Have you ever given in to temptation?
• Do you believe in prophecies?
• How do you personally decide what is good and
  what is evil?
• What is the difference between greed and
  ambition?
• Do you believe you reap what you sow?
• Do you believe our lives are lead by fate or our
  actions alone?

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Rate each statement on a scale of 1-10.1
disagree completely to 10 agree
wholeheartedlyBe prepared to explain your
reasoning.

• 1. People who are striving to get ahead often
  step on other people.
• 2. Being powerful usually is the same thing as
  being happy.
• 3. One mistake can often lead to another.
• 4. Everyone is capable of murder under the right
  circumstances.
• 5. People who are involved in criminal activities
  can still feel love, fear, and concern for other
  people.

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Macbeth as a tragedy

• Since the play is a tragedy it has the following
  criteria
• Tragic hero male with a high social ranking or
  royal birth
• Tragic flaw a character weakness such as
  excessive ambition that leads to the characters
  downfall
• Tragic downfall in Shakespearean tragedy, the
  downfall is always death, caused by the tragic
  flaw
• Catharsis the emotional response from the
  reader feelings of sorrow, pity, terror, etc.
• Supernatural abounds in Macbeth, specifically
  through the 3 witches and their leader, Hecate.
• The plot then focuses on Macbeths horrific reign
  in Scotland.

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Motifs in Macbeth

• Motifs are recurrent patterns in literature.
• You will be responsible for finding examples of
  the following motifs
• Loss of sleep and its effect
• Clothing used metaphorically as in to walk in
  someone elses shoes
• Images of light and dark representing truth and
  deception
• Images that convey deception and betrayal

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Macbeth The Summary
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Macbeth is a dark, relentless tale of a good and
brave Scottish general who, encouraged by the
dark prophesies of three evil witches and by his
own wife, murders Duncan, king of Scotland.
Macbeth then becomes king and brings about his
own destruction. Shakespeare wrote the play for
James I, England's new king, who had been king of
Scotland. To please James, Shakespeare set the
play in Scotland, used many characters who were
James' ancestors, and included witches, a subject
that James had written about. The play is
Shakespeare's shortest tragedy, probably because
King James often fell asleep during
performances. Shakespeare's source for the story
of Macbeth was The History and Chronicles of
Scotland (1526), written by Hector Boece, a
Scottish historian and humanist. (Many scholars
question the factual reliability of Boece's work,
and point out that Shakespeare took liberties
with Macbeth's history for dramatic purposes.)
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Macbeth The Historical Background
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The King of England in 1606 was James I, a
Stuart.

• There was no Tudor successor to the throne of
  England. Therefore, Elizabeth I chose James VI
  of Scotland to succeed her. After her death in
  1603, James VI of Scotland became James I of
  England.
• Elizabeth I had been instrumental in the death of
  her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, who was
  beheaded.
• On her deathbed, Elizabeth wanted to ease her way
  into Heaven, so she chose Marys son James to
  become the next King of England.
• The appointment of James I was a good political
  move, unifying England and Scotland under one
  King.

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Macbeth a tribute to King James I

• Shakespeare wrote Macbeth in 1606, during King
  James reign.
• King James was a devout advocate of the Divine
  Right of Kings.
• The setting is Scotland, King James homeland.
• Banquo was an ancestor of James and is shown in
  the play to be a virtuous person.
• James believed himself to be an expert on
  witchcraft.
• James had an interest in faith healing.

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Macbeth an appeal to Elizabethan peoples
interests

• Shakespeare demonstrated the Elizabethan belief
  that the country is stable only if the King is
  good and virtuous.
• Elizabethans believed that evil occurs in
  darkness, which is a recurring theme in Macbeth.
• Shakespeare included a lot of blood and murder,
  which the Elizabethans expected to see in a play.
  
• The play was considered a thriller a threat to
  an anointed King and the perceived evil behind
  the threat

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Before the Curtain Opens

• When the play begins, there are two wars in
  progress
• Civil War - King Duncan vs. Macdonwalds rebels
• National War - Scotland, led by King Duncan,
  against invading Norway, led by King Sweno

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Setting

• King Duncan is the King of Scotland.
• Edward the Confessor is the King of England.
• The time period is the eleventh century
  (1000-1099).
• Shakespeare used poetic license to bend some of
  the historical information.

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Macbeth The Plot Overview
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Macbeth is an interesting character to follow. As
you read, you can see how he changes. We first
meet Macbeth as a brave soldier and later find
him as someone completely different Lady
Macbeth is also a well-developed character. She
is conniving and ruthless, though she does seem
to have some humane qualities.
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The play opens in Scotland. Macbeth and Banquo
have defeated their enemies in battle, leading
King Duncan to give the title of Thane of Cawdor
to Macbeth (who doesnt know this yet). Next,
Macbeth and Banquo encounter three chanting
witches. The witches speak to Macbeth as Thane of
Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and king hereafter. They
also tell Banquo that though he will not be
king, he will beget kings (i.e., his sons will
be kings).
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Macbeth The Curse
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Macbeth Curse??????
1606 First production. The boy playing Lady
Macbeth became feverish and died backstage.
Rumor has it that Shakespeare himself played the
role. 1672 Amsterdam. The actor playing
Macbeth substituted a real dagger for the stage
dagger and killed the actor playing Duncan, in
full view of the audience. 1703 Opening day.
England was hit with one of the most violent
storms in its history. 500 seamen died. 1849
a riot in which more than 30 people died at the
Astor Place Opera House April 9, 1865 Abraham
Lincoln was reading passages from Macbeth (scenes
following Duncans assassination) aloud to some
friends. Within a week, Lincoln was himself
assassinated
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Curse Wartime Production .
The third witch fell ill and died of a heart
attack during the final rehearsal. The actor
playing King Duncan died of angina (heart
attack). A witch was dancing around the
cauldron, but would not maintain the tempo of the
music. She collapsed and died on stage. The
set designer committed suicide.
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Curse 1937 London Production .
The director was nearly killed in a car crash.
Lady M was badly bruised as well. Laurence
Olivier lost his voice and almost died when a
weight from the stage lights came tumbling
down. The founder of the theater had a heart
attack and died on opening night. A member of
the audience was hit by a fragment of Oliviers
sword and then died of a heart attack.
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Curse Is it Really True ?!?!?
http//www.youtube.com/watch?v2LKMktAN4hc History
of the Curse (2 minutes) http//www.youtube.com
/watch?vDaz_OpMfBmg One mans story (1 minute)
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Macbeth The Characters
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Macbeth Brave general under Duncan who
becomes too ambitious after three witches
prophesy that he will be King of Scotland. He
turns to evil. Lady Macbeth Vicious wife of
Macbeth, even more ambitious than Macbeth. She
convinces Macbeth to murder the King. Macduff
General, becomes suspicious of the Macbeths.
Banquo Macbeths friend and general. King
Duncan King of Scotland as the play opens.
Macbeth Characters
Malcolm Duncans eldest son, next in line for
the throne
The three witches They tell Macbeth that he is
to become King, leading him to evil. They also
tell him that he will be defeated, but they
disguise it in a way as to give him false
confidence.
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Characters Continued Fleance Banquos youngest
son Hecate Moon goddess and goddess of the
witches, directs supernatural occurrences.
Donalbain Duncans youngest son. Ross
Macduffs cousin, messenger who carries news to
people like Macbeth and Macduff throughout the
play. Lennox Nobleman, suspicious of the murder
of the king.

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• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vclG8ha2D26g
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vZ1_I36qHDts
• As you watch the video clips, make notes about
  what is going on in each of the scenes and decide
  which version is your favorite (the best). Be
  able to explain WHY