Macbeth Coursework

Lady Macbeth

“Is Lady Macbeth a fiend-like Queen?”

Macbeth is a play written by an author called ‘William Shakespeare’. He has written very famous plays such as, ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and ‘Hamlet’. He was born in Stafford-upon-Avon, England in 1564.

Macbeth is a play about a man called ‘‘Macbeth’; he is called the ‘Thane of Glamis’, in Scotland and a general in ‘King Duncan’s army. The play opens with Macbeth returning from a battle one day when he meets three witches. They tell him he’s going to become the ‘Thane of of Cowdor’ and the ‘King of Scotland. This seems impossible to Macbeth until he becomes ‘Than of Cowdor’. Macbeth sends a letter home to ‘Lady Macbeth’ about what has happened to him; As soon as she receives this letter she immediately has ideas about killing ‘King Duncan’ so Macbeth can take his place’

One of the main themes in the play is deception -things not being what they seem. “Fair is foul and foul is fair, this contradicts itself. It means good is bad and bad is good, the witches chant it in the opening scene of the play. I think this brings an interesting feel to the start of the playas it gives the audience a sense of mystery.

We first see ‘Lady Macbeth’ appear in the play when she is reading a letter from her husband, Macbeth. He addresses her as “My dearest partner of greatness”, we get the impression he is very much in love with his wife. This was unusual as in the time that the play was wrote most marriages were arranged over land and money

After ‘Lady Macbeth’ has finished reading the letter she says, “Glamis thou art, and Cowdor and shalt be what thou art promised, yet do I fear thou nature is to full o’ th’ milk of human kindness to catch the nearest way”. ‘Lady Macbeth’ has already decided that she is going to bring together a plan to kill ‘King Duncan’. She is worried that Macbeth is too soft and kind to do anything to make it come true quickly. ‘Lady Macbeth’ wants her husband to become King but also she wants the glory, riches and power of being the Queen.

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I think that ‘Lady Macbeth’ is a very devious, ambitious and if she wants something badly enough she would go out of her way to get it. ‘King Duncan’ then decides he is going to visit Macbeth and his wife at their castle. As soon as ‘Lady Macbeth’ finds out that Duncan is visiting she says “Never shall the sun that morrow see”. This tells us that she is thinking how she and her husband are going to kill Duncan. She sees this visit as a opportunity to help her with what she is planning she immediately invites evil ...

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