Macbeth The play“Macbeth” is about an ambitious General who becomes a traitor and kills the sohe can become king himself. He is influenced to become a traitor by his wifeand also by three witches. The witches seem to have a lot of influence onMa
Macbeth The play "Macbeth" is about an ambitious General who becomes a traitor and kills the so he can become king himself. He is influenced to become a traitor by his wife and also by three witches. The witches seem to have a lot of influence on Macbeth as we see evidence of the supernatural through out the play. We first meet the witches in act 1 scene 1. It is important that the witches begin the play because they set the scene and build up the atmosphere at the start of the play. We learn that the witches have plans for Macbeth. The witches say, "when the hurly-burly's done, when the battle's lost and won" and "There to meet with Macbeth" which implies that the witches can predict the future. The witches are doing spells when we see them, which imply that there will be supernatural and evil happenings throughout the play. We next see the three witches in act 1 scene 3. We know that the witches like playing games with peoples lives because they put a spell on a sailor. The witches gave Macbeth some predictions that was he would become Thane of Cawdor and they said "All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter" which implies he will become king. Macbeth is pleased and amazed by the predictions. We know he is pleased because it is a secret ambition of Mecbeth's to become king. He properly wants his future son to become king to. The witches gave Banquo a prediction that
Macbeth- 'Film Proposal' Rationale.
George Murray (c) Macbeth- 'Film Proposal' Rationale I was given the brief that, if I was a director how would I compose work on Macbeth on Act One, Scene Three of the play? I would begin by thinking on how I will present the following to the audience: the setting, the atmosphere, themes, characters and camera shots. I would decide to try and set the scene around 1000 AD and to do this I think that there should be no bright colours used. Traditional requirements need to be employed such as the transport would be by horse, and food which has been home produced e.g. chickens. To create the atmosphere I would require a large variety of types of music. For example, a sad atmosphere I might use soft music from a flute, the typical Scottish bagpipes might create a happy atmosphere, while during the witches' scene the sound of thunder could be heard in the background. In the third scene there are five different types of characters. I think that Macbeth and Banquo should both look strong and not cleanly shaven and I think that Macbeth should be very dirty, this would emphasize how 'brave' (1.2.16) and 'noble' (1.3.67) he is. Both Macbeth and Banquo's clothes should be torn in places and looking exhausted. Macbeth could have a bearded? Ross and Angus need to have a clearer appearance and both should be cleanly shaven. All four of these characters should all speak very clearly to
Power is a theme widely explored throughout the play Macbeth
Power and tyranny to rule the world? Society is influenced strongly by both power and tyranny. We see in the media headlines exposing stories about extremist leaders like Muammar Gaddafi and Saddam Husein, who fuelled by the ambitions of power, lead countries into tyranny. So is it a coincidence that Shakespeare portrayed a play to characterise these men? Macbeth, is a play depicting a Scottish general who at the beginning is introduced as a hero, however driven by power and supernatural occurrences, we witness his downfall and eventual death. It is widely discussed whether Shakespeare is still relevant, in which I believe that throughout the play Macbeth, many issues still affecting us today were concepts Shakespeare had created. Power is a theme widely explored throughout the play Macbeth, “Great Glamis, worthy Cawdor, greater than both, by the all- hail hereafter.” Spoken by Lady Macbeth she uses positive adjectives to praise and acknowledge Macbeth’s statuses, by using short choppy phrases she encourages Macbeth to obtain the title of ‘king’, making the temptation to murder Duncan even more irresistible. Reinforcing the idea of power is Macbeth, “I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition, that o’erleaps itself and falls on the other,” through the use of personification, Macbeth’s ambitious need for power is represented
After Duncans death, Shakespeare creates an inexorable sense of foreboding for both individual characters and the state of Scotland. Explore the varying ways in which this sense of foreboding is created.
Tash Orchant 10M After Duncan’s death, Shakespeare creates an inexorable sense of foreboding for both individual characters and the state of Scotland. Explore the varying ways in which this sense of foreboding is created. Shakespeare uses blood and violence to create an ominous sense of foreboding throughout Macbeth. Macbeth himself is constantly associated with brutal and alien characters. In the first scene, the witches discuss “meeting” with him and in the following scene, the Captain describes Macbeth as “unseaming” a “rebel” from the “nave to th’chaps”. This vivid image portrays Macbeth as a brutish executor of death. Shakespeare also manipulates the weather to reflect the increasingly sinister and menacing situation. There are motifs incorporated within the play, such as the reversal of nature, which add to the accumulation of suspense and anxiety. Lady Macbeth’s savage and rather masculine attitudes augment the sense of foreboding. The play opens with the witches who immediately create a presentiment of darkness. They are unnerving because they do not obey iambic pentameter which feels uneasy and alien. Shakespeare uses occasional and uncomfortable rhyming couplets in places, often rhyming unusual words together such as “done” and “won”. These are unnerving but also help to show the witches embracing immorality. A sense of foreboding
The biggest question was Who was the ultimate villain; Macbeth or Lady Macbeth?
Macbeth Essay: By: Elisa Mangal The play ‘Macbeth’ was a different type of tragedy compared to Romeo & Juliet and 12th Night. The death of King Duncan was definitely no surprise to some characters in the play, because it was in fact planned. The biggest question was… Who was the ultimate villain; Macbeth or Lady Macbeth? After reading the entire play, it seems that Lady Macbeth was in face, the ultimate villain. Lady Macbeth had pushed her husband Macbeth to murder King Duncan, against his own will. After the murder took place, Lady Macbeth started to act very guilty, which practically made her go insane. Lastly, when Lady Macbeth passed away in Act 5, it seemed like Macbeth felt no remorse towards it. It was most-likely because he himself felt that everything was in fact, her fault. As soon as the play began, the plot to murder King Duncan started to form. It was no surprise that both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth wanted Duncan to die because if he did, Macbeth (Duncan’s nephew) would have a good chance at becoming king. Macbeth started to have the idea of the murder after his meeting with the prophecies. In Act 1-Scene 3 when Macbeth first got the idea for the murder, he was actually scared about the images that were going on in his head. When Lady Macbeth became aware of Macbeth’s idea in Act 1-Scene 5, she began to persuade him into going through with his plan. In
Macbeth's transformation from a respected leader to a despised and isolated tyrant
Macbeth’s Transformation from a Respected Leader to a Despised and Isolated Tyrant If we are to experience tragic empathy with our protagonist, it is essential to acknowledge that he is no shallow killer but a man who moves tragically from a respected leader to a despised and isolated tyrant. It is this decline which constitutes his personal transformation. Helen Gardner describes Macbeth’s transformation as a path to damnation beginning at one extreme and ending at the other: “From a brave and loyal general, to a treacherous murderer, to a hirer of assassins, to an employer of spies, to a butcher, to a coward, to a thing with no feeling for anything but itself, to a monster and a hell-hound.” The opening plaudits of the play present Macbeth as a military hero with references to him as “brave Macbeth”, “Valour’s minion” and “Bellona’s bridegroom”. We are told of his success in war but through the descriptions of his actions on the battlefield, we learn that he is a man well accustomed to bloodshed and slaughter. We wonder should this have been a warning to us from the very beginning that he has no problem with the aspect of killing people? However, we await his personal arrival to assess his moral character. Confronted with witches and their prophecy about his future kingship, Macbeth cannot but be deeply disturbed and excited. He is impatient to hear
Banquos principles have been deeply compromised and we justifiably feel that he is not the innocent solider who met the Witches and scorned their prophecies.
“The Banquo Macbeth has killed is not the innocent soldier who met the witches and scorned their prophecies, nor the man who prayed to be delivered from temptation. He is a man whose principles have been deeply compromised.”Discuss. “All that is required for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing”. Edmund Burke, the Irish politician warned of the over-reaching powers of governments and powerful men that have been allowed to get out of control. His words remain true to this day and they entirely capture the situation that Banquo found himself in with Macbeth’s meteoric rise to power and subsequent abuse of that power. Banquo was a good man. He was the noble and loyal soldier and friend that fought for king and country. However he is most notable by the end of Shakespeare’s play for having done nothing to stop Macbeth becoming a tyrant. Banquo was once the innocent soldier and a wise ally to Macbeth however it cannot be denied that he was suspicious of Macbeth after Duncan’s murder. Rather than conforming to his apparently righteous nature he chooses inaction and at no point tries to avert the tragedy that eventually happens. Therefore there is no doubt, I believe, that Banquo died a man morally compromised and whose principles had been strained to breaking point. In the beginning we see Banquo at his best: the perfect and innocent soldier. The reports
The relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth and how it changes throughout the play
Daniel Coetsee 0E- Coursework-Kings School-Grantham The relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth and how it changes throughout the play There are two central characters in the play Macbeth, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. They are married to each other which gives us a sense of a strong relationship at the start of the play. He is a successful soldier and she is a loving and supporting wife. In act 1 scene 5 Macbeth sends a letter to Lady Macbeth, and in the letter he writes ‘This have I thought good to deliver thee, my dearest partner of greatness’, the use of this quote shows he admires his wife and treats her as an equal. When Lady Macbeth finds out about the prophecy that the witches told Macbeth about him becoming king, she jumps at the chance of becoming the queen. When she finds out that Duncan, the current king at the time, is going to be staying at their castle, she persuades Macbeth to kill him in order to pursue their goal in Macbeth becoming king. In act 1 scene 7 when Macbeth has doubts about murdering Duncan, Lady Macbeth persuades him by saying ‘from this time such I count thy love.’ Which means Lady Macbeth is saying if you don’t kill him you don’t love me. At this point the relationship between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth is strong but slowly beginning to deteriorate after their argument over whether to kill Duncan or not. Lady Macbeth decides
Examine Macbeth's mental deterioration throughout the play.
Examine Macbeth's mental deterioration throughout the play. Macbeth's character goes through a mental path during the play “Macbeth”. He is initially emotionally stable and devoted to his king; he then feels unsure about his intentions and deteriorates into an awareness based purely on belief; when this belief becomes less he feels unsure again. He ends his life in a noble death caused by his “return” to his stability and devotion. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth loves king Duncan, but when he is tempted by the three witches he starts his deteriorating mental path into evil. Initially the Captain of the battle tells Duncan that Macbeth has fought powerfully for his king and that is why he can be called "brave Macbeth". The following quotation is the one in which the Captain speaks to the King: For brave Macbeth (well he deserves that name) Disdaining Fortune, with his brandish'd steel, Which smok'd with bloody execution, Like valor's minion carved out his passage Till he faced the slave; (Captain, Act 1 Scene 2 Lines 18-22) These few lines are used by Shakespeare to give the first idea of how Macbeth is. He is considered a brave man that "disdaining Fortune" killed enemies until he got to "the slave". In this quotation, which ends with a caesura which is latin for "closing", it is important to understand that Macbeth laughed at Fortune which is
What do you think the significance of the witches is in Macbeth?
‘What do you think is the significance of the witches in Macbeth?’ The witches within Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ can be interpreted as providing a number of roles within the play which add not only to the plot but also to the atmosphere and fear evoked within the audience. Within the Jacobean period in which ‘Macbeth’ was first performed, witches were the subject of much public hysteria and superstition, with the King’s own beliefs being based on a long history of Christian paranoia about witchcraft. As a result, the witches can be seen as a supernatural influence within the play, linking them to the devil and other dark forces and playing on the real and current fears of what may have been a dominantly Christian audience. In this respect, a modern Gothic reading can be applied to the novel. The supernatural power of the witches is one of the first elements highlighted within the play, as in Scene 3 Banquo states they can ‘look into the seeds of time/And say which grain will grow and which will not.’ Therefore, from the outset the witches are highlighted as the fortune-tellers within the story, who hold an otherworldly power to see into the future. This gives them a greater level of power than the surrounding humans, and such power in the wrong hands may have created a sense of unease and unpredictability within the audience. Additionally, it is this power
