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MRS. CONTRERAS
Language Arts
9th Grade – Eng I IGCSE Honors
Room C209
Home Learning
PASS TO THE FRONT:
• Nothing due.
 Announcement…
• Please do not throw out any handouts I’ve
given you unless these were reading packets
we’ve already covered.
• Save all writing and grammar handouts.
 Weekly Forecast
1/8/07 – 1/12/07
• Monday – FCAT Practice (LAA244,LAA247, LAA248
packet pg 16-20. Read/discuss Shakespeare's "Macbeth"
Act V
• Tuesday – District FCAT writes prompt. Distribution of
Research Project.
• Wednesday – Read/discuss Shakespeare's "Macbeth" Act
II & III
• Thursday – Read/discuss Shakespeare's "Macbeth" Act
IV
• Friday – Verbs (Progressive, Emphatic, Shifting, Voice-
Passive/Active 151-156). Read/discuss Shakespeare's
"Macbeth" Wrap up text
 Home Learning
By Tuesday, 1/16:
• Read Introduction to Shakespeare, Globe and plays (slides to follow).
• Read & Complete Literary Analysis Form on "As You Like It."
Critically analyze the play (structure/arrangement, language/diction,
significance, patterns, etc.). You will be asked to share your best
insights on the play next week (Bloom’s Taxonomy: analysis &
evaluation).
• Read about sonnets pg 804, Petrarch, Ronsard, Shakespeare pg 806-
817.
• Finish grammar handouts 151-156.
• Film showing of "Othello" after school Tuesday, 1/16 (extra credit
towards class participation).

Have a great week!

 District FCAT Writing
Prompt:
• Many teenagers feel that the voting age should be
lowered from 18 to 16.
• Think about the effects of lowering the voting age
from 18 to 16.
• Now write to convince your state legislator whether
the voting age should be lowered from 18 to 16.
You have 45 minutes
Planning is essential!
 Verb Tenses Review:
•Base form – default/non-inflected - talk
•Present – base form (third person he/she/it add –s or –es) – talks
•Present participle – add –ing to base form + helping verb - are
talking
•Past – base form + -d or -ed (regular verbs)– talked. Irregular
verbs take on variety of forms - came
•Past participle – add –ed or –d to base form + helping verb – The
sisters have talked.
•Future – add will to base form – She will talk.
•Present Perfect – past tense of verb + has or have – I have
talked – She has talked
•Past Perfect – past participle + had – They had talked before we
did.
•Future Perfect – past participle + will have – They will have talked
before Saturday.
Renaissanc
e Theater
Globe Playhouse. Courtesy of Google Images.
Renaissance Theater
Noah’s Ark morality play. Courtesy of Google Images.

• Renaissance audiences were not new to

drama. In fact, they were accustomed to
miracle and mystery plays, the medieval
version of drama, which evolved as
reenactments of biblical stories and church
ceremonies and were put on in marketplaces
of towns. These morality plays, as they
became known taught people how to live
(Holt, Rinehart and Winston 283).
 Renaissance Theater
• By the mid-sixteenth
century, drama in England
was three centuries old, but
the idea of housing it in a
permanent structure was
new (284).
• Even after theaters were
built, plays were performed
in improvised spaces, such
as the large houses of
royalty and nobility (284).
Globe Playhouse. Courtesy of Google Images.
 The Making of
Shakespeare’s Globe
• In 1576, James Burbage, the father of
Shakespeare’s partner and fellow actor
Richard Burbage, built the first public
theater in the northern suburb of London
(284).
• After this initial theater, the Curtain
followed, as well as the Rose, Swan,
Fortune, Globe, Red Bull and the Hope
(284).
 The Globe
• Famous because many
Shakespearean plays were initially
performed there.
• The structure was built from
salvaged timbers from when the
Theater burned down in 1599.
• The more expensive seats were
those placed literally on either side of
the stage. This made certain patrons
more conspicuous but would have
been a nuisance to other audience
members and actors.
• The theater could squeeze together
up to three thousand spectators, a Globe Playhouse. Courtesy of Google Images.

reason theaters would close during

epidemics.
 The Globe
• Since the blueprints of the Globe
are not available to us, most
scholars accept as accurate the
reconstruction of the Globe by C.
Walter Hodges, whose drawings
appear to the left.
• The structure was three stories
high surrounding a spacious inner
yard open to the sky. The theater
was probably a sixteen-sided
polygon, giving it a circular
appearance.
• Shakespeare commonly referred
to the Globe as “this wooden O” in
his history play Henry V.
• There were probably two
entrances to the building, one for
Globe Playhouse 1599-1613 by C. Walter Hodges.
the public and one for theater
Courtesy of Google Images.
company.
 The Globe
• Admission cost one
penny, entitling a
spectator to be a
groundling. This person
was allowed to stand
next to other groundlings
which would gather
around the wooden
platform (stage) which
projected into the yard
seen to the right.
• Because actors were so
close to the audience,
every tiny nuance of an
actor’s performance
greatly impacted the Globe Playhouse and groundlings.

audience. Courtesy of Google Images.

 The Globe
• Actors were highly trained. They
could sing, dance, wrestle, fence,
clown, roar, weep and whisper.
• Large sensational effects were also
plentiful. For example, if someone
was to be carried into the heavens.
The actor would be strapped to a
rope and everyone pretended he was
being lifted towards the Heaven, the
top of the stage.
• The ceiling was painted with
elaborate suns, moons and stars,
also containing trapdoors for angels,
gods and spirits to descend onto the
stage or flown over the actors’ heads.
• Also, spectators loved to see witches
or devils emerge from trapdoors in
the stage, which everyone pretended
led down to Hell.
Globe Playhouse.
Courtesy of Google Images.
 The Globe
• The third part of the theater was
the tiring (from tire, an archaic
form of “attire”).
• This was a tall building that
contained machinery and dressing
rooms, providing a two story
backwall for the stage. As seen
on this picture, there is a gallery
above (perfect for Romeo climbing
up to Juliet’s window) and a
curtained space below.
• The gallery also had other
purposes. Spectators could sit
there. Musicians could perform
there, or parts of the play could be
acted there.
• The curtained spaces could serve
Globe Playhouse. as rooms from which the actors
Courtesy of Google Images.
would step out onto the stage to
be heard better.
 The Power of Make-Belief
• Renaissance audiences took for granted
that the theater cannot show “reality.”
• What this meant was that whatever
happened onstage was make-belief.
• When the audience saw actors carrying
lanterns, they knew it was night, even
though the sun was shining brightly
overhead. Often, instead of seeing a
scene, audiences heard it described, as
when Shakespeare has a character in
Hamlet exclaim over a sunrise,
“But look, the morn in russet
mantle clad / Walks o’er the
dew of yon high eastward hill”
(I.i.166-167).
• When a forest setting was required,
bushes or small trees were pushed onto “The Fog.”
the stage. There were no painted Courtesy of Google Images.

sceneries.
Renaissance Pomp & Pageantry
• Theaters were very ornate, and
their interiors were brightly
painted.
• Backstage area could be covered
with colorful tapestries or
hangings.
• Costumes were rich elaborate and
expensive.
• Audiences also enjoyed the
processions – religious, royal,
military- that occurred in many
plays, entering through one stage
door and exiting through the
opposite. Actors quickly changed
in the tiring house, keeping the
Queen Elizabeth I.
Courtesy of Google Images. processions going.
Renaissance Pomp & Pageantry
• Audiences not only expected to see
comedy or tragedy in the
Renaissance, but they also expected
music, both vocal and instrumental.
• Trumpets announced the play’s
beginning and important arrivals
within the play.
• High up in the gallery, musicians
played between acts and at other
appropriate times during the
performance. In fact, scattered
throughout most of the plays,
especially comedies, were songs.
• The music of Shakespearean plays
were the best of this kind, for the
playwright excelled in lyric and
dramatic poetry.
Ladies playing instruments.
Courtesy of Google Images.
Renaissance Pomp & Pageantry
• Audiences not only expected to see
comedy or tragedy in the Renaissance,
but they also expected music, both vocal
and instrumental.
• Trumpets announced the play’s
beginning and important arrivals within
the play.
• High up in the gallery, musicians played
between acts and at other appropriate
times during the performance. In fact,
scattered throughout most of the plays,
especially comedies, were songs.
• The music of Shakespearean plays were
the best of this kind, for the playwright
excelled in lyric and dramatic poetry.
Renaissance Music. Each song was spontaneously sung
Courtesy of Google Images.
during the play but adapted to the scene
and actor.
 Varying the Venue

Performance at castle. Courtesy of Google Images. Amboise Manor House. Courtesy of Google Images.

• Acting companies performed at other locations besides the public theaters.

• These two locations were often great halls of castles and manor houses like
those shown above.
• Portable stages were used for performances that would not include a need
to depict the heavens.
• Other than plays, typical performances at the above referenced locations
were those of bears being attacked by dogs.
 Sir William Shakespeare
• Shakespeare wrote more than 36 plays and over 150 poems.
• The poet’s work has generated much speculation, to include
whether someone else could have written the works themselves.
• Part of the reason for such speculation is that little is known about
the poet’s life, even though his life is better documented than other
dramatists of his time. Ben Jonson is perhaps the exception. The
two acted together and knew each other quite well.
• Jonson praised Shakespeare after his death, claiming that he was
“not of an age, but for all time.”

Shakespeare (1564-1616). Courtesy of Google Images.

 Sir William Shakespeare
• Shakespeare was born in Stratford-on-Avalon, a historic and prosperous market
town in Warwickshire, England.
• William’s father was John Shakespeare, a merchant once active in the town’s
government.
• His mother, Mary Arden, came from a prominent family.
• Young William attended grammar school, where he obtained an excellent education
in Latin, the Bible, and English composition.
• Students were expected to translate a Latin work into English and then translate
back to Latin.
• It is speculated that Shakespeare learned various trades prior to his fame.
• At eighteen, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway and had three children, a
daughter named Susanna and twins named Hamnet and Judith.

Shakespeare’s birthplace (Stratford-on-Avalon).

Courtesy of Google Images.

River Avon. Courtesy of Google Images.

•
Sir William Shakespeare
No one is sure how Shakespeare supported his new family, but according to tradition, he taught school for a few years.
• His two daughters grew up and married, but the boy died when he was just eleven.
• It is speculated that Shakespeare became interested in theater by seeing the regular performances that came to Stratford.
• To become a dramatist, the place to be was London, as the theaters were thriving in the 1580s.
• From 1592 on, there is plenty of documentation about Shakespeare’s work and life.
• Shakespeare worked from 1592 until retirement in about 1613.
• Even though actors had a very low social status, they did enjoy the patronage of noblemen and royalty. For instance, The Rape of Lucrece (1594)
was dedicated to a rich noblewoman. Poets under the patronage system often wrote poems alluding to their patrons. As word of mouth spread, a
poet could gain greater notoriety.
• He became famous after his publishing of his erotic narrative poem Venus and Adonis (1593).
• The extraordinary thing about Shakespeare’s work – each being different from others – is the fact that they deal with perennial themes, the principal
reason why they are still revived and performed.
 Sir William Shakespeare
• By 1596, Shakespeare was prospering. He had his father apply to the Heralds’ College for a coat of arms, signifying that they were now
“gentlefolk,” or people of high social standing.
• The poet also bought New Place, a beautiful and elegant house and grounds in Stratford. After Susanna inherited the house, the queen
stayed there one time.
• By 1598, Shakespeare was earning money as a playwright, actor and shareholder in a theater.
• By 1600, Shakespeare was regularly associating with aristocracy, with six of his plays performed at the court of Queen Elizabeth.
• Shakespeare also prospered under Elizabeth’s successor, King James of Scotland, performing several plays at court.
• King James loved performances, taking Shakespeare’s company under his patronage and renaming it the King’s Men, giving them patents
to perform anywhere in the realm. This much patronage brought Shakespeare great wealth and notoriety.
• After 1601, Shakespeare wrote some of his greatest tragedies, and many critics feel that he must have been unhappy as these are deeply
preoccupied with evil, violence and death. This is an invented “tragic period” as it would be a mistake to assume a one-to-one correlation
between work and a poet, like Shakespeare, who wrote to impress patrons.
 Sir William Shakespeare
• After retirement in about 1610, Shakespeare continued to
remain busy with the running the King’s Men and their two
theaters: the Globe (1599) useful for outdoor performances
and the Blackfriars (1608), used for indoor performances.
• When the queen died in 1603, Shakespeare did not praise
her in print. It was speculated that Shakespeare was an
admirer of the earl of Essex, whom the queen had executed
for rebellion.
• The Globe caught on fire in 1613 at the firing of the cannon
at the end of Act I of Henry VIII.
• After Shakespeare’s death in 1616, his partners gathered all
his plays. These works, known as the “first folio” were later
published in 1623.
 Shakespearean Works…
•
•
Richard II (1595-1596)
Henry IV (1596-1597) • Timon of Athens (1607-1608)
• Henry V (1599)
•
•
Julius Caesar (1599)
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1595-1596)
• Pericles (1607-1608)
•
•
The Merchant of Venice (1596-1597)
Much Ado About Nothing (1598-1599) • Cymbeline (1609-1610)
• As You Like It (1598-1600)
•
•
Twelfth Night (1600-1601)
Hamlet (1600-1601)
• The Winter’s Tale (1610-1611)
•
•
The Merry Wives of Windsor (1600-1601)
Othello (1601-1602) • The Tempest (1611-1612)
•
•
All’s Well that Ends Well (1602-1603)
•
•
Measure for Measure (1604)
King Lear (1605)
The Two Noble Kinsmen (1612)
•
•
Macbeth (1606-1607)
Antony and Cleopatra (1606-1607) • Henry VIII (1613)
TRAGEDY: a kind of COMEDY: By contrast
work in which human the character in a
actions have inevitable comedy do not live
consequences. The under this iron law of
characters’ bad deeds, cause and effect; they
errors, mistakes, and can do whatever they
crimes are never please as long as they
forgiven or rectified. In amuse their audience
tragedy, an ill-judged and as long as the funny
action will mess they have created
remorselessly lead to a is cleaned up at the end
“Fate has given this man a spirit
Which is always pressing onwards, beyond control,
And whose mad striving overleaps
All joys of the earth between pole and pole.
Him shall I drag through the wilds of life
And through the flats of meaningless,
I shall make him flounder and gape and stick
And to tease his insatiableness
Hang meat and drink in the air before his watering lips;
In vain he will pray to slake his inner thirst,
And even had he not sold himself to the devil
He would be equally accursed”
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,
from Faust (German 1749-1832)
 Introduction to “Macbeth” (1605-
• Play conforms to the general1606)
rule of Renaissance tragedies, in which
the drama had to be about real people whose deeds are recorded in
history (legendary figures).
• Shakespeare took the main events of Macbeth’s career as king of
Scotland (1040-1057) from Raphael Holinshed’s Chronicles of
England, Scotland, and Ireland (1577).
• There were significant differences between the real Macbeth and
Shakespeare’s fictionalized character. First, the real Macbeth had a
more legitimate claim to King Duncan’s throne and gained the throne
with the help of other nobles dissatisfied with King Duncan. The real
Macbeth also ruled successfully.
• In contrast, Shakespeare’s Macbeth has no supporters except his wife.
Their union brings nothing but disaster and violence to Scotland.
• Shakespeare wanted to examine the attitudes of this time. As a
backdrop to the play, the Gunpowder Plot scandal of 1605 was still
fresh in people’s minds. Catholic zealots had plotted to blow up King
James I and his Protestant Parliament. For Shakespeare’s audience,
this play would have been a thriller, threatening an anointed king and
the perceived evil behind such an act.
• Indeed Macbeth threatens the social order in a Scotland of the distant
past.
 Introduction to “Macbeth” (1605-
1606)
• Because King James had recently survived an attack, the play would
have appealed to him, particularly as Duncan is depicted as a good
king.
• James also was a Scot who defended the ideal that he ruled by
“divine right.”
• James also claimed to be a descendant of Banquo, to whom the
witch says, “Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none.”
• Because James hated sitting through long plays, Macbeth is also one
of the shortest plays Shakespeare ever wrote, lending proof that this
play was intended for court performance even if there is no evidence
that this ever took place.
• Macbeth is also more concerned with psychological truth than
historical fact. For this reason, it’s all about human nature.
• Moreover, the story foregrounds the importance of our choices and
decisions, particularly when the consequences of just one action can
alter the entire course of a person’s life.
• Could one selfish impulse lead to a chain of decisions that result in
greater anguish of soul? The seeds of tragedy often lie in the most
insignificant or excusable actions. Macbeth’s ambition and corrosive
guilt compel our understanding of the darkness of the human soul.
 Literary Analysis Form
• Tragedy • Symbol • Themes
• Paradox • Comic Relief • Figurative
• Characters • Soliloquy Language
• Conflict • Metaphor • Context
• Resolution • Turning Point • Protagonist
• Contrast • Dumb Show • Antagonist
• Irony • Asides • Rising Action
• Foreshadow • Meter • Falling Action
• Suspense • Parody • Complications
• Mood • Climax
• Images • Tragic Hero
 More on Tragedy…
• Macbeth is mentioned for the first time. He is the tragic
hero. This is usually a man of high social rank, usually
dignified and courageous whose downfall (tragic flaw) or
error in judgment may result from forces beyond his
control. The tragic hero usually gains some self-knowledge
yet is doomed to death or defeat.
• Basing his work on Greek drama of the fifth century BC,
Aristotle noted the elements necessary to tragedy, which
in turn influenced Elizabethan interpretation of tragedy.
Aristotle wrote that tragedy centers on a hero, generally of
high status, who possesses a weakness, or tragic flaw,
that ultimately causes the character’s downfall. The
catastrophe and its resolution leave the audience with a
sense of catharsis, which is a purgation or cleansing.
 Act I Questions to Ponder…
1) What are your impressions of Lady Macbeth at the end
of Act I? What is her relationship with Macbeth (beyond
being his wife)? What details in this act support your
impressions?
2) In the very first scene of a play, a dramatist must tell the
audience what kind of play they are about to see. What
does the brief opening of Macbeth reveal about the rest
of the play? How does the weather reflect the human
passions revealed in the rest of the act?
3) How does the witches’ prophecy of Macbeth’s coming
greatness act as a temptation for him?
4) Explain the paradox in the witches greeting to Banquo in
I.iii: “Lesser than Macbeth, and greater.” How is this
paradox true?
 Act I Questions to Ponder…
5) How does Banquo’s reaction to the witches differ from
Macbeth’s? What do you think Macbeth’s reaction suggests
about his character?
6) One of the most interesting parts of any serious play is what
goes on in the characters’ minds. What conflict rages in
Macbeth after he hears the witches’ prophecy? What
resolution to this conflict does Macbeth express in his aside,
in I.iv.48-53?
7) Find details in the play that point to temperamental contrasts
between Macbeth and his wife. Who is more single-minded
and logical? Who is more argumentative and sensitive?
Which one wins the argument?
8) What irony would the audience feel as they watch Duncan enter
the castle and her him praise its peacefulness?
9) One critic has said that the witches are “in some sense
representative of potentialities within Macbeth. How could that
statement be explained? Is there any evidence in this act for
the argument that Macbeth has wanted to king before?
 The Melody of Language: Blank
Verse
• Almost all of Macbeth is written in blank
verse or unrhymed iambic pentameter, a
form of poetry that comes close to
imitating the natural rhythms of English
speech.
• An “iamb” is a metrical foot that has one
unstressed syllable followed by one
stressed syllable. For example:
Măc/béth, sŭc/céss, tǒ wín.
Banquo: Good Sir, why do you start and
seem to fear…
 Act II Questions to Ponder…
1) What was your reaction to the murder of Duncan? Why do you
think Shakespeare decided to murder Duncan and his guards
offstage, employing the dramatic technique of elision?
2) Though Macbeth encounters no actual opposition until long after
Duncan is murdered, Shakespeare must foreshadow some trouble
for him and, to build up suspense, must start one character edging
toward suspicion of Macbeth. Who is this character and what
inkling does he have of his dissatisfaction with Macbeth?
3) In I.vii, Lady Macbeth seemed to be planning to murder Duncan
herself. But at the last moment in II.ii, she is unable to wield her
dagger. Consider the reason she gives, and decide what her
actions and explanation reveal about her character.
4) In II.iii, when Duncan’s corpse is discovered, Macbeth utters a
hypocritical lament. Is it truly hypocritical? The critic A.C. Bradley
argues that, although the speech is meant to be a lie, it actually
contains Macbeth’s profoundest feelings. Explain the apparent
contradiction.
5) Lady Macbeth’s fainting spell, like everything else she has done so
far, has a purpose. What message do you think she wants to
convey?
 Act II Questions to Ponder…
6) Macduff becomes an important character in the three
remaining acts. Describe how Shakespeare
characterizes him in II.iii-iv.
7) What would you say is the mood of Act II? What images
and actions help to create this mood? Why might images
of blood and water appear in II.ii? What do they
symbolize?
8) A terrible murder is commited in this act. How do various
characters respond to the violence?
9) In some productions of the play, II.iv is cut. Why would this
be done? Is there any dramatic purpose for keeping it?
Why do you think the Old Man is included in the scene?
 Act III Questions to Ponder…
1) What title would you give Act III?
2) Why do you suppose Shakespeare did not have
Macbeth kill Banquo with his own hands, as he killed
Duncan and his two guards? What can you infer about
Macbeth’s changing character after seeing how he
engages in this complex plan involving professional
murderers?
3) The relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth
has changed in several ways since they become rulers
of Scotland. Find details in this act that reveal some of
these changes. What reasons can you suggest for these
changes?
4) In II.ii, Macbeth describes his surroundings by saying,
“Light thickens, and the crow/ Makes wing to th’rooky
wood.” How can these remarks also be seen as a
metaphorical commentary on the events of the play?
What other remarks by Macbeth function in this way?
 Act III Questions to Ponder…
5) In Shakespeare’s tragedies, a turning point usually occurs
in the third act. At this moment, something happens that
moves the action ever downward to its tragic conclusion.
How is Fleance’s escape a turning point in the play?
6) How does the banquet scene blur the clear-cut and
common-sense distinction that most of us make between
the real and the imaginary? In what other scens has this
distinction also been blurred?
7) At the beginning of III.ii, Lady Macbeth quietly tgells
herself, “Nought’s had, all’s spent, / Whare our desire is
got without content.” What does she mean? At this point
would her husband agree?
8) Nobody except Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost. In some
productions of the play, the ghost does not appear
onstage; in others it does. If you were the director, which
would you choose?
 Act IV Questions to Ponder…
1) What effect did the brutal murders of Lady Macduff and her
son have on your? Have your feelings for Macbeth
changed from the opening of the play until now? How do
you account for your reactions?
2) In this act, Macbeth seeks out the witches, just as they
initiated the encounter in Act I. How has Macbeth’s
situation changed since he last talked with the witches?
How has his moral character deteriorated?
3) Do you think the witches have cause3d any of these
changes, directly or indirectly? Explain.
4) In IV.i, the eight kings appear in what was called in
Shakespeare’s day a dumb show- an interpolated brief
scene in which nothing is said. What is the point of this
show?
5) In IV.ii, the lines spoken by Macduff’s wife and son illustrate
Shakespeare’s great skill at characterization. Using only a
few words he brings the woman and child to life. How
would you describe them?
 Act IV Questions to Ponder…
6) Both the murderer and Lady Macduff herself call Macduff a
traitor. In what sense does each mean it? Do you think
Macduff is a traitor, in either sense?
7) In IV.iii, Malcolm deliberately lies to Macduff. What does this
behavior, and the reason for it, reveal about Malcolm that
wasn’t true of Duncan?
8) In IV.iii, Malcolm and Macduff decry the chaos Macbeth’s rule
has brought to Scotland. How are these related?
9) The murder of Macduff’s small son is one of the most pitiful
and shocking scenes in Shakespeare. Do you think it might
have been better to use elision rather than showing the
carnage onstage? What would be lost and gained?
 Act V Questions to Ponder…
1) How do you feel about what happens to Macbeth’s body
after he is dead?
2) Theatrically, the spectacle of Lady Macbeth walking in her
sleep is one of the most striking scenes in the play. It is
entirely Shakespeare’s invention. Why do you suppose the
playwright has her walking in her sleep? How is this related
to the remarks Macbeth makes about sleep in II.ii, just after
he kills Duncan?
3) In the sleepwalking scene, Lady Macbeth refers to many of
her waking experiences. For example, words “One: two”
may refer to the moment in II.I when she struck the bell for
Macbeth to kill Duncan. Find traces of other experiences in
what she says.
4) At the end of Act IV, Malcolm says, “The night is long that
never finds the day.” In what metaphorical sense does he
use the terms night and day. How does his remark
foreshadow the outcome of the play?
 Act V Questions to Ponder…
5) The last of Macbeth contains the play’s climax – the most
emotional and suspenseful part of the action- the moment
when the character’s conflict is finally resolved. Which part
of Act V do you consider the climax?
6) Shakespeare gave most of this tragic heroes an impressive
dying speech in which they say something significant about
their own life and death. Although he did not write such a
speech for Macbeth, do you think such a speech would
have served the dramatic effect of the play? How so? What
would Macbeth have said?
7) What are your reactions to the idea expressed by Macbeth
that life “is a tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, /
Signifying nothing”?
8) William Davenant, who claimed to be the son of
Shakespeare, added another sleepwalking scene to
Macbeth. The ghost of Duncan chases Lady Macbeth. Do
you think this diminishes the characterization of the ghost,
it’s impact on the play?
Act I 2) In the very first scene of a play, a dramatist must tell
the audience what kind of play they re about to see. What
does the brief opening of Macbeth reveal about the rest of
the play? How does the weather reflect the human
Question #2 passions revealed in the rest of the act?

PLAY slideshow to view effects/sounds

The brief opening on Macbeth, stating there is thunder and lightning,

serves as a clue to what you can expect from reading Macbeth. The brief
opening reveals a spooky, gloomy, and mysterious atmosphere. I could
forebode that, in the play, I would encounter numerous tragic deaths,
driven malicious people, and many accounts of misfortune. The bad
weather reveals how several characters in the play will experience a chain
of horrible days that may include: a quarrel, a dirty conscious, a stab in the
back, a lost war, or even an atrocity. Human passions reflected by the
murky weather are greed, deceitfulness, viciousness, sinfulness,
naughtiness, enticing, wickedness, and power-hungry.
The witches prophecy of Macbeth’s coming
greatness act as a temptation for him?

The witches prophecy is that he will

become king. Therefore he wants to go out
and actually become the king, and actually
he has a driving force of ambition, he
wants to go out and pursue the witches
prophecy.
• When the witches say
this to Banquo they mean
to say that he in rank is
lesser than Macbeth. But
in life, he is a greater
person and has better
characteristics as well as
a better personality. Like
saying he is more noble.
Act I # 5 - How does Banquo’s reaction to the witches differ
from Macbeth’s? What do you think Macbeth’s reaction
suggests about his character?
• Banquo’s reaction can be described as
curious and respectful in a way
because he doesn’t automatically want
to know who they are to judge whether
or not the witches are an enemy, as
Macbeth does. “Speak then to me,
who neither beg nor fear your favors
nor your hate” (I.iii Line 60)
• Banquo does not fear them, on the
other hand he likes them, and
especially after they speak their
prophesy for the witches say he will
have kings for sons. “Thou shalt get
kings, though thou be none” (I.iii Line
67).
• Macbeth on the other hand seemed
paranoid, apprehensive and afraid,
and right off the bat wanted to know
who they were and what they were
doing there “Speak if you can: what
are you?” (I.iii Line 46).
• This reaction suggests that he has
something to hide, and that his
conscience is bothering him. This
prophesy was like wood for a burning fire
of ambition for Macbeth. As I previously
stated, Macbeth was not to thrilled about
having the witches there, but once they
told him he was bound for kingship he
wished that they would stay a little longer
and continue to feed his ego and power
hungry self. He says “Would they have
stayed!” (I.iii Line 82).
• This also implies in a way that Macbeth
was only happy to hear of his future
political position because it benefited him
(distrust and disloyalty) some qualities
that we come to find clearly later.
• It also implies that Banquo is a better
man when he is thrilled simply because
his sons will achieve greatness in the
future demonstrating loyalty and
kindness (the opposite of Macbeth) the
witches even agree “Lesser than
Macbeth, and greater” lesser in rank, but
better a man.
 Act I #7 - Find details in the play that point to temperamental
contrasts between Macbeth and his wife. Who is more single-
minded and logical? Who is more argumentive and sensitive?
Which one wins the argument?
Temperamental contrasts between Macbeth and his wife include:
Macbeth If we should fail?
Lady Macbeth We fail? But screw your courage to the sticking place, and we’ll
not fail…

Macbeth We will speak further.

Lady Macbeth Only look up clear: to alter favor ever is to fear. Leave all the
rest to me.

Lady Macbeth is more single-minded and logical because she makes sure that no
matter Macbeth will get his crown. She makes a plan, and doesn’t care what has to be
done in order for him to get the crown. On the other hand, Macbeth is more
argumentive and sensitive because he argues towards Lady Macbeth about her
opinion. Lady Macbeth wins the argument.
 Act I: #9
One critic has said that the witches are “in some sense
representative of potentialities within Macbeth. How could this
statement be explained? Is there any evidence in this act for the
argument that Macbeth has wanted to be king before?
The witches in the story are representatives of evil, deceit,
and plotting resembling that of the Fates in Greek mythology. In the
beginning of the play, the Weird Sisters plotted against a sailor’s
wife. Later on in the story, Macbeth finds himself plotting against
various characters such as King Duncan and Banquo in order to
fulfill his ambitious plan. Macbeth shows himself to be brave yet
violent; courageous yet lacking of virtue. (I.ii.16-18) King Duncan
himself favored Macbeth and was the one to appoint him Thane of
Cawdor. It is likely to correctly assume that Macbeth acted to win
the favor of King Duncan and later betray him. The predictions of
the Weird Sisters asserted that Macbeth would become king. In Act
I Scene 4, Macbeth said “Stars, hid your fires! Let not light see my
black and deep desires…” This could mean that this desire had
already been deeply instilled in his mind before the witches uttered
the prophecy. This only acted as a push of confidence that fed a
thirst he had long ago acquired.
 Act 2 Question 1
• 1. What was your reaction to the murder of Duncan? Why do you think Shakespeare
decided to murder Duncan and his guards offstage, employing the dramatic technique of
elision?
At first, I was surprised that Macbeth killed Duncan because
Duncan talked very well about Macbeth (I. 6.21-24), but then again I
wasn’t so surprised because Macbeth didn’t want anyone or anything to
get in his way of him getting the throne. I think Shakespeare decided to
murder Duncan and his guards offstage because he wanted to get the
imagination of a gruesome death to the audience. Also, Macbeth was still
in the hiding or “in the closet” of him wanting to kill anyone who came
between him and the throne. He was just starting to kill people and didn’t
want to show it off right away. Later on in the play, all his murders were
shown and he was “ out of the closet”. His true character was shown; a
bad guy who would kill anyone that came in his way.
 Macbeth: Act II Question #3
In I. vii, Lady Macbeth seemed to be planning to murder Duncan herself. But at the
last moment in II. ii, she is unable to wield her dagger. Consider the reason she gives,
and decide what her actions and explanation reveal about her character.

She said she couldn’t kill Duncan because, before she had said he resembled her father
while sleeping. Earlier she also said that she would rip her breast out of her suckling
baby’s mouth and smash its head in, saying nothing would hold her back from doing
anything. It’s interesting because she would protect an older generation (her father) over
a younger generation (her suckling baby). So she’s, in a way, contradicting herself.
Act II # 4 - In II iii, when Duncan’s corpse is discovered, Macbeth utter
a hypocritical lament. Is it truly hypocritical? The critic A.C.Bradley
argues that, although the speech is meant to be a lie, it actually
contains Macbeth’s profoundest feelings. Explain the apparent
contradiction.
With a cry of “O horror, horror, horror!” Duncan’s body is
revealed dead. The chamberlains were the ones blamed and
Macbeth declared that he had killed them. Macduff was
suspicious so Macbeth hypocritically says that his anger
towards Duncan's death was so strong that he couldn’t restrain
himself from killing the chamberlains. Which I do believe is
hypocritical since in my opinion he does not pity the man but is
glad. After Duncan's death his purpose was only to seize control
of the nobility and to become king of Scotland. A.C Bradley
argues and says that his speech contains his profoundest
feelings, meaning he believes that Macbeth was taking pity for
him in reality, and that maybe he regrets what he had done to
his friend. I don’t agree with this; I simply believe his lament
was just a hypocritical statement to seem innocent and to avoid
further suspicions from Macduff, his “nemesis.”
 Act II # 5 - Lady Macbeth’s fainting
spell, like everything else she has done
so far, has a purpose. What message do
you think she wants to convey ?
I think the message that Lady Macbeth is trying to convey by
the fainting spell was if she fainted, it would convey an image
that they are surprised by the murder and it came as a
complete shock to her when she heard about the killing. I
think she did it so it would draw away any suspicion of her
being involved in the murder.
 Macduff
Act II # 6. Macduff becomes an important character
in the three remaining acts. Describe how
Shakespeare characterizes him in II. iii-iv.

In scenes three through four MacDuff appears

simply as a kind person. He worries of Porter who is
ill due to too drinking the previous night. Not only
that but he “rings the bell” and alerts everyone of
the death of Duncan. During this time, most
importantly he begins to feel suspicious of Kind
Duncan’s death. He feels like Macbeth is to blame for
the death of the recently deceased king.
 Act II Number 7.
• 7. What would you say is the mood of Act II? What images
and actions help to create this mood? Why might images of
blood and water appear in II.ii? What do they symbolize?
I would say the mood of Act II is one in which the
reader is left in suspense. One is not sure if Mac Beth will
indeed kill King Duncan. Once the deed is done however,
one reads that Lady Mac Beth did not hear a cry from
Duncan, letting the reader truly ponder if anyone heard Mac
Beth kill the king. And If Mac Beth will be discovered.
Images of blood and water might appear in Act two Scene
two due to the fact that King Duncan was just killed, thus
the blood resembling his death and the water resembling the
attempts of Lady Mac Beth to “wash the blood from her
hands” or in other words, make the couple seem innocent in
the crime.
 Act II question 9: In some productions of the play, II.iv is cut. Why
would this be done? Is there any dramatic purpose for keeping it?
Why do you think the Old man is included in the scene?

• It would be cut because it talks about topics that

are later repeated during the play. It could be
kept to create more drama in the play because
the old man and Rosse are speaking about very
sad things which could create a mood for the
play or the scene. I think the old man is included
in the scene because the conversation was
supposed to be between Rosse and another
person but it couldn’t be a main character. And
also because the old man could be considered
wise because of his age.
 Macbeth: Act III

#3. The relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth has changed in
several ways since they became rulers of Scotland. Find details in this act
that reveal some of these changes. What reasons can you suggest for these
changes?

– Before Macbeth and Lady Macbeth became rulers of Scotland, Lady Macbeth had the upper hand in
the relationship, so to speak. She was very controlling and conniving towards Macbeth. She would
tell him what to do, even if it meant controlling his actions. If Macbeth wasn’t sure about something,
Lady Macbeth would manipulate him into thinking the way she did. Also, Macbeth would
sometimes simply follow Lady Macbeth, since she was the driving force behind any destructive and
evil plan. Lady Macbeth was ashamed of her husband, as well. For example, when Macbeth wasn’t
sure about killing Duncan, she wondered about his manhood. However, after they became rulers of
Scotland, everything changed. Lady Macbeth developed a serious sleeping disorder. Mostly due to
the subconcious guilt of creating a crime of such degree as killing King Duncan. Because of her
disorder, Macbeth became deeply ashamed by her. His only want and need was to have her
delusions cured immediately, so that she would seem less of a madwomen.
 Macbeth Act 3 Question 4
• 4. In Act 2 Scene 2 Macbeth describes his surroundings by saying, “Light
thickens, and the crow/Makes wings to th’rooky wood.” How can these
remarks also be seen as a metaphorical commentary on the events of the
play? What other remarks by Macbeth function in this way?
• This shows what a tragedy the play is, representing that there’s no life in
Scotland and everything is dead. These lines show the feelings of Macbeth
for power and conquest and what Macbeth will do to reach his ultimate
goal: heir of the throne and noticed leader. Throughout the whole play
Macbeth starts out good, but power overtakes his mind making him kill
people. Macbeth isn’t confident with his power he wants to outshine his
power. This ambition leads to his ultimate doom hell, which these lines say.
In a ruler’s life he becomes more of a dictator, less of a friend to the people
and their ambitions outcasts these rulers and hurt them and others.
 Act 3 Question 4 continued…
• Macbeth’s power is seen in these lines: “Ay, and a bold one,
that dare look on that which might appall the devil” (Line
57 pg. 1374). This states that Macbeth is boasting his
power, that he can stop the devil. Macbeth can defeat
anyone.
• You can see Macbeth’s future path in these lines “There
the grown serpent lies; the worm that’s fled hath nature
that in time will venom breed” (Line 28 pg. 1374). This
states that later Macbeth will spread sadness especially to
himself leading his doom: hell and death.
 Conclusion of Text
• This text “Macbeth” shows what power can do to a man. A
leader can start out good but in the end he disappoints
himself and others. It represents what one person would do
to be noticed as a leader to the world by murders. At the
end Macbeth can’t overcome his past which leads to death
inside the soul and body, a death that Macbeth can’t face
with his power.
Act III # 5 - In Shakespeare’s tragedies, a turning point usually occurs
in the third act. At this moment, something happens that moves the
action ever downward to its tragic conclusion. How is Fleance’s escape
a turning point in the play?

In the beginning of the act, Macbeth has made it clear

he wants Banquo dead as well as his son. “Fleance his
son, that keeps him company, Whose absence is no less
material to me Than is his father's…” (act III, scene
I).
But as the murderers kill Banquo, he pleads to his son
“O, treachery! Fly, good Fleance, fly, fly, fly! Thou
mayst revenge…”
(act III, scene III). And Fleance complies his father’s
last wish and escapes his bloody fate.
As Banquo’s ghost later reveals himself to Macbeth, he
becomes unstill. With Fleance’s prophecy of becoming
king, at this point in the story it is a possibility that the
position Macbeth has tried to maintain, may be taken
away from him. “Hath so exasperate the king that he
Prepares for some attempt of war.” (act III, scene VI).
This is a huge turning point in the play where the main
characters biggest fear may actually become reality.
 Act III
6) How does the banquet scene blur the clear-cut and
common-sense distinction that most of us make between the
real and the imaginary? I what other scenes has this
distinction also been blurred.
When Macbeth was eating at the dinner table, he thought he
saw a ghost but it was just his conscience, their was no
ghost. This was an example of how the banquet scene blur
of the clear-cut and common-sense distinction that most of
us make between the real and the imaginary. Scene four is
another scene that shows distinction also been blurred.
 Act III #7. At the beginning of III.ii, Lady Macbeth
quietly tells herself, “Nought’s had, all’s spent/ Where
our desire is got without content.” What does she
mean? At this point, would her husband agree?
• What she means by “Nought’s had, all’s spent/
Where our desire is got without content”
(Shakespeare, 4-5) is that after the plot had been
done, they have gotten no satisfaction from its
results. By killing King Duncan, Macbeth would
become the king, and even after this happens,
suspicions arose on who killed him. Lady Macbeth
kept fearing the secret would be spilled out and this
fear keeps her from enjoying their high position. As
to whether her husband would agree, I think he
wouldn’t. Macbeth’s power has gotten to his head
and he can’t control it. However, he feels powerful
and feels that murder can solve anything. After first,
he was afraid of such notion, yet now he feels
superior and believes the deed done was right.
 Act 3 Question # 8

Nobody except Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost. In some productions

of the play, the ghost does not appear onstage: in others it does.
If you were the director, which would you choose?

If I were the director I would choose for Banquo’s ghost not

to appear, so that the audience doesn’t see him, and to make
the audience look for him but they won’t be able to find
Banquo. Macbeth would say his dialogue, while the actor
playing Banquo would say his lines off stage. Macbeth would
have to act like if Banquo were really there.
 Act IV #2
• In the first encounter Macbeth had with the witches, they
told him about his "coming greatness" (which meant he
was going to be king). During the first encounter
Macbeth felt like he couldn't be stopped by anyone, so
his moral character was strong, even though Lady
Macbeth had "the pants in the relationship".Macbeth
used to be a stronger person because he could kill
people without the slightest worry. But now he has
become a weaker person (mentally) because since he
saw Banquo's ghost and the imaginary dagger, he has
developed a sort of guilty conscious. This prevents him
from being the ruthless killer he was earlier in the story.
He has deteriorated mentally, and morally.
Macbeth Study Questions
Act IV # 3 - Do you think the witches have caused
any of these changes, directly or indirectly? Explain.
I think, in directly, the witches did cause some of those
changes. Them telling him, “hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor.
All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter, (Shakespeare
1362/Act I Sc III Line 47-50)” caused him to do things he
would have otherwise never thought of doing like murdering
Duncan to fulfill the prophecy. The witches are to (indirectly)
blame for this because, seeing as how the first prediction
came true, Macbeth became greedy and killed King Duncan
to become king. Had the witches never spoke such
predictions, Macbeth would probably no have gotten the idea
of becoming a murder in the fight for rule. He also wouldn’t
have ordered Banquo and his son murdered had they not
told Banquo, “Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none,
(Shakespeare 1362/Act I Sc III Line 67-68)” in an attempt to
protect his crown/throne.
Act IV. #5
In IV.ii, the lines spoken by Macduff’s wife and son illustrate Shakespeare’s great
skill at characterization. Using only a few words he brings the woman and child to
life. How would you describe them?

The lines spoken by Lady Macduff show that she is not so

understanding toward her husband and his motifs for leaving. She is
convinced that he betrayed her and her son.
She is unhappy because she feels that Macduff instead of having left so
he wouldn’t get killed and also, leaving on a crusade, whose mission
was to place the rightful king Malcolm on the throne. Should have
been there to protect her and his son because now they were the
ones in danger.
The child is more naive and can’t really analyze what is going on but, so
he is very questioning, but still is not as mad as Lady Macduff toward
her husband. At the end of the scene he tries to defend the image of
his father when the murderer calls Macduff a traitor but he ends up
getting killed.
 Act IV Question VI
• I think in the sense that they call Macduff a
traitor is because she is bitter towards her
husband and her children. I think that she
is a traitor because she makes promises
and breaks it. (line 45, scene 2)
 Act IV: #7
In IV.iii, Malcolm deliberately lies to Macduff. What
does this behavior, and the reason for it, reveal about
Malcolm that wasn’t true of Duncan?
Duncan was a benevolent king who kept order in the
Scottish land he ruled over. Altruistic king Duncan placed his
trust in Macbeth without truly knowing him or having him
pass a test of loyalty. His son Malcolm seemed to relieve the
tension that existed during Macbeth’s reign when he was
placed in power. Malcolm deliberately lied to Macduff because
he doubted Macduff’s true allegiance to the people and the
monarchy. Malcolm told Macduff his supposed faults and
evils that could endanger the Scottish people during his reign.
Macduff reacted as Malcolm wished, and his adherence to
Scottland proved to Macduff that he was worthy. Malcolm was
suspicious of those around him; this prevented him from
making the same error King Duncan made by foolishly and
blindly trusting in Macbeth.
8) In IV. iii., Malcolm and Macduff decry
the chaos Macbeth’s rule has brought to
Scotland. How are these related?

Macduff just like Macbeth wanted to become king of

Scotland, and be able to govern and rule the land of Scotland.
Macduff tries to make sure that nothing will get in his way of his
chances of ruling Scotland. He does this when he makes sure that
Malcolm isn’t fit to govern Scotland or even to live. Macbeth has
brought chaos to the land of Scotland. Likewise, Macduff realizes that
Malcolm isn’t fit to govern Scotland as he would cause chaos.
 ACT IV – Question # 9
*EXTRA Background
CREDIT Picture:
* Macbeth and
the
Question : The Murder of Macduff’s small son is one of the murderers

most pitiful and shocking scenes in Shakespeare. Do you think

it might have been better to use elision rather than showing the
carnage onstage? What would be lost and gained?

I do not believe it would be better to use elision in this particular

event because the stabbing of a boy on the stage would leave the audience
breathless. Also, the conversation between the murderer and the boy led to
the murder, so the audience would be expecting something to happen to the
boy either way, and its best to show it. If you were to use elusion, it could be
difficult to imagine the boy being stabbed and telling his mother ”He has
killed me, mother. Run away, I pray you!”. Most people would not even want
to think of this happening and by placing it onstage, they are forced to live
the moment.
By showing the carnage on stage rather than using elusion, it may be
difficult to act out the event and make it look realistic. By doing this you are
losing a portion of the tragic mortifying mood because it would be difficult to
realistically portray blood or a dagger in someone’s actual body. What you
gain the audience’s attention and everyone thinking of relatively the same
way he was murdered, which I believe adds more precision to the play.
 Act V # 5 - The last of Macbeth contains the play’s climax – the most
emotional and suspenseful part of the action- the moment when the
character’s conflict is finally resolved. Which part of Act V do you
consider the climax?
• I consider the climax to be in • I believe this was the climax
Act V scene VIII when Macduff because Macbeth dies by
says he will slay Macbeth, but betrayal in a way because he
Macbeth doesn’t believe never thought that Macduff
Macduff would harm him. But
then as Macduff explains how would kill him. Then again he
he was ripped from his did kill Maduff’s family, and so
mother’s womb, Macbeth he deserves his death (1387).
knows his end is near and • He dies in the same manner
can’t help but hate that the that Duncan, the first person
prophesy is coming true. After he kills, dies.
Macduff is done talking he
asks Macbeth to simply give
up, but Macbeth decides to
fight even against the
prophesy, and fate
(Shakespeare pg.1386).
Act V # 7 - What are your reactions to the idea expressed
by Macbeth that life “is a tale/ Told by an idiot, full of sound
and fury,/Signifying nothing”?
• I believe that Macbeth • As for “full of sound
was speaking of, his own
life. He was reflecting on and fury”,it means
his past, and when he that because all he
says “Told by an idiot”, he did was cause fury
is admitting that he
messed up and that he throughout his life
was an idiot, and because time (killing others to
of that he knows that his stay on top), he finds
life no longer has meaning
or significance. no meaning to it.
• I feel that this was his
wisest line in the entire
play. Allow he realized his
This quote was
mistake a little too late.
on page. 1385
 Act V #8. William Davenant, who claimed to be the son
of Shakespeare, added another sleepwalking scene to
Macbeth. The ghost of Duncan chases Lady Macbeth.
Do you think this diminishes the characterization of the
ghost, it’s impact on the play?
• I don’t think this diminishes the characterization of the
ghost. The ghost is only there due to Macbeth and
Lady Macbeth’s conscience. The fact that Lady
Macbeth can also see one is showing how Macbeth
and Lady Macbeth are reaching a state of insanity.
The only thing that may diminish the characterization
of the ghost is that the ghost is chasing Lady Macbeth
instead of just appearing like Banquo’s. Either way,
their purpose is to taunt the characters and make them
remember their dark deeds. As for the impact on the
play, it is similar if not the same to the one Banquo’s
ghost produces. Banquo’s ghost haunts Macbeth while
Duncan’s ghost haunts Lady Macbeth. Once more,
they emphasis the level of insanity Macbeth and Lady
Macbeth have reached.