| Words to describe Macbeth… | Hubris, ambitious, powerful, violent, boastful, paranoid, ruthless, valiant, deceitful |
| Words to describe Lady Macbeth… | Manipulative, persuasive, ambitious, dominant, aggressive, mad, paranoid, guilty |
| Words to describe Banquo…. | Brave, loyal, suspicious, wise, innocent, humble, sceptical |
| Words to describe Macduff…. | emotional, courageous, strong-willed, justice-oriented, heroic |
| Words to describe Malcolm…. | honest, clever, dignified, hopeful |
| Words to describe the Witches… | Evil, troublemaking, creepy, untrustworthy, eerie |
| What were some of the Literary devices in Macbeth? | Foreshadowing, Metaphors, Soliloquy, equivocation, Irony |
| Give examples of when foreshadowing was used in Macbeth: | – Hallucination is going to come back e.g the dagger.- Not being able to sleep was an example of foreshadowing after Macbeth kills Duncan .he says ” sleep no more”. |
| Give examples of when metaphors were used: | “Wash this filthy witness from your hands” Lady Macbeth says to Macbeth after just killing Duncan. The blood symbolises guilt which will be washed away. and “rid (them) of this deed”.”fair is foul and foul is fair” witches. This quotes means that, all good things are bad things. This ties in with Macbeth as everything good (being crown king, getting rid of enemies) that happens to him ends up meaning nothing as it is the reason for his downfall. |
| Give examples of when Soliloquy is used: | When Macbeth hallucinates a dagger he reveals to the audience his deepest thoughts about how he is not please about killing Duncan. |
| Give examples of when equivocation was used: | The witches used equivocation to heighten Macbeth curiosity of the prophecies. Macbeth earness for prophices to be true cause him yo take them literally. Macbeth realises the witches uses equivocation when “Birnam wood do come to Dunsinane” but it is to late. |
| Give Examples of when irony was used: | When LM orchestrates the murder of Duncan, she criticised Macbeth’s masculinity and called him a “coward” to convince him to do the deed. LM present to M this will bring a hopeful future and “a little clears us (them) of this deed. This is ironic, as LM eventually goes insane as guilt take over. Macbeth is now the confidence one and will stop at nothing to keep his title. |
| What gives Macbeth justification for his actions? | Witches prophecies Sense of denialLady Macbeth lead him to commit his first murder.Needed to eliminate his enemies. |
| What is the purpose of Macbeth? | Shakespeare conveys through the character of Macbeth that in the end good will overcomes evil. Abuse of power leads you to harm. If you listen to the supernatural, you upset the natural order. |
| What is the purpose of LM? | Shakespeare conveys through Lady Macbeth that guilt can ruin people. She is an example of pure ambition and how Committing evil acts has major consequences e.g. loss of communication in relationship, develops paranoia which leads to commits suicide. |
| What is the purpose of Banquo? | Similar to the Character Malcom, Banquo purpose is to contrast Macbeth. Banquo is a loyal solider to Duncan and to Macbeth even when he is suspicious of Macbeth he does not act on with it and he remains faithful to the new king, Macbeth. Banquo is a skeptic of the witches and did not carry out the witches prophecies. |
| What is the purpose of Malcom? | He provides a sense of hope. Malcolm is a stark contrast in personality and behavior to Macbeth. Malcolm starts appears as weak and or strategic as he flees but in the end, he is stronger and more strategic. The royal family is good and cannot be over thrown by evil. Malcolm is conciliatory and Macbeth is not. |
| What is the purpose of the Witches? | Catalyst for the plot which determined Macbeth future. They add interest and adds a supernatural element to the play, which was a controversial issue of the time. They gave justification to Macbeth for his action throughout the play. The witches are representative of unnatural order Vs natural order. The audience can blame the witches for the events in the play. Macbeth meets the witches twice and they give him prophecies and apparition. The witches use equivocation to speak to Macbeth. |
| What is the purpose of Macbeth? | He was the first one to find king Duncan’s dead body. Macduff is distraught which contrasts with Lady Macbeth who fakes distress. Macduff seems to be a more powerful when he teams up with Malcolm shows loyalty and strength. Macduff leaves his family which was not a good idea. Macduff kills Macbeth out of revenge for himself than not necessarily heroic. |
| How is the theme fear expressed in Macbeth? | Those with a clear conscience do not feel fear, except when it is evoked by natural suspicions. Duncan has ‘absolute trust’ in the Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth, on the other hand, is afraid even of his own thoughts after he meets the Witches, and after Duncan’s death fear permeates the play, and reaches Ross, Lady Macduff, Malcolm and Macduff. Macbeth only loses his fear when he meets his soldier’s death. Notice that Macbeth is not afraid of physical danger. |
| How is the theme fate explored? | Fate is seen by all the play’s characters, except Macbeth. Encouraged by the Witches, Macbeth thinks that fate is on his side, and later that he can control it. Macbeth asks fate to come ‘into the list’ on his side; but even the Witches cannot control fate, only prophesy it.- The witches show through equivocation that fate – Lady Macbeth hears enough to plot the murder of King Duncan because she is ambitious – Malcolm is made king after the death of Macbeth and provides a bright optimistic -Shakespeare suggests he is the rightful king. |
| How is the theme Guilt explored? | After Macbeth murders Duncan he tormented by guilt. Macbeth believes his guilty conscience will never let as he says “sleep no more”. Lady Macbeth reassures him that “a little water clears us (them) of the deed” .The audience realizes the irony of this as Lady Macbeth later obsessively washes imaginary blood from her hands.Macbeth hires assassinates to kill Banquo and his innocent son Fleance. The ghost of Banquo is a literary device use to represent Macbeth guilt. Lady Macbeth is destroyed by the strain of her guilt. The metaphor of a guilty conscience being represented by the image of sleeplessness is shown in LM sleepwalking. She is also seen constantly washing her hands, as her guilt has made the stains seem indelible to her: “Out damned spot!…’All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand”. |
| How is power explored in Macbeth? | Lust for power motivates Macbeth. However he discovers power without security is not worth having. Lady Macbeth, too, finds she cannot enjoy her new positions “without content”. Macbeth realises that although he could commit crimes with “barefaced power” he still has to consider his public image. When that is damaged beyond repair, he abuses his power by becoming a tyrant.Shakespeare lets his audience that desire for power can ruin man’s humanity and sincerity. |
English, Macbeth
September 6, 2019