| Tragic Hero Must… | 1. Noble2. Suffer a great fall that exceeds the punishment they deserve (death, falling from power, etc.)3. Suffer from hubris (excessive pride)4. Experience and cause a catharsis (emotional purging) 5. Realize their mistake but also understand that it is too late to change things |
| Shakespeare’s 4 great tragedies | Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth, and Othello |
| Shakespeare’s source of Macbeth | Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland |
| Shakespeare’s shortest play | Macbeth |
| Shakespeare’s only scottish play | Macbeth |
| Who is the Character Macbeth? | Scottish noble and general in Duncan’s army; Married to Lady Macbeth; 40 years old; Thane of Glamis (high ranking position in Duncan’s kingdom) |
| Why does Lady Macbeth hate Duncan? | Duncan had Lady Macbeth’s father killed |
| Duncan and Macbeth’s relation | Cousins and best friends |
| Why did Shakespeare write Macbeth? | James asked Shakespeare to write a play for him for the opening banquet thrown for James’ brother King Christian of Denmark |
| How does Macbeth flatter the king in his play? | James was from scotland, the play is set in scotland; James was a descendant of Banquo and Duncan; Play has witches (James is very into witchcraft); Has ghosts (which he believes in) |
| Forres | Site of Duncan’s castle |
| Inverness | Macbeth’s castle |
| Fife | Macduff’s castle |
| Scone | Place where kings of scotland were crowned |
| Dunsinane | Macbeth’s residence at END of play, it sits on a hill and is surrounded by a valley with a small forest across the field (great place for a castle because you can catch your enemies) |
| Burnin Wood | Forest near Dunsinane |
| When does Macbeth take place? | – 1034 (Duncan becomes king, founding first and only dynasty of scotland)- 1040 (Action of play begins, 6 years later, Duncan became king at 36, but shakespeare portrays him as older) |
| Scotland’s society | Feudalistic; violent country, especially for the king; 17 kings ruled from 844 to 1057; and 12 were assassinated |
| 5 act tragic form | Introduction –> Complication (rising action) –> Climax (turning point) –> Falling action –> Catastrophe (Denoucement) |
| Introduction | Provides background essentials to understanding play; sets tone and setting |
| Complication (rising action) | Tension caused by conflict being built; Plot cannot happen without conflict |
| Climax (turning point) | Peak of emotional intensity; sometimes called turning point because the intensity must now decline |
| Falling action | Things are falling apart |
| Catastrophe | Moment marking the protagonists tragic failure (usually resulting in his death) |
| Soliloquy | Heavily used by shakespeare, expresses character’s thoughts |
| Most of Macbeth is composed in what? | Blank Verse |
| Why did shakespeare use comic relief? | Most people at the plays were groundlings, poor people. They comic relief was mainly dirty which appealed to them. It also brought light into such a dark play |
| The Elizabethan Great Chain of Being | Everything on earth and in the universe is linked with a particular order; The most heavenly creatures were at the foot of God |
| What is the hierarchy on earth ruled by? | Money |
| Tragedies | High social standing characters; dangers are extreme; conclusion is sad; action moves toward state of chaos; many deaths |
| Comedies | Ordinary people; emotions and dangers are mild; happy outcome, usually ending in marriage; main action is from chaos to resolution |
| Shakespeare’s dark years | His only son died and he was left with 2 girls. one of which was ugly and probably would not marry |
| What is considered one of shakespeare’s darkest and most powerful plays | Macbeth & Lear (Lear is darkest) |
| Duncan | King of Scotland; He’s a great king; Kind to his people; honorable; has no wife but two sons (Malcom and Donalbain) |
| Banquo | General in Duncan’s army; He and Macbeth are close friends |
Macbeth (shakespeare)
September 4, 2019