MacBeth

// MacBeth// by William Shakespeare **__ Act I -__** In eerie, the three witches, chanting tones, make plans to meet again upon the heath, after the battle, to confront MacBeth about their predictions. The captain describes to Duncan how Macbeth slew the traitorous Macdonald. As the captain is carried off to have his wounds attended to, the thane of Ross, a Scottish nobleman, tells the king that the traitorous thane of Cawdor has been defeated and the army of Norway repelled. Duncan decrees that the thane of Cawdor be put to death and that Macbeth, be given Cawdor’s title. The witches hail Macbeth as thane of Glamis and as thane of Cawdor. Macbeth is baffled by this second title, as he has not yet heard of King Duncan’s decision. The witches also declare that Macbeth will be king one day. They tell Banquo that he will never be king but that his children will sit upon the throne. Ross tells Macbeth that the king has made him thane of Cawdor, as the former thane is to be executed for treason. At the king’s palace, Duncan hears reports of Cawdor’s execution from his son Malcolm, who says that Cawdor died nobly, confessing freely and repenting of his crimes. Lady MacBeth resolves to put her natural femininity aside so that she can do the bloody deeds necessary to seize the crown. MacBeth faces the fact that there is no reason to kill the king other than his own ambition, which he realizes is an unreliable guide. Lady MacBeth becomes enraged when MacBeth tells her that he doesn't want to kill anymore, but she ends up convinving him and gives him the plan. The plan is while Duncan sleeps, she will give his chamberlains wine to make them drunk, and then she and Macbeth can slip in and murder Duncan. They will smear the blood of Duncan on the sleeping chamberlains to cast the guilt upon them.
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**__A ct II- __**  Macbeth has a vision of a dagger floating in the air before him, its handle pointing toward his hand and its tip aiming him toward Duncan. Macbeth tries to grasp the weapon but fails. MacBeth kills Duncan, but is too afraid to go into the room of the chamberlains because of his guilt, therefore, Lady MacBeth takes the daggers into the room herself. MacDuff and Lenox come to visit the king at Macbeth's castle. When MacDuff goes into his room he finds the King dead and complete chaos breaks out. MacBeth states that he has killed the chamberlins becuase of his outrage of the kings death. Malcom and Donalbain, the King's sons decide to flee because it is not safe there. Macbeth has been made king by the other lords, and he now rides to Scone to be crowned. Now the suspicion falls on Malcom and Donalbain because they have fled. ** __Act III-__ ** Macbeth and Lady Macbeth ask Banquo to attend the feast they will host that night, and Banquo accepts. MacBeth summons two murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance, because he fears that they will overthrow his family in order to obtain the throne. The murderers kill Banquo, who dies urging his son to flee and to avenge his death. MacBeth finds Banquo’s ghost sitting in his chair. Horror-struck, Macbeth speaks to the ghost, which is invisible to the rest of the company. Hecate (the goddess of witchcraft) scolds the withches for meddling in the business of Macbeth without consulting her but declares that she will take over as supervisor of the mischief. Macduff has gone to England, where he will join Macolm in pleading with England’s King Edward for aid and in order to save Scotland from MacBeth. **__Act IV-__** He asks the witches to reveal the truth of their prophecies to him. To answer his questions, they summon horrible apparitions, each of which offers a prediction to allay Macbeth’s fears. First, a floating head warns him to beware MacDuff. Then a bloody child appears and tells him that “none of woman born shall harm Macbeth” Next, a crowned child holding a tree tells him that he is safe until Birnam Wood moves to Dunsinane Hill. Finally, a procession of eight crowned kings walks by, the last carrying a mirror and Banquo's ghost walks at the end of the line. When Macbeth learns of Macduff's travels, he resolves to send murderers to capture Macduff’s castle and to kill Macduff’s wife and children. The group of murders enter MacDuff's home and kill his wife and son. Malcolm tests MacDuff's loyalty.

**__Act V-__** At night, in the king’s palace at Dunsinane, a doctor and a gentlewoman discuss Lady MacBeth's strange habit of sleepwalking. Lady Macbeth enters in a trance with a candle in her hand. Bemoaning the murders of Lady MacDuff and Banquo, she seems to see blood on her hands and claims that nothing will ever wash it off. the English army, led by Malcom, and the Scottish army will meet near Birnam Wood to join forces. The “tyrant,” as lords call MacBeth, has fortified Dunsinane Castle and is making his military preparations in a mad rage. Malcolm and the English Lord Siward, decide that each soldier should cut down a bough of the forest and carry it in front of him as they march to the castle, thereby disguising their numbers. Lady MacBeth dies. MacBeth kills Siward's son. Maceth and MacDuff encounter one another and begin to fight.Macbeth insists that he is invincible because of the witches’ prophecy, Macduff tells Macbeth that he was not of woman born, but rather “from his mother’s womb Untimely ripped.” Macduff emerges with Macbeth’s head in his hand and proclaims Malcolm king of Scotland. Malcolm declares that all his thanes will be made earls, according to the English system of peerage. They will be the first such lords in Scottish history. Cursing Macbeth and his queen, Malcolm calls all those around him his friends and invites them all to see him crowned at Scone  || Themes of Ambition, Fate, and the Supernatural

**Ambition**-   Macbeth is blind - for example he can't see what the witches are up to in leading him on. But here at least he shows some insight into what motivates him, namely driving ambition: "vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself". This ambition is a form of coveting, a concept we rarely hear about except in relation to the ninth and tenth commandments. Macbeth covets the crown of Scotland - doesn't just want it in a general sort of way that might be morally neutral, but toys with the idea of achieving it by murder, and is finally prepared to break the bonds of friendship and kinship to reach his goal.

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<span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia,serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">**Fate**-predictions by the witches, that Macbeth will be called thane of Cawdor. Macbeth's fate is to take his destiny into his own hands.

**Supernatural-** Supernatural is an integral part of the structure of the plot. It helps provide a catalyst for actions, an insight into character, and augments the impact of many key scenes. The supernatural appears to the audience in many varied forms. In //MacBeth//, not only does a ghost appear but a floating dagger, witches, and prophetic apparitions make appearances. Of the supernatural phenomenon evident in the play, the witches are perhaps the most important. The witches represent Macbeth's evil ambitions. They are the catalyst which unleash Macbeth's evil aspirations. He believes the witches and wishes to know more about the future so after the banquet he seeks them out at their cave. He wants to know the answers to his questions regardless of whether the consequence be violent and destructive to nature. <span style="COLOR: #00d2ff; FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif">Lady MacBeth is cute? ha || <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">
 * <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">**History of early performances/audience, etc.**

* <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Macbeth is among the best- known of William Shakespear's plays. __MacBeth__ **- Scottish General and the thane of Glamis, led to wicked thoughts by the prophecies of the three witches, Brave Solider and powerful man but not a virtuous one, easily tempted into murder to fulfill his ambitions to the throne, after commiting first crime and is crowned king of Scotland he can embark on new atrocities with increasing ease. Proves himself better suited to the battle field than to the political intrigue cause he lacks the skills necessary to rule with out being a tyrant. His response to every problem is violence and murder.
 * <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Written time in between 1603 to 1606.Play tells the dangers of the lust for power and the betrayal of friends.
 * <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The material for __Macbeth__ was drawn from Raphael Holinshed's __Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland__ (1587). Despite the play’s historical source, however, the play is generally classified as tragedy rather than a history. This derives perhaps from the fact that the story contains many historical fabrications—including the entire character of Banquo, who was invented by a 16th-<span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif">century Scottish historian in order to validate the Stuart family line.In addition to such <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">fictionalization, Shakespeare took many liberties with the original story, manipulating the characters of Macbeth and Duncan to suit his purposes. In Holinshed's account, Macbeth is a ruthless and valiant leader who rules competently after killing Duncan, whereas Duncan is portrayed as a young and soft-willed man. Shakespeare draws out certain aspects of th<span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">e two characters in order to create a stronger sense of polarity. Whereas Duncan is made out to be a venerable and kindly older king, Macbeth is transformed into an indecisive and troubled young man who cannot possibly rule well.
 * <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Play was written to honor James I
 * <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">4 pennies could get you a seat in the play and 1 penny could allow you to stand to watch the play
 * <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Georgia, serif">King James VI of Scotland was being crowned as the new King of England in 1603. Now James I, King of England, he established many Scottish influences in London during the time that Shakespeare lived. It is speculated that Shakespeare wrote and perfromed this play for his his Scottish King like they used to do for Queen Elizabeth.
 * <span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">[[image:http://www.pbs.org/shakespeare/images/works/macbeth-poster.jpg]]  || Brief description of main characters: personality, desires, fears, importance in plot
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 * <span style="COLOR: rgb(250,157,5)">__Lady MacBeth__ **- Macbeth's wife, deeply ambitious individual, who lusts for power and position. She urges her husband to kill Duncan, and cease the crown. After bloodshed begins, she falls victim to guilt and madness, her conscious affects her to such and extent that she eventually commits suicide. Her speeches imply that her influence over her husband is primarily sexual.


 * <span style="COLOR: rgb(193,11,11)">__The Three Witches__ **-three "black and midnight hags," who plot mischief against Macbeth by using charms, spells, and prophecies. Their predictions prompt him to murder Duncan, to order the deaths of Banquo and his son. Their true identities are unclear, but in fact they are servants of Hecate.


 * <span style="COLOR: rgb(25,251,19)">__Banquo__ **- Brave, Noble, general, who children will inherit the Scottish throne according witches prophecy. He thinks ambitious thoughts, but does not translate those into action. His ghost haunts Macbeth.


 * <span style="COLOR: rgb(14,11,203)">__King Duncan__ **- the good kind of Scotland, who Macbeth murders. he's a good virtuous model and ruler. His death symbolizes the destruction of an order in Scotland that can be restored only when Duncan's line, in the person of Malcom, once more occupies the throne.


 * <span style="COLOR: rgb(6,249,148)">__Malcom__ **- the son of Duncan, who's restoration to the throne signals Scotland's return to order, following Macbeth's reign of terror.


 * <span style="COLOR: rgb(221,8,87)">__Hecate__ **-the goddess of witchcraft, he helps the three witches work their mischief. ||