Download Macbeth Notes

How do you plan on
understanding Macbeth
as we move forward?
Macbeth
Introduction
By William
Shakespeare
Shakespeare’s Macbeth
Three witches prophesize that
Macbeth will take the throne.
As a brave, ambitious
nobleman, Macbeth kills King
Duncan in order to take the
throne. He later assassinates
his best friend, Banquo, who
was prophesized to have heirs
to the throne (which scared
Macbeth). Macbeth's
arrogance leads to his downfall.
Lady Macbeth plays a large roll
in the happenings and events
that lead to Macbeth’s downfall
The story of the REAL Macbeth:
 The "real" Macbeth became
King of Scotland in 1040
after having defeated a
historical Duncan who was
a weak, youthful ruler with
little experience.
 The historical Macbeth
reigned for 17 years and
survived the battles which
returned Malcolm to the
throne
 The real Banquo is involved
in the conspiracy to murder
King Duncan.
Create a bookmark:
Use the list of characters from the
following slides and create a
helpful bookmark that will keep
your characters in order as you
read. This means you should
categorize these characters
specifically based on their
descriptions. (Ex: One side could be
Macbeth and his friends/followers
and the other side could be those
against him.) This is just a short
and easy way to keep your
characters straight while reading. (I
will laminate your bookmarks for
you to keep them from tearing.)
Bookmark
Example:
Macbeth
- Prophesized
to take
throne
- Married to
lady
Macbeth
- Best friend
is Banquo
Lady Macbeth
- Urges her
husband to
do wrong
things
Your bookmark
may also include
little notes about
the characters and
their actions that
you are already
aware of. Kind of
like a small cheat
sheet as you read.
Characters:
Macbeth
Scottish general ambitious enough to commit
murder to become king
Lady Macbeth
His wife; ambitious; later remorseful
Banquo
General, murdered by hired killers
Fleance
Banquo's son
Duncan
King of Scotland
Malcolm
Eldest son of Duncan, Prince of Cumberland
Donalbain
Youngest son of Duncan
Macduff
General, dedicated to the good of
Scotland
Ross
Cousin to Macduff
Lennox
Nobleman, loyal to Duncan
Seyton
Lieutenant to Macbeth
Siward
English Earl, supporter of Malcolm
Young Siward
Bravely faces Macbeth though he is
killed in battle
Three Witches
Predict Macbeth's ambitions will soon
come true; later predict his downfall
Macbeth:
- Macbeth is introduced in the
play as a warrior hero, whose
fame on the battlefield wins
him great honor from the king.
- Despite his fearless character
in battle, Macbeth is
concerned by the prophecies
of the Witches.
- When King Duncan announces
that he intends the kingdom to
pass to his son Malcom,
Macbeth appears frustrated.
- Manliness is mocked and
demeaned by his wife.
Lady Macbeth:
• Macbeth’s wife is one of the most
powerful female characters in
literature.
• Unlike her husband, she lacks all
humanity. (as we see well in her
opening scene, where she calls upon
the "Spirits that tend on mortal
thoughts" to deprive her of her
feminine instinct to care.)
• Lady Macbeth persistently taunts
her husband for his lack of courage,
even though we know of his bloody
deeds on the battlefield.
• By the end of the drama she
becomes mentally deranged, a mere
shadow of her former commanding
self.
Macduff:
• Macduff is the archetype of the
avenging hero, not simply out for
revenge but with a good and
holy purpose.
• He is the discoverer of Duncan’s
body. The news of the callous
murder of his wife and children
(Act IV, Scene 3) spurs him
toward his desire to take
personal revenge upon the
tyrannical Macbeth.
Banquo:
- In fiction, a foil is a character who
contrasts with another character
(usually the protagonist) in order to
highlight particular qualities of the
other character
BANQUO AND MACBETH ARE FOIL
CHARACTERS – WHY?
Banquo is promised glory by the
witches, but he figures out quickly
that they're no good. Rather than
become obsessed with their
prophetic promise, he just sits on it,
always promising to talk about it later.
But Macbeth ignores prudence,
caution, good sense, and all those
things your parents want you to have
in order to carry out his own
nefarious interpretation of the
prophecy.
Major Themes:
1.Things are not what
they seem
2.Blind ambition
3.Power corrupts
4.Superstition affects
human behavior
Creating a Macbeth Journal:
Take about 15 minutes to
decorate the front of a
white sheet of paper with
Macbeth or Shakespeare
related images /patterns/
designs. Major
assignments and analysis’
will be contained
in this journal. It is your
responsibility to keep up
with the journal and its
entries.