The Domino Effect
Have you ever wondered . . .
how just one action might affect
the entire course of your life?
Can one selfish impulse lead to a
chain of decisions you will later
regret?
You cannot have power
for good without having
power for evil too.
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
1. Shakespeare understood human nature. Critics say that no one better
understood human nature.
2. Shakespeare tells us who and what we are and reminds us what man’s
actions are capable of.
3. Of all the writers in the world, Shakespeare has received the most
attention and acceptance. His plays are performed in almost all
languages throughout the world. More criticism has been written about
his words than any other writer in history.
4. Shakespeare endures because of his knowledge of the characteristics
of human beings, his close observations of the world, and his ability to
transmute words into music.
5. His characters live and breathe as actual human beings. They are
believable.
6. He dealt with universal issues, fundamental matters that concern all
of us.
7. Theaters are built in his honor all over the world—even here in
Montgomery, Alabama.
Do the supernatural forces plant the
evil in Macbeth?
OR
Is the evil already within him?
Characters
Duncan, King of Scotland
Malcolm
his sons
Donalbain
Macbeth
Banquo
Macduff
noblemen of
Lennox
Scotland
Ross
Menteith
Angus
Caithness
}
Fleance, son of Banquo
Siward, earl of
Northumberland, general
of the English forces
Young Siward, his son
Seyton, an officer
attending Macbeth
Son to Macduff
An English Doctor
A Scottish Doctor
A Porter
Characters
An Old Man
Three Murderers
Lady Macbeth
Lady Macduff
A Gentlewoman attending
Lady Macbeth
Hecate
Witches
Apparitions
Lords, Officers, Soldiers,
Attendants, Messengers
Setting: Scotland; England
 Someone in a high place (ruler, general, noble) whose
own flaws and choices feed the downfall or who gets
set up by an unscrupulous villain
 Ambition is a common tragic impetus in the
Renaissance, as is love or a conflict of values (as in
Hamlet with revenge)
 Tragic protagonists eventually have to recognize their
faults and mistakes or the failure of their willful
wrongdoing and accept responsibility for it
 In most tragedies, there is a point of no return, at
which the protagonist is inescapably bound to disaster
In a tragedy
• ill-judged human actions lead to inevitable
catastrophe, usually including one or more
deaths
By contrast, in a comedy
• the characters can do as they please as
long as they amuse the audience
• the funny mess is easily cleaned up at
the end
 Renaissance tragedies: drama is about real people
whose deeds are recorded in history
 Macbeth was a real king of Scotland (1040-1057)
 The historical Macbeth had a more legitimate claim to
the throne than Shakespeare’s Macbeth does
 The historical Macbeth also had the support of nobles
dissatisfied with King Duncan, and he ruled successfully
 Shakespeare’s play was written near the time of the
Gunpowder Plot (1605)
 Catholic zealots planned to blow up King James I and
his Protestant Parliament
 King James would be particularly interested in a play
about attacks on kings; he claimed he ruled by divine
right
 “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft…” –I Samuel 15:23
(King James Version)
 King James was a Scot and claimed to a descendent of
Banquo
 King James would not sit through long plays—is this
why Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s shortest plays?
 Regarding changes to the historical facts…
 Scottish king from AD 1040 to AD 1057
 Scotland prospered under Macbeth’s rule
 He appeared to be a good king
 Shakespeare changed all of that--keep in mind,
Shakespeare is more interested in psychology than
history
 Macbeth is “real” in that it’s about real aspects of human
nature: temptation, ambition, power, desire, etc.
 every existing thing in the universe had its "place"
God
in a divinely planned hierarchical order
Angels
 universal interdependence
 When things were properly ordered, reason ruled
Man
the emotions, just as a king ruled his subjects, the
parent ruled the child, and the sun governed the
Animals
planets. But when disorder was present in one
realm, it was correspondingly reflected in other
Plants
realms.
 all existing things have their precise place and
Rocks
function in the universe, and to depart from one's
proper place was to betray one's nature
 Human beings, for example, were pictured as placed between the
beasts and the angels.
 To act against human nature by not allowing reason to rule the
emotions--was to descend to the level of the beasts.
 In the other direction, to attempt to go above one's proper place, as
Eve did when she was tempted by Satan, was to court disaster.
 The proscription against trying to rise beyond one's place was of
course useful to political rulers, for it helped to reinforce their
authority.
 The implication was that civil rebellion caused the chain to be
broken, and according to the doctrine of correspondences, this
would have dire consequences in other realms.
 It was a sin against God, at least wherever rulers claimed to rule by
"Divine Right."
 In Shakespeare, it was suggested that the sin was of cosmic
proportions: civil disorders were often accompanied by meteoric
disturbances in the heavens.
 Many thespians simply refer to it as “The Scottish Play”
because even to utter the name in a theater is to invite
bad luck
 Some believe the play is cursed because “real”
incantations were used in it
 King James had written a book called Daemonologie which
warned against witchcraft(keep in mind the “King James
Version” is this king); acccording to legend, Shakespeare
used some of the documented incantations from
Daemonologie
 Some believe “real” witches cursed the play and its
performers because of this
 1672: a real dagger was substituted for the prop, and an
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actor was killed on stage
1703: on the day of the opening performance, one of
the most violent storms in history hit England
1721: the theater was burned down
1865: the play was supposedly Lincoln’s favorite, and
apparently he was rereading it the night before his
assassination
Numerous accidents and deaths have been reported in
association with the play, including film versions of it
 If you utter the name of the play inside a theater…
 Spit three times
 Say a curse (or a line from a Shakespearean play, especially
Hamlet’s “Angels and ministers of grace defend us”)
 Leave the theater
 Turn around and brush yourself off (or spit or break wind)
 Say “Macbeth” three times
 Knock and wait for someone to invite you back in
 Tragic hero
 Hubris: excessive pride
 Hamartia: tragic flaw
 Paradox
 Aside
 Soliloquy
 Blank verse: regular meter but no rhyme
 Iambic pentameter
 Tanistry: law of succession by which the heir or successor
of a chief or king is appointed during the lifetime of the
reigning chief, is not necessarily his oldest son, is generally
the worthiest and wisest of the male relatives of the chief,
and is elected by the people from among the eligible
candidates
 Note references to the following:
 “Doubles”
 Appearance vs. reality
 Deception
 Clothing
 Light and darkness
 Gender
 The supernatural and superstition
 Sleep
 Blood and water
 Conscience
 Storms or stormy weather
 Ask yourself
 Does my character shape my destiny?
 Does my destiny shape my character?
 Do my witches seek me out because of what I am, or am
I this because of my witches? Do I seek them?
-The Masks of Macbeth, Marvin Rosenberg
Macbeth’s Motivation
 Is Macbeth a true hero at the beginning, or is he already dangerous, too
ambitious, “fallen”?
 Are the witches’ prophecies surprises, or are they reading his inner desires?
Why does he “start”?
 How much of a struggle is there between good and bad in Macbeth? Does
evil win easily or too easily?
 How does he react to the assassination, the first misdeed? How does that
compare to his reactions to the subsequent murders? Why does he switch to
using hired killers?
 What happens to his relationship with Lady Macbeth? Does it change?
Why?
 What is Macbeth’s relationship with the witches? Does it change? How?
 How does Macbeth face the last challenge, the attack on his castle? Is he
courageous or crazed or cynical?
Lady Macbeth’s Motivation
 Have the Macbeths already discussed “getting ahead in the world” or
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how to do it?
Is her response to the witches’ prophecy different in degree or kind than
her husband’s?
What is her relationship with Macbeth? Who calls the shots when, how,
why?
Is she a kind of witch or a woman who wants the best for her husband,
or…?
Why does she insist the assassination be done that very night? Why
doesn’t she just kill Duncan herself (do we believe the reasons she
states)?
When does Lady Macbeth show signs of instability? How? What does
this suggest?
The Witches
 Who are the witches? Are they of this world or the next?
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How do you know?
What are the witches’ powers?
Are the witches a verbal presence (altogether on the level of
thought/idea), or do they take an active role? How does
that matter to or affect the action?
What is the extent of the witches’ presence? What are the
implications of that?
If the witches are ugly, malformed, diseased, or disabled,
how might that work with their figurative effect on
Macbeth?