This document provides background information on William Shakespeare and his play Macbeth. It discusses Shakespeare's life, career, and theaters. It then summarizes the basic plot of Macbeth, including the characters and their roles. Several themes of the play are also identified, such as ambition and the destruction of order. The document concludes with discussion questions and an activity where students analyze pictures from the play.

1. Introduction:

2.  At the end of this unit, students should have:
 read parts of the play, an understanding of the story and different elements of the
plot.
 produced a close analysis of extracts.
 produced a piece of imaginative writing, demonstrating understanding.
 an understanding of Shakespeare and his world.

3.  At the end of this lesson, students should be able to :
 Know the basic plot, characters and themes of Macbeth
 Know the three basic categories of Shakespearean texts
 Show an improved understanding of the language used by Shakespeare

5.  What do you know about him?

6. Born: 23rd April 1564
Died: 23rd April 1616
Place: Stratford-on-Avon
Mother:
Mary Arden – daughter of a
local gentry.
Father:
John Shakespeare – a glover
and tenant farmer of yeoman
class.

7.  Between the early 1590’s and 1620’s Shakespeare composed the most
extraordinary body of works in the history of world drama.
 He moved roughly from comedies to histories to tragedies.
 His farewell to the stage was The Tempest.

8.  The Globe Theatre was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the
Lord Chamberlain's Men, and was destroyed by fire on 29 June 1613. A
second Globe Theatre was built on the same site by June 1614 and closed in
1642.
 A modern reconstruction of the Globe, named "Shakespeare's Globe", opened
in 1997 approximately 230 metres from the site of the original theatre.

9. • Act II: Rising Action
During the Rising Action, the basic conflict introduced in Act I is complicated by secondary
conflicts and obstacles designed to keep our protagonist from reaching his or her goal,
including lesser antagonists that can work together with or without the main antagonist.
You may already know that your main character is going to live happily ever after, but she's
going to have to work for it, and this is where it starts.
• Act III: Climax
Also known as the "turning point," the Climax marks a notable change, for better or worse, in
the protagonist's journey towards their goal.
With tragedy, the protagonist begins the story on top of world before everything begins to
unravel, while comedies generally do the opposite.
Quite simply, this is where the bulk of the drama or action takes place.

10. • Act IV: Falling Action
During the Falling Action, the conflict between the protagonist and antagonist finally comes to a
head, and a clear winner and loser are determined.
This Falling Action may also contain a final moment of suspense, in which one or more possible
outcomes are in doubt until the Resolution.
• Act V: Dénoument or Resolution
The Dénoument or Resolution ties up all the loose ends and concludes the story. All of the
conflicts are resolved, the characters return to normalcy, and the viewer experiences an
emotional release (catharsis).
In traditional comedies, the Dénoument leaves the main character better off than she started,
while traditional tragedies end in a catastrophe that leaves the protagonist a shell of his former
self.
Much like life, your story must be a roller coaster ride of action and emotion. A good rule of
thumb is, for every positive event your protagonist experiences, it must immediately be followed
up by a negative event. This dissonance must begin in Act II and reach a crescendo in Act III,
before the Falling Action and Dénoument resolve your story and restore order to the world.

11. Shakespeare writes either in blank verse, in rhymed verse or in prose.
Homework task:
Do some research on the different ways Shakespeare writes. Write down a short explanation for
each, include an example.

12.  It is said that Macbeth is a play ‘fit for a king’.
 It is often referred to as ‘Macdeath’, and rarely by the name
Macbeth – why?
 Shakespeare is said to have used the spells of real witches in
his text, purportedly angering the witches and causing them to
curse the play. Thus, to say the name of the play inside a
theatre is believed to doom the production to failure, and
perhaps cause physical injury or death to cast members. A
large mythology has built up surrounding this superstition,
with countless stories of accidents, misfortunes and even
deaths, all mysteriously taking place during runs of Macbeth
(or by actors who had uttered the name)

13.  The story follows the moral
decent of Macbeth, as he is
persuaded by prophecies given
by witches and his wife's
insistence to murder Duncan,
the king of Scotland.
 Macbeth becomes fortunes fool
 During Shakespeare’s time, to
murder a king was the greatest
crime someone could commit.
Why?

14.  Kings were appointed by God, which meant that rebelling against the king
was a rebellion against God.
 By murdering Duncan, Macbeth may stand to gain a simple crown, but he
loses love, friendship and respect – and perhaps more.

16.  a theme is the central topic within a text.
 Themes can be divided into two categories: a work's thematic concept is
what readers "think the work is about" and its thematic statement being
"what the work says about the subject“.
 The most common modern understanding of theme is an idea or concept that
is central to a story, which can often be summed in a single word.

17. Make it a point to be aware of these themes as we read
through the play…

18. Notes:

19. Notes:

20. This also includes ideas
surrounding dreams
and sleep
Notes:

21. Notes:

22. Macbeth:
• Scottish general and thane of Glamis- and later thane of Cawder
• Brave, powerful soldier
• Not virtuous
• Married to Lady Macbeth
• Murders king of Scotland- Duncan
• Proves better situated to the battle field than to political intrigue
Lady Macbeth:
• Macbeths wife
• Deeply ambitious, lusts for power and position
• Commits suicide
• Influence over her husband is primarily sexual
The three witches:
• Plot mischief against Macbeth
• Servants of Hecate
• Resemble mythological fates

23. Banquo:
• Brave, noble general
• According to the witches is children are in line to inherit the Scottish throne
• Has ambitious thoughts but does not translate them into action
• Character stands to rebuke Macbeth
• His ghost haunts Macbeth
King Duncan:
• Good king of Scotland
• Murdered by Macbeth for his crown
• Model of virtuous, benevolent and farsighted leader
• His death- the destruction of an order in Scotland
Macduff:
• Scottish nobleman
• Hostile to Macbeths kingship
• Leader of crusade to unseat Macbeth- replace with rightful king, Malcolm
• Desires vengeance for his wife and sons murders
Malcolm:
• Son of Duncan
• Becomes serious threat to Macbeth with the help of Macduff

24. Hecate:
• Goddess of witchcraft
• Helps witches work their mischief on Macbeth
Fleance:
• Banquo’s son
• Survives Macbeth’s attempt to murder him
• At the end of the play his whereabouts are unknown
Lennox and Ross:
• Scottish noblemen
The murders:
• Group of ruffians recruited by Macbeth to murder Banquo, Fleance and Macduff’s wife and children
Porter:
• Drunken doorman of Macbeth’s castle
Lady Macduff:
• Macduff’s wife
• Her and her home serve as contrast to the hellish world of Iverness
Donalbain:
• Duncan’s son and Malcolm's younger brother

25. Class activity:
 In this activity you will be given a photo per table with
which you will have to answer the following questions in
accordance to what you see:
1. Who are the characters in this picture?
2. What do you think is occurring OR has occurred in this
scene?
3. What actions do you think are to follow this scene?
4. What are the relationships like?

26. Picture 1
Picture 2

27. Picture 1
Picture 2

28. Picture 1
Picture 2

29. Picture 1
Picture 2