Macbeth

Tragedy; drama ending with downfall or death of the main character What type of play is Macbeth and what is the definition of this type of play?
Lead to the downfall of the protagonists; his unchecked ambition What is the tragic flaw? What is Macbeth’s tragic flaw?
Scotland; 11th century What is the setting of the play?
The feeling or emotion of the play; sinister or ominous What is mood? What is the mood of this play?
Reoccurring theme, image, event, element of a work of literature; 1. Appearance versus reality 2. great chain of being 3. Blood 4. Masculinity 5. Sleepless What is a motif? List the motifs in the play?
Wyrd sisters; wyrd=fate What are the three which is known as? What is the significance of this nickname?
Foreshadowing What role do the witches serve in the play?
Good is bad, bad is good; paradox What does “fair is foul, and foul is fair” literally mean? What literary device is this?
King Duncan’s Palace What is forres?
Macdonalwald; he kills the traitor What is the name of the traitor whom the Captain speaks of? What did Macbeth do to this traitor?
Kinsmen What is Macbeth’s relationship to King Duncan?
Norwegian Who has the scots been fighting in this battle?
Captains What rank in the Scottish army do Macbeth and Banquo hold?
Scottish title of nobility Define “thane”
Go pronounce the thane of cawdors death and greet Macbeth with his former title What does King Duncan tell Ross to do?
He won the battle but there was bad weather and many casualties. Ironic because the witches use the same phrase So foul and fair a day I have not seen is a reference to? What is the dramatic irony of this?
Choppy fingers, skinny lips, beards Physical appearances of the witches
He will be Thane of Glemis, Thane of Cawdor, and the King; at first he was scarred and afraid but eventually became obsessive What 3 prophecies do the witches are regarding Macbeth? How does he react?
He is already Thane of Cawdor, but does not know it yet How is there dramatic irony in the witches second prophecy for Macbeth?
Lesser than Macbeth, yet greaterNot so happy, yet much happier Thou shall get kings, though thou be none What do the witches see in the future for Banquo? List three paradoxes
Macbeth is the Thane of Cawdor As Banquo and Macbeth are discussing the prophecies, what news does Ross bring?
The witches will break their trust; Macbeth thinks it’s good How does Banquo feel about the witches prophecies, compared to Macbeth?
He wants to murder Duncan to expedite the prophecy What does Macbeth’s aside reveal about his thinking and his character?
If fate wants him to be king, perhaps fate will make it happen and he won’t have to do angthin After contemplating terrible thoughts, Macbeth resolves “if chance will have me King, why chance may crown me/without my stir”. What has Macbeth decided at this point
He performed treason and was a traitor Why was the old thane of Cawdor executed?
Gullible and quick to trust What does this reveal about Duncan’s personality that he fully trusted a traitor?
They want to make Malcolm the heir to the throne. Macbeth said he wouldn’t be happy unless he worked for him What news does the king announce about his eldest son Malcolm, and what is Macbeth’s reaction to the news?
He will either have to overcome Malcolm or give up In his last speech in the scene, what does Macbeth reveal?
Inverness What is the name of Macbeth’s castle?
She doesn’t know if he has what it takes to seize the crown after lady Macbeth finished reading the letter, what fear about her husband does she express?
She was unprepared & became involved in the murder How does the news about King Duncan’s expected arrival affect her?
She wants to be as strong as a man Why does Lady Macbeth pray to be unsexed?
Act nice and welcoming, but under the fake was be evil & ready to attack explain: “bear welcome in your eye/your hand, your tongue: look like the innocent flower/but be the serpent under it”?
Dramatic irony “This castle hath a pleasant seat; the air/ nimbly and sweetly recommends itself/ unto our gentle senses” what literary device?
They owe Duncan and will do anything for him What impression does Lady Macbeth make in this scene?
1. Killing is wrong and someone might do the same to him2. He is his kinsmen3. He is a Host 4. The King is kind After saying that if the deed is done it must be done quickly, list the 4 arguments Macbeth bides for not murdering Duncan
Ambition is motivation him towards disaster What does Macbeth decide before he speaks to Lady Macbeth?
She asks if he is a man What does Lady Macbeth say in an attempt to persuade her husband into committing murder?
Get servants drunk until they pass out, then they can do whatever they want and blame it on the servant What plan of action does Lady Macbeth devise?
Blank verse: unrhymed iambic pentameter In what meter is Macbeth mainly written? What is the definition
Prose: writing with no definite rhythm or rhyme In Shakespeare’s tragedies, characters of lower rank in society often speak in what style? What is the definition of this style, and why does Shakespeare write their dialogue in this way?
Son of Banquo Who is Fleance?
The moon set and the clock hasn’t struck What do Banquo and Fleance notice about the moon? What motif does this support?
He doesn’t think of them; they lie and break trust easily After Banquo admits to Macbeth “I dreamt last night of the three weird sisters:/ to you they have showed some truth,” what lie does Macbeth tell? What does this say about their relationship?
A dagger–guilt In his soliloquy after Banquo leaves, what does Macbeth tell us he sees? What could account for this apparition
Guilth How would you describe Macbeth’s mental/emotional state at this point?
Put drugs in their liquor What has lady Macbeth done to King Duncan’s servants?
He reminded her of her father Why does Lady Macbeth not commit the murder when she is in King Duncan’s room?
She doesn’t want him to think about what he did because it will drive them crazy Macbeth apperantly troubled by the murder he has just committed, tells lady Macbeth what he saw and heard. She tells him that “these deeds must not be thought” Why?
She’s not worried, she has to go put the daggers and blood on the servants In this scene, how does Lady Macbeth show herself to be stronger than her husband? What mistake of Macbeth’s does she have to remedy?
Knocking What do Lady Macbeth and Macbeth hear in this scene which increases the sense of urgency and tension in this scene?
Drunk, he is making fun of hell and the people going there The purpose of the porters scene is comic relief. Who is the porter? Describe his scene
Macduff and Lennox; macduff Who is at the door? Who, specifically, has been tasked with giving King Duncan a wake up call?
The night was crazy, wind blew down chimneys, people heard cries of grief in the air, screams of death, and voices predicated catastrophes, owls made notices, earth shook How does Lennox describe the previous night? What motif does this support?
Macduff Who is the first person to find the Kings body?
Guards, Macbeth killed them Who is suspected of the murder and what has happened to them?
Kings sons; danger could strike them at anytime and they fleed Who are Malcolm and Donalbain, what do they suspect, and what decision do they make?
An owl killed a falcon, horses at each other, the Kings murder What additional natural or unnatural events described by the Old Man further the motif of “crimes against nature”
Malcolm and Donalbain because they left Who is suspected of having hired the guards to kill Duncan? Why?
To be crowned, Macbeth was next in line Why has Macbeth gone to scone, and how did this happen to fall to Macbeth?
Around 1606 & during King James I reign What year was the play written and around whose reign?
King James I because he was the patron Who was the play written for and why?
Kings Men What is Shakespeare’s acting company?
Its first showing at the globe When and where did James I attend Macbeth?
James VI of Scotland What was James I of England’s former title?
Scottish King/Setting, Scottish History, and witchcraft What did Shakespeare include in his play to please the King?
Witchcraft & wrote a book on it What was James fascinated with?
Executed them What did James do to “witches”
Known to be cursed Why do people not call Macbeth by its name in the theatre?
Scottish play What is another name for Macbeth?
Lady Macbeth collapsed in stage from fever and died before the play finished What happened to a boy in the first performance of the play?
Hecate, the goddess of witches, casting a spell on the play because her scene is often omitted in the performance of the play What to people attribute the curse to?
Reoccurring image, character, or theme throughout the work What is a motif?
Believed God created the world with a natural hierarchy with God at the top, then monarchy, and other humans What is the belief in a great change of being?
Seemingly contradictory statement that when examine further reveals a universal truth What is a paradox?
Occurs when full significance of a characters words or actions are clear to the audience or reader although unknown to the characters (the audience know something the characters don’t) What is dramatic irony?
Extreme exaggeration What is hyperbole?
Reference to something most people are familiar with What is allusion?
Speaking directly to something dead, absent, imaginary, or abstract What is apostrophe?
End with downfall or death of protagonists or main character What is a tragedy?
Outstanding person of high rank who falls to their ruin What is a tragic hero?
Feature ordinary protagonists in conflicts that are resolved What is comedy drama?
Lines characters speak in conversation with eachother What is dialogue?
Long speeches delivered by one character What is monologue?
Private remarks to another character or to the audience that aren’t heard by other characters What is an aside?
Speeches voicing a characters inner thoughts, not heard by others What is soliloquies?
Instructions about setting, costumes, lightening, scenery, and props or objects What are stage directions?
Word pictures What is imagery?
Characters own struggles What is an internal conflict?
Unrhymed lines containing unstressed syllables What is blank verse?