Macbeth Revised Shakespeare's Tragedy of Macbeth Is

Macbeth REVISED

Shakespeare's tragedy of Macbeth is, in some ways, the story of a disaster that everyone can see coming. After all, it opens with characters -- the Three itches -- who can see the future. hen Macbeth encounters them, the witches offer what Shakespeare terms "strange intelligence" or "prophetic greeting" -- predicting that he will attain the titles of Thane of Cawdor, Thane of Glamis, and King of Scotland (I.iii). The question the play poses, then, is what Macbeth can or cannot do to manipulate the existing circumstances to fulfill his own ambition and the witches' prophecy. The witches predict Macbeth will be the king -- they do not predict that he will murder Duncan to make it happen. Shakespeare does not use the term "manipulate" for Macbeth's way of becoming king, but instead couches it in terms of daring -- as Macbeth will tell his wife, when he…… [Read More]

Macbeth's Desire for Kingship Conclusion

Shakespeare is, above all, a dramatist whose characters are defined by their language: the language they use and how they are affected by language. There is no singular discourse that unites all of the characters of the play: rather the witches, Macbeth, and Lady Macbeth all share in a particular way of rendering language which begins with the witches' incantation at the beginning of the text and follows through to end of the play. Macbeth receives their language, passes it on to Lady Macbeth in the form of a letter, who then reconfigures it in a persuasive manner to lure Macbeth to kill. The seductive notion that their prophesies can be 'true' causes Macbeth to believe the witches, to trust Lady Macbeth's words, and his character is literally eaten alive and possessed by their words until he is a shell of a man. Banquo, in contrast, merely hears the witches'…… [Read More]

Macbeth and Oediups Rex Are Great Tragedies

Macbeth and Oediups Rex are great tragedies from two very different time periods. Even though such different writers wrote them, and in such different times, the similarities that exist between the two are remarkable. Shakespeare and Sophocles both understood exactly what it took to write great tragedy. By comparing how fate plays a part in each play, it is better seen that perhaps Sophocles and Shakespeare were on similar wavelengths. Are the tragic heroes of each play doomed to live out their fate or is there an element of free will that causes each of their downfalls. Surely, it may be a little of both.

Oedipus tells the story of a young boy named Oedipus, who, when he was born, was given up to be adopted by his mother and father. Later when Oedipus was growing up, he asked his adopted parents who his mother and father really were. hen…… [Read More]

Macbeth Letter of Truth in

This scene illustrates the difference between Lady Macbeth and her husband. She sees the big picture and the risks involved with getting what she wants. She understands those risks and accepts them as mere obstacles. In this light, she is cold and calculating. She is afraid of nothing and is quick to pray for what it takes:

Come, you spirits

That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here

And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full

Of direst cruelty. (I.v.38 -- 41)

She knows she lives in a man's world but that does not deter her in the least. She will simply use her husband to get what she wants and she has no doubt that she can do this. She knows he needs her support, however. Later, she tells him, "But screw your courage to the sticking-place / And we'll not fail" (I.vii.64-5). Her support is crucial…… [Read More]

Macbeth the Title Character of Shakespeare's Macbeth

Macbeth

The title character of Shakespeare's Macbeth is one of its most evil villains. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth both plot a series of heinous murders, beginning with the cold-blooded killing of Duncan, to the chamberlains, Banquo, and Macduff's wife and children. Macbeth's only concern is to obtain and secure his position of power, and he rapidly descends into insanity as the play progresses. As the drama's main character, Macbeth is certainly the protagonist; all the action in the play centers on Macbeth, his character and his actions. However, unlike many protagonists, Macbeth is not the play's hero. Although he is a relatively minor character in the play, Macduff emerges as the play's true hero by Act II, scene three. Not only was he the first to become wise to Macbeth's nefarious nature, but Macduff takes decisive and successful action against the evil king. Were it not for Macduff, Malcolm would…… [Read More]

Macbeth a Tragedy by William

Macbeth knows what he plans to do is wrong, even though his wife encourages his ambitions. He acknowledges that what he is going to do is so evil that he does not to see the hand that will do the deed. At the same time he diminishes the deed, saying that a wink of the eye will be enough to block the crime from his view, showing that desire for power has overcome his sense of right and wrong:

Stars, hide your fires:

Let not light see my black and deep desires:

The eye wink at the hand; yet let that be Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see." (I.5 50-53)

Macbeth's wife eventually kills King Duncan, and goes mad from the resulting guilt. Meanwhile, Macbeth, although a brilliant general, makes a poor king, especially when compared to Duncan. Eventually he is killed by his former friend…… [Read More]

Macbeth's Mental Decline Shakespeare Knows

In short, he chooses evil over good.

Macbeth somehow justifies murdering Banquo and Fleance, which demonstrates his deteriorating mental state. He did not struggle with murdering them as he did with Duncan.

He says:

For them the gracious Duncan have I murder'd;

Put rancours in the vessel of my peace

Only for them; and mine eternal jewel

Given to the common enemy of man,

To make them kings, the seed of Banquo kings! (III.i. 65-69).

Macbeth no longer stops to question his behavior or his motives. He simply moves forward with his plan. He plans the murders and make provisions for them on his own. The fact he does not need Lady Macbeth to prod him along illustrates his mental instability. His behavior even startles Lady Macbeth.

Macbeth becomes an excellent case study in the decline of the human psyche when certain aspects are in place. Macbeth possesses a healthy…… [Read More]

Macbeth Shakespeare Is Perhaps the

" (I.v.64-66). She even summons the spirits to free her from the weakness of femininity "Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here" (I.v.41-42) because she associates cruelty and lack of remorse with manhood. In many cases, politics is about what takes place behind the cameras in the sense that rivalry, treason and the corruptive influence of ambition are never expressed in an open manner, but kept hidden and set free only when the lights go out. From this point-of-view, Lady Macbeth could represent the instigator, the morally flawed individual who pushes towards wrongdoing even though she does not get her hands dirty.

Another important factor which could account for the appeal of the play is the fact that it clearly traces the line between good and evil (Nostbakken, 1997, p. 25) even though language and dialogue suggest the exact opposite. In this sense, equivocation is…… [Read More]

Macbeth the Development and Availability

/ He shall spurn fate, scorn death, and bear / His hopes 'bove wisdom, grace, and fear. / And you all know security / Is mortals' chiefest enemy." (Act III, cene 5).

True to the prophesy of the above words, Macbeth destroys both his security and power by succumbing to the illusion of security. The appearance of extreme wealth and power blinds him to the true danger around him and to the false promises of the witches. In this way the play acts as a warning for the audience: wealth and power are likely to bring more grief and danger than they are worth. They also destroy any meaningful connection that might exist between the human being and the divine.

In modern-day works of art, the same warning is issued, although in a more light-hearted, redeeming fashion. Furthermore, material wealth and the divine come closer to each other than in…… [Read More]

Macbeth and the Spanish Tragedy Viewed Through

Macbeth and the Spanish Tragedy Viewed Through Female Eyes

omen and power are often viewed as anathema in the conventional view of Jacobean drama, although ironically the dramatic form reached its height during the reign of Elizabeth. Lady Macbeth is often cited as proof positive that women in tragedy are seen as sources of negative, rather than positive power when they exercise statesmanship and personal choice. But Shakespeare's Lady and also the lesser known Bel-Imperia of Thomas Kyd's earlier revenge play both function not so much as negative sources of power, but as the moral reflections of the men in their lives and the world in which they live, both for good and for ill.

According to the common conception of Lady Macbeth, the wife of the Thane of Cawdor is an evil, malicious shrew, full of gall rather than the "milk of human kindness." (1.1.15) However, although Lady Macbeth…… [Read More]

Macbeth Gothic the Great Play Macbeth by

Macbeth Gothic

The great play Macbeth by the wonderful English author William Shakespeare is a very haunting and scary depiction of a royal Scottish family. Even though this play was written and performed in time period that would be considered pre-Gothic, this play demonstrates some very Gothic elements in its contents. The purpose of this essay is to demonstrate how Macbeth is quintessentially a gothic work. This essay will accomplish this by describing several key qualities that are seen in gothic works and show how Shakespeare wrote Macbeth with those very same qualities.

The Supernatural

When scary and things such as witches and ghosts appear in a story or piece of art, it is a very gothic element. In Shakespeare's Macbeth, there are three witches that play an important role in the play. Also there is much talk of a devil, Satan, and murder. Macbeth is often portrayed as losing…… [Read More]

Macbeth in Act I Scene 2 Of

Macbeth

In Act I Scene 2 of the tragedy of Macbeth, Shakespeare -- after giving a brutally graphic description of how Macbeth "unseam'd…from the nave to the chaps" an enemy soldier -- makes his hero's name rhyme with the word "death" at the scene's conclusion (64-5). Of course the technique of the play is to combine psychological realism with densely-written poetic language. Yet I hope that an examination of the play's supposed moment of comic relief in prose -- the "Porter Scene" that opens Macbeth Act 2 Scene 3 -- reveals, when read as poetry, an additional level of grotesque imagery. I think a closer examination will reveal that, although the Porter's dialogue is written in prose, it deserves to be called "prose-poetry," for Shakespeare still uses metaphor, linguistic detail, and context in order to achieve the same level of condensed and knotty language which characterizes his verse.

The "Porter…… [Read More]

Macbeth Annotated Bibliography Overview of

The article goes into significant details about the genealogical structure of the Scottish families that were on the Scottish throne at that point. Although Shakespeare does not follow exactly the historical line, most of his characters and actions are closely linked with the historical realities.

The article briefly goes through a description of the Scottish life and Scotland at the time of King Macbeth, as they are also reflected in the play. esides raides from the Vikings from Norway and Denmark, medieval Scotland is also dominated by a belief in witches (which appear in the play) and the unnatural. However, the author points out that authorities took drastic measures against witchcraft.

Finally, the article includes a presentation on England in the time the play was written, namely during the time of James I, with a description of historical events (the Gunpowder Plot and the Gowrie Conspiracy among these) and general…… [Read More]

Macbeth Is Noted by Many

Thus he sought to kill both Banquo and his son Fleance in order to further decrease the chances of a later betrayal. His actions appear irrational on a surface level, but due to his avid focus on independence he would not seek counsel from Lady Macbeth, someone who is much more subtle and knowledgeable about internal politics and political intrigue. Macbeth's near irrational paranoia finally alienates him not only from his wife, but also the majority of nobles within the Scottish polity. Thus, while Macbeth's personal power continues to rise because he gains complete ownership over his own actions, at the same time he is also increasingly isolating himself from the outside world. With Macbeth's continuing disregard for Lady Macbeth, she finally succumbs to a combination of regret and guilt and ends her own life. In her final moments she continued to question, "what, will these hands never be clean?"…… [Read More]

Macbeth Showing All the Characteristics

They believed in the idea of yrd, or the Nordic version of fate. This fate was based on past events of an individual's life. Their future would be adjusted accordingly by yrd, much like the Eastern idea of Karma, (Herbert 1995). It was the destiny of all men, based on what individuals had done previously in their lives. This element is prevalent throughout Shakespeare's Macbeth, in that his fate is what eventually leads him to his downfall. Because of his treacherous actions in murdering the King and his friend Banquo to steal the crown, Macbeth ensured that yrd would eventually come to take its revenge for his deceitful behavior. This pagan tradition did not fully die out with the region's conversion to Christianity; rather it moved from a strong religious practice into folk tales. Anglo-Saxon traditions and beliefs are still engrained into British literary traditions.

The earlier idea of yrd…… [Read More]

Macbeth Subject for a Witches

This adds to their mystique.

Shakespeare never intends to fully disclose everything there is to know about these women. Instead, he leaves them with us to make up our own minds as we watch Macbeth descend. e know they are responsible for part of Macbeth's tragedy. He becomes more dependent on them, illustrating how they slowly replace his moral center. It is also important to realize they are completely aware of what they are doing. They set out to destroy him and he falls into their trap instantly. Their ability to affect Macbeth is compelling and Shakespeare deliberately establishes them as supernatural and powerful creatures to reinforce the humanity of Macbeth. To enhance this affect, the witches' apparitions drive Macbeth close to and eventually off the mental edge. After killing Lady Macduff, Macbeth moves beyond any reason. They are source of struggle for him. hile their prodding seems to upset…… [Read More]

Macbeth and Its Relation to

" (1.1.12). This elimination of distinction is later echoed by Macbeth, who is on his way back from the battlefield. Already disorder has crept into his mind. "So foul and fair a day I have not seen," he states (1.3.39). Rather than exulting in his victory on the battlefield, he appears to be troubled. He is in danger of losing his sense of order and value even before he meets the witches. They use his weakness to compel him to overturn his reason and pursue his ambition.

His mental and moral health is not helped any by his wife, who renounces her femininity (and ends up losing her mind): "Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here." (1.5.47-8). She prays for a spirit of cruelty, knowing for well that their ambition can only be satisfied through cruelty. After the murder is committed, both Macbeth and Lady…… [Read More]

Macbeth Had Resisted Temptation Befriended Duncan and

Macbeth had resisted temptation, befriended Duncan, and (for good measure) divorced his wife. ouldn't he be the King of Scotland, in due course? hy didn't the Bard create a model of patient merit, instead of a form of vaulting ambition? hy not make Macbeth a hero, instead of a loathsome villain?

In illiam Shakespeare's Macbeth, the playwright tells of a man whose ambition, not to mention the prodding of his even more ambitious wife, leads him to commit multiple murders in order to obtain the crown of Scotland. Macbeth had been a loyal subject of King Duncan until he makes the acquaintance of three witches who predict that he will be Thane and then, ultimately, King. However, in order to achieve this goal he must not only commit regicide against the current king, but must also get rid of anyone who might subvert his attempts to gain the throne. By…… [Read More]

Macbeth Act 1 Scene 1

Versions of MacBeth

Act I, Scene I of MacBeth is a short act that introduces the audience to three characters who play small, but significant, roles in the play. The three witches, sometimes referred to as the weird sisters, appear in a desolate location, with a storm brewing in the background. Their conversation is without any substance; instead, it is clear that the audience is viewing them after they have already done something, but what is left unspecified. Instead, they are setting the time and place for their next meeting. They indicate that they will meet with MacBeth. They also foreshadow that good will be bad and bad will be good, though whether they are going to cause this disruption or are merely able to predict that it will occur is not specified.

In the 1971 version of MacBeth, directed by oman Polanski, the three witches are on a beach,…… [Read More]

Macbeth and Arthur Dimmesdale as Tragic Figures Remark on Their Hamartia Hubris Respectively

tragic figures. The writer compares and contrasts Macbeth and Arthur Dimmesdale as "tragic figures." Their lives, their ideas and the things that happen to them all contribute to the tragic figure persona. There were 10 sources used to complete this paper.

Throughout history authors of literature have used their works to make their characters evoke emotion in the readers hearts. One of the most emotion evoking characters in works of literature is the tragic hero. The tragic hero is a hero in actions and tragic in the flaw that makes him or her human after all. The tragic hero is the character that struggles with human flaws or emotions while at the same time acting in heroic ways. The ways of a tragic hero are often about warriors and the ability to fight but this is not always the case.

At other times the tragic hero is the one who…… [Read More]

Macbeths Two Macbeths An Analysis

Their inability to come to terms with the facts of their success and the actions they were required to take to achieve it becomes, in many ways, the focus of the film, and becomes the true heart of the story Polanski is trying to tell in this film.

Character Changes

The violence and psychological crumbling it causes is not only accentuated in Polanski's Macbeth by these added scenes, but also in how Polanski presents certain other scenes from the play, as well. These changes have direct implications for the interpretation of the two primary characters in the play, as well as for several of the secondary characters and the overall thrust of the film's story. Perhaps the most significant interpretive choices that Polanski makes in regards to the direct characterizations of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth occur in the staging -- or the filming, rather -- of their soliloquies. Through Polanski's…… [Read More]

Macbeth Choose a Complex and

Lady Macbeth is never as confident as she is before the death of Duncan. She faints when she hears Macbeth describe the murder of Duncan in graphic detail, and while this could be a ploy to divert attention from him, her later actions indicate that she is wracked with guilt. She obsessively reenacts the scene of the murder as she sleepwalks at night, and perhaps most tragically, she grows more and more estranged from her husband. While before Macbeth told her everything, now, before making the critical decision to kill Banquo, Macbeth says: "Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck, / Till thou applaud the deed" (III.2).

This separation from the man she helped 'make' king is what drives Lady Macbeth mad, along with guilt. Unlike her warrior husband, she never truly saw death. Out of love for his wife as well as ambition, Macbeth killed his king, but in…… [Read More]

William Shakespeare's Macbeth Introduction to

She declares that a man who snatches what he desires is actually a true man. Lady Macbeth burdens herself by seducing his husband into committing the murder afterall. Although, initially she has the strength and potential to deal with the task of abetting in a murder and thinks she will be able to forget all about it once she becomes the Scottish Queen but eventually conscience overpowers her vices. She dies of guilt and anguish.

(iii) Banquo

Like Macbeth, Banquo, is also a nobleman of Scotland and a general in rank.To some extent through Banquo and Macbeth, the writer has offered a comparison of choices made by men in similar circumstances. When Macbeth was foretold of his rule on Scotland, so was Banquo made aware that his descendants would one day be wearing the crown. Like Macbeth, Banquo is a man of high rank and status and hence of an…… [Read More]

Shakespeare's Play Macbeth Women Play Influence Macbeth

Shakespeare's play Macbeth, women play influence Macbeth a brave vibrant soldier, ready die king, a murderer? Discuss witches predictions portrayed Jacobean era ambitious Lady Macbeth husband deranged.

illiam Shakespeare's play Macbeth provides an intriguing account involving concepts like greed, the influence women have on men, and the overall idea of human nature in dubious circumstances. Macbeth is the central character and he comes to employ deceiving attitudes as he becomes more and more overcome by greed. hile it is actually normal to see a person being obsessed with power and coming to act in disagreement with principles he or she previously believed in, Macbeth is also significantly influenced by women who he interacts with and it is only safe to say that they play an important role in making him commit regicide.

Macbeth is somewhat dependent to women, not from a sexual point-of-view, but from a point-of-view involving him wanting…… [Read More]

Literary Analysis of Macbeth

Shakespeare

Macbeth and the Struggle between Good and Evil

Like all of Shakespeare's tragedies, the action of Macbeth is based around the fatal flaw of the man who would otherwise be a hero. For Macbeth, his flaw is his ambition. He allows his ambition to drive him and this overcomes his reason. In doing so, he chooses the path of evil over the path of good. In the end though, he cannot live with his own choice and his good side becomes his underdoing. In this way, Macbeth is not only the story of a man choosing evil, but also the story of a man who cannot be driven to ignore his good side. This makes Macbeth a unique play because it shows both sides of the struggle between good and evil and makes it a human struggle. This major theme in the play is expressed in several ways. This…… [Read More]

Shakespeare the Character and Relationship of Macbeth

Shakespeare

The Character and Relationship of Macbeth and his Lady

In Act 1, Scene V of Macbeth, Lady Macbeth reads a letter from her husband and then reflects on his character. Use this letter and speech as a focal point for analyzing their relationship. What does the letter tell you about his view of the world? What does her subsequent speech tell you about hers? Stay with these few pages of the text and examine as many of the words and phrases as possible.

It seems from the text that Lady Macbeth loves her husband and wants the best for him, but she also believes that he will not be able to do what is required. The letter introduces her to the message from the weird sisters who, as the reader knows, are witches who are, throughout the tale telling Macbeth of his fate. At the end of the opening…… [Read More]

Literature Macbeth

Shakespeare's Macbeth represents what many refer to as the tragic hero. This can be proven by examining Macbeth's character. Through a series of bad decisions, Macbeth single-handedly ruins his own life. By allowing himself to be influenced by outside forces, Macbeth diffuses his own moral strength and good nature, which were the very things that led him to greatness. Step-by-step throughout the play, the reader can watch Macbeth's character deteriorate until he has nothing left. Macbeth might have been a tragic hero, but the tragedy was of his own making.

In the beginning of the play, Macbeth demonstrates characteristics of a hero and a leader. His loyalty to the king transforms into a desire to be king. This is evident in the first scene when Macbeth encounters the witches and falls victim to their curses and predictions. Because of his false sense of security, he believes everything they say. In…… [Read More]

Hamlet and Macbeth Hamlet vs

hile Macbeth also appears to see ghosts as a result of killing his friend and the king, it is very probable that his visions are caused by his conscience, as he is unable to get over the fact that he murdered his best friend and the king. Lady Macbeth also yields to hallucinations: "Here's the smell of blood still: all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand" (Lady Macbeth, Act 5, Scene 1). Instead of perceiving them as being examples of their dirty conscience, the Macbeths consider that their visions are supernatural occurrences that appear as a result of their actions.

Macbeth lacks morality where Hamlet uses too much of it: the former does not hesitate to kill anyone that stands in his way in spite of the fact that he is actually close to many of the people that he kills whereas Hamlet discovers that Claudius…… [Read More]

1971 Film Version of Macbeth Roman Polanski's

1971 Film Version of MacBeth

oman Polanski's 1971 version of Shakespeare's play Macbeth is dark, suspenseful and quite bloody for a film that was made before the slasher genre was even in existence. What is particularly good about Polanski's take on the play is that he seems to not have taken into account any versions of the play before he made his own; that is, Polanski has put his own mark on the film that proves itself to be quite different from any of the films that he would do before -- or after. Considering the year that Macbeth was made -- 1971, just two years after the Manson murders that claimed his wife Sharon Tate's life, their unborn baby, and three others (Garber 104), it might not be crazy to think that Polanski's ample use of blood in this film was a way of avenging the death. This is…… [Read More]

Danger of Temptation in Macbeth

They catch his attention hailing him Thane of Glamis and King hereafter and he is obsessed. Banquo asks Macbeth "why do you start and seem to fear / Things that do sound so fair?" (I.iii51-2), indicating the difference between the two. Banquo exercises caution while Macbeth expresses interest in more information.

Both men handle success differently. hen King Duncan meets with the men after battle, they are not treated or rewarded in the same way -- even though both served the king equally well. The king offers his heart to Banquo saying, "That hast no less deserved, nor must be known / No less to have done so: let me enfold thee / And hold thee to my heart"(I.iv.33-35). Macbeth, on the other hand, Macbeth receives a handsome reward. Banquo is quite content with this offering and praise. He does not feel slighted not does he make any comment regarding…… [Read More]

Banquo Macbeth Banquo and Macbeth

Macbeth eventually comes to the realization that Banquo cannot be trusted to help his plot to become king. He realizes that Banquo has a pure spirit and will be a threat to his newly acquired throne and therefore has him murdered. Yet this doesn't end Banquo's role in the story and his spirit is shown first in his son Fleance and then later through ghostly appearances.

The main illustration of the foil between these two friends in the story can be provided by their responses to the two witches. While Macbeth had a somewhat neutral response at first indicated by the statement "this supernatural soliciting cannot be ill / cannot be bad, if ill why hath it given me earnest of success?" This implies that he didn't think it was too bad if it gave him hope for the future. However, the more Macbeth imagined himself as king, the more…… [Read More]

Mohammed Suharto and Macbeth William Shakespeare Wrote

Mohammed Suharto and Macbeth

illiam Shakespeare wrote Macbeth to be one of his most important epic plays, reaching into the darkest aspects of mankind and offering no redemption to his hero in the end. At first a loyal general, Macbeth sees power as something that is in his grasp, and with the right amount of pressure, he seizes this power by killing King Duncan. (Shakespeare, 1611) In the end, Macbeth was punished for the evil that he committed, and did not remain King for long. The power unbalance that Macbeth sets forth can be compared to Mohammed Suharto's take over of Indonesia in 1965. Suharto, like Macbeth, was power hungry, and believed that he knew what was the best way to govern, and would do anything possible to prove it.

In several ways, the life of Mohammed Suharto can be directly placed over the story of Macbeth. The same tragic…… [Read More]

Shakespeare's Play Macbeth There Are Several Themes

Shakespeare's play Macbeth, there are several themes that can relate today's modern society. But, one in particular wills mostly likely stand the test of time of all future societies. The theme of nature is use throughout the play and in the play it means that something will occur by the nature of things is set up. For example, in Act I, there is darkness all around the witches and during the time of the play, people associated darkness with evilness. So, the nature of the setting in Act I gave the audience the impression something evil was going to happen. And, today's modern audience would still get the same impression due to the nature of the setting.

Also, in Act I, there is thunder and lighting, which indicates a disturbance in nature. People of today still feel that way about thunder and lighting. In Act II, darkness is all over…… [Read More]

Theatrical Analysis of Macbeth and Antigone

Theatrical Analysis of Macbeth and Antigone

The most accounted features of a tragedy are the gloominess of atmosphere, solemnity of action, mental conflicts, strain, suspense and capability of capturing the audience. Tragedy tries to stimulate the sentiments of pity and fear (Devi 1). Thus, this study is comparing the two Shakespearean and Greek tragedies, Macbeth and Antigone. This analysis will compare and contrast the two plays, their theme, comparison of main characters, conflict, plot etc. The purpose of this study is to provide a deeper understanding of the plays to the reader and to assess the similarity and differences in both the plays. Macbeth unfolds the story of a man, ambitious to become a king. He even murders King Duncan to fulfil his ambition due to the prophecy of the three witches and his wife, Lady Macbeth. However, he ends up dying because of his greediness. Antigone, on the other…… [Read More]

Power of Blood in Shakespeare's Macbeth Blood

Power of Blood in Shakespeare's Macbeth

Blood is powerful when it comes to invoking images and illiam Shakespeare knew when he wrote Macbeth, the audience would remember everything with blood imagery sprinkled throughout the drama. Blood imagery helps emphasizes the extrreme change in Macbeth's character and it is compelling because blood is vital for life. hen we see blood, we generally think of life or death in some or another.ith Macbeth, Shakespeare reminds us not only of the loss of life but the loss of sanity that also occurs as a result of the death that occurs in the play. As the play progresses, blood represents guilt, which eats Macbeth alive. Later, we associate blood with justice. Blood symbolizes the lives and minds that are lost in the play.

Blood is present from the easrly moments in the play, establishing an eerie mood. Mark Van Doren writes Macbeth's world is…… [Read More]

Reversal of Nature in Macbeth

"(Bloom, 41) Any act of evil is seen thus to change the basic structure of the universe and to transform nature into a desolated chaos.

It is not only the natural, physical environment that becomes extremely chaotic through evil, but the human nature as well. All through the play, Lady Macbeth calls upon the forces of evil to keep at bay the "compunctious visitings of nature." It is thus plainly shown that there can be no enactment of malignancy without a reversal of human nature: "The raven himself is hoarse / That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan / Under my battlements. Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, / and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full / of direst cruelty! make thick my blood; / Stop up the access and passage to remorse, / That no compunctious visitings of nature /…… [Read More]

The Modernization of Macbeth

popular theatrical experience in New York City. It is written objectively and seeks to identify both the areas of success and areas of improvement that this production, and its holistic experience, entails for the viewer.

Event Description

This event involved the author going to an a 1930's style hotel in New York City. Various aspects of the theatrical experience which is loosely based on Macbeth involved audiences getting acclimated to different perspectives and rooms in the residence in which the story takes place. In this regard the experience was truly interactive.

Evaluation

The most interesting thing about the event was the modernization of Macbeth. The fact that theater goers could actually follow various characters in this timeless tale in different rooms helped to add to this story, and emphasize some of the aspects of the play that are less emphasized in the original.

b.i. On the one hand, there was…… [Read More]

Shakespeare's Notorious Villians William Shakespeare

Shakespeare allows us to see Macbeth's good nature, which also illustrates how easily man can fall once he allows his passions to have free reign.

In Hamlet, Claudius is also driven by ambition and he ranks a close second to Iago as men whose hearts are tainted with evil. His ultimate desire is to be king and then to remain king and he will stop at nothing to achieve that goal. Of course, the wicked deed of killing his own brother becomes more grotesque than that of Iago or Macbeth because of the sheer lack of soul a man must have to commit such an act. Claudius admits that he will do what it takes to retain the throne and he resorts to all sorts of dubious behavior to accomplish this. He also asks Rozencrantz and Guildenstern to use their:

Companies

To draw him on to pleasures, and to gather…… [Read More]

Text Stage and Screen

creen

hakespeare's rhetoric has always astounded his contemporary audiences through his almost supernatural ability to perceive and present the universality of human nature on stage, regardless of the time his characters lived in.

The three different types of techniques used in rendering the play to the public are different, but related art forms: literature, theater and film. They reflect their author's or directors' vision of the story originally presented by hakespeare on stage at the Globe, in London, at the beginning of the seventeenth century.

Kings of cotland, England, and later Great Britain, had always been challenged in keeping their place on the throne and hakespeare himself lived through times that were still full of intrigue and plotting against the sovereign. Mary tuart, accused of plotting against the queen of England, Elisabeth I, had been executed in 1587, still a vivid memory for many who attended the shows put on…… [Read More]

Violence Exists for Its Own

2).

However, unlike Lady Macbeth, Macbeth knows that once violence has been undertaken, there is no going back: "Wake Duncan with thy knocking! I would thou couldst!" (II.2). After her initial resolve, Lady Macbeth becomes miserable and eventually insane with guilt: "Nought's had, all's spent, / Where our desire is got without content" (III.2). Once he has murdered Duncan, Macbeth knows he must defend his grip on power with more bloodshed, and he kills his old friend Banquo without remorse.

The contrast between the two figures during Duncan's murder shows the contrast between male and female views of power: Lady Macbeth, shielded from war and the real workings of power, has a romantic view of what being queen might be like. Macbeth is a soldier and despite his ambition has a more sober view of bloodshed, a sober view that is warranted, given the misery that results from his impulsive…… [Read More]

Diffusing Tension and Educating the

This is also true in another tragedy of murder, Fyodor Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment. One of the more humorous characters in the novel is the drunken Marmeladov. Marmeladov is an alcoholic, and his long, rambling monologues are a startling counterpoint to the seriousness with which Raskolnikov regards his life. ithout characters like Marmeladov, the novel would be almost unbearably claustrophobic and ridden with tension, as Raskolnikov tormented himself with guilt over his double murder, and the police officer Porfiry tried to trick the law student into a confession. But like the porter, Marmeladov serves an important function in underlining the novel's theme. It shows the desperation to which the poor in Russia sink: Marmeladov's dissipation forces his daughter Sofia to become a prostitute.

ithout knowing Sofia and the patience with which she bears her sacrifice and her misery, Raskolnikov would never have found his path to moral redemption. Even in…… [Read More]

Wordsworth Blake Shelly and Other Greats of the Romantic Era

Romantic Era

The years in which the Romantic Era had its great impact -- roughly 1789 through 1832 -- were years in which there were "intense political, social, and cultural upheavals," according to Professor Shannon Heath at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville (Heath, 2009). The beginning of the Romantic Era actually is traced to the French Revolution, and though that tumultuous event was not in England, illiam ordsworth and others sympathized with the French Revolution -- at least at the beginning of the Revolution.

The demands for democracy in the Era were manifested through poems that reflected solidarity with principles of "equality and individuality," Heath explains. The principles of fairness and equality were needed in England as well as in France, and Heath suggests that poets were not just responding to revolutions but rather were critiquing English government. According to Giovanni Pellegrino the struggles for democracy and the "political…… [Read More]

Crime and Punishment Crime and

From a good soldier, he turns into a bad king. He becomes a man who believes the transparent lies of the witches who, along with the urging of his ambitious wife, motivated him to commit the murder of King Duncan.

Hamlet: Hamlet's depressed and uncompromising nature resonates with anyone who has ever been an adolescent. Hamlet is intensely critical of aspects of his society others take for granted, such as King Claudius' right to marry his brother's widow and Old Hamlet's suspect death. Hamlet's criticism can be harsh, and misogynistic as well as misanthropic, but he is an inspiring example for young readers. He urges readers and playgoers today to continually question the morality of their elders and betters, and strike out against the 'smile' or lie that hides the real truth about power in society.

The Scarlet Letter: Nathaniel Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter shows that the appearance of religion without…… [Read More]

Explication Shakespeare's Sonnet 138 When Love Swears Made Truth

Shakespeare is often revered as one of the world's greatest authors. His works, which have now become legend, are the subject of intense study and review. In many instances, many of today's popular motion pictures, dramas, and movies have used elements of Shakespeare's work. Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1589 and 1613. His early plays were mainly comedies and histories, genres he raised to the peak of sophistication and artistry by the end of the 16th century. He then wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608, including Hamlet, King Lear, Othello, and Macbeth, considered some of the finest works in the English language. Many of these tragedies have been adapted for modern viewing. Hamlet, Othello, and Macbeth, for instance, have seen multiple motion picture releases and have captivated generations. In addition, many of Shakespeare's tragedies have become common works on Broadway, further justifying their importance in English literature.…… [Read More]

Film Project Othello Modernized Shakespeare

My story being done,

She gave me for my pains a world of sighs:

She swore, in faith, twas strange, 'twas passing strange,

Twas pitiful, 'twas wondrous pitiful:

She wish'd she had not heard it, yet she wish'd

That heaven had made her such a man: she thank'd me,

And bade me, if I had a friend that loved her, should but teach him how to tell my story.

And that would woo her. Upon this hint I spake:

She loved me for the dangers I had pass'd,

And I loved her that she did pity them.

This only is the witchcraft I have used:

Here comes the lady; let her witness it.

Translation

Setting: The inside of the administrative building. Nighttime. Othello is wearing a suit, and is confronted by the school's president, 'Dr. B,' and several members of the administration in their pajamas.

John Othello: Look Dr. B,…… [Read More]

Little Mckinley

Symbolism of Blood, Water and Weather

Virtually all of Shakespeare's most prolific works are accompanied by symbolism. In this respect, his vaunted Macbeth is no different. This tale of betrayal, murder and revenge is so timeless in large part due to the author's copious deployment of symbolism which helps to shape the plot and provide more than a little foreshadowing. The prudent reader can easily discern the fact that there is a repetition of three of the most widely used symbols in this play: weather, water, and blood. These symbols are more prevalent than any others through this dramatic work largely due to what they symbolize: bad omens, purity, and murderous guilt. Furthermore, at least one of these symbols is present in virtually all of the major developments in this play. A careful analysis of symbolism in Macbeth reveals that all of these symbols are potent reminders of the evil…… [Read More]

Shakespeare's Insistant Theme Imagery Use

he's gone forever! / I know when one is dead, and when one lives; / he's dead as earth." (King Lear V.iii.256-260)

Titus Andronicus is the central figure and tragic hero of the homonymous play by William hakespeare. He is a General of Rome and father to Lavinia and Lucius. He is a brave solider of Rome who has spent the last ten years of his life fighting Rome's enemies. Although very successful and praised for his heroic acts, Titus Andronicus now feels incapable of assuming the role his country had envisioned for him. Moreover, despite the fact that in the beginning he is seen as a model of piety, and praised for his adherence to tradition and custom, it is precisely this inflexibility - "For now I stand as one upon a rock / Environed with a wilderness of sea, / Who marks the waxing tide grow wave by…… [Read More]

Shakespeare S Machiavellian Characters and the Prince

Machiavelli and Shakespeare:

The Influence of Machiavelli on Shakespeare's Plays

The Italian enaissance-era philosopher and political adviser Nicolo Machiavelli is one of the most famous and infamous writers on the subject of politics. Despite the common use of the synonym Machiavellian for evil, Machiavelli's seminal tract The Prince was considered so ground-breaking because of his emphasis on the practical nature of holding principalities versus a philosophy of the divine right of kings. Cunning rather than religion was the reason leaders triumphed, according to Machiavelli. Machiavelli was not necessarily opposed to democracy but rather advocated strong-armed techniques because simply from the prince's perspective that these methods were superior in holding territories. Machiavelli offered hard-headed words of wisdom versus ethical theories. Machiavelli's unsentimental and irreligious attitude towards kingship was very controversial at the time and influenced many of the depictions of villains in the Elizabethan playwright William Shakespeare's plays, including Julius Caesar,…… [Read More]

Incongruous to Try to Compare the Artists

incongruous to try to compare the artists illiam Shakespeare and Bob Marley. These two men, separated by centuries and embodying two very different forms of art, both make up part of the history of popular culture. One man is considered the premiere playwright in the history of the English language, a man whose name is synonymous with high culture. The other man is known for his success in a musical genre and a culture that uses a different meaning for the word high. hat could these men possible have in common one might ask? Examining the history and writings of both Renaissance writer illiam Shakespeare and reggae musician Bob Marley it becomes evident that they both use emotional appeals and heavy symbolism to prove points about the human condition and to promote understanding between people from different stations of life, all of which are used to persuade others that the…… [Read More]

Teen Pregnancy The Role of Parental Support

Teen Pregnancy: The ole of Parental Support

A significant proportion of babies in the U.S. are born to women aged 15 to 19 years. In 2014 alone, 249,078 babies were delivered by teenage women, representing a birth rate of 24 in every 1,000 females in this age category (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2016). This represents a historic low in the prevalence of teen pregnancy in the U.S. compared to two decades ago, with delayed and/or reduced sexual activity as well as increased use of birth control among teens believed to be the major contributors of the decline (CDC, 2016). Even so, teen pregnancy in the U.S. remains the highest in the developed world (Department of Health and Human Services [HHS], 2016).

Whereas majority of teen births are unintended and occur outside marriage, it is important to note that many of these are intended (Sekharan et al., 2015).…… [Read More]

Shakespeare's Characters The Commencement of William Shakespeare's

Shakespeare's Characters:

The commencement of illiam Shakespeare's work can be traced to the latter quarter of the fifteen hundreds when he started writing and performing plays. In his work, Shakespeare basically considered the current issues, which contribute to debates among scholars on whether his works should be regarded as contemporary writing or universal philosophical statements. His focus on current issues was mainly geared towards reconstructing the existing political and social concerns and universal concepts and issues. Notably, one of the major issues raised by scholars regarding his work is the significance of historical depiction. Some scholars argue that Shakespeare's historical depiction of his characters should not be overlooked. This depiction plays an important role in understanding the characters themselves as well as gaining important insights from his works. In this case, Shakespeare's characters fall into two major categories i.e. heroes and heroines and villain characters.

Analysis of Shakespeare's Characters:

Shakespeare's…… [Read More]

Children's Literature to Dispel the

16).

In comparing a number of literary elements in one story, Smith and Wiese (2006) contend that at times, when attempting to transform an old story into a modern multicultural version, cultural meanings of the original story may be lost. In turn, the literature does not subject the reader to another culture. For instance, in the story about the fisherman, that Smith and Wiese access, the plot remains similar plot, however, significant changes transform the reported intent to make the story multicultural. Changes included the fisherman's daughter's stated name, being changed from one common to her culture to Maha. Instead of God, as written in the original version, the reference notes "Allah." Other changes Smith and Wiese point out include:

& #8230;The admonition to retrieve the fish or "be sorry" instead of the threatened curse, the reference to the golden shoe as a sandal instead of a clog;

the proposed…… [Read More]

5 Of Shakespeare S Works

literacy -- that which is mastered only by Prospero and Miranda, and sought after by Caliban who is considered illiterate in comparison to the pair. Caliban's antagonistic relationship with Prospero is one which the author believes is waged over this literacy and which is so crucial because it is both literal and figurative. Literally it represents the smoothness of language which the aforementioned pair possess; figuratively it involves the books that Prospero has which endow him with magical abilities to cast spells and actuate spirits such as Ariel. The author buttresses this opinion by ascribing significance to Caliban's attempts to counteract Prospero's powers by destroying his books, thereby making Prospero's literacy on par with his own illiteracy.

The most interesting aspect of this article is that its focus on literacy is one which is only shared between the previously denoted three characters (and perhaps Ariel) whose fate is linked to…… [Read More]

Women Are Portrayed in Late

(269)

It would seem that the artists and the press of the era both recognized a hot commodity when they saw one, and in this pre-Internet/Cable/Hustler era, beautiful women portrayed in a lascivious fashion would naturally appeal to the prurient interests of the men of the day who might well have been personally fed up with the Victorian morals that controlled and dominated their lives otherwise. In this regard, Pyne (2006) reports that, "hen scandalized critics attacked Rodin's nudes, Camera ork defended the drawings by a strategy of veiling the body with the soul, praising them as 'the perception of the mystery of surfaces.... The adventure of the mind in matter... The divinizing of the sensual and the materializing of the sensuous.' Stieglitz thus used a histlerian gloss of shadows and music to mystify the eroticism of Rodin's 'pagan' figures" (44).

The portrayal of women was even regarded as a…… [Read More]

Translation Linguistic the Challenges of

The result is a translation that fails either to satisfy the impulse for Arab audiences to appreciate the nuance of one of Shakespeare's great tragedies or to create a work that resonates with Arab-speaking audiences.

In many ways, the challenges of translating this type of work are far greater than standard translations between the two distinct linguistic traditions. This is because of core structural differences that lead to common syntax errors. According to Nakhallah (2010), "English-Arabic translation difficulties also result from differences in word order between the syntax of the two languages." (Nakhallah, p. 2)

Such is to say that the reverse order of subject and verb between the two languages leads to a bevy of translation errors and produces works that are often garbled and inferior. The consequence may simply be a low quality reading experience for the Arabic reader attempting to take in a piece of English-written work…… [Read More]

Mental Health Continuum of Care

However, integrated continuum of care networks presents a viable solution to mental health care delivery that properly allocates resources a collaborative and cooperative service delivery system.

Needed, according to Mohatt (1997) is "vertical integration' in the "approaches to managed care" in networking a group of healthcare providers, at various levels of primary care and behavioral health, to form an integrated service network. They seek to develop, via cooperation, a coordinated, consumer focused, seamless continuum of care designed to improve access and availability through efficiencies gained by the elimination of redundant services or systems."

Mohatt reports just such as system being in existence and specifically the Laurel Health System in northeastern Pennsylvania "founded in 1989 with the merger of five not-for-profit organizations..." This network spans the human service gamut inclusive of primary care, nursing homes, senior housing, ambulance service, and hospital." (1997) Mohatt reports another example stating:

recent example of such…… [Read More]

Harlem 1920-1960 Culture of the

Their main arguments are based on historical assumptions and on facts which have represented turning points for the evolution of the African-American society throughout the decades, and especially during the evolutionary War and the Civil War. In this regard, the Old Negro, and the one considered to be the traditional presence in the Harlem, is the result of history, and not of recent or contemporary events.

From the point-of-view of historical preconceptions and stereotypes, it would unwise to consider Harlem as being indeed a cancer in the heart of a city, taking into account the fact that there is no objective comparison being made. Locke points out the fact that the Negro of today be seen through other than the dusty spectacles of past controversy. The day of "aunties," "uncles" and "mammies" is equally gone. Uncle Tom and Sambo have passed on, and even the "Colonel" and "George" play barnstorm…… [Read More]

Economic Crash Through the Works of Wessel Lewis and Sorkin

Sorkin's book does a good job of giving the details on what happened among Lehman Brothers, Barclays, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, the Fed, and Big Gov following the collapse. Essentially, everyone had egg on his face -- but some of the bigger powers had the muscle to save face -- and sink competitors at the same time: which is exactly what Goldman Sachs did to Lehman. Goldman had been placing its cronies in the hite House for years -- and it would now go through the hite House to see who got bailed out and who did not. AIG got one -- because it owed a large chunk to Goldman (who had figured out the game ahead of time and started betting against itself by buying insurance through AIG). Sorkin's work is a work full of the kind of details that other writer's like Taibbi and Lewis do not take…… [Read More]

William Wallace Is Perhaps One of Scotland's

William Wallace is perhaps one of Scotland's most famous historical figures, but the popular conception of him owes more to Hollywood screenwriters than actual historiography. Adaptations such as 1995's raveheart (itself based on a poem written over a century after Wallace's death) have popularized the figure, but in many cases they have glossed over or even omitted the most noteworthy elements of Wallace's military career by focusing on his role as a charismatic leader, rather than his abilities as a military strategist.

y examining what information is available about Wallace's military exploits, and particularly the attle of Stirling ridge, it will be possible to see how Wallace's successes in the first War of Scottish Independence were the combined result of his knowledge of Scottish terrain and the deployment of unconventional tactics and strategies that played off of the ritish military's own confidence and sense of superiority.

efore discussing the attle…… [Read More]

Dubus and Killings the Meanings of Masculinity

Killings" is set in a blue-collar New England town along the Merrimack. It is a vision of a somewhat isolated community -- outside of time, not supported by a sense of law or order or justice. Murder essentially goes unpunished -- which is why the main character, Matt, takes the "law" into his own hands and murders Strout, the man who killed his son. Matt, used to taking matters into his own hands, as a man from a blue collar town, feels justified in this killing -- just as justified as Strout felt in killing Matt's son, who was sleeping with Strout's estranged wife. hile Strout's killing of Matt was based on passion (Strout's passion to repossess his wife and let no other have her), Matt's killing of Strout is based on grief and a desire for vengeance (his son is dead yet Strout is free to walk the streets…… [Read More]