DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

The answers to the following should be typed (NOT handwritten) so that they can be used for class discussion. They will be turned in at the end of class. To get full credit: 1) the answers are typed 2) they answer the questions 3) they provide lines/page numbers for quotations that support your points

Macbeth (The Play)

We will discuss a number of themes in Macbeth over the two weeks we will spend on it. The following three themes in Macbeth are related to the specific historical context of Shakespeare from 1590-1612, which we discuss in the first hour of class. The readings "Contextual Overview" and "Chronology" will provide helpful background.

1. Usurpation-Regicide/Legitimation

This theme in the play is related to issues of legitimacy and succession for James I, who was brought in from Scotland following the death of the childless Queen Elizabeth to take the throne in 1603.

a. Historically James I traced his line back Banquo, so look for places in the play where the legitimacy of Banquo and his decendants is foregrounded. List the page numbers and line #s so we can discuss them in class and provide a brief explanation for why you think this speech is pertinent. You can also use <Act X, Scene Y, Lines xx-zz> to specify lines.

2. Equivocation, deception, doubleness

Language and images related to equivocation, deception, and doubleness appear throughout the play: saying one thing but meaning another, hiding your true feelings, telling a smaller truth that hides a larger untruth, or telling a small lie that hides a larger truth. Please read the contextual overview for a brief explanation of the historical reasons for why equivocation was an important issue at the time: it was related to the suppression of Catholicism by Henry VIII, and the persecution of "recusant" (hidden) Catholics by James I in the aftermath of the Gunpowder Plot of November 5, 1605.

Gunpowder Plot November 5, 1605 ("remember, remember the fifth of November") was a "terrorist" plot in which a group of Catholics hid 36 barrels of gunpowder packed with nails in the basement of a building adjacent to the House of Parliament, with the intent of blowing it up along with the King (who was supposed to visit Parliament that day).

Equivocation as a technical term (AKA the Doctrine of Mental Reservation) allowed the speaker to employ double meanings of words to tell the literal truth while concealing a deeper meaning. It was used by Jesuits with faced with government suppression, speaking a partial truth to the interrogators while reserving the full truth mentally for only God to hear.

Jesuit John Gerard in 1597: "I maintained that equivocation was different from lying. In equivocation the intention was not to deceive, which was the essence of a lie, but simply to withhold the truth in cases where the questioned party is not bound to reveal it."

a. Why would Catholics who were suppressed/oppressed in England at this time, advocate equivocation? Why was equivocation seen as problematic by the government?

b. Look for places in the play where equivocation/doubleness appears to occur (hint: the Weird Sisters), or where deception is used to cover true intent (hint: by Macbeth and Lady Macbeth). Is equivocation and deception clearly distinguished in Macbeth? Who is equivocation most strongly associated with in the play? Who is deception most strongly associated with?

List the page numbers/line #s with a brief note on how the equivocation functions at that moment in the play, so we can discuss them in class.

James I was an ardent believer in witches; he had several "witches" tortured and put to death who had supposedly participated in fomenting a rebellion against him in Scotland (reported in News from Scotland 1591 pp. 313-325, see also this shorter excerpt) and he wrote an essay (Daemonology, 1597 pp. 325-328) arguing that the power of witches came from their contract with the devil. In Macbeth, a number of the details of how witches act came from these two texts, which introduced new ideas about witches from Europe, such as using sieves as boats, or having the power to cause tempests.

a. To what extent do the Weird Sister's prophecies determine Macbeth's fate?

Do they a) mirror his already murderous thoughts b) anticipate/predict his murderous thoughts or c) determine (fate) his murderous thoughts?

b. Why do you think he decides to act on their prophecies? At what point does he make his decision? (Give scene-lines.) Is there any indication that he might be possessed?

c. What about Lady Macbeth? What is her relation to the Weird Sisters? What imagery in her speech seems to link them together?

Language and Imagery in Macbeth

In the second hour of class we will work on understanding the language of Shakespeare and how he uses imagery. We will continue this next week. For this class do the following:

1. Choose one of the speeches by Macbeth or Lady Macbeth listed below. Use the sign-up sheet for week 2 to let me know by Wednesday April 10th at 5 pm. which speech you have chosen, so I can set up the class.

2. Describe the context of the speech. What is the situation in which Macbeth or Lady Macbeth makes this speech? What is the point of the speech: Is the character commenting on his or her state of mind? Urging action? Making a more general comment?

3. "Translate" the lines into modern English as best you can (you may use the internet or other sources to help you figure out what the lines mean, but do not simply quote the "translation" verbatim and make sure you cite your sources). What is lost when you rephrase and reorder the lines into modern English?

4. What are the main images or metaphors employed? How do these images help develop our understanding of the character or help develop a theme seen elsewhere in the play?

Suggestion: watch your lines in performance on the DVD to see how the actor/s indicate meaning. Feel free to look for other versions of the play on Youtube to see if the actor appears to understand the lines differently.

Act 1, Scene 3, Lines 140-155 (Macbeth: "Two truths are told...And nothing is, but what is not")

Act 1 Scene 5, Lines 45-60 (Lady Macbeth: "The raven himself is hoarse...To cry, 'Hold, hold!'")

Act 1, Scene 7, Lines 1-16 (Macbeth: "If it were done....Not bear the knife myself.")

Act 2, Scene 2, Lines 45-57 (Lady Macbeth and Macbeth: " These deeds must not be thought....Macbeth shall sleep no more.")

Act 5, Scene 3, Lines 45-58 (Macbeth and the Doctor: "How does your patient, doctor?....Throw physic to the dogs, I'll have none of it.")

Act 5, Scene 5, lines 20-30 (Macbeth: "She should have died hereafter....Signifying nothing.")