Final Scenes of Macbeth

At last, the play is done, and there's nothing left to know. Please select a passage from these last pages that you think somehow capsulizes the impact of the play's concluding moments. Where does the tragedy, the irony, the justice, whatever, strike you as being the strongest? What ambiguities remain? What ultimately does the play say about human nature and human will?

Rolling into Act 5 of Macbeth

To finish the week, your charge is to choose: either comment here about anything at all in tonight's reading that catches your fancy, or memorize five lines. My suggestions include your reaction to the odd scene with Malcolm and Macduff, and what you make of the shift there, or some aspect of Act 5, 1. If you would, tie you comment to specific lines, which you site at the beginning of your comment.

Notes and Ideas for Macbeth 3, 5 &6 and 4, 1 &2

The call is memorization this time, so these are once again more study guides and discussion starters. I do welcome any comments you choose to post, however.

1. Act 3 scene 5 is one that linguists and scholars claim was not written by Shakespeare. Looking at the content (both in itself and in relationship to the preceding scenes) and the language (that's harder, I know), what justification can you make for that opinion?

2. 3,6 is a barometer scene, much like some toward the end of Act 1, and Banquo's soliloquy to begin Act 3. How would we know that Lennox is speaking opinions that are more generalized in Scotland? What do you anticipate may happen as a result of these feelings?

3. Act 4, 1 is a especially memorable one which brings the witches and Macbeth back together, and foregrounds the supernatural more than anywhere else except perhaps the banquet scene. Enjoy imagining how you would direct it, and observe the outcome for the way Macbeth is affected by the events that have just transpired and how he proposes to act differently and independently of the prophecies the apparitions offer him.

4. The final scene for next time is another bloody one. Ross's warning seems to come too late. But we'll see how Polanski changes Ross's role in the scene that makes the ethical standards of Scotland even more suspect.

Notes and Ideas Macbeth 3, 1-4

I'd rather hear your thoughts about the film and the specific ideas we've discussed in class than asking you to do a second or alternative comment on Act 3, 2-4. So please do respond to the previous posting. But here also are a few questions to guide your reading which can enrich our time together on Monday.

1. Several of you already commented in class about Banquo's short soliloquy to open Act 3, where he both expresses suspicions about Macbeth's situation and a "wait and see" attitude because, after all, his children are likewise fated to be kings. What now do you notice about Macbeth's questions in the brief encounter? What is the "verb" here?

2. Macbeth's "to be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus" signals the strategy he now choses to protect himself. In that speech, what is his chief beef with Banquo?

3. How do you picture the murderers? Think physically, as if you are directing, or at least casting the play. What posture, age, and other description do you think would befit these roles?

4. Consider the interaction between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in 3,2. What state of mind is Macbeth in? Has his relationship with Lady Macbeth changed already? How so? What consequences do you imagine for any of these thoughts or behaviors?

5. We'll block Act 3,3 in class. But as you read, what problems do you imagine will arise as we try to make this scene come to life?

6. Act 3,4 is the famous Banquet Scene. What role does Lady Macbeth play here? Pick a moment when the "verb" of a particular beat is absolutely clear to you, and note that for class.

Reactions to Polanski?

We went quickly from watching the clip of Polanski's Macbeth to the Black Box, and I wished we'd had some time to react together to the way portions of Act 2 that we've read and discussed lately were dramatized. What stuck out for you? There was laughter at the dagger, so maybe that reaction (although non-verbal) is already registered. But maybe you have something to say? More complex may be your feelings about the murder(s) and Macbeth's verbal responses to it. What did you think?

An Assigned Posting: Macbeth's Explanation in 2:3

What do you make of Macbeth's explanation of his killing of the two chamberlains? Does it make sense? Do their supposed actions make sense? What in his language specifically do you think makes an impression on those present?

Notes and Ideas: Act 2, Scenes 3 and 4

You have an assigned posting to comment on, so these are just food for thought. Unless you want to post another comment, in which case, you're welcome to do so.

1. The opening of scene 3 is a change from the surrounding moments of drama. What purpose does it serve? Do you think the effect is as important for a modern audience as it would have been in Shakespeare's day?

2. One of the more difficult lines to act (I think) in scene 3 is Malcolm's reaction to the news that his father has been murdered:"Oh, by whom?" How do you understand that apparently muted response? How would you play it, if you were an actor?

3. In scene 4, Ross speaks first to an old man, then to Macduff. What significance do you find in the report of the former, and what do you read into Macduff's plan to return to Fife as the second act ends?

4. Act 3 opens with a short soliloquy from Banquo. What is his attitude about Macbeth's recent changes of status?

5. In this scene we also see Macbeth as king for the first time. What's the difference between the public and the private man? We can conjecture about the effects of this discrepancy. What are your first thoughts?

Is this a Posting I see before me?

In addition to your five-line memorization and the relatively short reading assignment, please post a comment on the following:

• The dagger speech is one of the most famous moments in this play. Both on stage and especially on screen, it can be a moment when special effects lead us toward one or another interpretation of Macbeth's character and state of mind. If you were directing the play, what would you do? Should the dagger be visible to the audience or not? What questions about the theme of the play would shape your decision?

Notes and Ideas: Macbeth 1:5-7

These again are suggestions, not required postings, and I intend for them to guide our discussion on Thursday. That said, I invite you to post responses to either to help us get the ball rolling in class.

a. Lady Macbeth is a fascinating character, and she represents one source of feminine power in a play about masculine warriors. What are your first impressions of Lady Macbeth? Could she be played as an extension of the weird sisters, or is she something other?

b. What is the nature of Lady Macbeth’s persuasion/manipulation of Macbeth? What do you sense is the source of her power over him? How could you play that on stage?

Notes and Ideas for Macbeth 1-4

These are not intended as required blog prompts, although they may overlap with things you choose to write about. We will talk about and play with them on Tuesday, however, so think about them beforehand.

1. How might a director present the Weird Sisters so as to make them more than Halloween/Disney stereotypes? What could actors do that would be less cartoonish?

2. How do you think Shakespeare's audience would have reacted to the Weird Sisters? (Think: historical context!)

3. Scene 2 is largely exposition: the who, what, when, where, how and why of the plot. What impression do we get of Macbeth in this scene? Where in particular?

4. How does the language and concept of "Fair is foul" magnify and deepen in the first act?

Macbeth: the Opening Scenes

Take a moment here to site a specific passage from the first four scenes that caught your attention, and say why you think that is so. You may include responses to other posts in your response, but stay focused.

Welcome!

Take a few moments to share with the rest of us what you consider the most important thing about this class, and the reason you took it.