...Tragedy of Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare in 1606.This play was written for James VI of Scotland who went on to occupy the English throne. The story is based in Scotland and is connected to James VI via the character Banquo who is supposed to be James’s ancestor. Macbeth is Shakespeare’s most powerful and emotionally intense play. It is one of the shortest and bloodiest tragedies written by Shakespeare. It is not as complex as other plays like The Merchant of Venice, Othello and Hamlet which explores the fine nuances of the characters but is a drama with a sharp and jagged theme which flows rapidly from the beginning to the end. Macbeth is a story of a brave and courageous Scottish general (Macbeth) who on receiving a prophecy of becoming the future king (by witches) and instigated by his wife goes on to murder the king (Duncan) and seize the throne. The fear of losing the throne and to protect himself from enmity and suspicion, Macbeth commits even more murders and soon becomes a tyrant. The bloodbath finally drags Macbeth and his wife to madness and death. Character Analysis: Of the many characters in the play, two characters form the core of the whole play namely Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Macbeth – The play introduces Macbeth as a Scottish general and the thane of Glamis. Macbeth’s initial image from the play is that of a brave and courageous soldier. The following speech from the Captain illustrates Macbeth’s bravery: For brave Macbeth -well he...
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...Acton once said, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Macbeth by William Shakespeare is the tragic story about the kind of destruction ambition and the struggle for power can cause. Even the noblest of people are corrupted by the idea of power and will do anything to achieve it. Symbolism, irony, foil, theme, and imagery are some of the literary elements and techniques Shakespeare uses to portray Macbeth, the protagonist, as a greedy tyrant willing to sacrifice all others to accomplish his goals. Shakespeare not only represents Macbeth as the protagonist, but also as an antagonist to himself and others in the play. The author characterizes Macbeth at first as an honorable man willing to fight for the freedom of his kingdom. Shakespeare foreshadows to the reader a developing change within Macbeth’s character after his encounter with the Weird Sisters. His convene with the witches arouses in Macbeth the idea of becoming king. The motivation for Macbeth to become king spurs from the prophecies told by the witches in the beginning acts of the play, which were evidently coming true as he gained the title “Thane of Cawdor” as the prophecy stated. Below the surface Macbeth is a melting pot of emotions, which engaged his character in the idea of becoming a supreme ruler undoubtedly causing him to commit shameless acts. The character of Macbeth is usually described as being flawed by ambition, but this interpretation is not...
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...A TEACHER’S GUIDE TO THE SIGNET CLASSIC EDITION OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S MACBETH LINDA NEAL UNDERWOOD S E R I E S E D I T O R S : W. GEIGER ELLIS, ED.D., ARTHEA J. S. REED, PH.D., UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA, EMERITUS and UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA, RETIRED A Teacher’s Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth 2 INTRODUCTION William Shakespeare developed many stories into excellent dramatizations for the Elizabethan stage. Shakespeare knew how to entertain and involve an audience with fast-paced plots, creative imagery, and multi-faceted characters. Macbeth is an action-packed, psychological thriller that has not lost its impact in nearly four hundred years. The politically ambitious character of Macbeth is as timely today as he was to Shakespeare's audience. Mary McCarthy says in her essay about Macbeth, "It is a troubling thought that Macbeth, of all Shakespeare's characters, should seem the most 'modern,' the only one you could transpose into contemporary battle dress or a sport shirt and slacks." (Signet Classic Macbeth) Audiences today quickly become interested in the plot of a blindly ambitious general with a strong-willed wife who must try to cope with the guilt engendered by their murder of an innocent king in order to further their power. The elements of superstition, ghosts, and witchcraft, though more readily a part of everyday life for the Renaissance audience, remain intriguing to modern teenagers. The action-packed...
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...Macbeth: The Murder “To me, this world is nothing but evil, and my own evil just happened to come out cause of the circumstances of what I was doing.”- Aileen Wuornos. Aileen Wuornos was an american serial killer that killed over seven men. She was driven through how she saw this world as evil and how circumstances let her evil side come out. This is exactly like how Macbeth see his world in the play Macbeth written by Shakespeare is about a Man that who became a murderer after a series of influencing events. The First one was with the witches and the prophecies that were told to him. This one is Important, but not the main reason for Macbeth's actions. It was The agitation of the king that cause him to kill him and not though his influenced by his wife. He also show agitation in the play which leads him to kill King Duncan....
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...not be king, his sons will be and that in turn poses a threat to Macbeth and soon, his kingship. Because the witches’ prophecy about Macbeth becoming king came true, he questions whether they were going to be right about Banquo and his legacy. Although, Macbeth in this scene is too worried, he does not realize that he was the one who fundamentally caused the series of events to occur after killing King Duncan. Banquo might decide to keep the information he learned from the witches to himself because if he spoke up people might think that he was a part of Kind Duncan’s murder, because they may believe that he did this just to become king. Also, he probably does not want to sabotage his chances of his sons becoming kings if someone else finds out. 2. Macbeth might be curious about where Banquo is going because he wants to keep an eye on Banquo for two reasons. One reason being that he wants to kill him so that his sons are not the reason that he loses his thrown. He uses this as a safety mechanism and later on in the act we find out that Macbeth hires three murders to kill Banquo in order to carry out his plan of staying king. He also wants to keep an eye on Banquo so that way he does not find out that he was the one who killed King Duncan for the thrown. Banquo may have already been suspicious of the murder because he was with Macbeth and heard the witches’ prophecies. 3. The “bloody cousins” as referred to Macbeth in line 29 are Duncan’s sons. They are the ones that the blame...
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...Sandra Shibu IB English 11- Macbeth- Reflective Statement Mr. Rader 7 January 2015 Word Count: 308 My understanding of the contextual and cultural considerations is developed through the interactive oral. In William Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, there are many significant concepts, discussed among the group members. The setting of this play is during the 17th century in Scotland, and it is written in the Elizabethan era. Time and place plays a great role in the play, since many factors such as supernatural belief comes into attention. During the Elizabethan era, people believed in sorcery and magic when they were in troubles and in time of their needs. Throughout the play, the reader could easily understand Macbeth’s intention in killing Duncan, as well as several other character. The reader might however find it difficult to understand the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, since Shakespeare didn't give an in-depth on the situation. When connecting the play to my experience, and my group members, women are portrayed as a weaker role in society, no matter how powerful they would become. During the Elizabethan era, woman were not noticed, and they were considered below the masculine power. Today, even though the women’s power seems to increase over time, the men are still holistically considered superior. Out of the many literary elements are used in this play, some are considered essential. Foreshadowing is significant since it is used in the play to decipher the clues...
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...how he utilizes his power. As demonstrated in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, and The Time Magazine article Adolf Hitler, one can see how the abuse of power creates chaos in society. By analyzing the actions of the characters Macbeth, Abigail Williams, and the character Adolf Hitler, it is evident how the misuse of power will lead to the loss of structure in society. “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” A statement by Lord Acton which illustrates that those who gain power ultimately become corrupted by it - thus leading one to abuse their power. This statement is well demonstrated in the actions of the character Macbeth, from William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, in his rise to power from Thane of Glamis to the King of Scotland. Within the first scene of the play, Macbeth is given the gift of knowledge of the future, by the three witches, which he ultimately uses to gain more power. “All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, Thane of Glamis ... All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!” (I.iii. 48-50). When given this prophecy from the three witches, Macbeth utilizes this information, once he becomes Thane of Cawdor, to plan the death of King Duncan. The power of knowledge is not the only power that he possesses, “ He’s here in double trust: First, as I am his kinsman....against his murderer shut the door, not bear the knife myself”. In this quote Macbeth demonstrates that he is trusted by Duncan for two reasons. Firstly...
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...far areLear and Macbeth tragic protagonists? Example intro Normally, the common hero would be a character embodying megalopsychia. However, both Lear and Macbeth are conventionally tragic figures, even displaying anti-heroic qualities. Aristotle’s “Poetics” suggests that a tragic protagonist has greatness which is readily evident in the play. The Victorian critic A.C. Bradley picks up Aristotle’s notion to contend and mentions that although the protagonist is a person of greatness, they are not perfect and contain a tragic flaw which can lead to his downfall. Unlike most tragic protagonists, Lear’s fall occurs early in the play when he decides to express his “darker purpose” to Gloucester by dividing the kingdom between his three daughters. Firstly, this rash decision implies Lear’s downfall and prepares the audience for what is to come. Secondly, this would have alarmed a Jacobean audience who would remember how the question of succession had loomed large during the reign of Elizabeth 1. However, Lear does not show many noble attributes before his fall when he loses his temper at Cordelia and he tells her he will, “disclaim all my paternal care,” because she refuses to flatter him with praises and love. This is different to Macbeth who is seen as “brave” and “noble” in the early stages of the play due to killing the rebel, Macdonwald, and fighting off an attack from the Norwegians. Example 2 1. Throughout literary history, there has been much discussion as to whether or...
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...Who was William Shakespeare? Shakespeare is William Shakespeare, one of the English-speaking world's greatest playwrights and poets, who possessed a great knowledge of human nature and transformed the English theatre. Yet many facts of his life remain a mystery. Some have been acquired from painstaking looks at the records of the time, so that this summary is based on generally agreed facts. It has been said that we only know three things about Shakespeare: that he was born, married and died. He was baptised on April 26, 1564; we do not know his birth date, but many scholars believe it was April 23, 1564. His father was John Shakespeare (who was a glover and leather merchant) and his mother Mary Arden (who was a landed local heiress). John had a remarkable run of success as a merchant, alderman, and high bailiff of Stratford, during William's early childhood. His fortunes declined, however, in the late 1570s. William lived for most of his early life in Stratford-upon-Avon. We do not know exactly when he went to London but he is said to have arrived in 1592. There is great conjecture about Shakespeare's childhood years, especially regarding his education. It is surmised by scholars that Shakespeare attended the free grammar school in Stratford, which at the time had a reputation to rival that of Eton. While there are no records extant to prove this claim, Shakespeare's knowledge of Latin and Classical Greek would tend to support this theory. In addition, Shakespeare's...
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...‘Critically examine the EAP debate. Argue for one position. You may also support your argument with evidence drawn from your own experience.’ This paper critically examines the varied approaches to teaching English for Academic Purposes (EAP). In particular, it examines Critical Pedagogy, Pragmatic Pedagogy and Critical-Pragmatic Pedagogy in the context of teaching academic writing to university students. This is an important issue as there is widespread debate as to what constitutes effective EAP instruction within the academic sphere. The conflicting perspectives are that a critical approach to pedagogy, with its challenge of current ‘implicit and explicit standards’ (Cherryholmes: 1988) is most effective. Other academics argue the case of a vulgar pragmatic approach that relies on structure and ‘the notions of theory and practice’ (Williams: 1983). There is also support for a hybrid approach to EAP learning, known as critical pragmatism. This method encourages the characteristic critical pedagogical challenge of the status quo, while still requiring ideas to be translated and conveyed by means of structured ‘discourse practices’ (Cherryholmes: 1988). Finally, upon examining the aforementioned approaches to EAP by review of scholarly literature, I intend to argue affirmatively that vulgar-pragmatic based pedagogy is the best and most effective method of teaching EAP to university students. The concept of critical pedagogical learning relies on the principle that ‘the...
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...INSTRUCTIONS * Read the notes on sonnets. * Read the sonnets and answer the questions that follow each. * Complete the writing assignment Shakespeare’s Sonnets: The Mysteries of Love Shakespeare. The name calls to mind the great plays whose characters have come to life on stages around the world: Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Othello. Yet had Shakespeare written no plays at all, his reputation as a poet, as the author of the Sonnets (1609), would still have been immense. There are 154 sonnets altogether; their speaker is male, and their chief subject is love. Beyond those three points, however, there is little agreement, only questions: • Is the sonnets’ speaker a dramatic character invented by Shakespeare, like Romeo, Macbeth, or Hamlet, or is he the poet himself? • If the sonnets are about the real man Shakespeare, then who are the real people behind the characters the sonnets mention? • Is the order in which the sonnets were originally published (probably without Shakespeare’s consent) the correct or the intended sequence? Could they be arranged to tell a more coherent story? Should they be so arranged? These and dozens of other questions about the sonnets have been asked and answered over and over again—but never to everybody’s satisfaction. We have hundreds of conflicting theories but no absolutely convincing answers. About the individual sonnets, though, if not the whole sequence, agreement is perfect: They are among the supreme utterances in English...
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.... a pleasure to mark (and that’s no bad thing!!). It’s important to get one thing out of the way at the outset: an essay question has no ‘right’ answer. You can breathe easy on that one. It’s just not like that. This is English and we leave those kinds of ‘right answers’ to the mathematicians and scientists. An English essay is not an ‘answer’ in that way at all, rather, it’s an informed opinion; but, like all opinions, it’ll require explanation, argument and support. It requires you to argue your case. What’s the first thing you do when you set about starting an essay? Many people start by searching through the text on which their essay is based in the hope of finding suitable quotations to help ‘answer’ the essay question. Well, there’s no getting away from this basic process, but there are ways to make it altogether more efficient, useful and most importantly, more likely to earn a higher grade. More on this later. The Argument Essay The secret of a good essay? Write it as an argument for what you believe! What is there to argue about? Plenty! You’ll be arguing to support your point of view on the essay question - one that you’ve boldly stated in the opening lines of the essay! “This is what I believe and I’m going to show you why I believe it..!” This is a view you’ll have developed after careful reflection and consideration on what the essay question or title asks or states. The trick is to be able to condense this view down into a brief and succinct statement. This...
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...GD GOENKA WORLD SCHOOL Extended Essay What is the role and significance of women in Thomas Hardy’s ‘Tess of the D’Urbevilles’ and George Eliot’s ‘Middlemarch’? Candidate Name: Jaee Sherlekar Candidate Number: 002279-104 Session: May 2011 Subject: English A1 Level: Higher Level Word Count: 4000 Supervisor: Ms. Jyoti Ahuja Abstract: In this essay, I have attempted to bring out the reality of the “glorious” Victorian Era. An era which is said to be the time when the world took its first steps towards reform in terms of technology, medicine, entertainment - every section of the society was touched with the reform but women were still shackled in the society’s ideals. “What is the role and significance of women in Thomas Hardy’s ‘Tess of the D’Urbevilles’ and George Eliot’s ‘Middlemarch’?” ‘Tess of the D’Urbevilles’ is a book which mocked at the norms about the purity of a woman. I have tried to analyse the struggle of a woman through the seven stages of her life whereby man is not punished for his sins but the woman has to suffer the brutality of life. It is about the doomed life of Tess Durbeyfield, who at every stage of life, struggled for her identity. ‘Middlemarch’ again a book defining the lives in the Victorian Era where some sky-castles are built and with a change of fate, they shatter on the ground like glass pieces. They take decisions which define their lives and yet at the end they are bound in the walls of the society. This research is attempted...
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...englishbanana.com’s Talk a Lot Spoken English Course by Matt Purland A Great New Way to Learn Spoken English Elementary Book 1 Complete 12-week spoken English course All materials, instructions and answers are included Brand new and unique learning method Learn and recall questions, answers and negatives using 8 common verb forms • Learn 400+ essential vocabulary words • 100% photocopiable • • • • englishbanana.com’s Talk a Lot Spoken English Course Elementary Book 1 This book is dedicated to Anna and Julia, with love and thanks xx and also: ………………………………………………………………. (Insert the name of the teacher who has most inspired you to learn.) English Banana.com info@englishbanana.com ISBN-13: 978-0955701511 English Banana.com Copying Licence: You may freely print, copy and distribute this book, subject to our Copying Licence (visit our website at www.englishbanana.com for full details) First published in the UK by English Banana.com 2008 © Copyright Matt Purland 2008 Talk a Lot Introduction Welcome to a new kind of English course! Talk a Lot is a great new way to learn spoken English, and quite a departure from the standard ELT course book. Instead of spending hours reading and writing, students have the opportunity to engage in challenging and fun speaking and listening activities with their friends. On this course students learn how to think in English as well as Talk a Lot! The Talk a Lot course objectives are very simple: • • • •...
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...Mr. Macomber English 3 AP Syllabus 1.5 English 3 AP Course Overview Students in this introductory college-level course read and carefully analyze a broad and challenging range of nonfiction prose selections, deepening their awareness of rhetoric and how language works. Through close reading and frequent writing, students develop their ability to work with language and texts in order to establish greater awareness of purpose and strategy, while strengthening their own composing abilities. C16 Students examine rhetoric in essays, images, movies, novels, and speeches. They frequently confer about their writing by conferencing in class. C 14 Feedback is given both before and after students revise their work to help them develop logical organization, enhanced by specific techniques to increase coherence. Rhetorical structures, graphic organizers, and work on repetition, transitions, and emphasis are addressed. I comment on individual drafts, and I write memos to the class in a blog about whole-class concerns such as specificity of quotations, parallelism, and transitions. C13 Simultaneously, students review the simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex sentence classifications. We examine word order, length, and surprising constructions. Loose and periodic sentences are introduced. We examine sample sentences and discuss how change affects tone, purpose, and credibility of the author/speaker. In addition, feedback on producing sentence structure variety...
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