Macbeth

1. Jon Finch and Francesca Annis in ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’ by Roman Polanski, 1971 LADY MACBETH & MACBETH LADY MACBETH Macbeth FEATURES of A TRAGIC HERO ACT II –scene 2 ACT V –scene1 ACT V scene 5 DRAMATIC STRUCTURE THEMES MACBETH SYMBOLS

2. LADYMACBETH GOES UP LADY MACBETH& MACBETH -Parable of the tragic hero. GOES DOWN MACBETH RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

3. The shortest of Shakespeare’s tragedies, simple and direct in its plot Complex psychological analysis of what takes place in the mind of the criminal. There is no villain pitted against the hero but it’s Macbeth himself who starts as a heroic character and ends up as a murderous tyrant as a result of his ambition and thirst for power 1. Maincharacteristics James Heath, I have done the deed, 1888. Kansas City, Carbonell-Weinglass Collection RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

4. THE VILLAIN THE VILLAIN James Heath, I have done the deed, 1888. Kansas City, Carbonell-Weinglass Collection RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

5. Parable of the tragic hero. Macbeth begins as a brave , capable warrior battlefield valour but, led by consuming ambition, urged into action by his wife,he chooses evil and becomes a murderous tyrant. Terrible effects that ambition and guilt can have on a man who lacks strength of character:he is unable of standing the psychic consequences of crimeand lacks moral courage; In the end he becomes cruel and unscrupulous. MACBETH RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

6. Parable of the tragic hero. After the murder, however, Lady Macbeth’s powerful personality begins to disintegrate, leaving Macbeth increasingly alone, he fluctuates between moments of pure cruelty with a series of murders to secure his throne, moments of terrible guilt (as when Banquo’s ghost appears because the ghost of BANQUO symbolizes Macbeth's conscience) and absolute pessimism (after his wife’s death, when he seems to succumb to despair). MACBETH RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

7. The Corrupting Power of Unchecked Ambition. The Relationship Between Cruelty and Masculinity. Reversal of values:‘Fair is foul, and foul is fair’ , representsthe most dangerous aspect of “equivocation” and the one of “false appearance”( what is true and what seems to be true”.(the Three Witches); The supernatural THEMES RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

8. Parable of the tragic hero. Lady Macbeth : she is stronger, more ruthless, and more ambitious than her husband , she suppresses her natural instinct to plan the murder and pushes him into committing murder. She has a streak of masculinity in her character; Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband by overriding all his objections and when he hesitates to murder, she repeatedly questions his manhood . Afterward, however, she begins a slow slide into madness—just as ambition affects her more strongly than Macbeth before the crime, so does guilt plague her more strongly afterward. She suppresses her guilty feelings toa point she cannot bear and in the end she explodes and goes mad. By the close of the play, she has been reduced to sleepwalking through the castle, desperately trying to wash away an invisible bloodstain. LADY MACBETH RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

9. Symmetrical development Climax Rising action Falling action Conclusion Introduction Dramatic structureSymmmetrical development RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

10. Climax Falling action Risingaction Introduction Conclusion Introduction The first two scenes: the appearance of the three witches and the news of Macbeth’s bravery in battle. 2. Dramatic structure The three Witches in ‘Macbeth’by John Barnes, 1964 RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

11. Climax Rising action Falling action Introduction Conclusion Rising action Macbeth meets the three witches: their prophecy begins to work on his ambition. He kills Duncan. 2. Dramatic structure RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

12. Climax Falling action Rising action Introduction Conclusion Climax Banquo’s murder (Act III, Scene 3) Dramatic structure RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

13. Climax Falling action Rising action Introduction Conclusion Falling action Fleance’s escape the banquet scene arousing of Macduff Macbeth retreats to Dunsinane Castle Dramatic structure Thèodore Chassèriau (1819-1856), Macbeth seeing the ghost of Banquo, 1854. Muséedes Beaux-Arts, Reims RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

14. Climax Falling action Rising action Introduction Conclusion Conclusion Final fall and death of Lady Macbeth and Macbeth Dramatic structure Henry Fuseli, Lady Macbeth sleepwalking, 1798, Musée du Louvre RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

15. Nobility of birth or wisdom. A flaw, either a mistake in the character’s actions or in his personality that leads to a downfall. A reversal of fortune caused by his flaw. The realisation that the reversal was brought about by the hero’s own actions. The audience has to feel pity and fear (catharsis) for the character. Features of a tragic hero RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

16. The Three Witches and their prophecies , which fire Macbeth’s ambition; They represent Fate but also are symbolical representation of Macbeth’s unconscious guilt; they wake up a temptation which was already slumbering in Macbeth’s breast; They are called “instruments of darkness” ,implying that they stand for the power of evil, but it’s the darkness which is inside the human heart. THE SUPERNATURAL-THE WITCHES RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

17. The chaos of nature on the night of Duncan’s murder. According to the Elisabethans there was a correspondence between the order of the macrocosm ( nature and universe) and the order in the state; the king ( the ruler of the state ) is paralleled to the sun ( the ruler of the macrocosm).Regicide is a tremendous hideous act which brings about chaos in the state and “darkness” , which is metaphor of tyrannical power; Chaos is synonym of sin and evil, because the universe created by God is ruled by ORDER and CHAOS; Man’s position in the universe is central in the universe as his double nature , body and soul, represents the eternal battle between PASSIONS and REASON, a constant opposition between the bestial and the rational; when a man succumbs to passions he becomes a beast, a creature which occupies a lower rank in the hierarchy of universe; chaos in the microcosm ( stormy passions in man) are paralleled to stormy weather in the universe ( macrocosm) THE SUPERNATURAL-THE CHAOS of NATURE RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

18. Blood Blood is everywhere in Macbeth, beginning with the opening battle between the Scots and the Norwegian invaders : “What bloody man is that ? “ (ACT I scene 2) Once Macbeth and Lady Macbeth embark upon their murderous journey, blood comes to symbolize their guilt, and they begin to feel that their crimes have stained them in a way that cannot be washed clean. Blood symbolizes the guilt that sits like a permanent stain on the consciences of both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, one that hounds them to their graves. The Weather As in other Shakespearean tragedies, Macbeth’s grotesque murder spree is accompanied by a number of unnatural occurrences in the natural realm. From the thunder and lightning that accompany the witches’ appearances to the terrible storms that rage on the night of Duncan’s murder, these violations of the natural order reflect corruption in the moral and political orders. SYMBOLS RAFFAELLA MANNORI 2013-2014

19. RELANTIONSHIP BETWEEN CRUELTY & MASCULINITY • Characters in Macbeth frequently discuss on issues of gender. • Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband by questioning his manhood, wishes that she herself could be “unsexed,” and does not contradict Macbeth when he says that a woman like her should give birth only to boys. • Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth equate masculinity with naked aggression, and whenever they converse about manhood, violence soon follows. • Women are also sources of violence and evil. • The witches’ prophecies spark Macbeth’s ambitions and then encourage his violent behavior; • Lady Macbeth provides the brains and the will behind her husband’s plotting; • and the only divine being to appear is Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft. • Lady Macbeth’s behavior certainly shows that women can be as ambitious and cruel as men. However , she is not fearless enough to kill, Lady Macbeth relies on deception and manipulation rather than violence to achieve her ends.

20. ACT II –scene 2 ACT V –scene 1 ACT V scene 5 • ACT II –scene 2 –A moral hysteria follows the murder. The disjointed language suggests both guilt and terror. The owl , as the bird of death is compared to the bellman snt to give goodnight to condemned prisoners the night before their execution. • ACT V –scene 1 –This scene re-enacts the life of bloodshed in terms of dream and hallucination . It is the climax of Shakespeare’s exploration of individual psychological secrets . The broken prose fragments of Lady Macbeth’s speech reflect the collapse of the human mind under inhuman pressures • ACT V –scene 5 Macbeth’s reaction to Lady Macbeth’s death is determined by the supreme horror of the heart anesthetised by despair. From this time on Macbeth’s life is just a waiting for the end. The future has become meaningless