An overview of relevant context that shaped Macbeth, alongside multiple interpretations that challenge typical thinking and emerge into exploratory thoughts. These notes helped attain grade 8s/9s in GCSE English Literature through proviidng students with critical and thoughtful perspectives on Shak...
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Macbeth - Purpose + Language
King James
Traditional Critics
Modern Critics
Aristotelian Tragedy
An Atmosphere Of Evil
Lady Macbeth
The Witches
Macbeth
Kingship
Macbeth was inspired by Holinshed’s Chronicles
King James
May have been trying to win King James approval - Ingratiate himself with the
King
King James wrote Daemonologie as a means of assuring the existence of
witches as doubt of their existence was rising
Traditional Critics
View the play as a warning of hubris and unchecked ambition.
The root of ambition is a desire for power. Macbeth's ambition stems from
his lust for the power to be king.
Macbeth's power and ambition corrupt his morals and good will. He
becomes a tyrant who becomes 'lesser' as a warrior / person
Macbeth - Purpose + Language 1
, It is also understood to show that evil is a stronger force than good.
Can be viewed as a warning / consequence of breaking the Great Chain of
Being / Natural Order
"Fair is foul and foul is fair" is understood to be an inversion of the natural order
that must be corrected / fixed by the hero.
Macbeth, the evil tyrant, is killed by Malcolm, the good leader, who takes the
throne. This is due to Macbeth breaking the Great Chain Of Being and Natural
Order, so receives Divine Punishment.
Modern Critics
View the play to be an exploration of moral standards - Suggests that not only is
evil a stronger force than good but also questions the absolute standard of
goodness against which everything is measured
"Fair is foul and foul is fair" is understood to be an inversion of the natural order
that must be corrected / fixed by the hero.
"When the battles lost and won" is essentially implying that winning is simply
losing more slowly - In Macbeth's case, he wins the throne but loses his life?
Another interpretation implies that the distinctions between “fair” and “foul”, good
and evil, losing and winning disappear into the "fog and filthy air". That there are
not absolute standards of good or evil. That “fair” is “foul” and “foul” is “fair” is to
destroy the distinctions between the two.
This can be seen within Macbeth due to his sensitive awareness of the evil
he practices, His tortured mental state seen through his ASIDES and
SOLILOQUES. Macbeth’s defiant nature is a vital and essential element of
human existence. Questions the absolute standard of goodness against
which everything is measured
“Shakespeare makes us join minds with Macbeth, both in his awareness
of evil and his practice of it”
Essentially, Macbeth can be seen as a convoluted amalgamation of
“fair” and “foul”. His tortured mental state reflects that he is not
Macbeth - Purpose + Language 2
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