GCSE AQA Macbeth context notes that will ensure you that grade 9.
Includes: history of Macbeth, Jacobean era, king James 1, witchcraft, divine right of kings, great chain of being, gunpowder plot, religion, setting, the curse, literary critics.
Macbeth context
History of Macbeth:
o Macbeth is a dramatic tragedy, with the tragedy surrounding the protagonist Macbeth and the witches act as
catalysts for the play’s event
o Hamartia: an ancient Greek term, meaning fatal flaw, leading to ultimate downfall, in Macbeth’s case his
hamartia was his ambition and lust for power leading to his inevitable downfall
o Catharsis: an ancient Greek term meaning ‘purging’ or ‘cleansing’ of emotions, particularly through pity and fear,
that the audience experiences at the end of a tragedy, resulting in renewal and restoration
o Macbeth’s self-destructive actions, when he is stripped of his majesty, his wife and then his own life encourages
the audience to pity Macbeth, they experience catharsis
Jacobean era:
o Macbeth was written during the reign of King James I, who was a supporter of Shakespeare consequently
meaning Shakespeare was greatly influenced by the King
o The Jacobean era was one of uncertainty and tension due to the way that king James came to power, and so the
work which Shakespeare produced during this period tended to reflect this mood
King James I:
o The history surrounding King James I is vital for deeper understanding of the Scottish tragedy, as in some ways
the life of King James can be referred to as a Scottish tragedy
o When King James took his position of the King of Scotland he made an alliance with Elizabeth I securing his place
as her successor
Witchcraft:
o King James I had a great interest in the supernatural and witchcraft, he wrote a book called ‘daemonologie’; he
believed witchcraft was an act of Satan and the way one became one was by making a deal with the devil to
obtain supernatural powers
o The book was a dialogue which extensively explained his views on witchcraft, aiming to bring to light evidence
which would warrant the claim and also justify the death penalty as a punishment for witchcraft
o Witch-hunting was a known and accepted practice
o King James I enacted a new law in 1604, called ‘An act against conjuration, witchcraft and dealing with evil and
wicked spirits’, this act made witchcraft a felony punishable by death and removed interference from the clergy
The divine right of kings:
o James I believed in the divine right of kings, he believed he was chosen by God to be the king of England and the
righteous judge of England
o He believed in witch hunts and witch trials not only out of moral conviction but also due to the fact that he was
ordained by God, he has a supernatural duty to complete witch hunts
o Furthermore, in the great chain of being, the king is the closest being to God on earth, because of this close
relationship, it was the role of the king to enact the will of God – which James believed was to rid the earth of
witches
o When James was just the king of Scotland, he sailed to meet his betrothed, on his journey his men were attacked
by deadly weather, leaving king James to believe it was an act of witchcraft, encouraging him to launch a witch
hunt on a scale that had never been seen before, 70 suspects were tortured into confessing their use of magic
and then brutally burned at the stake
o King James I was deeply misogynistic, which can be attributed to the patriarchal times he lived in
o Evidence of this can be seen in his book ‘daemonologie’, in which he asserted that only women could be witches
as they were the ‘weaker sex’ and so could easily be entrapped by the ‘snares’ of the devil
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