AQA GCSE English Literature Shakespearean Text: Macbeth
Historical and Social Context
King James I
- Macbeth was written during the reign of KJI, known as the Jacobean era
- when S was writing Macbeth, KJI was a relatively new king of England
- he succeeded Elizabeth I in 1603 and Macbeth was written in 1606
- Macbeth can be seen as a play written specifically for, to flatter and please KJI
- as S is the King’s patron and the King grants him permission to show his plays
- he ultimately used the play as political propaganda to warn the people not to cross the King
- KJI had been King of Scotland since 1567
- S has set Macbeth in Scotland
- KJI was descended from the medieval thane B
B is brave, loyal & conscientious in the play and prophesised his sons will be kings
- S could also be legitimising James’s rule
- when he took over the throne he became ruler of England, Scotland and Ireland
- KJI aimed to unify the three nations into “Great Britain” as king
Malcolm the good and rightful king unifies lords & thanes of England & Scotland
MB the tyrant and illegitimate king is seen as creating division
- although KJI was mostly popular, there were many plots to kill him, this is treason
- the most serious, and famous, of these plots was the Gunpowder Plot of 1605
- S includes multiple references to treason in Macbeth
- The most serious being the regicide of King Duncan
- all these acts of treason have terrible consequences for those who commit them
- they are all killed, in battle, by execution and suicide, connection to the power of 3
- S could be appealing to him by presenting a warning to any potential traitors
- attempt a plot against the king and suffer eternal consequences
- KJI wrote a book – the Basilikon Doron, set out his belief in the Divine Right of Kings
- the Divine Right of Kings was a belief that kings and queens are chosen by God
- these rulers are, therefore, representatives of God on Earth
- meaning there would be religious consequences for anyone attempting to overthrow a king
- S includes multiple references to the afterlife in Macbeth
- suggesting that anyone plotting against a king would end up in Hell
The Gunpowder Plot
- KJI was mostly popular but there were plots to kill him, the GP plot is the most serious
- this was initiated by Guy Fawkes who is a keen Catholic and disagreed with protestants
- The Gunpowder Plot 1605 were acts of treason which S referenced in the play
- the most serious one being the regicide of King Duncan, breaking the great chain of being
- all these acts of treason have terrible consequences for the characters in the play
- all are killed, either in battle, execution or by suicide, coincidentally there are 3 traitors
- S is appealing to KJI by representing a warning to any potential traitors
- warning that those who attempt to plot against the king will suffer eternal consequences
, Christianity and God
- Jacobean audiences were overwhelmingly Christians, believed in literal word of the Bible
- this meant they had a very real fear of Hell, witches, demons and the Devil
LMB calling upon evil “spirits” in A1S4, was seen as blasphemous and shocking
- regicide was a mortal sin, for which the culprit would go to Hell
both MB & LMB ask for their crimes to be hidden from God and Heaven
- because they know the consequences of committing regicide
- there is a widespread belief in witches, due to KJI’s obsession with witchcraft
- their presence in the play represents a very real threat to order in Scotland
- the repeated appearances of the witches symbolise presence of evil in Macbeth
- the witches represent temptation to do evil for the human characters
William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
- most famous English playwright, his plays are divided into histories, comedies & tragedies
- S wrote for the acting group of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men
- became known as King’s Men in 1603 when KJI ascended to the throne
- S wrote in the Renaissance, period where there was an expansion of artistic expression
- this expression freed itself from the restrictions of previous centuries
- plays were extremely popular, central medium of entertainment in the Elizabethan era
- this carried on to the Jacobean era when KJI ascended to the throne
- S’s plays were a form of mass entertainment for Londoners during that period
- the belief systems in the 16th century accommodated the use of both black & white magic
- S often explores the power of magic, both good & bad in his plays, especially the later ones
- the idea of philosophy has also been developed which S effectively uses in all of his plays
- in tragedies like Macbeth, the harmony of the universe is overthrown, others only shaken
- S uses tragedies to bring the world on the edge of chaos, but something new comes at end
- as S explores the edge of abyss & explores the possibility of eternal darkness and chaos
- Macbeth is a play that moves in trajectory to chaos, which the audience sympathises with
The Great Chain of Being
- Jacobean audiences believed in the Great Chain of Being which structures society
- the Great Chain of Being was a belief in an order of things in the universe
- it represented a hierarchy of all things that asserted God’s authority at top of the chain
- in essence, the Great Chain of Being was God’s plan for the world
- any attempt to break the chain would upset God’s order, bring about disorder to the world
- an attempt to break the Great Chain of Being was, therefore, blasphemous
MB becoming king, therefore his reign is terrible and chaotic
- an example of the chain being broken is when human characters act against their status
LMB dominating MB, a woman controlling a man is an example in the play
- witches and the Devil existed outside of this chain
- the Devil, demons & witches attempted to break the Great Chain of Being
- sometimes by tempting humans to commit sinful acts and do bad deeds against God
- S included multiple references to the afterlife in Macbeth
- There is a repeated use of religious and biblical imagery
suggesting anyone plotting against them will end up in Hell (MB, LMB)
and those who honourably serve the King will go to heaven (Macduff)
