Macbeth Act1 Scene (1-5) Flashcards
Blank verse + iambic pentameter ❤️
poetry with no rhyme but specific rhythm higher class characters
Prose
no specific meter / rhythm (letter, confused state or mind - madness)
Rhyme & Rhyming couplets
witches, spells, incantations, riddles, confusing
indicates end of scene
Soliloquy
thoughts and feelings, alone on stage
Aside
other characters do not hear although onstage
Word choice (lexical field =
number of words or expressions all relating to a specific topic) - death / evil / power, supernatural…
Imagery & symbolism (avian, classical allusions)
- personification - dagger, fate,
- metaphor (picture or image) - flower, serpent; sailor and ship in the storm = Macbeth who is sleepless due to guilt: Scotland almost destroyed under his violent reign
- simile like \ as ….. as
- alliteration - M sound Murdering Minsters, sibilance s sounds
Dramatic irony
Thane of Cawdor prediction, Duncan’s visit to the Macbeth’s castle
Hyperbole
direst cruelty
Anaphora
the deliberate repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of a sentence = to persuade (rhetorical technique)
Shakespearean theatre
no women actors, no lighting or curtains, open air, performance during the day….
Pun
play on words
Stichomythic dialogue
quick rapid fire dialogue = PACE AND ENERGY to create urgency, panic, anxiety …
THEMES
reality and appearance, good and evil, supernatural, Kingship (Divine Right of Kings), ambition, loyalty and betrayal, fate and free will
Characters
Lady Macbeth, Macbeth, Witches, Duncan
Contrast
antithesis the expression of 2 direct opposites together to create a contrasting effect:
good & bad, betrayal & loyalty, night and day
Paradoxes, riddles
witches: battle lost and won. It doesn’t seem to make sense
