the supernatural in macbeth

Question 1

writers purpouses

Answer 1

• uses the 16th century attitude of the supernatural to his advantage, in order to delegitimize Macbeth’s value as ruler. king james fencing off and flattery
• Sends a message to the reader warning them of the consequences of defying the king, showing them you must rely on twisted supernaturals in order to defy the king. Just look how nature, the pure contrast to supernaturalness reacts when macbeth becomes king
• contrasts Macbeth and Banquo to show the extremeness of Macbeth, almost as if the supernatural is a virus infecting him and overcoming him.

Question 2

intro

Answer 2

• symbolisation. of macbeths downfall

- consumes both lady macbeth and macbeth

Question 3

context point 1

Answer 3

• conveys a clear link between macbeths downfalls and the supernatural
• macbeths success is only down to the supernatural as he becomes increasingly obsessive and consumed by it, it is down to the witches, a conspiritor of his most prevelant downfall “fear not, till birnham wood do come to dunsinaine”
• when free of the influence of the supernatural, macbeth is almost a free spirit where his best qualitites shine through, presented as an advocate for the most quintisnetial form of a scottish soldier
• writer sending message that mingling with the supernatural will have severe consequneces and consume you forever, saying that the only one you can actually trust is god

-overall supernatural conveyed as the perpetrator of macbeths downfall

Question 4

context point 2

Answer 4

• deploys macbeth as a construct to represent the overwhelming sense of unstableness and mental illness associated with the supernatural
• begins talking to himself with historically shows mental instability, alternativley if hes talking to himself hes got no one there for him and is lonely “is this a dagger i see before me” dagger also represetns violetn imagerey

Question 5

context point 3

Answer 5

• shakespeare toys with societal conceptions surrounding sleep and mental health, he mentions that “macbeth does murder sleep.”
• his engagement with the supernatural has led to a guily conscience unable to sleep, just like the supernatural who are unable to sleep
• fencing king james in order to flatter him

Question 6

context point 4

Answer 6

witches talking in rhyming couplets. supernatural connotations. would scare off a jacobean audience