witches - macbeth Flashcards
why did macbeth include witches
to entertain/frighten the audience in the jacobean era
what was king james’s book called
daemonologie- about witchcraft, he genuinely believed witches were real and was trying to educate the people who read
references to daemonologie in macbeth
much of the witchcraft in macbeth was taken from king james’s book, daemonologie probably as a form of flattery to the king himself
king james ruled england at the same time shakespeare wrote macbeth
sexism of the witches
At their worst, literary witches are stereotypical and derivative; at their best they are symbols of resistance against patriarchy and the harnessing of feminine power
when did it become legal for witches to be killed
In 1542, fifty years before Shakespeare wrote Macbeth, King Henry VIII passed the first English Witchcraft Act, which officially made the practice of witchcraft punishable by death.
language technique in:
“fair is foul and foul is fair”
Fair is foul and foul is fair- chiasmus
The chiasmus is used because it inverts morality
‘What is good in this play could be bad, what is bad in this play could be good’
there is uncertainty and the plot may not be what it seems it could shift- audience doesn’t know what is right or wrong
setting of when the witches are introduced
‘Thunder. Enter the three Witches’
^ audience immediately know the scene is going to be ominous and scary
religion associated with witches
Jacobeans believed that witches were possessed by demons and were associated with the devil. They conducted evil magic to cause harm and danger to ordinary people. Anyone accused of being a witch or associated with witchcraft would be punishable by death.
what is the role of the witches
In the play, the witches’ primary role is the provision of ambiguous fortunes which stir the ambitious Macbeth to fufill his evil desires
how do the witches speak
trochaic tetrameter
parinoia from supernatural
“macbeth doth murder sleep”
A key supernatural event is when Macbeth sees the ghost of Banquo. He is the only one who can see the ghost.
We could argue that this hallucination is a symptom of Macbeth’s mind becoming more and more unbalanced because of the guilt he feels, as well as the overwhelming amount of power he suddenly has. “is this a dagger which i see before me”
lady macbeth and the supernatural
Lady Macbeth calls on spirits too. She does this like the witches themselves: ‘Come, you spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here’ (1,5).
She uses imperative language (‘come’ and ‘unsex’) which suggests that she thinks she has control over them. This labels her as an evil character who wants supernatural beings to help her.
“out dammed spot, out i say” - shows the negative effects (parinoia) from contacting witches
