Macbeth Lecture Notes.

• Indicated characterization in the beginning
• Macbeth becomes King in Act III
• Indirect characterization: He does not share his thoughts. See characterization in his actions
• Scene with Porter: Dark humor (Is the only humor)
• Tragic hero: Seen as a noble character, has lovely wife, hear of his battles in the beginning. Makes it seem as if his future will be great. In the end he has no friends; wife’s dead and is alone.
-Good future=>Ends up alone.
• Macbeth is considered an architect of his own destruction

Murder of Duncan
• Why wasn’t he happy/successful?
-Flaw: ambition
• Showed in Act I Scene 7 lines 25-28
• Macbeth calls himself ambitious
-Thinks of surface impression. Not of why
-Sees something is wrong when witches tell him he will be King because someone is already King.
-Macbeth does not blow it off
• Many say because that’s what him and Lady Macbeth wanted
• Act I Scene 7 lines 48-49
• Macbeth is not a hypocrite: he knows there will be a price to what he wants
• “But in these cases we don’t have judgements..”

Lady Macbeth
• Pure evil in first part of the play
• She tempted Macbeth to be King
• She’s animus and anima
• She taunts Macbeth to keep the dream alive
• Anima: Connection with other people (Macbeth)
• Animus: No care for others (Lady Macbeth)
• When Macbeth sees the bloddy dagger he is filled with horror before the killing of Duncan
-Thinks he is being pushed
• He feels guilty for the murder
• Lady Macbeth does not (shows her type of character)

Macbeth as King
• No one likes him
• Attempts to remove each source of pain by killing every person
• As he becomes more dependent, Lady Macbeth falls apart
• He does not tell his wife his plans