Introduction to Macbeth VWO 6

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Word of the day: facsimile

noun fak-SIM-uh-lee

A facsimile is an exact copy of something. The word is also used to refer to a system of transmitting and reproducing graphic matter, such as printed text or photos.

// The forged painting was an impressive facsimile of the original.

The facsimile machine (or fax machine) has long been an office staple, but its name is much, much older. Fac simile is a Latin phrase meaning “make alike.” English speakers began using facsimile to mean “an exact copy” in the late 1600s. In this sense, a facsimile might be a handwritten or hand-drawn copy, or even a copy of a painting or statue. (Today, we also use the phrase “a reasonable facsimile” for a copy that is fairly close but not exact.) In the 1800s, people developed facsimile technology that could reproduce printed material via telegraph. Now, of course, we use telephone lines or wireless technology, and we usually call the resulting facsimile a fax.

 Introduction to 'The Scottish play'

The play -  tragedy written between 1605 - 1606.

William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616)

The Scottish play

Why is Macbeth known as The Scottish Play?

The first is a reference to the play's Scottish setting, the second a euphemism for the play Macbeth. According to a theatrical superstition, called the Scottish curse, speaking the name Macbeth inside a theatre, other than as called for in the script while rehearsing or performing, will cause disaster.

Other mishaps

The Astor Place Riot in 1849, injuries sustained by actors at a 1937 performance at The Old Vic that starred Laurence Olivier, Diana Wynyard's 1948 accidental fall, and burns suffered by Charlton Heston in 1954.[8]

English actor Harold Norman was mortally wounded in a sword fight during a performance of Macbeth at London’s Repertory Theatre on 30 January 1947. He died in hospital 3 weeks later.[9]

On 2 December 1964 a fire burned down the D. Maria II National Theater in Lisbon, Portugal. At the time, the play being shown was Macbeth.[10]

Ari Aster, writer and director of Hereditary, said that during filming, "Alex Wolff told me not to say the name of William Shakespeare's Scottish play out loud because of some superstitious theater legend. I smugly announced the name, and then one of our lights burst during the shooting of the following scene."[14]

At the 94th Academy Awards, Chris Rock congratulated Denzel Washington on his performance in The Tragedy of Macbeth, saying the name of the Scottish play aloud in the Dolby Theatre. Moments later, Rock was slapped by Will Smith after making a joke about Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Viewers, including playwright Lynn Nottage, quickly took to social media to joke that Rock had suffered the curse of the Scottish play.[15]

Medieval: belief in witchcraft, mentions of the supernatural. The witches and their predictions are a good example of this, just like the visions Macbeth sees after the murder (the bloody knife, ghosts). Jacobean law ordered witches to be put to death, as they were believed to be the hands of Satan.

The play takes place in the late medieval times (500s- late 1500s) and is written in the Renaissance period (1400s-1500s), and thus contains aspects of both.

Renaissance: Literature was characterized by the adoption of a humanist philosophy and the recovery of the classical Antiquity (Ancient Greek and Latin culture). The period focused on self-actualization and one's ability to accept what is going on in one's life. During this period, philosophers were wondering if humans had the choice to be good. This is visible in the play, when Macbeth contemplates the murder of the king, and continues killing him regardless of his conscience. Also, throughout the play, both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth struggle with feelings of guilt and fear after their deed.

The play takes place in the late medieval times (500s- late 1500s) and is written in the Renaissance period (1400s-1500s), and thus contains aspects of both.

What do you know about the Renaissance?

What do you think? What is Macbeth going to be about? 

Do you agree? People who are striving to get ahead often step on other people.

YES

NO

Do you agree? People who are involved in criminal activities can still feel love, fear, and concern for other people.

YES

NO

The 16th century England: Elizabethan England

By the time Shakespeare was born, Queen Elizabeth - Henry VIII's eldest daughter was in power. Her 44 years on the throne provided the kingdom with more stability than the previous short-lived reigns. All citizens of England were subjects to the whims of the church and the monarchy, but the theatre experienced the greater freedom, unknown to the previous generations. This was partially because Queen Elizabeth herself was a patron of the theatre, and under the patronage of her successor, King James I, Shakespeare's company of actors became known as ' The King's Men'. Of course, this doesn't mean it was a total free-for-all for playwrights like Shakespeare. Much of the subject matter of their plays reflected the sentiments of the sitting monarch, with positive portrayals of their ancestors and references to current politics that were sympathetic to the monarch's cause. After all, there was no 'freedom of speech', and the price of falling out of grace with the king or queen could very well be your life. 

In 1558, Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, came to the throne following the death of her Catholic half-sister, Mary I. Her 44-year reign, though not without ideological tensions and conflict, provided stability to the country, firmly established Protestantism as the state religion and consolidated England’s position as a political power in Europe. This shift in England’s political fortunes was accompanied by a remarkable flowering of vernacular literary expression and an unprecedented increase in knowledge of the world beyond England. The Elizabethan era is considered one of the most prolific in the history of English literature, producing such poets and dramatists as Sidney, Spenser, Donne, Marlowe, Jonson and Shakespeare.

As an unmarried queen, Elizabeth had to establish her authority in a patriarchal society and refute the widespread conviction that women were unfit to rule.  Possibly in order to retain her independence and political power, Elizabeth never married, skillfully prolonging marriage negotiations and playing one faction against the other. This meant, however, that she died childless in 1603, bringing an end to the Tudor dynasty.

The crown then passed to Elizabeth's appointed successor, James VI of Scotland, whose ascent to the English throne marked the beginning of the Stuart dynasty.

25 July 1603

James VI of Scotland is crowned James I of England

On this day in 1603, James VI of Scotland was crowned James I of England and Lord of Ireland – a personal union that helped found today's United Kingdom.

Born in 1566, James became the Scottish king while barely one year old, after the murder of his father (Lord Darnley) and the forced abdication of his mother, Mary, Queen of Scots, on the orders of Elizabeth I.

However, he wasn't very patriotic, visiting Scotland only once after being crowned King of England.

The first of the British Stuart kings was also famous for commissioning the Authorised King James Version of the Bible in 1611, hailed as the standard text for the next three centuries.

James's failure to give lenient treatment to Britain's Catholics, however, led to a Catholic plot to blow up parliament in 1605 – the inspiration for Guy Fawkes night. James also annoyed parliament by asserting his divine right to rule, while constantly asking them for more money.

In these post-Brexit times, it is good to note that James encouraged European peace, including ending a long-running war with Spain in 1604.

Lord Chamberlain’s Men, also called Chamberlain’s Men, a theatrical company with which William Shakespeare was intimately connected for most of his professional career as a dramatist. It was the most important company of players in Elizabethan and Jacobean England.

After their patron’s death in 1596, the company came under the protection of his son, George Carey, 2nd Lord Hunsdon. Once more it was known as Hunsdon’s Men, until their new patron himself took office as Lord Chamberlain in 1597. Thereafter, it was known as the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, until the accession of James I in March 1603, when, by letters patent, it was taken under royal patronage and henceforth known as the King’s Men.