Macbeth+Act+1-7


 * Summary **

 · Macbeth thinks in going against his ambition (to kill Duncan) because Duncan is an honest king

 · Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth to halt the plan

 · LMB is then mad and calls him a coward and questions his manhood.

 · Macbeth finally gives in and LMB tells him her plan.

**Discussion points and questions **
 * To what extent does LMB have on the decisions of Macbeth?


 * What makes a man?

**The Language **


 * The first 2 sentences begin with “if.” Maybe LMB will change her mind since she told him to leave the rest to her.


 * line 10: "this even-handed justice/Commends the ingredients of our poisoned chalice/To our own lips." If I kill Duncan, whether by poison or stabbing or explosion, then I bring down the same destruction on my own head.


 * METAPHOR- his virtues/Will plead like angels trumpet-tongued against/The deep damnation of his taking-off.


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">He gets carried away with the description, and he moves from the baby to the cherubim or angels riding upon the "sightless couriers."


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">He substitutes the actual killing as “it”, “assassination” and more vaguely, surcease. He considers the killing as “it” in his first sentence, "If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well/ It were done quickly."

**<span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The Big Idea **


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Theme of loyalty


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Ambition “vaulting ambition” (27)


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">“bloody instructions” (9) à <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">links blood to guilt

**<span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Character Development: Macbeth **


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Macbeth is unable to quell his desire for power.


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Macbeth is strongly conscious of the gravity of the act of regicide. He acknowledges that “bloody instructions . . . being taught, return / To plague th’inventor” (1.7.9–10).

**<span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Character Development: Lady Macbeth **


 * <span style="background: white; color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 15.6pt; margin: 9.2pt 0in 10pt;">She is astute. Instead of persuading him, she taunts him.


 * <span style="background: white; color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 15.6pt; margin: 9.2pt 0in 10pt;">Whenever Macbeth shows signs of faltering, Lady Macbeth implies that he is less than a man.


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">When, in Act 1, scene 7, her husband is hesitant to murder Duncan, she goads him by questioning his manhood and by implicitly comparing his willingness to carry through on his intention of killing Duncan with his ability to carry out a sexual act (1.7.38–41).


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Macbeth exclaims that Lady Macbeth should “[b]ring forth men-children only” because she is so bold and courageous (1.7.72).

**<span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Vocab **
 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">she seems solely concerned with immediate power


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Surcease- to cease, or bring something to an end


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Trammel- a fishing net consisting of a fine net between two layers of coarse mesh. NOT IN THE CONTEXT OF THIS SPEECH


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Undaunted- not afraid or deterred by the prospect of defeat, loss, or failure


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Mettle- strength of character


 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">“Undaunted mettle” because M shows how her masculine character.

**<span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">﻿Connection **

> > >
 * <span style="color: #002060; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">LMB once again shows her masculine side.

<span style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: center;"> __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt;">Macbeth Act 1 Scene 7 __ <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt;"> <span style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">__<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt;">Summary __ __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Questions __ <span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Is Macbeth murdering for his own ambition or is it the influence of his wife? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">How does the conversation between MB and LMB reveal their respective characters? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">What does MB’s soliloquy reveal about his character?
 * <span style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt;">Macbeth ponders the idea of killing the king. It would be easy if the deed did not set off a chain of consequences, Macbeth thinks, knowing that his soul will suffer damnation but wondering at what punishments will occur on earth. Macbeth considers the reasons why he should not kill Duncan: he’s the king’s host, kinsman, and Duncan is virtuous. He concludes there is no other reason to kill Duncan other than ambition. Lady Macbeth enters and berates Macbeth for being a coward and tells him her plan to get the servants drunk and frame them. Macbeth agrees.

__<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> Language __ <span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">“..his virtues will plead like angels, trumpet-tongued, against the deep damnation of his taking-off…” (1.7.18) The simile shows how virtuous Duncan is and how his goodness would speak for itself if he dies. The imagery reflects Duncan’s legacy. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">“I would, while it was smiling in my face, have…dashed the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this.” (1.7.57) Shows Lady Macbeth’s character; she will do anything if it means achieving something she wants. She uses this to drive Macbeth to murder. __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The Big Idea __ <span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Ambition **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">- MB does not recognize his own ambition, believes he has “no spur to prick the sides of [his] intent, but only vaulting ambition” (1.7.25). <span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Appearance vs. Reality **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">- MB decides to commit the murder. “False face must hide what false heart doth know” (1.7.83). <span style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Sexual roles **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">- This scene shows how, whenever MB is unsure, his wife calls him less of a man. LMB plots the murder and provokes MB. There is a reversal in sexual roles. __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Character Development __ __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Macbeth: __ <span style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">In this scene MB talks himself out of committing the murder when he thinks about what could happen. He changes his mind when his wife calls him a coward. Once he decides, he promises to exert every muscle to commit the crime, which shows once again how committed and ruthless he can be. He says “False face must hide what false heart doth know” and this supports the theme of appearance vs. reality. At this point he still has his sanity but later it deteriorates with paranoia and the weight of guilt. __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Lady Macbeth: __ <span style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">LMB reveals her calculating character in this scene. She is mad when MB says he can’t kill Duncan after saying he would before. She tells MB that she has loved a child, but would have “dashed [it’s] brains out” if she had sworn to kill it like he had sworn to kill Duncan even though she loved it, showing that she would do anything. She degrades MB, calling him a coward and les of a man, and exhibits traits unlike female characters, a reversal in sexual roles. __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Vocabulary __ <span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Wassail (1.7.65) - a festive occasion at which people drink a great deal <span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Surcease (1.7.4)- a cessation, especially a temporary one <span style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Limbeck (1.7.68)- an alembic, an apparatus formerly used in distillation __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Connections __ <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">“I am settled, and bend up each corporal agent to this terrible feat” (1.7.80). MB is saying he is putting all of his energy in the task. “Bend up” as in bending a bow.

<span style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">“Why, worthy thane, you do unbend your noble strength to think so brainsickly of things” (2.2.49). LMB speaking to MB after he committed the murder. He is shaken that he couldn’t say “Amen”. “Unbend” is to slacken (a bow), contrast “bend up”. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">