Supernatural - Macbeth

Question 1

Who represents the supernatural in the play?

Answer 1

The witches

Question 2

Who is influenced by the supernatural?

Answer 2

Macbeth and Lady Macbeth

Question 3

What themes link to the supernatural?

Answer 3

Violence
Deception
Internal conflict
Ambition
Guilt

Question 3

Who remains steadfast against the prophecies?

Answer 3

Banquo

Question 4

Where do supernatural characters and omens occur?

Answer 4

‘Upon the heath’ - a open bit of ground
at the kings castle

Question 5

When do supernatural events take place?

Answer 5

Right from the beginning in the first scene
Throughout most of the play
Not present at the end when natural order is restored

Question 6

Why are the witches, hallucinations, ghosts and apparitions important in the play?

Answer 6

Symbolise fate, guilt and internal conflict
Influence Macbeths decisions
Catalyst for violence in the play

Question 7

Beginning: witches appear on the heath

Answer 7

stage direction [thunder and lightning]
- pathetic fallacy
- ill omen
- acts as a warning
speaking in riddles, rhymes and opposites
- language of spells
‘There to meet with Macbeth’
- single out Macbeth as they know his weakness

Question 8

Beginning: prophecies

Answer 8

2 truths ‘Thane of Glamis’ ‘Thane of Cawdor’
I temptation (lie) ‘king hereafter’
- spark Macbeth’s ambition
- begins his decent into moral chaos

Question 9

Beginning: Dagger

Answer 9

‘A dagger of the mind, a false creation’
- caused by his troubled conscience, however driven by his ambition
- internal conflict, decent into madness
- moral and psychological collapse
- loss of control of his own thoughts or actions
- pivotal moment, irreversible commitment to a violent path

Question 10

Middle: Banquo’s ghost

Answer 10

• Only Macbeth sees the ghost ‘The tables full’ - due to his guilt and fear
• after Macbeth directly addresses Banquo’s ghost he disappears
  –> ‘If thoust can nod, speak too’
  –> [Exit ghost] - toying with Macbeth
• constant coming and going increases his paranoia and instability in front of his Thanes
• begins Macbeth’s isolation between his Thanes and his wife

Question 11

End: apparitions

Answer 11

advance Macbeth’s fate and ambition
- ‘Beware Macduff’ causes Macbeth to take further violent actions and kills Macduff’s family
–> escalates conflict
–> seals his fate
- ‘No man of woman born shall harm Macbeth’
–> feeds into his hubris
–> conceals that Macduff will defeat Macbeth - false sense of security
- ‘Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane Hill’ ‘That will never be’
–> takes it literally
–> increases Macbeth’s vulnerability

Question 12

Other supernatural omens

Answer 12

Ill omens - thunder
Bestial imagery - scorpions, owls
Darkness
Harsh sounds
Imagery

Question 13

Conclusion: How does the supernatural link to other themes in the play? How does the supernatural structure the whole play?

Answer 13

Deception - loss of power
Audience response - can see the working of the supernatural but cannot blame the supernatural as it is ultimately the characters choice

Question 14

‘Fair is..

Answer 14

..foul and foul is fair’

Question 15

Analysis on ‘Fair is foul and foul is fair’

Answer 15

• The phrase is a paradox, seems contradictory but contains a deeper truth. It directly challenges the audience’s assumptions about what is good and evil
• The witches’ words highlight the play’s exploration of how things may not be what they seem
• foreshadows the tragic events that unfold in the play

Question 16

‘Thou shalt get kings,..

Answer 16

..though thou be none’

Question 17

Analysis on ‘thou shalt get kings though thou shall be done’

Answer 17

• directly foreshadows the future, indicating that Banquo’s descendants will rule as kings
• contrasting prophecies for Banquo and Macbeth emphasize the different fates and moral compasses
• Macbeth’s fear of Banquo and his lineage, particularly his son Fleance, is a key driving force in the play

Question 18

‘There to meet..

Answer 18

..Macbeth’

Question 19

Analysis on ‘there to meet Macbeth’

Answer 19

• The witches’ words in Act 1, Scene 1, are cryptic and unsettling, immediately establishing a sense of the supernatural and the ominous
• meeting point, “the heath” (plain), is a desolate and unkempt place, further reinforcing the unsettling atmosphere and the witches’ sinister nature

Question 20

‘You should be woman, and yet your..

Answer 20

..beards forbid me to interpret that you are so’

Question 21

Analysis on ‘You should be woman, and yet your beards forbid me to interpret that you are so’

Answer 21

Their unconventional (not normal), even ugly appearance is perhaps to remind the audience of how unattractive witchcraft was

Question 22

‘Why do you dress..

Answer 22

..me in borrowed robes’

Question 23

Analysis on ‘Why do you dress me in borrowed robes’

Answer 23

• expresses Macbeth’s discomfort and questioning of his sudden elevation to the title of Thane of Cawdor
• “borrowed robes” suggests that the new title and power are not his own, and that it doesn’t quite fit him. He’s uncomfortable with the new identity and responsibilities.
• highlights Macbeth’s initial internal conflict and foreshadows his later descent into tyranny and his struggle with the burden of power

Question 24

'So foul and fair..

Answer 24

..a day I have not seen'

Question 25

Analysis on 'So foul and fair a day I have not seen'

Answer 25

- marks Macbeth's initial connection to the witches and foreshadows the play's theme of appearance versus reality - connection suggests that the witches' influence extends beyond the visible and rational, foreshadowing Macbeth's later involvement with the supernatural - The phrase, an oxymoron, reflects both the literal, stormy weather and the victory Macbeth has achieved in battle

Question 26

'Stay you imperfect..

Answer 26

..speakers tell me more'

Question 27

'These instruments of darkness tell us truths, win..

Answer 27

..us with honest trifle, to betray's in deepest consequence'

Question 28

Analysis on 'These instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifle, to betray's in deepest consequence'

Answer 28

highlights the deceptive nature of the supernatural and foreshadows Macbeth's tragic downfall

Question 29

'This supernatural soliciting..

Answer 29

..cannot be ill cannot be good'

Question 30

'Come you spirits that..

Answer 30

..tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here'

Question 31

'fill me from..

Answer 31

..the crown to the toe top full of direst cruelty'

Question 32

'Is this a dagger..

Answer 32

..which I see before me, handle towards my hand'

Question 33

'A falcon...was by..

Answer 33

..mousing owl hawk's and kill'd'

Question 34

Analysis on 'A flacon...was by mousing owl hawk's and kill'd'

Answer 34

a powerful symbol of the disruption of the natural order that follows Duncan's murder

Question 35

'Double, double..

Answer 35

..,toil and trouble'

Question 36

'Something wicked..

Answer 36

..comes this way'

Question 37

'Beware..

Answer 37

..Macduff'

Question 38

'none of woman..

Answer 38

..born shall harm Macbeth'

Question 39

'Macbeth shall never vanquished..

Answer 39

..be, until Great Birnam Wood, to high Dunsinane Hill'