Macbeth Historical Context - 796 Words

In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth the male characters Macbeth, Macduff, Banquo and Duncan really give you and insight in to the time the play was written. Shakespeare’s Macbeth was written in the Elizabethan era during King James’ reign as King over 400 years ago. King Duncan is introduced to the play in act 1 scene 2. King Duncan is seen as a great, noble, highly thought of King. He is in The Monarch which is the highest in the social order. â€Å"Go pronounce his present death, And with his former title greet Macbeth.† This quote conveys the power King Duncan has and the price you have to pay for committing reason. King Duncan also thought highly of Macbeth and Banquo and considers them high up in the social order, as this quote†¦show more content†¦Macduff and Malcolm plan to overthrow Macbeth as he has turned into an evil tyrant and is running Scotland into the ground. â€Å"Make all our trumpets speak give them all breath, Those clamorous harbingers of blood and death!† In this era wars happened quite often because of a disagreement or problems with a country. Macbeth is a true example of a tragic hero. At the beginning of the play Macbeth is seen a noble, brave, great thane and part of The Nobility. In the play the witches played a major part of Macbeth’s downfall. â€Å"Speak if you can: what are you?† This quote is the first encounter has with the witches. King James was very interested in the supernatural and even wrote about it. Shakespeare may have put aspects of the supernatural in the pay to keep the King intrigued. Once Macbeth starts to have murderous thoughts he says this very famous quote; â€Å"Stars hide your fires, Let not light see my black and deep desires.† In the play it emphasises that every evil happened in darkness. Elizabethans also believed in this. â€Å"I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent but only Vaulting ambition.† In theatre Macbeth is known for being ambitious but his ‘vaulting ambition’ ended up being his downfall. In Macbeth, Macbeth was known for his relationship with his controlling wife, Lady Macbeth. â€Å"My dearest love.† Not all relationships in that era were genuine but Lady Macbeth and Macbeth seemed to have an affectionate/strong relationship as the quoteShow MoreRelatedMacbeth739 Words   |  3 PagesSynopsis Macbeth  is a play about a Scottish nobleman who learns, from a prophecy given to him by three witches, that he is to become king. When Macbeths ambition overcomes his moral judgement, he assassinates the reigning king and fulfils the prophecy. In doing so, however, he undermines his own rule with insecurity - insecurity he created when he upset the natural succession to the throne. Beheaded in battle, Macbeths death allows the rightful heir to reclaim the throne and order is restoredRead MoreLady Macbeth and the Jacobean Society820 Words   |  4 Pagesages. Lady Macbeth was Shakespeare’s device to not only stimulate audience’s emotions, but to also provide historical context and elicit dominant themes which reflected Jacobean society. Her ambiguous character and remarkable influences in the play raised a lot of controversy and fascination amongst both modern and Jacobean audiences. She can either be seen as linked to the witches in a feminist bid to overthrow the b alance of power, or as a representation of the evil side of Macbeth. 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