macbeth

• Macbeth


  A play by William Shakespeare that tells the story of one man's violent rise to a position of power as king of his country and of his even more violent downfall
• Macbeth has remained one of William Shakespeare's most intense and often performed plays
• Macbeth


  • The play follows the progress of the title character as he becomes increasingly powerful, using any means to get what he wants - even murder
  • He is encouraged by the ruthless and bloodthirsty ambition of his wife, Lady Macbeth
  • Power comes at a price and by the end of the play, Macbeth's world falls apart around him, he is defeated and a new king, Malcolm, is declared
• Macbeth was written by Shakespeare


  Approximately 1606
• Early 17th century


  A time of political upheaval, suspicion and superstition in which a new king had just come to power and the future of the country seemed quite uncertain
• Shakespeare's play Macbeth reflects the changes and context of the early 17th century
• "Look like th' innocent flower, But be the serpent under 't." - Lady Macbeth
• "Out damned spot! Out i say!" - Lady Macbeth
• "I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition" - Macbeth
• "Out damned spot! Out I say!" - Lady Macbeth
• "Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here" - Lady Macbeth
• "Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here" - Lady Macbeth
• "I have given my two hands to pluck out a heart" - Lady Macbeth
• "I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent but only Vaulting ambition" - Macbeth
• "Life is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury signifying nothing" - Macbeth
• "I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent but only vaulting ambition" - Macbeth
• "Out damned spot! Out iota spot!" - Lady Macbeth
• "Is this a dagger that I see before me, The handle toward my hand?" - Macbeth
• Is this a dagger


  Macbeth questioning if what he sees is real or just a hallucination
• that I see before me


  Macbeth describing the location of the object he sees
• The handle toward my hand


  Macbeth describing the position of the dagger, suggesting that he could easily grab it if it were real