writers intentions

• Divine Right - The belief that the King was chosen by God. Thus, to commit regicide meant disobeying the will of God. A Jacobean audience believed people who committed regicide would be punished by God. The mental decline of both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, having been plagued with guilt, is Shakespeare's way of showing that regicide does not go without punishment.
• Natural Order / The Great Chain of Being - A religious hierarchy where everything on earth was awarded a 'rank' / status. God was at the top, followed by angels, humans, animals and plants etc. A Jacobean audience believed that if this hierarchy was interfered with (i.e. a human tried to 'jump up' the ranks to the status of angels or God) then the natural order would be thrown into chaos. Shakespeare shows this on the night of the regicide when there is a violent storm. Macbeth's attempt to climb the 'Chain of Being' disturbs the natural world.
• Religion - A Jacobean audience were extremely religious, believing life to be sacred and God to be the creator of everything. Thus, when Macbeth claims life is 'a tale told by an idiot...signifying nothing' a Jacobean audience would have been greatly shocked. This nihilistic language (rejecting all religious and moral principles in the belief that life is meaningless) solidifies Macbeth's 'tyrant' and 'hellhound' status towards the end of the play.
• Patriarchal Society / Gender Identity - a society where women were expected to be subservient to men., Shakespeare subverts these traditional gender roles in the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth; a relationship where we observe a strong female character command, instruct and manipulate her husband. Many women who subverted expected gender roles or conventions at the time were accused of being witches.
• Witchcraft - King James I was obsessed with magic and witchcraft and ordered several witch-hunts during his reign as King, even producing a treatise on witchcraft called Daemonologie ('the Science of Demons'). Shakespeare's portrayal of the Witches shows them to cast spells and use familiars. Moreover, the 'spot' on Lady Macbeth's hand is also an reference to what was known as 'the devil's mark'.
• The Gunpowder Plot - King James I was the intended victim of Guy Fawkes' Gunpowder plot. This made him nervous of future regicide attempts. Shakespeare's 'Macbeth' would have been popular with King James because it shows that those who commit regicide are greatly punished / mentally tortured. The message of Shakespeare's play acts as a deterrent to anyone thinking of committing regicide.
• Use of soliloquy/aside


  • Notice when Macbeth starts using asides and what this might suggest about his changing character (e.g when he starts having dangerous thoughts!) Soliloquies are often used when characters have a decision to make. It shows characters in turmoil. Usually by the end they have made a decision.
• Pathetic Fallacy


  • Consider how the weather is highlighted by Shakespeare at key points in the play and how the weather reflects the mood. E.g the play opens with 'thunder and lightning' -Shakespeare immediately sets an ominous mood. Think about the night of the murder and the weather/reaction of the earth to the murder.
• Symbolism/motif


  • When an object is used to represent a deeper more significant meaning. E.g. blood as a symbol of guilt in the play. Another important symbol is sleep (or lack of) - references to sleep and sleeplessness reveal the deterioration of Lady Macbeth and Macbeth's turmoil too.
• Dramatic irony


  • When the audience knows something that one or more characters do not eg. We know Duncan shouldn't trust Macbeth. We also witness Macbeth lie to Banquo about the witches when he says "consider it not so deeply" and we've just seen him "consider it deeply!"
• Contrasting imagery


  • Heaven/hell light/dark good/evil occurs throughout the play. Notice what these images suggest eg. Evil is sometimes shown through dark imagery.
• 'look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under it' - lady m