Sep 20, 2009 08:25 AM
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Advantages: Just read the op
Disadvantages: Old English, but what do you expect?
Think of Shakespeare and I am sure among the first things which will
spring to your mind will be his tragedy, Macbeth. You may not have read
this masterpiece, but I am sure you have heard of it. A few years ago,
I, along with many others my age, had the unenviable task of reading
Macbeth as part of my GCSE studies. Not only did I have to read
Macbeth, I also had to analyse and discuss the themes, subject matters,
language etc., thrown up throughout the book in countless essays.
This
was a mountainous task for me, as I had never read and studied a book
properly before, and it was very rare for me to stretch my reading
capabilities further than a Roald Dahl fantasy. I was rather daunted
and intimidated by what was required of me, yet all of my emotions and
feelings had no foundation; they were based on ignorance. Shakespeare
was for all the "poshnobs" in posh schools to read; why did I have to
read it? Well, that's what I thought before I read Macbeth.
On
my first reading of the book, I was rather bewildered by the language
of ye olde English, yet I understood it enough for it to entice me to a
second read. Second time around, I understood more of the words, and
this allowed the story to build much more easily in my mind, whereas
previously I was referring to the glossary every other sentence for
word definitions. I read Macbeth a couple more times, and by then I
understood every part of the play, both thematically and
linguistically.
What I discerned at that time, and since, is
not only is Macbeth an enjoyable and engaging story, but moreover it is
one of the most strongly dramatic plays ever written, and although its
subject matter is one of grim horror, it contains many passages of
unforgettable beauty and power. Macbeth can also be enjoyed on many
levels. It is an exciting story of witchcraft, murder and retribution,
yet it can also be seen as a study in the philosophy and psychology of
evil.
Macbet
h has true historical foundations, for indeed there was a gentlemen
called Macbeth, who killed a king called Duncan, then ruled Scotland
between 1040 and 1057. Shakespeare's uses these facts liberally to
illustrate what happens to a man, essentially noble and heroic, who so
desires supreme power that he will commit murder to attain it.
An
eerie, witch-haunted heath; gloomy Scottish castles; a lonely road at
nightfall; fog, wind and thunder - these are the settings where the
tragedy of Macbeth is acted out. Macbeth, at the start of the story, is
a faithful servant to the king. He had expelled Nordic invaders and was
acclaimed by the king himself, the doomed Duncan. Duncan is so grateful
to his gallant warrior that he grants Macbeth the title of "Thane of
Cawdor". Macbeth, at this stage at least, fits his image as the refined
gentleman.
Soon, however, things human and ghostly unite to
inflame the ambition previously controlled within Macbeth; his triumphs
as a warrior, the prophecies of witches, his wife's determination, a
visionary dagger.
The witches quite simply brainwash Macbeth.
Macbeth essentially is an innocent soul, but with this innocence comes
an exploitable naivety. Their predictions prey on Macbeth's naivety as
well as his superabundance of ambition following his victories in
battle. Macbeth is initially able to control his urges to act on their
predictions, dismissing any possibility of murder, thus retaining his
sense of dignity and conscience. This all changes in Act 4 however.
Malcolm,
Duncan's son, is installed as Prince of Cumberland, and with it, the
successor to Duncan as King of Scotland. King of Scotland is the title
Macbeth covets, though, rather significantly and intriguingly, the
witches had never prophecised to Macbeth that he would become king.
Macbeth is torn on how to proceed; Lady Macbeth then sways the path he
will take.
Lady Macbeth begins to plan the
murder of Duncan, an act Macbeth had repudiated. Macbeth's
reservations, mainly brought about by fear, are extinguished, and
finally, after intermittent doses of guilt and disgust, the evil deed
is perpetrated. Duncan is slain.
Malcolm
and Donalbain, Duncan's sons, forgo the power of the kingship and flee.
Macbeth, in due course, is crowned as king, yet even now, he is not
content. The prophecies of the witches return to torture him. They had
foretold that his offspring will never rule, only those of Banquo, his
close friend. The now corrupted Macbeth has little clarity of thought,
and sanctions the murder of Banquo, exemplifying his removal from all
sense of reality.
Macbeth finds no enjoyment in his kingship,
but he is no longer able to turn back. To rule in safety more murders
are necessary. His nobles desert him to join Duncan's young son, while
the queen becomes ill and crazed. Macbeth realises all he has won is
solitude and emptiness;
"I have liv'd long enough: my way of life
Is fall'n in to the sear, the yellow leaf;
And that which should accompany old age,
As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends,
I must not look to have."
The tide of horror mounts. Lady Macbeth dies, his castle is besieged, and the witches
prove
not to have foretold Macbeth's safety, but his doom. Macbeth himself is
murdered by one his besiegers, Macduff, the Thane of Fife. Malcolm is
then crowned king.
The story of Macbeth's glorious path to
tragedy can be understood in any age. Ignorance is bliss, while
knowledge is torture, a torture which Macbeth can not deal with. He was
respected as a warrior and leader. His intrinsic innocence is robbed
however, and nefarious influences attack him from all directions. His
response to all this evil, from his wife, the witches, the nightmarish
dreams, is a rule of tyranny. His people hate him, and so falls this
innately good man
.
If you have not read Macbeth, I
would advise you too. Once you understand Shakespeare's language, you
will thoroughly enjoy the story. There is of course many performances
of Shakespeare's plays, which may act out the story of Macbeth, but I
feel you will not discover every genial piece of dialogue, or explore
fully every subject matter, unless you read the book. Macbeth, along
with almost all of Shakespeare's plays, is such a challenge, as well as
being richly enjoyable, that it requires going over many times. This
can be done much more easily and at leisure through reading the book.
I will finish this op with a quotation from Stanley Wells, a great student of Shakespeare;
"It
is Macbeth's neurotic self-absorption, his fear, his anger, and his
despair, along with his wife's steely determination, her invoking of
the powers of evil, and her eventual revelation in sleep of her
repressed humanity, that have given the play its long-proven power to
fascinate readers."
