Plot
Author – William Shakespeare
Click here for information on William Shakespeare
Discover more about William Shakespeare
|
Analysis of Macbeth
My Shakespeare – an interactive guide to Macbeth which includes the script (complete with modern English definitions of obscure words), an audio version of the original script, and videos of both sections from each play, and ‘interviews’ with the characters to further explain the action.
Macbeth: summary, characters and facts
Macbeth Learning Zone [Royal Shakespeare Company]
The curse of the Scottish Play
The curse of Macbeth – more than superstition?
Macbeth [BBC Bitesize]
Themes – universal ideas
Ambition, evil, fate, guilt, illusion vs reality, kingship, power, revenge, supernatural.
More to explore – motifs, symbols, context, setting
Blood, ghosts, Macbeth in history, magic, murder, predictions, Scottish history, weather, witches.
Locations: Dunsinane, Birnam Wood, Saint Colm’s Inch, Aleppo, Inverness, Scone, Colmekill, Northumberland, Forres
Titles: Prince of Cumberland, Thane of Cawdor, Thane of Fife, Thane of Glamis, Thane of Ross, Angus, Lennox, Menteith, Caithness, Hebrides, King of Norway
16th/17th century issues: James VI of Scotland / James I of England, Gunpowder Plot, Witchcraft
Did you know?
Macbeth was a real king of Scotland. He ruled from 1005-1057. He really did kill King Duncan, and he really was killed by Duncan’s son, Malcolm. Apart from that, not much is true in Shakespeare’s version. Shakespeare wanted to write a play that would please the new king, James I (who was already James VI of Scotland). James was fascinated by witches – he even wrote a book about witchcraft – and he believed he was an ancestor of Banquo.
Macbeth actually ruled for 33 years and Scotland was so peaceful and prosperous during his reign that he and his wife were able to go on pilgrimage to Rome.
Click here for more information about Macbeth, King of Scots, 1005-1057
Further reading
Discover these titles and more
|
If you enjoyed Macbeth, try reading some of these titles:
For more about witches, read Wyrd sisters by Terry Pratchett. It spins together various bits and pieces of Shakespeare plays, including Macbeth and is one of the funniest books you’ll ever read. Library copy available.
Dark Spell by Gill Arbuthnott tells the story of a Scottish teenager who has just discovered she is actually a witch and is struggling to control her powers. Library copy available
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin is a fantasy about Sparrowhawk, an overly ambitious young wizard who has to deal with the dangerous results of his arrogance and thoughtlessness. Library copy available.
if Banquo’s ghost appealed to you, try Chill by Alex Nye, a story of a teenager stuck in a haunted house on a Scottish moor in the middle of winter. Library copy available.
Or if you prefer real ghost stories, you could try Ghosts, massacres and horror stories of Scotland’s castles by Margaret Campbell. Library copy available.
A Gathering Light by Jennifer Donnelly is a murder story based on real events. Library copy available.
And if you prefer non-fiction, try Scottish murder stories by Molly Whittington-Egan for some nasty true Scottish crime. Library copy available.
Finally, if you’d like to hear more detailed discussion about Macbeth, try the In Our Time episode on BBC Sounds [you need an account which you can set up free].
Macbeth by Jennifer Mulherin explores more of the background history of the play and the Shakespeare’s times. Library copy available.
Literacy and Language
Birnam Wood. Figures of speech
Words that first appear in Macbeth – For instance, ‘be all and end all’, ‘at one fell swoop’ and ‘crack of doom’ all first appeared in Macbeth.
Animal associations
Information Literacy
The play of Macbeth was written to please the new king, not only with the evil witches probably a misinformation campaign
Numeracy
Threes
Health and Wellbeing
Mental health
Developing the Young Workforce
Skills? 
Confidence
networks?
Rights Respecting Schools
Murder of Macduff’s children
