Well, I must say, I really enjoyed reading the play! Shakespeare's work never ceases to amaze me, and the characters in this are just... really fun! I love the fact that this takes place in northern Europe, as that's where a lot of my ancestors are from--particularly Scotland, which is where King Duncan rules over! I sense this is gonna be a fun read for me and my other two classmates that are doing this solo read with me. Oh, and good luck to the majority of the class reading Romeo and Juliet! I loved that play and hope you will too!
Writing Style:
One of the selling points of Shakespeare's amazing plays is the fact that it's written in old English. Not only that, but there's a specific rhythm to the type of writing that is unique to his plays and his alone. In addition, Shakespeare took pride in creating his own words to fit definitions that he needed filled. I've already encountered several, and had to look them up online just to make sure I was right! All in all, I find Macbeth as another example of the genius that is Shakespeare's work.
Characters:
Another one of MacBeth's great traits just has to be the colorful characters. I immediately fell in love with the witches and Banquo's description of their gender neutral-ness. That made me laugh so hard. And even within the first few pages that we meet the famous MacBeth, we see just how much of a multi-dimensional character he really is. He wants to remain loyal to Duncan, but also wants to see the witch's prophecies that depict him coming into the throne to come true. That's a completely human thing to want, and makes MacBeth that much more easy to relate to.
I also have to say that I just love Banquo as the sidekick. He's obviously a high ranking officer in the military, but there's a reason that Macbeth recieved the Thane of Crawdor's title after he was imprisoned. But I think Banquo takes it on quite well.
Plot:
Well, so far, I've been able to decipher the plot as following. It begins with the three witches discussing whom their next target will be, and they settle for Macbeth. Already, you can sense some trouble. Then, Duncan is visited by a wounded soldier and is told that Macbeth and Banquo have defeated Ireland and Norway in a battle, and captured the Thane of Cawdor. They praise Macbeth, and Duncan decides to award his general with the imprisoned title.
The scene than switches to Macbeth and Banquo talking about their recent victory. The witches then appear--telling Macbeth that he is destined to become king and telling Banquo that he shall sire many future kings of their kingdom. They then disappear, and Macbeth initially ignores their prophecies. But then Ross enters, and tells Macbeth that he has been named Thane of Cawdor. This was one of the witch's prophecies, and he begins to wonder if they could really be true, and if he could really live with ousting Duncan from power.
He then writes to his wife about the prophecies. Lady Macbeth than decides that she will murder Duncan so that her husband will secure the throne. From what I can tell from here, Macbeth is initially hesitant when he hears of her plans, but when she challenges his manhood, he consents to his wife's plan.
I am soooo looking forward to reading the next acts! I can't wait to see what happens with the murder plot and if it is actually pulled off! I wonder how exactly the prophecy will come true, because I'm sensing this will be one of those stories where everything in the prophecies come true, but in terrible, unexpected ways.
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