Macbeth Thesis

How is Christian Morality and the Nature of God linked to Macbeth?

God created Adam and Eve in Eden and forbade them from eating the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. Satan, disguised as a serpent, tempted Eve to eat it, and she then persuaded Adam. Because of this, women were traditionally seen as temptresses. This links to Macbeth, where Lady Macbeth tempts Macbeth to kill Duncan. Just as God banished Adam and Eve from Eden, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are banished from happiness after their crime — they never enjoy being king and queen.

What is original sin?

We are all marked by this crime of Adam and Eve against God. It is called Original sin. This means we are all born evil, and must continually strive to be good. This is why Banquo tries not to get involved in Macbeth’s plan, and why The weird sisters don’t actually tell Macbeth to kill anyone.

How is the free will of God portrayed in Macbeth?

God created Eden as an experiment in free will and found that humans could not resist temptation. Adam and Eve freely chose to disobey him, but God still allowed all people to exercise free will afterward. Only by choosing to live good, moral lives could they regain the perfection of Eden and reach Heaven. In Macbeth, the idea of temptation and free will is reflected in the choices Macbeth and Lady Macbeth make about committing murder.

Where do Greek Gods come into the tragedy?

Theater and tragedy come from the Greeks, whose gods did not offer heaven for good behavior. Instead, everyone went to the underworld, and people made sacrifices to avoid divine punishment like disease or disaster. The gods controlled fate, and in Greek tragedy, characters would learn their fate through prophecy but couldn’t escape it. Similarly, Macbeth, as a tragic hero, cannot escape his fate.

What is The Great Chain of Being?

A way of keeping power with the rich, and stopping those lower down the social ladder asking for more. The idea was God sat at the top of this chain, and then came angels, then the Pope, then kings and queens, then the nobility in all their ranks, then the middle classes (people with wealth but no title), tradesmen, then workers, then women, then animals, with eagles and lions at the top, and insects and less impressive creates at the bottom.

How did The Great Chain of Beings impact the Jacobeans?

People believed God decided everyone's place in the social hierarchy, meaning kings ruled by "Divine Right" and rebelling against them was a sin. Being born poor was seen as God's will, and the rich were to be respected. However, in Elizabethan London, new businesses allowed people to change their status. Shakespeare is a key example, rising from actor to wealthy playwright and businessman. The idea that people could shape their own destiny, not just accept their birth status, began to take hold during this time.

How was Shakespeare’s invention of soliloquy important?

The soliloquy brought the idea that characters had rich inner lives, and were powerful individuals.

How was the translation of the King James Bible important?

The translation of the Bible was important because normal people could now read and understand the Bible and its teachings. They didn’t have to learn Latin to do it, or depend on priests to explain it to them.

When did the Great Chain of Being break down?

The Great Chain of Being was a mainly Catholic idea. Once Henry the 8th converted to Protestantism, and destroyed the monasteries, this ‘natural’ order looked less certain. This led to the persecution of Catholics, and the gunpowder plot of 1605, which wouldn’t just kill King James, but all his nobility in Parliament. This was the first time a plot against a king had been led by other nobles, who thought that God had chosen them to be king.

What is patriarchy?

A patriarchy is a society controlled by men, in their own interests, so that women have limited rights and are subservient to males in the form of fathers, husbands, and even brothers.

How was the patriarchal society expressed in Jacobean times?

Women were not allowed to act on stage; their roles were played by young men. In marriage, a woman became her husband's possession, and all her property became his — a law that stayed until the 1870s. Among the rich, marriages were arranged with dowries and focused on wealth, not love. As a result, wealthy men often had mistresses whom they chose for themselves.

How did women get status?

Women gained their status through marriage and their husband's position. They managed the household and budget but couldn’t own property unless widowed, and even then were expected to remarry. Single women lived with parents and rarely inherited unless they had no brothers. Women were also expected to remain virgins until marriage and typically gave birth every two years, with about 30% of children dying before age 15.