Macbeth And Shakespeare

Petrarch

Italian poet known for writing the greatest Italian sonnets; established themes of unattainable and unrequited love.

Sir Thomas Wyatt

English diplomat to Henry VIII who brought the sonnet form to England; known for his lyrical poetry with wit and irony.

Petrarchan (Italian) Sonnet Structure

Consists of an Octave (8 lines) that presents a problem/question (abbaabba) and a Sestet (6 lines) that provide an answer/resolution (cdecde or cdcdcd).

Volta

The "turn" in a sonnet; the shift from the problem in the octave to the resolution in the sestet.

Shakespearean (English) Sonnet Structure

Consists of 3 Quatrains (4 lines each) to set the scene and develop character (abab cdcd efef) followed by a Rhyming Couplet (gg) that summarizes or concludes.

Edmund Spenser

Called "England’s Greatest Poet" or the "poet’s poet"; famous for The Faerie Queene and a failed interlocking sonnet style (abab bcbc cdcd ee).

Sir Philip Sidney

Known as the "Ideal Renaissance Man"; wrote a sequence of 108 sonnets about his unattainable love for Penelope Devereux (Stella).

Carpe Diem

Literally "Seize the Day"; a motif in poetry (like Marvel and Herrick) emphasizing making the most of the present moment, especially in youth.

Metaphysical Poetry

A style of poetry (led by John Donne) characterized by intellectual complexity, depth, and the use of elaborate conceits

Early Theatre Culture

16th-century acting companies traveled the country and performed wherever they found an audience; they were maintained by individual noblemen.

The Globe Theatre

Built in 1599; an open-air enclosure with a central stage, roofed galleries for the wealthy, and floor space for groundlings.

Groundlings

Audience members who paid a penny to stand on the floor of the theatre.

Soliloquy

A dramatic device where a character speaks private thoughts out loud to the audience; assumed to be the character's truthful internal state.

Aside

When a character speaks to the audience or another character while others on stage "cannot hear" them; reveals internal thoughts.

Dramatic Irony

When the audience knows something that the characters on stage do not (e.g., the audience knows Macbeth plans to kill Duncan while Duncan trusts him).

Nemesis

The Greek-inspired belief in drama that good will always be rewarded and evil will eventually be punished (Karma).

Pathetic Fallacy

When nature or the environment reflects the internal conflict or emotions of a character (e.g., horses eating each other after Duncan's death

Macbeth's "Double Trust"

Reasons he hesitates to kill Duncan: 1. Macbeth is Duncan's kinsman (cousin). 2. Macbeth is Duncan's subject/soldier. 3. Macbeth is Duncan's host.

The Three Witches' Initial Predictions

1. Macbeth will be Thane of Cawdor. 2. Macbeth will be King. 3. Banquo’s descendants will be kings, though Banquo will not.

The Three Apparitions - Macbeth’s Crashout (Act 4)

1. Armed Head (Beware Macduff). 2. Bloody Child (No man born of woman shall harm Macbeth). 3. Crowned Child with a tree (Safe until Birnam Wood moves to Dunsinane).

The Eighth King

The most disturbing vision for Macbeth; it shows a line of 8 of Banquo's descendants becoming kings, proving Macbeth's line is "fruitless."

Lady Macbeth's Sleepwalking

A result of intense guilt; she tries to wash an "invisible spot" of blood off her hands and alludes to the murders of Duncan, Banquo, and Lady Macduff.

The Third Murderer Theory

Likely sent by the Witches to ensure Fleance escapes, thereby upholding their prophecy and further provoking Macbeth's paranoia.

Macduff’s Birth

He was "untimely ripped" from his mother's womb (C-section), technically making him "not born of woman" according to the prophecy's loophole.

Banquo as a Foil

Banquo is realistic and skeptical of the witches, highlighting Macbeth’s immediate obsession and lack of moral restraint

John Donne's Two Phases

1. The "Rakish" young man (law student, witty, courtly poet). 2. The religious thinker/preacher (Dean of St. Paul's after re-joining the church).

A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning

A poem where the speaker argues that true spiritual love is not broken by distance, using the "Compass Conceit" to show they remain connected.

The Compass Conceit

A metaphysical comparison where the two lovers are the two legs of a compass; one stays fixed (the soul at home) while the other leans and roams, always returning.

Holy Sonnet 6 (Death be not proud)

Donne uses personification and apostrophe to "bully" death, calling it a slave to fate and chance, and claiming that death itself shall "die" in the afterlife.

John Milton

17th-century blind Puritan poet who saw his writing as a divine calling; author of the biblical epic Paradise Lost.

Paradise Lost - Satan's Motivation

Driven by envy and revenge for his expulsion from heaven; he attempts to overthrow God to "magnify" his own power. [from snippet back]

Beelzebub vs. Satan

Satan is the defiant, powerful villain-hero; Beelzebub is portrayed as his loyal follower who is more skeptical and cautious. [from snippet back]

Why is the "Octave" important in Milton's sonnets?

It presents the specific issue or problem, such as his fear of wasting his talent or his grief over going blind.

How is Time personified in Milton's work?

As the "Thief of Youth".

Why does Milton give Satan so much power in the poem?

To magnify God's power by showing how great a foe God can defeat, and to elevate the conflict between good and evil .

Poems Donne Write

1. Song - I’m only leaving for a bit i love u

2. A Valediction: Forbidden Mourning - COMPASS CONCEIT

3. Holy Sonet 6 and 14

4. MEDITATION 17 - The church bell community

Oxymoron VS Paradox

oxymoron is a short, two-word phrase combining contradictory terms (e.g., "jumbo shrimp

paradox is a broader statement or situation that seems contradictory but reveals a deeper truth or logical puzzle

What was the goal of Paradise Lost?

Justify the ways of god to mankind

What Style is Paradise Lost Written in?

Blank Verse - No Rhyme but Rythym

Three Examples of Carpe Diem Poetry

1. To Coy His Mistress - “I love u but i wanna bang”

2. To the Virgins, To Make Much of Time - “Women, go fuck beofre u get old”

3. To Daffoldils - MELANCHOLIC (sad) and how human life fades like flowers

Fluid Action (Plays)

Quick changes of props and settings and locations on stage

Motif

Repeating theme in a piece of art and literature

General Structure of Shakespearian Play

• 5 acts with scenes in those acts

• Act 3 is the climax normall

• Act 1 is intro, then rising action, then act 3 is climax, falling action and conclusion

Who is named heir to the Scottish Throne in macbeth?

The King’s OLDEST Son, Malcolm who is named the “Prince of Cumberland” will take over the throne

What is Macbeth’s hallucination in Act 2?

• He sees a dagger, him grabbing the dagger and the dagger covered in blood

• “I gotta go kill him bruh”

What causes Macbeth and Wife to hurry back to their own chamber after killing Duncan?

They hear loud knocking at the gate and gotta change and wahs the blood off their hands and they are covered in blood

What does Macbeth hope to learn from the 3 weird sisters after his hallucination of seeing Banquo?

He wants to learn like what his future as king looks like and to ensure that Banquo’s kids n stuff wont take the throne

Why does Malcom first suspect Macduff of Treachary

He worried Macduff betrayed duncan and was sent by Macbeth to kill him

Who leads rebellion against Macbeth?

Maclcom, and Macduff plus an english army 

What is the overarching Theme in Macbeth?

Ambition and greed for power

Ambition overpowers morals and rightiousness

Explain the theme of Guilt in Macbeth

• After murder people guilty

• People guilty = people think do worse cuz no get worse

i bs this flashcard just explian it yo urself

Use of Supernatural in Macbeth

• Witches: Supernatural figures that macbeth has a blind trust to → Trust the supernatural

How is Karma demonstrated in Macbeth?

• Those who stay loyal get rewarded in the end

• Those who becoem tyrants will end up failing

Conceit

when the author uses an extended metaphor to compare two very different things, often in a surprising way

Richard Burbage

• built the first theatre in london

• Theatre was Made of wood and resembled the old innards

• Theatre was a great success and led to many other similar structures to be built

Inner Bellow

• Behind the stage where indoor/ enclosed atmosphere is required

Upper Stage/ Inner Above

• Above stage and was used for both spectators and as an extension of the stave 

Characteristics of Elizabethan Theatres

Not large, can accomodate lots of people

No curtains - Actors enter and leave stage

Very little scenery and plays rely on language

Use of the Sun in Donne’s Poem, Song

• The Sun represents the speakers journey → The sun set but it will always come back

• The speaker leaving does not mean a permanent absence

“Unkindly Kind” meaning from Donne’s Song

• Kind: Represents the love and affection and like how she will miss him → Intention

• Unkindly: How the tears and everything are damaging to the other person “My life's blood doth decay” → Effect

• She loves him so much but bc she love shim sm its hard to leave

Holy Sonnet 10 Theme

Donne asking god to cleanse and rebuilt him for his wrongdoings and sins

• AGRESSIVE IMAGERY to represnet urge to get better

• Asks for EXTREMNESS to remake his soul

What is the bell in meditation 17?

• It is a church bell that is for a funeral and when Donne hears this, he starts reflecting on stuff

• Chruch/ Bell symbolizes one unified body of christ

What does “No man is an Island” mean in meditation 17?

• Everyone is not soloing in the middle of the ocean but we are all apart of one big continent and unified

• The church as “one body” → When pain goes to one person everyone else feels pain too