Friday, May 24, 2013

What are good discussion questions for Shakespeare's Macbeth, Act I, scene iv? Thank You

Shakespeare's Macbeth provides a
great deal to discuss.


One discussion question might
be:


By their speech, what characteristics do the men
reporting Cawdor's execution believe the Thane showed which the men would have found
admirable, even though the man was a traitor?


Second
question:


What does...


readability="7">

"There's no art


To
find the mind's construction in the face" (I, iv,
12-13)...



mean, and why is
this comment ironic, based upon Macbeth's private thoughts in his "aside" (shown
below),



The
Prince of Cumberland! That is a step


On which I must fall
down, or else o'erleap,


For in my way it lies. Stars, hid
your fires;


Let not light see my black and deep desires...?
(I, iv, 48-51)



Next
question:


Explain the significance of Duncan's words to
Macbeth, as he returns from the battlefield:


readability="10">

I have begun to plant thee, and will
labor


To make thee full of growing. (I, iv,
28-29)



Last
question:


Duncan makes a great to-do over Macbeth, heaping
extensive praise upon him as they return from battle, in lines 14-21, and again in lines
28-29.


Duncan also praises Banquo, but only briefly (lines
29-32).


Based upon what we know already of Macbeth and
Banquo, and what we learn of Macbeth by the end of the scene, which man is more
deserving of the King's praise? Support your response with specific examples from the
play.


[Make sure to check the line numbers provided here:
different versions of the play sometimes use different numbering of
lines.]

No comments:

Post a Comment

How is Anne's goal of wanting "to go on living even after my death" fulfilled in Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl?I didn't get how it was...

I think you are right! I don't believe that many of the Jews who were herded into the concentration camps actually understood the eno...