Macbeth

William Shakespeare

Senior English

Macbeth Learning Activity Packet

Objectives

After completion of reading the drama and of the packet, the student will be able to...

1. learn to read and enjoy Shakespeare‘s drama.

2. improve and enrich communicative skills.

3. identify the characters and their roles in the play.

4. recognize lines of particular scenes and characters.

5. work cooperatively as part of a team.

LAP points

Pie Chart 25

Prophecy or Not 25

Wake Up 50

The Fall 50

Rumpelstiltskin 20

Lobbyist 25

Corruption 20

Review ?s 100

Soundtrack 150

Thurber story 20

TOTAL 485

Pie Chart

* You‘re still working with your group!

* Your group needs to decide the blame for the killing of Duncan and why.

* Create a pie chart, representing your %‘s.

* Present and explain your chart to the class.

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Prophecy or Not?

In small groups, make predictions for the main characters in Macbeth.

Discuss the following questions as a group (1 piece of paper per group).

At the end of the activity, each group will share their responses for one of the characters. A

character name will be randomly selected when your group gets up to present. You will share

your responses for that character only.

Answer all five questions for the following characters: Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, The Weird

Sisters, and Banquo.

1. Describe your first impressions of this character.

2. Do you think good or evil will ultimately prevail for this character? What evidence do you

have?

3. What role has this person played in the events so far in the play?

4. What role do you think this person will play in the events that are to unfold?

5. Where will this character be at the end of the play? (six feet under, jail, King‘s castle, etc.)

Why do you feel this way?

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―Wake Up‖

* After reading and discussing Act I, Scene 7 of Macbeth in which Macbeth expresses his

indecisiveness about killing Duncan and Lady Macbeth berate him regarding his

indecision, you will create statements from Lady Macbeth‘s viewpoint that express her

attitude toward Macbeth and reveal his ambivalence about committing the murder of

Duncan.

* Your group will use Alanis Morissette‘s song ―Wake Up‖ from her album Jagged Little

Pill to help with this activity.

* Answer the following questions:

-- What is the speaker‘s attitude in this song?

-- Does this seem to be more like Macbeth‘s of Lady Macbeth‘s viewpoint?

-- Refer them to the first three lines that are starred...what is the speaker expressing in

these lines about the person to whom she is referring?

-- Keep in mind the cliché: ―Have your cake and eat it, too‖.

* Your group is to re-write the lines are starred as if Lady Macbeth is speaking them to

Macbeth. Consider Macbeth‘s state of mind at this point in the play and what Lady

Macbeth‘s attitude is toward him.

―Wake Up‖

by Alanis Morissette

You like snow but only if it‘s warm *

You like rain but only if it‘s dry *

No sentimental value to the rose that fell on your floor

No fundamental excuse for the granted I‘m taken for

‗Cause it‘s easy not to

So much easier not to

And what goes around never comes around to you

You like pain but only if it doesn‘t hurt too much *

You sit...and you wait...to receive

There‘s an obvious attraction

To the path of least resistance in your life

There‘s an obvious aversion no amount of my insistence [sic]

could make you try tonight

‗Cause it‘s easy not to

So much easier not to

And what goes around never comes around to you

To you to you to you to you to you ...

There‘s no love no money no thrill anymore

There‘s an apprehensive naked little trembling boy *

With his head in his hands *

There‘s an underestimated and impatient little girl *

Raising her hand *

But it‘s easy not to

So much easier not to

And what goes around never comes around to you

To you, to you

get up get up get up off of it

get up get up get up off of it

get out get outta here enough already

get up get up get up off of it

Wake up

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Genesis 3

The Fall of Man

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He

said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"

2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did

say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not

touch it, or you will die.' "

4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat

of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and

also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband,

who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized

they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden

in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the

LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"

10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."

11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I

commanded you not to eat from?"

12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and

I ate it."

13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said,

"The serpent deceived me, and I ate."

14 So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above

all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all

the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your

offspring [a] and hers; he will crush [b] your head, and you will strike his heel."

16 To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will

give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."

17 To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I

commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful

toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and

you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you

return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."

20 Adam [c] named his wife Eve, [d] because she would become the mother of all the living.

21 The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 22 And the

LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not

be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." 23

So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had

been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side [e] of the Garden of Eden

cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

Footnotes:

Genesis 3:15 Or seed

Genesis 3:15 Or strike

Genesis 3:20 Or The man

Genesis 3:20 Eve probably means living .

Genesis 3:24 Or placed in front

Genesis 3 (New International Version)

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+3&version=NIV

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Questions

* As a group, answer the following questions on a separate piece of paper.

1. How does the play Macbeth begin? What in Chapter 3 of Genesis could be considered

similar to the advice given to Macbeth? Why? Choose a passage that clearly shows

Macbeth's temptation.

2. In Genesis 3, How does Adam respond to temptation? Find text to support your answer.

3. How does greed take over Macbeth's thoughts in the first Act? Find specific lines that show

greed as overtaking his thoughts.

4. How does greed work in Adam's thoughts in Genesis?

5. Is Lady Macbeth the temptress in the play or are the witches? Find lines to support your

conclusion.

6. Is Eve the temptress in Genesis 3 or is the serpent? Show lines to support your conclusion.

7. Macbeth examines the dagger in Act II, scene 1. What does he notice about the dagger?

Point out the lines that show specific ideas about the dagger.

8. Adam considers the apple. What is appealing about it?

9. Macbeth says several things about sleep in Act II. What does he mean by "Glamis hath

murdered sleep‖?

10. What has ended as a result of disobedience in Genesis 3?

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Compare and Contrast

1. Make two lists and label them "The Fall in Genesis" and "The Fall in Macbeth".

2. Read Genesis 3 and list the events that cause the banishment of Adam and Eve from the

Garden of Eden in your Genesis list.

3. Do a similar task from Acts I and II of Macbeth.

4. Analyze the definition "archetype" and see exactly how it applies to the play in Acts I and II.

5. Find specific passages from the text and show from the passages just how the pattern of the

fall is clear from the passages.

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Rumpelstiltskin

by The Brothers Grimm

Once there was a miller who was poor, but who had a beautiful daughter. Now it happened that

he had to go and speak to the king, and in order to make himself appear important he said to him,

"I have a daughter who can spin straw into gold."

The king said to the miller, "That is an art which pleases me well, if your daughter is as clever as

you say, bring her to-morrow to my palace, and I will put her to the test."

And when the girl was brought to him he took her into a room which was quite full of straw,

gave her a spinning-wheel and a reel, and said, "Now set to work, and if by to-morrow morning

early you have not spun this straw into gold during the night, you must die."

Thereupon he himself locked up the room, and left her in it alone. So there sat the poor miller's

daughter, and for the life of her could not tell what to do, she had no idea how straw could be

spun into gold, and she grew more and more frightened, until at last she began to weep.

But all at once the door opened, and in came a little man, and said, "Good evening, mistress

miller, why are you crying so?"

"Alas," answered the girl, "I have to spin straw into gold, and I do not know how to do it."

"What will you give me," said the manikin, "if I do it for you?"

"My necklace," said the girl.

The little man took the necklace, seated himself in front of the wheel, and whirr, whirr, whirr,

three turns, and the reel was full, then he put another on, and whirr, whirr, whirr, three times

round, and the second was full too. And so it went on until the morning, when all the straw was

spun, and all the reels were full of gold.

By daybreak the king was already there, and when he saw the gold he was astonished and

delighted, but his heart became only more greedy. He had the miller's daughter taken into

another room full of straw, which was much larger, and commanded her to spin that also in one

night if she valued her life. The girl knew not how to help herself, and was crying, when the door

opened again, and the little man appeared, and said, "What will you give me if I spin that straw

into gold for you?"

"The ring on my finger," answered the girl.

The little man took the ring, again began to turn the wheel, and by morning had spun all the

straw into glittering gold.

The king rejoiced beyond measure at the sight, but still he had not gold enough, and he had the

miller's daughter taken into a still larger room full of straw, and said, "You must spin this, too, in

the course of this night, but if you succeed, you shall be my wife."

Even if she be a miller's daughter, thought he, I could not find a richer wife in the whole world.

When the girl was alone the manikin came again for the third time, and said, "What will you give

me if I spin the straw for you this time also?"

"I have nothing left that I could give," answered the girl.

"Then promise me, if you should become queen, to give me your first child."

Who knows whether that will ever happen, thought the miller's daughter, and, not knowing how

else to help herself in this strait, she promised the manikin what he wanted, and for that he once

more spun the straw into gold.

And when the king came in the morning, and found all as he had wished, he took her in

marriage, and the pretty miller's daughter became a queen.

A year after, she brought a beautiful child into the world, and she never gave a thought to the

manikin. But suddenly he came into her room, and said, "Now give me what you promised."

The queen was horror-struck, and offered the manikin all the riches of the kingdom if he would

leave her the child. But the manikin said, "No, something alive is dearer to me than all the

treasures in the world."

Then the queen began to lament and cry, so that the manikin pitied her.

"I will give you three days, time," said he, "if by that time you find out my name, then shall you

keep your child."

So the queen thought the whole night of all the names that she had ever heard, and she sent a

messenger over the country to inquire, far and wide, for any other names that there might be.

When the manikin came the next day, she began with Caspar, Melchior, Balthazar, and said all

the names she knew, one after another, but to every one the little man said, "That is not my

name."

On the second day she had inquiries made in the neighborhood as to the names of the people

there, and she repeated to the manikin the most uncommon and curious. Perhaps your name is

Shortribs, or Sheepshanks, or Laceleg, but he always answered, "That is not my name."

On the third day the messenger came back again, and said, "I have not been able to find a single

new name, but as I came to a high mountain at the end of the forest, where the fox and the hare

bid each other good night, there I saw a little house, and before the house a fire was burning, and

round about the fire quite a ridiculous little man was jumping, he hopped upon one leg, and

shouted -

'To-day I bake, to-morrow brew,

the next I'll have the young queen's child.

Ha, glad am I that no one knew

that Rumpelstiltskin I am styled.'"

You may imagine how glad the queen was when she heard the name. And when soon afterwards

the little man came in, and asked, "Now, mistress queen, what is my name?"

At first she said, "Is your name Conrad?"

"No."

"Is your name Harry?"

"No."

"Perhaps your name is Rumpelstiltskin?"

"The devil has told you that! The devil has told you that," cried the little man, and in his anger he

plunged his right foot so deep into the earth that his whole leg went in, and then in rage he pulled

at his left leg so hard with both hands that he tore himself in two.

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Questions

* You may answer as a group.

1. What was the Miller‘s daughter willing to sacrifice to become queen?

2. What was Lady Macbeth willing to sacrifice to become queen?

3. What are the magical aspects of ―Rumpelstiltskin‖? Macbeth?

4. Who would be considered good or evil? Why? Miller’s daughter, King, Rumpelstiltskin,

Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Banquo

5. How are the Miller‘s daughter and Lady Macbeth alike and different?

6. What are you willing to sacrifice for power, fame, and/or riches?

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Lobbyist

By Phyllis Naegeli

1 How good are you at persuading people to follow your point of view? A lobbyist is a person

whose job it is to persuade government officials to pass legislation for their cause.

2 The term "lobbying" comes from a time in the early 1800s. People who wanted to speak with a

member of Congress had to wait in the lobby of government buildings or meeting places. While

waiting, they gained access to others within the government and discussed issues or policies of

concern to them.

3 Although any citizen can technically be a lobbyist and discuss an issue with a legislator,

professional lobbyists are paid to do the job of winning lawmakers over to their way of thinking.

They work for special interest groups, who use some of their financial resources to hire

professional lobbyists to speak for them. A special interest group is an organized group of people

who share a common interest, goal, or belief. Independent lobbyists may represent three or four

smaller interest groups. Larger interest groups may hire many lobbyists to represent their cause.

According to The Princeton Review, there are 106,000 lobbyists in this country. Two major

employers of lobbyists include Greenpeace and AARP (American Association of Retired

Persons).

4 Most lobbyists work in Washington, D.C. where they are close to the federal legislators they

want to influence. Large interest groups also have lobbyists working in state governments to

influence legislation at that level. In addition, smaller, local interest groups are formed in states

to promote a local cause. Lobbyists spend many hours working on their cause with government

representatives and agencies. They perform research on the topic they wish to promote. They

form strategies to accomplish their goals, using direct and indirect methods of influence.

5 Direct methods involve personal contact such as attending public and private meetings with

government officials. In addition, lobbyists have been invited to testify before Congress about

legislation that affects their interest group. They also host or attend social events where

policymakers are present. Many lobbyists are well known, high profile people who are seen in

the "right" places where they are in the spotlight to benefit their causes. Another direct method

involves providing important information on laws concerning their cause to contacts in

government agencies. This serves to help the agency enact legislation passed by Congress.

6 Indirect strategies are less noticeable. Lobbyists may choose to run advertisements or news

articles to increase awareness of their group's concern in the hopes of putting public pressure on

the lawmakers. Another indirect strategy is to move the public to write or call their legislators

about a current bill or concern.

7 The U.S. Constitution protects the practice of lobbying, but laws have been passed to monitor

lobbyists' activities. A politician just out of office is not able to become a lobbyist because that

may give a special interest group an unfair advantage where their cause is involved. Companies

are required to give out the names of their lobbyists as well as report all gifts given to politicians.

8 Many of the groups that lobbyists work for provide funding to political campaigns by forming

political action committees (PACs). These organizations can donate up to $5,000 per campaign.

However, there is a loophole in this law. Special interest groups can form many political action

committees. This allows them to donate $5,000 from each PAC. The old saying, "money talks"

applies here. Politicians need financial support to campaign for office. When a large interest

group is able to provide large donations, it can appear to influence a politician. This has led to

allegations of corruption in the political scene. Politicians argue that because their views match a

particular organization, the interest group chooses to provide the donations. What do you think?

9 What does it take to be a lobbyist? To be effective, lobbyists should possess personal integrity

and professionalism. A lobbyist must keep his or her word, be honest and loyal, and maintain

their honor. A person who works in this field must earn the respect of those he or she tries to

persuade. Excellent communication skills are essential to the job. Expertise in the concern they

represent is also important. Many people who become lobbyists also take part in an internship

with special interest groups. This gives individuals the opportunity for on-the-job training. What

about you? Do you have a concern that you feel strongly about? Consider becoming a lobbyist.

Copyright © 2010 edHelper

_____ 1. An ordinary citizen is considered a lobbyist when they…

a. vote. b. work for the government.

c. discuss an issue with a legislator. d. all of the above.

_____ 2. Lobbyists only work in Washington, D.C.

a. true b. false

_____ 3. Which of the following is a direct method of influence used by lobbyists?

a. attend private or public meetings

b. donate money from a political action committee

c. run advertisements

d. encourage citizens to call legislators

_____ 4. A political action committee (PAC) can donate a maximum of $5,000 to a

political campaign.

a. true b. false

_____ 5. Which of the following individuals are not able to become lobbyists?

a. college graduates

b. individuals who are well-voiced in a particular cause

c. ordinary citizens

d. politicians just out of office

_____ 6. Lobbying is protected by a law passed in the 1800s.

a. true b. false

_____ 7. Lobbyists sometimes hold social gatherings and invite policymakers to

attend. This is a method of __________.

a. indirect influence b. direct influence

8. What is a lobbyist?

9. Would you like to become a lobbyist? Why or why not? What skills do you possess that

would help you to be a lobbyist? What type of issues do you feel strongly about?

10. Do you think that the practice of lobbying has caused corruption in American politics? Why

or why not?

11. Would Lady Macbeth be labeled a "lobbyist'? Why or Why not?

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Corruption

* While watching the video clip about Foreign Aid from 20/20, think about corruption and

Macbeth. Using examples from both and your own life experience or other sources,

answer the question in the space provided:

Why do people in power often become corrupt?

www.stosselintheclassroom.org

Macbeth Review Questions

Act 1

1. While Banquo speaks to Ross and Angus in Scene 3, what does Macbeth contemplate doing

that makes his heart pound?

2. What predictions do the witches make about Banquo?

3. Where do the witches agree to meet?

4. What does Lady Macbeth mean by, ―Like the poor cat, l‘ th‘ adage‖?

5. What predictions do witches make about Macbeth?

6. What title is King Duncan giving to his son, Malcolm?

7. In Scene 1, who or what is Graymalkin?

8. Who do Macbeth and Banquo battle after defeating MacDonwald?

9. Whom will they meet there?

10. Where does Macbeth live?

11. What concerns does Lady Macbeth have about her husband‘s ambitions?

12. What does Duncan order be done to the thane of Cawdor?

13. What is Macbeth contemplating at the end of Scene 4?

14. What happens to the thane of Cawdor‘s titles?

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Act 2

15. Where does Malcolm go?

16. What does Macbeth use to kill Duncan?

17. What does Banquo give to Macbeth?

18. MacDuff compares Duncan to

19. What does Macbeth hear as approached Duncan?

20. Who takes the bloody dagger back to Duncan‘s room?

21. Who does MacDuff suspect was behind the king‘s murder?

22. What happens to give Lady Macbeth the idea that her husband is killing the king?

23. Who killed the guards who were accused of killing the king?

24. Where does Donalbain go?

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Act 3

25. What plans do Hecate and the witches make?

26. What does Banquo voice at the opening of Act 3, Scene 1?

27. What does Lennox want MacDuff to do?

28. Who do not come to the feast?

29. Where does the ghost sit?

30. After Banquo leaves, what does Macbeth plan?

31. Where does Macbeth sit during the banquet?

32. Who does Lennox feel killed Banquo?

33. Who is king of England?

34. Whose ghost appears at the banquet?

35. Who is Hecate?

36. Where is Banquo going? Whom is he going with?

37. What is Macbeth planning?

38. Where is MacDuff?

39. What happens to Fleance?

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Act 4

40. What does Macbeth plan to do when he hears this news?

41. How many children does Macbeth have?

42. Who comes to the cavern?

43. What does this vision mean?

44. What special powers does King Edward have?

45. What final vision do the witches show to Macbeth?

46. What happens to MacDuff‘s son in Scene 2?

47. What are the three witches doing at the opening of Scene 1?

48. What help has England given to Malcolm?

49. What message does Lennox give to Macbeth after the witches vanish?

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Act 5

50. What happens to Lady Macbeth?

51. What title do the thanes receive at the end of the play?

52. Where will the Scotsmen and their army met Malcolm and his army from England?

53. Who is not among Malcolm‘s army?

54. Who becomes king?

55. What is Macbeth doing as he awaits the approaching army?

56. Who kills Macbeth?

57. Why are the woman and the doctor watching Lady Macbeth?

58. What does the servant tell Macbeth?

59. Who is the first person killed in battle?

60. Who or what is responsible for the tragedies of this play?

Soundtrack

* Create a soundtrack for Macbeth with at least 10 songs.

* Your group should have 2 songs per act (5 acts x 2 songs = 10).

* Burn the songs in order they would appear in the play! (This one is optional!

You don‘t have to create an actual CD unless you want to!)

* On a piece of paper, write down all titles and performers for each song, in the

order they appear.

* Include a brief reason why each song fits into the play; this should be 2-3

sentences.

* Include where the song fits into the play; give the act and scene number, and

explain the action occurring when the song would be playing.

* Create a cover jacket that illustrates the play (in your eyes). This should be in

color!

* What I will look for while grading:

-- Quality! Quality! Quality! Quality!

-- 10 songs

-- Titles/performers with GOOD reasons for song inclusion

-- Where does the song fit in?

-- Cover art fits into play and you put effort into it!

-- Effort! Effort! Effort! Effort!

The Macbeth Murder Mystery

―It was a stupid mistake to make," said the American woman I had met at my hotel in the

English lake country, ―but it was on the counter with the other Penguin books - the little

sixpenny ones, you know; with the paper covers - and 1 supposed of course it was a detective

story All the others were detective stories. I‘d read all the others. So I bought this one without

really looking at it carefully. You can imagine how mad I was when I found it was Shakespeare."

I murmured something sympathetically." I don't see why the Penguin-books people had to get

out Shakespeare plays in the same size and everything as the detective stories," went on my

companion.

―I think they have different colored jackets," I said.

"Well, I didn't notice that," she said. "Anyway, I got real comfy in bed that night and all ready to

read a good mystery story and here I had The Tragedy of Macbeth – a book for high school

students. Like Ivanhoe.‖

―Or ‗Lorne Doone.‘‖ I said.

"Exactly," said the American lady. "And I was just crazy for a good Agatha Christie, or

something. Hercule Poirot is my favorite detective."

―Is he the rabbity one?" I asked.

"Oh, no," said my crime-fiction expert. "He's the Belgian one. You're thinking of Mr. Pinkerton,

the one that helps Inspector Bull. He's good, too."

Over her second cup of tea my companion began to tell the plot of a detective story that had

fooled her completely - it seems it was the old family doctor all the time.

But I cut in on her. "Tell me," I said. "Did you read Macbeth?"

"I had to read it" she said, ―There wasn't a scrap of anything else to read in the whole room."

"Did you like it?" I asked.

"No, I did not,‖ she said, decisively. "In the first place, I don't think for a moment that Macbeth

did it."

I looked at her blankly. "Did what?" I asked.

"I don't think for a moment that he killed the King," she said. "I don't think the Macbeth woman

was mixed up in it, either. You suspect them the most, of course, but those are the ones that are

never guilty or shouldn't be, anyway.‖

―I‘m afraid," I began, "that I ---.‖

―But don't you see?" said the American lady. ―It would spoil everything if you could figure out

right away who did it.. Shakespeare was far too smart for that. I‘ve read that people never have

figured out Hamlet, so it isn't likely Shakespeare would have made Macbeth as simple as it

seems."

I thought this over while I filled my pipe. "Who do you suspect?" I asked, suddenly.

"Macduff," she said, promptly.

"Good God!" I whispered, softly.

"Oh Macduff did it, all right," said the murder specialist. "Hercule Poirot would have got him

easily."

"How did you figure it out?" I demanded.

"Well," she said, "I didn't right away. At first I suspected Banquo. And then of course, he was the

second person killed. That was good right in there, that part. The person you suspect of the first

murder should always be the second victim."

"Is that so?" I murmured.

"Oh, yes," said my informant. "They have to keep surprising you. Well, after the second murder I

didn't know who the killer was for a while."

"How about Malcolm, and Donalbain, the King's sons?" I asked. "As I remember it, they fled

right after the first murder. That looks suspicious."

―Too suspicious," said the American lady. "Much too suspicious. When they flee, they're never

guilty. You can count on that."

"I believe," I said, "I'll have a brandy," and I summoned the waiter.

My companion leaned toward me, her eyes bright, her teacup quivering. "Do yon know who

discovered Duncan's body?" she demanded. I said I was sorry, but I had forgotten. "Macduff

discovers it," she said, slipping into the historical present. Then he comes running downstairs and

shouts, 'Confusion has broken open the Lord's anointed temple' and 'Sacrilegious murder has

made his masterpiece' and on and on like that." The good lady tapped me on the knee. "All that

stuff was rehearsed," she said. "You wouldn't say a lot of stuff like that, offhand, would you - if

you had found a body?" She fixed me with a glittering eye.

"I-" I began.

"You're right!" she said. 'You wouldn't! Unless you had practiced it in advance. 'My God, there's

a body in here!' is what an innocent man would say." She sat back with a confident glare.

I thought for a while. "But what do you make of the Third Murderer?" I asked. "You know, the

Third Murderer has puzzled Macbeth scholars for three hundred years."

"That's because they never thought of Macduff," said the American lady. "It was Macduff, I'm

certain. You couldn't have one of the victims murdered by two ordinary thugs - the murderer

always has to be somebody important."

―But what about the banquet scene?‖ I asked, after a moment. "How do you account for

Macbeth's guilty actions there, when Banquo‘s ghost came in and sat in his chair?"

The lady leaned forward and tapped me on the knee again. "There wasn't any ghost," she said.

"A big, strong man like that doesn't go around seeing ghosts - especially in a brightly lighted

banquet hall with dozens of people around. Macbeth was shielding somebody!‖

―Who was he shielding?" I asked.

―Mrs. Macbeth, of course," she said. "He thought she did it and he was going to take the rap

himself. The husband always does that when the wife is suspected."

"But what," I demanded, "about the sleepwalking scene, then?"

"The same thing, only the other way around," said my companion. That time she was shielding

him. She wasn't asleep at all. Do you remember where it says, ‗Enter Lady Macbeth with a

taper‘?‖

―Yes," I said.

―Well, people who walk in their sleep never carry lights!" said my fellow-traveler. ―They have a

second sight. Did you ever hear of a sleepwalker carrying a light?"

―No," I said, "I never did." "Well, then she wasn't asleep. She was acting guilty to shield

Macbeth.‖ I think," I said, "I'll have another brandy,‖ and I called the waiter. When he brought it,

I drank it rapidly and rose to go. "I believe," I said, "that you have got hold of something. Would

you lend me that Macbeth? I'd like to look it over tonight. I don't feel, somehow as if I‘d ever

really read it."

―I'll get it for you," she said. "But you'll find that I am right."

I read the play over carefully that night, and the next morning, after breakfast, I sought out the

American woman. She was on the putting green, and I came up behind her silently and took her

arm. She gave an exclamation. "Could I see you alone?" I asked, in a low voice.

She nodded cautiously and followed me to a secluded spot, ―You've found out something?" she

breathed.

"I've found out"' I said, triumphantly, "the name of the murderer!"

―You mean it wasn't Macduff?" she said.

"Macduff is as innocent of those murders" I said, "as Macbeth and the Macbeth woman." I

opened the copy of the play, which I had with me, and turned to Act II, Scene 2. "Here," I said;

"you will see where Lady Macbeth says, ‗I laid their daggers ready. He could not miss 'em. Had

he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done it.' Do you see?"

―No," said the American woman, bluntly, ―I don't."

―But it's simple!" I exclaimed. "I wonder I didn't see it years ago. The reason Duncan resembled

Lady Macbeth's father as he slept is that it actually was her father!‖

―Good God!" breathed my companion softly.

"Lady Macbeth's father killed the King," I said, "and, hearing someone coming, thrust the body

under the bed and crawled into the bed himself."

―But," said the lady ―you can't have a murderer who only appears in the story once. You can't

have that."

"I know that" I said, and I turned to Act II, Scene 4. "It says here, ‗Enter Ross with an old Man.'

Now, that old man is never identified, and it is my contention he was old Mr. Macbeth, whose

ambition it was to make his daughter Queen. There you have your motive."

―But even then," cried the American lady, "he's still a minor character!"

"Not," I said, gleefully, ―when you realize that he was also one of the weird sisters in disguise!"

"You mean one of the three witches?"

"Precisely," I said. "Listen to this speech of the old man's. ‗On Tuesday last, a falcon towering in

her pride of place was by a mousing owl hawk'd at and killed.‘ Who does that sound like?"

"It sounds like the way the three witches talk," said my companion, reluctantly.

"Precisely!" I said again.

―Well,‖ said the American woman, "maybe you're right, but -"

"I'm sure I am,‖ I said. "And do you know what I'm going to do now?"

―No," she said. "What?"

"Buy a copy of Hamlet," I said, "and solve that!"

My companion's eye brightened. ―Then," she said, you don't think Hamlet did it?"

"I am," I said, ―absolutely positive he didn't."

"But who," she demanded, "do you suspect?"

I looked at her cryptically. "Everybody," I said, and disappeared into a small grove of trees as

silently as I had come.

Thurber, James 1943 The Thurber Carnival Harper and Brothers, NY pp. 60-63

http://userhome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/anthro/jbeatty/COURSES/Macbeth/thurber.htm

* What do you think of their theories? Is it possible? Answer in the space provided.