THE

QUESTION!!

It is said that Shakespeare's Macbeth is a cursed Play. 

What are the reasons behind this accusation and what real

things have occurred to support this statement? 

ANSWERThe play is said to have a curse. Saying the

name "Macbeth" inside a theater will bring bad luck to the play and anyone acting in it. The only exception is when the word is spoken as a line in the play. In order to reverse the bad luck, the person who uttered the word must exit the theater, spin around three times saying a profanity, and then ask for permission to return inside. Some say that you must repeat the words "Thrice around the circle bound, Evil sink into the ground.”

Abraham Lincoln decided to bring Macbeth on board the River Queen on the Potomac River one afternoon. President read a few lines from the play following the assassination of Duncan. A week later, Lincoln was assassinated. In Amsterdam in 1672, the actor playing Macbeth substituted the blunt stage dagger with a real one, and with killed his co-actor playing Duncan right in front of the live audience.

CITATION

"The Curse of Macbeth." Prodigy's Personal Web Pages. Web. 02 Feb. 2010

<http://home.flash.net/~manniac/macb.h tm>.

Should Lady Macbeth be the same age as Lord Macbeth?

ANSWER

No, Lady Macbeth’s age doesn’t have to be the same age as Lord Macbeth. Although he is older, Lady Macbeth feels that she is mature enough to

make her own decision that will make her feel powerful and confident without the need of Lord

Macbeth. Lady Macbeth's amazing power of intellect, her inexorable determination of purpose, her superhuman strength of nerve, render her as

fearful in herself as her deeds are hateful.

CITATION

"Lady Macbeth." Theatre Database. Web. 02 Feb. 2010. <http://www.theatredatabase.co

m/16th_century/lady_macbeth.html>.

What do the predictions made by the three witches mean and what is the significance that there are three weird sisters and why the

term sisters?

ANSWERShakespeare's witches are prophetesses who hail then-General

Macbeth early in the play with predictions of his rise as king. Upon committing regicide and being seated on the throne of Scotland,

Macbeth hears the trio deliver ambiguous prophecies threatening his downfall. The witches' dark and contradictory natures, their "filthy"

trappings and activities, as well as their intercourse with the supernatural all set an ominous tone for the play. The predictions all try to warn Macbeth to not do what his wife ask of him. He takes the predictions into consideration and begins to believe them until his wife insults him as weak. The Three Witches represent darkness,

chaos, and conflict, while their role is as agents and witnesses. Their presence communicates treason and impending doom. During

Shakespeare's day, witches were seen as worse than rebels, "the most notorious traitor and rebel that can be." They were not only

political traitors, but spiritual traitors as well. Much of the confusion that springs from them comes from their ability to straddle the play's borders between reality and the supernatural. They are so deeply

entrenched in both worlds that it is unclear whether they control fate, or whether they are merely its agents. They defy logic, not being

subject to the rules of the real world.

CITATION

"Three Witches -." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Web. 05 Feb. 2010. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Witches#Analysis>.

Who is the historical figure of Macbeth?

ANSWER

Mac Bethad mac Findlaích named as Macbeth, and nicknamed Rí Deircc, "the Red King“ died 15 August 1057.

He was King of the Scots which is also known as the King of Alba, and earlier as King of Moray and King of Fortriu

from 1040 until his death.

CITATION

"Macbeth of Scotland -.” Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Web. 04 Feb. 2010. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macbeth_of_Scotland>.

Is Macbeth a good man who grows into a villain? 

ANSWERAll Shakespeare's tragedies focus on this same idea. A single flaw in the person that leads to their destruction,

desperation and death. Macbeth's fatal flaw is ambition, once the flame of his desires is lighted, it

grows and engulfs all that it comes into contact with. It is clear that throughout the play, Macbeth's evil actions

do not come unprovoked. Macbeth's ambition was unleashed the second he met the witches. He not only

had thought of mudering Duncan before he met the witches, but had broached the subject to his wife. Macbeth is considered a good man who has gone

wrong under the infulence of his wicked and dominant wife. It was possible that Macbeth led his wife to

believe that she was leading him on.

CITATION

"Shakespeare on the American Stage ... -." Google Books. Web. 04 Feb. 2010.

<http://books.google.com/books?id=kXcwQo4Gs2MC&pg=PA177&lpg=PA177&dq=Is+Macbeth+a+good+man+who+grows+into+a+villain%3F&source=bl&ots=bkZIpO-3S8&sig=SjPXb3k15_68w4OJYTT_NUq7f50&hl=en&ei=LShrS5ngCMeVtgeWl5j-BQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CB4Q6AEwCA#>.

Created By:

Aubrey Hafer