Banishing those fears about your Macbeth essay
Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009
Let’s face it, kids , there’s no getting out of it; Shakespeare and all his damned (or is that damnéd) plays are here to stay. Whether we like it or not, Shakespeare was a legend and his plays are brilliant works of literary genius.
I know it’s not popular but if you’ve been ordered to produce a Macbeth essay for your Year 10 GCSE folder, just accept it and do it. Don’t fear it! Firstly, read the story (the text) Listen to it being read out in class, even volunteer to read a part – trust me, you can do that and still be cool (ish!) But knowing the story is the most important thing.
Macbeth, the loyal warrior, whose head is turned round to treachery by greed, three witches and his ruthlessly ambitious wife, murders the king, Duncan (Regicide, that’s called). All sorts of other bloodbaths happen so that Macbeth, now king, can stay king. He even kills his best mate. By the time he sees the witches again, he’s in too deep. Eventually, he goes too far and the pressure sends him more mental. His wife goes off her head too and she dies. After that, he loses it and even though he fights his last battle like the brave warrior he was, he dies a traitor, losing everything his treachery gained him. The moral? Cheats never prosper, I guess.
Once you know that, you have to pick out the themes i.e. what is the play trying to tell us about life, behaviour, relationships, or anything we can learn? If your question is about ambition, try to see how Macbeth shows ambition, but remember, other characters show ambition too. Is it wise to discuss them also? Pick three examples of ambition from differing parts of the play and try to say why it is destructive for him or others. Macbeth is a tragedy so it is all about human behaviour being destructive and you need to understand that and reflect that in your essay writing.
All characters lead back to Macbeth in a Macbeth essay
If the essay title is not about Macbeth directly, but someone else, like his wife, you should be discussing how they influence Macbeth. Once again, use the rule of threes. Pick out three points to analyse in detail: Lady Macbeth’s strong influence in the beginning, her lessening influence i.e. at the banquet and then where her despair sends her mad. Her death, like her ambition, has a big influence on Macbeth’s state of mind, so always be thinking how the other person’s behaviour affects our main character.
All in all, know the storyline to know the essay question. Pick out three points that demonstrate your answer to the question to help organise your essay structure and set about exploring them in detail. One last point to remember is to use quotes. You can’t talk Shakespeare without quoting his words. Use them strategically in your Macbeth essay; don’t overuse but don’t avoid them. Using well-placed quotes will go a long way to showing how much you know about the play.
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