Shakespeare’s Macbeth A little bit of history
The Tudor-Stuart Family Tree Henry VII Arthur marries Katherine of Aragon Margaret marries James IV of Scotland Produces James V of Scotland Mary Stuart Queen of Scotland James VI of Scotland I of England Henry VIII Marries 6 wives: Katherine of Aragon Anne Boleyn Jane Seymour Anne of Cleves Katherine Howard Catherine Parr Edward IV Mary Elizabeth I Mary marries Louis XII of France
James I: The beginning of the Stuarts Becomes King of England after Elizabeth I takes throne in 1604 Was formerly James VI of Scotland England had become a superpower under Elizabeth I, also a Protestant nation As King, James became rich, powerful Believed in witches, demons; wrote books on the subject; saw a connection between witchcraft and treason King head of the church; witchcraft in violation of religious teachings, thus an act against the state
The Gunpowder Plot
The role of faith James I inherited a nation pulled apart by faith Elizabeth’s father, Henry VIII, broke with the Catholic Church over his divorce with Katherine of Aragon, a Spanish princess Mary (by Catherine of Aragon) succeeded her half brother, Edward IV, in 1553 deposing Lady Jane Grey, Edward’s mother and a Protestant; Mary is Catholic and persecutes Protestants for heresy and treason Elizabeth (by Anne Boleyn) is Protestant and deposes Mary to end the bloody persecutions of Protestants; she avoided systematic persecutions of Catholics James is also Protestant and avoided systematic persecutions of Catholics
The plan: Gunpowder Plot devised by Papists (Catholic) to destroy Parliament, King (Protestant) Comes after years of persecution of Catholics by Protestant rulers Catholics see James I as a failure as he continues Protestant reforms in England
The Conspirators: Plot devised from May, 1604 through to execution on November 5, 1605 Conspirators all Catholic looking to destroy government they see as oppressors 10 men part of the plot, including Guy Fawkes, a munitions expert who had learned his skills fighting with the Spanish (Catholic) against the Dutch (Protestant)
Plot Uncovered Plotters put gunpowder under the Houses of Parliament, with the intent to blow up the building Plot uncovered by an anonymous letter; an investigation was launched and Fawkes was discovered leaving the cellars of Parliament on the evening of November 5 Fawkes is taken to the Tower of London and interrogated under torture (the rack) Fawkes and several other conspirators are hanged, drawn and quartered on January 31 for their acts of treason
James speech to Parliament, 1605 Extracts on the Gunpowder Plot “… this was not a crying sin of blood... it may well be called a roaring, nay a thundering sin of fire and brimstone, from the which God has so miraculously delivered us all...” “…And as the wretch himself that is in the Tower does confess, it was purposely devised by them, and concluded to be done in this House…” "Historic Royal Speeches and Writings: James I (r )." The Official Website of the British Monarchy. The Royal Household, 2008/09. Web. 02 Sept
James I and Macbeth Shakespeare wrote plays for Elizabeth, then for James Players become the King’s Men as James favors Shakespeare Is one of Shakespeare’s most topical plays About a Scottish king dealing with treason, reflects the issues of the times James is a descendant of Banquo
New developments in the play Combines the stories of the murder of King Duncan and the reign of Macbeth Macbeth was a warrior king of Scotland ( ) Introduces the idea of the villain as the hero Beginning of the anti-hero Strong female role in Lady Macbeth
Important questions in Macbeth Why do people do evil, knowing it is evil? Does Macbeth do evil because he is tempted by fate/because he is pushed/because of his personal ambition? What is guilt? Why does Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s success fall apart so quickly?
Side notes Out of the 270 Witch trials in Elizabethan England, 247 of those were women, 23 were men. Those targeted were the old (set in their established ways), poor (a strain on the economy), and unprotected (women who had no man around) Women were thought to be inferior and in need of a man to provide for them. Even Elizabeth I acknowledged this belief: “In a famous speech to troops at Tilbury [who were fighting the Spanish] she said: ‘I know I have the body of a weak, feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king - and of a King of England too.’” "BBC History - Elizabeth I." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 02 Sept In villages, women were commonly healers (working with herbs and other natural remedies passed down to them) and were able to “predict” (getting to know everyone); this became “witchcraft” as “modern medicine” began to develop
Side notes Weird Sisters Weyard Sisters in the first folio which is how “wyrd” sounds Wyrd – old English time period/language – means fate