The Tragedy of Macbeth WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE Background Written

The Tragedy of Macbeth WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

Background �Written between 1604 -1606 (approximately) �Is a tragedy-a story in which a heroic character dies or comes to another unhappy end. �The main character in most tragedies is dignified, courageous, and often high-ranking. �Their downfall occurs because of a tragic flaw-a character weakness or error in judgment, or because of circumstances beyond his/her control.

Historical Background �Based on real people from history �Shakespeare was inspired by Macbeth’s career as king of Scotland (1040 -1057) �The history differs: the real Macbeth had a much more legitimate claim to King Duncan’s throne than Shakespeare’s Macbeth �The historical Macbeth had the support of other nobles while Shakespeare’s Macbeth only had his wife as a supporter. �Most likely, there were no witches in the historical story of Macbeth.

Act I Characters Scene 1 First witch Second witch Third witch Scene 2 King Malcom Captain Lennox Ross Scene 3 Macbeth Banquo Angus Scene 4 No new characters Scene 5 Lady Macbeth Messenger Scene 6 No new characters Scene 7 No new characters

Act II Characters Scene 1 Banquo Fleance Macbeth Scene 2 Lady Macbeth Scene 3 Porter Macduff Lennox Donalbain Malcolm Scene 4 Old man Ross Macduff

Act III Characters Scene 1 Banquo Macbeth Lady Macbeth Attendant First murderer Second murderer Scene 2 Servant Scene 3 Third murderer Scene 4 Lords (2 people to speak in unison) Lennox Ross Scene 5 First witch Hecate Scene 6 No new characters