You will learn a lot from this essay and my comments, even if you haven’t studied Macbeth.
Students are often stuck at grade 6 because they don’t know how to show a deeper understanding.
The missing ingredient is the author. What did the writer want to achieve at the time of writing? it is ALWAYS to influence someone’s beliefs and behaviour. Usually it is to change society in some way.
In Macbeth, Shakespeare’s purpose is also to influence specific people - King James, and all the nobles at his palace watching the play.
The Essay
Starting with this moment in the play, explore how Shakespeare presents the attitudes of Macbeth and Banquo towards the supernatural.*
In Shakespeare’s play ‘Macbeth’, the attitudes of Macbeth and Banquo towards the supernatural are contrasting. Whilst, Macbeth seems to believe in the witches, takes their words legitimately and is less cautious, Banquo behaves rationally, he doesn’t believe in the witches and is a lot more cautious.
My Comments
All totally true. But a thesis statement should show why Shakespeare has created this contrast, and what this has to do with King James. For example, the message he is delivering to the nobles as a cautionary tale against regicide, and the flattery of King James, who believed Banquo was his ancestor.
After meeting with the witches in Act 1 Scene 3, we clearly see that Banquo is against the witches, and he seems to be less naive than Macbeth about them. Banquo is aware that the ‘instruments of darkness tell us truth, win us with honest trifles, to betrays in deepest consequence’. Here the use of the noun ’instruments’ to describe the witches is significant, because an instrument is supposed to be played, so when Banquo says this, he is portraying that both Macbeth and himself are to be played wrongly by the witches. This foreshadows something terrible and evil happening. Banquo admits that the witches will ‘tell us truths’ which is confusing to the audience, because its hard to believe that something so devious and evil like the witches will be honest and truthful. But then when he says that its ‘to betray in deepest consequence’ we realise that the witches are still evil, they just want to win Macbeth's trust, so that they are then able to destroy him and make him suffer even more.
My Comments
This is a good analysis. Again, link it to Shakespeare’s purpose - perhaps reinforcing a Christian message, playing to King James’ interest in witchcraft, picking up on the paranoia of the time following the Gunpowder Plot, dissuading the nobles from being tempted by a promise of a better future with a different king…
Shakespeare’s contemporary audience believed in the supernatural and evil. When the play was written women were denied power, and there was a patriarchal society, where men were dominant over women, so they naturally had power. Women were hungry for power, but were unable to gain this power, so they believed the only way for them to gain power was by turning to evil.
My Comments
This is factually incorrect. Women would find power by acquiring wealth and status through marriage - they did not have to choose evil. There are very good reasons why these witches would be unmarriageable and therefore turn to evil to try to destroy men - their beards for example.
Banquo therefore did not believe in these evil creatures or their prophecies.
My Comments
Your earlier analysis shows he did believe their prophecies as ‘truths’ and his warning was that, because they are evil, they are not to be trusted. Your argument needs to be consistent.
In contrast, Macbeth seems to believe in the witches, and he sees them as though they speak the truth. When Macbeth says ‘two truths are told’ it is clear to the audience that Macbeth believes in the witches, since their prophecies to Macbeth that he is Thane of Glamis’ (which he already was) and ‘Thane of Cawdor’ (which he has just been appointed) had come true.
My Comments
So, why does Shakespeare make the witches have the gift of prophecy? You could link this to the Fates in Greek Tragedy, or to reveal that Macbeth’s hamartia is not the supernatural - the witches never tell him to do anything. Always link to the author’s purpose.
Macbeth then says ‘Cannot be ill, cannot be good. If ill, Why hath it given me earnest of success, Commencing in a truth?’, and ‘If good, why do I yield to that suggestion’. Here Macbeth shows confusion towards the supernatural and doesn’t know what to think about them. When he says that the witches ‘cannot be ill cannot be good’, he is contemplating as to what he thinks of them. The ‘suggestion’ which he is thinking about is murder, Macbeth is already thinking about committing unnatural acts such as murder. Moreover, the fact that he says this ‘(aside)’ tells the readers that these are his true thoughts and it is him who had the original thought of murder.
My Comments
Good analysis (though you repeat yourself). So, why do you think Macbeth turns to thoughts of regicide? Why can’t he name it if he is only talking to himself? Does this suggest that he will commit murder, or that he needs further help to push him towards it from Lady Macbeth? Is Macbeth already evil, or does he simply represent the natural thoughts of some nobles following the assassination attempt by Catholics on King James? Again, use one of these to explain Shakespeare’s purpose.
The witches words which they had spoken to Macbeth and their prophecies were neutral, they hadn’t done anything or said anything to Macbeth which would make him think of or commit any inhumane acts, rather it is his own thoughts. It is Macbeth who put a moral value to the witches prophecies, concluding that he must perform an unnatural act to acquire the title of ‘King’.
My Comments
Another good analysis. You know what I am going to say. Why does Shakespeare want Macbeth alone to be responsible?
Whilst Banquo does want his descendants to be king, and wants the witches prophecies to be true, he does not go to the extent of acting on the prophecies and committing murder or regicide, he doesn’t even think about it. This shows Banquo as a loyal and moral person, because he doesn’t put moral value on the prophecies, unlike Macbeth.
My Comments
As above.
Moreover, Shakespeare presents Banquo to be truthful and loyal, contrasting Macbeth who is untruthful. In Act 2 Scene 1 when Banquo visits Macbeth, Banquo mentions to Macbeth that he had ‘dream’d last night of the three weird sisters’. Banquo is open and honest to Macbeth, and tells him how he feels about them ‘to you they show’d some truth’. This is because Banquo has nothing to hide and is a virtuous man, so he is able to share his true opinions with Macbeth.
My Comments
This is what your teacher means by going deeper and using words like perhaps and may:
‘Perhaps Banquo believes Macbeth’s thoughts have turned toward regicide, and brings up the subject of the witches’ prophecies to help Macbeth voice his thoughts. He may be offering his friend an opportunity to think through the consequences of regicide and reject it. This emphasises Banquo’s moral character, again flattering King James.
Alternatively, Holinshed’s chronicles tells us that the historical Banquo aided Macbeth in murdering Duncan. Perhaps Shakespeare suggests that the supernatural can influence even the most moral characters. Therefore we might see this exchange as Banquo wanting to be involved in Macbeth’s plans. He is testing his friend’s loyalty to him, because he knows the witches’ prophecies portray him as a threat to Macbeth once he is king.’
However, Macbeth doesn’t speak truthfully with Banquo and tells him that he ‘thinks not of them’. The fact that Macbeth lies to Banquo could suggest that Macbeth doesn’t feel comfortable speaking to Banquo about this and doesn’t like sharing his opinion with him. Or this could be because Macbeth has something to hide, and he feels guilty, therefore he is unable to share his true feelings, because he’s worried of what Banquo would say or what may happen if he finds out that Macbeth has just committed regicide and had acted upon the witches words.
My Comments
Compare this paragraph, which is vague - ‘something to hide’ - to the ones I wrote which are really specific.
It is also factually incorrect - Macbeth is just about to kill Duncan - crucially Banquo tries to intervene before this happens.
Moreover, when Macbeth says ‘yet when we can entreat an hour to serve’ Macbeth is saying that he will talk about the witches when he is free, and is unable to talk about them now. Perhaps, this is Macbeth attempting to avoid this topic, and he’s shifting his problems aside, as he is filled with remorse and guilt at this moment in the play since Duncan is now dead, and doesn’t want anyone to find out that he murdered him. Therefore, he’s avoiding this topic, because Macbeth may believe that it is the witches which had implemented the idea of murder in him since it was only after he met with the witches that Macbeth had thoughts of ‘murder’.
My Comments
Let’s pretend that this paragraph is factually correct. You’ve introduced ‘may’ and ‘perhaps’. But the point of doing this should be to link to Shakespeare’s purpose. Go back to my paragraphs and see where I have done this (in bold italics).
In conclusion, Shakespeare presents the attitudes of Macbeth and Banquo as opposing, since Macbeth acted upon the prophecies of the witches and believed in them, whereas Banquo remained loyal and did not believe in the witches or act upon their prophecies.
My Comments
You know what I am going to say. So what? Why did Shakespeare do this?
You also can’t get marks for considering the whole of the text unless you consider how the characters end. Your conclusion ALWAYS needs to look at ending.
You therefore need to contrast their deaths:
Macbeth dying in a state of nihilism, wanting the ‘estate of the world’ to be ‘undone’, and believing that God is an idiot, writing the script of our lives - ‘life is a tale, told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing’. His head is placed on a spike and his soul condemned to hell.
Whereas Banquo dies a noble death defending his son, and is rewarded by God as being the ancestor of a long line of kings, from Fleance to King James. His nobility reinforces the divine right of kings, and establishes King James’ moral as well as historical right to become king of England. This contrast is therefore political propaganda designed to win favour with the king.
BTW
You’ve just done some really useful revision on Macbeth, Banquo and the Supernatural! Parts of this essay will definitely come up, whatever the actual exam question.
Did you take any notes?
Hello Sir, would it be possible if you could make something similar, but regarding grade 9?