Shakespeare's play, Macbeth

[Kyriakos]

I read it (iirc had done so many many years ago too), but i was left a bit disappointed.

Full text can be found here (and i am sure many other places) : http://shakespeare.mit.edu/macbeth/full.html

I thought that the scenes with broken Lady Macbeth were more numerous or extended. Also i suppose some movie had made me think that she is shown to narrate at least how the MacDuff babies were killed, but apparently this is not so in the play (ie no mention of breaking their sculls there, apart from a mention not about the MacDuffs at all, and very earlier on).

Overall, apart from a number of memorable passages (most of them are of the three witches), the play seems a bit empty, and the end was underwhelming in my view.
Moreover the son of Banquo just vanishes, despite the prophecy. Whatever happened to that damned spot?

What is your opinion of the play? Step into the stage and deliver your monologue, while brave Macbeth fights in the field with armoured head.

 

[onejayhawk]

Shakespeare did not have many extended female parts. When he did, they were young and often "crossdressed." Of the exceptions, Portia in Merchant of Venice and Juliet are probably the best. Other famous women--Ophelia, Cordelia, Lear's daughters--get on and off quickly.

The reason is the all male acting crew, hence the quotes.

J

 

[Arakhor]

I did Macbeth at GCSE and it's my favourite Shakespeare play. There are quite a few quotable lines, not all of which were memorably spoofed by Sir Terry Pratchett.

 

[onejayhawk]

I did Macbeth at GCSE and it's my favourite Shakespeare play. There are quite a few quotable lines, not all of which were memorably spoofed by Sir Terry Pratchett.

RIP

J

 

[Borachio]

Shakespeare did not have many extended female parts. When he did, they were young and often "crossdressed." Of the exceptions, Portia in Merchant of Venice and Juliet are probably the best. Other famous women--Ophelia, Cordelia, Lear's daughters--get on and off quickly.

The reason is the all male acting crew, hence the quotes.

J

What stuff is this? How can you mention extended female Shakespearean parts and not mention Rosalind?

As for Juliet not being young, she was supposed to be 14.

But it's true that Shakespeare had to rely on boys to play the female roles. Simply because women were prohibited from appearing on the stage at the time. So, boys being less experienced at acting, it's even more surprising what a major part Rosalind actually is. Even though "she" does indeed cross-dress (though what that has to do with anything I don't know) and then pretends to be herself. Giving you a boy actor pretending to be a woman pretending to be a man pretending to be herself.

 

[onejayhawk]

What stuff is this? How can you mention extended female Shakespearean parts and not mention Rosalind?

As for Juliet not being young, she was supposed to be 14.

But it's true that Shakespeare had to rely on boys to play the female roles. Simply because women were prohibited from appearing on the stage at the time. So, boys being less experienced at acting, it's even more surprising what a major part Rosalind actually is. Even though "she" does indeed cross-dress (though what that has to do with anything I don't know) and then pretends to be herself. Giving you a boy actor pretending to be a woman pretending to be a man pretending to be herself.

I mentioned Rosalind without specifics. She and Viola spend almost their whole plays dressed in male attire. Portia and Cleopatra also cross over. The one I missed is Beatrice, who is on stage as much as anyone, but only as a woman.

Where did you get I said Juliet was not young? I gave her as a specific example of youth.

It was not just boys playing female roles. It was that only the boys could manage a part with a romantic element. Others, like Juliet's mother and nurse were played by men.

J

 

[Borachio]

When he did, they were young and often "crossdressed." Of the exceptions, Portia in Merchant of Venice and Juliet are probably the best.

The clear implication to my mind is that Juliet isn't young. She being an "exception" to your rule of being "young and often cross-dressed". Of course, you may not have meant that. But that's how it reads. To me.

As for boys managing the romantic element, I'm not sure what you mean. I think they used boys because of their youthful, and feminine (or ambiguously so), appearance and voices, quite simply. And they would have rather had women play the roles if they could.

 

[Arakhor]

Juliet is 14 during the play and her mother is 28. The text says as much.

 

[onejayhawk]

The clear implication to my mind is that Juliet isn't young. She being an "exception" to your rule of being "young and often cross-dressed". Of course, you may not have meant that. But that's how it reads. To me.

As for boys managing the romantic element, I'm not sure what you mean. I think they used boys because of their youthful, and feminine (or ambiguously so), appearance and voices, quite simply. And they would have rather had women play the roles if they could.

Juliet was an exception to the theme--crossdressing. As I think about it, Portia did crossdress, so the statement does not work.

The romantic element simply means a principal character's love interest. To be a "leading lady", the actor had to be young enough to be made attractive in a dress. Juliet's mother and nurse can be battle axes and no one cares. Juliet needed to look comely, so her actor needed to look good in drag. Shakespeare doubled the switch by "re"dressing the boy in male costume.

J

 

[Pangur Bán]

Heresy, Kyriakos. Shakespeare is a central part of the Anglophone (and thus universal) paideia, and he is widely held among millions of monolingual English-speakers to be the greatest writer in any language in the history of ever. If you don't appreciate Macbeth's greatness, you must clearly be a Philistine.

 

[Kyriakos]

Heresy, Kyriakos. Shakespeare is a central part of the Anglophone (and thus universal) paideia, and he is widely held among millions of monolingual English-speakers to be the greatest writer in any language in the history of ever. If you don't appreciate Macbeth's greatness, you must clearly be a Philistine.

I am just not of -english- woman born?

 

[onejayhawk]

I am just not of -english- woman born?

Lay on, Kyriakos, and damned be him who first cries, "Hold. Enough." At least we don't have the heavy inter generational psychology to deal with.

Chorus: Amen. Go get 'em.

J

 

[Arakhor]

"Lay on, Dominic," fits the theme better.

 

[onejayhawk]

"Lay on, Dominic," fits the theme better.

But, "the theme is the thing" just doesn't have the same ring to it.

J

 

[Flying Pig]

Banquo's son is irrelevant to the plot, so he isn't really included, but James I claimed Banquo as his ancestor - hence 'ye shall get kings, though ye be none' refers primarily to James, Shakespeare's patron.

 

[Borachio]

"Lay on, Dominic," fits the theme better.

Eh? I thought it was "Lay on, MacDuff". Who's Dominic?

 

[Kyriakos]

Dominic is the uncool latin version of my cool Greek name Kyriakos. El Greco, the painter, had the same name (but the latine form, Dominikos Theotokopoulos ).

 

[Arakhor]

I expected the lordly one to get that reference, so I'm not disappointed.

 

[Kyriakos]

It actually means Lordian, not lordly

eg lordian guard, or something. Lordian day (Kyriake), is what Sunday is called in greek.

 

[Arakhor]

"Lordian" is not a proper English word. We'd say either "the Lord's day" or use the adjective lordly.