Madness and Somnambulism: Macbeth I

Now we turn to the sleep and dream of individuals... how these personal, solitary, internal experiences are described or represented in various types of fiction. More often than not, fictional sleep is disorderly. Something has gone wrong-- insomnia, nightmares, or sleepwalking. In Macbeth's case, it's all of the above. We'll start with the Scottish play and examine how Macbeth uses sleep and sleep phenomena to tell its story.

Podcast Lecture: The Somniloquy

Reading:

Shakespeare, Macbeth: Acts I-II

Questions:

1. Why does Duncan bestow the title of Thane of Cawdor upon MacBeth?

2. How is MacBeth described in battle?

3. What predictions do the Weird Sisters make to MacBeth and Banquo? How do these two react to this information?

4. Describe Lady MacBeth. How does she influence her husband?

5. What is the plan that MacBeth is to carry out? Why does he hesitate?

6. "Is this a dagger which I see before me..." (Act 2, Sc.1 line 44): Explain what is happening in this scene.

7. Why did Lady MacBeth not kill Duncan herself when she had the chance?

8. How is Duncan's murder discovered? What happens to the two servants whom Lady MacBeth framed? What do Malcolm and Donalbain do?

Activities:

Film Study--The Dagger Scene: How do theatrical and filmic productions of Macbeth handle the dagger scene (Act. 2, Sc. 1)? Is it clear that Macbeth is hallucinating? Or does it appear to be a supernatural scene? Watch 2 or 3 different versions of this scene and compare. My suggestions would be:

The 1948 Orson Welles version

The 1971 Roman Polanski version

The 1979 filmed performance by the Royal Shakespeare Co.