Study Guide for English 382 Final Exam

Summer 2011
Format
This exam will follow exactly the same format as the midterm. This is not a
comprehensive final; it will cover only the three tragedies and the information from
the Bedford Companion listed below. You will have 3 hours to take this 100-point
exam. I have added a half-hour to the exam time, so you should have plenty of
time. Move through the objective sections quickly and spend about 20 minutes on
each passage discussion. You should plan to spend half of your time (1 hours) on
the two essays, since they are worth half of the points.
Section 1 (8 points) is a multiple choice section covering the readings out of the
Bedford Companion book and the Norton introduction (the study guide sections on
daily life and society, politics and religion, textual variants, and Shakespeares
reading). Each question asks which of the four statements is NOT true.
Section 2 (12 points) is a term/date/quote identification section. All terms are
taken from readings in the Bedford Companion book and the Norton introduction,
and all are referred to on the study guide. I will give you a description or definition
and you will provide the appropriate term or date that matches this
description/definition. There are also several short quotes from the plays; for each
one, you must identify the character who says it.
Section 3 (30 points) is a passage identification and discussion section. I will give
you 3 passages from the three tragedies we have studied (and yes, you can
assume that there will be one passage from each play). For each passage, you
should (1) identify the play from which it is taken and its context; (2) discuss the
thematic meaning (what issues it addresses) and significance of the passage, both
for that particular moment and within the play as a whole; (3) discuss significant
aspects of language, including style and imagery, exhibited in the passage. You
should write at least two substantial information-rich paragraphs on each passage
(one on themes and one on language). Each response is worth 10 points.
Section 4 (50 points) is an essay section. There are two essays, each worth 25
points. Each essay asks you to compare and contrast two or more of the plays on a
particular topic. This time both essays will deal primarily with thematic concerns,
although you will also be asked to discuss how structural and language elements
reinforce those themes. Think about the themes we have repeatedly addressed in
our discussions (appearance vs. reality; sanity vs. insanity; gender relations and
reversals; deception vs. truth; sight vs. blindness; notions of power, ambition,
loyalty, jealousy, betrayal; fate vs. free will; role of nature; despair and nihilism) and
consider the ways in which they are explored (both similarly and differently) within
the three tragedies. Remember that the more specific and detailed you can be in
your examples and interpretive commentary, the better. You should write four to six
substantial information-rich paragraphs on each prompt. Do not waste time on
extensive introductions and conclusions; instead, concentrate on the meat of your
essay.
Daily Life and Society

Know the following about daily life in Shakespeares time:

Typical life expectancy (30), constant presence of death, impact of Bubonic
Plague
Growth of London, basic layout of city, playhouses in Southwark (the
Liberties)
System of tenant farming in country
English agriculture in a state of flux end of 16 th century between feudal
system and the family farmcrazy quilt arrangement ensured a fair
distribution of the choicest land among all the tenants (229).
debates between shepherds and tillers over enclosure
similar to todays ranchers and farmers
sheepherding less labor-intensive, so enclosures led to unemployment
Typical duties of housewives
Baking bread
Making butter and cheese
Minding the poultry
Brewing beer
Gathering wood for fire
Tending the household garden
Cooking meals
Spinning yarn
Making cloth
Sewing clothes
Washing clothes
Making candles
Fashioning tools of various kinds
Supervising any servants
Keeping an eye on the children
Most household goods were homemade
Because the husband was usually in the field, it was up to the woman
to make and maintain her own equipment (230)
Worked in the fields
Know

the following about social structures in Elizabethan England:

System of primogeniture for men
Marriage as political and economic institution for upper classes
Position and limited rights of women, justification for patriarchal domination
Limited social mobility between classes
Literacy rates (fewer than 50% of men could read and write)
Importance of clothing as indicator of class and position
Classes (in descending order): aristocracy, gentry, citizens (urban), yeomen
(rural), servants/laborers/peasants

Politics and Religion

Know the basic line of succession:
Henry VII (Defeated Richard III; united York and Lancaster) Henry VIII (Act of
Supremacy made him head of Church of England) Edward VI Mary I
(Bloody Mary; restored Catholicism) Elizabeth I (ruled 1558-1603) James I


Know

Know

(ruled 1603-1625). These were all Tudors until James VI of Scotland, who
becomes James I of England and starts the Stuart line.
Shakespeare wrote during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I.
the following about English politics during Shakespeares time:
Power of monarchy (England as an absolutist state), although Parliament held
authority over taxation
Influential role of Privy Council and councilors/ministers in English
government
Elizabeths political prowess and ability to compromise
Court of love
The court moved in an atmosphere of romance, with music, dancing,
plays, and the elaborate, fancy-dress entertainments called masques.
The queen adorned herself in gorgeous clothes and rich jewels
(Norton 20).
Splendor of court under Elizabeth I and James I; importance of theatricality
and spectacle; royal support for theater
English treatment of Jews and Africans as Others
As the word infection suggests, Elizabethans frequently regarded
blackness as a physical defect, though the blacks who lived in England
and Scotland throughout the sixteenth century were also treated as
exotic curiosities (23).
the following about religion during Shakespeares time:
Historical roots of conflict between Catholics and Protestants (Church of
England)
Henry VIII (Act of Supremacy)
Edward VI (Protestant)
Mary I (Bloody Mary--Catholic)
Elizabeth I (Protestant)
Elizabeths attempts to find the middle way and placate the Catholics
via mediawanting to preserve the more or less Catholic elements
of ritual that had survived Henrys break with Rome, while at the same
time adhering in most matters to the doctrines that had motivated the
European reformers (315).
Elizabethan Settlement
Threats from Puritans who wanted to purify Church of England of all Roman
Catholic practices
Gunpowder Plot (1605) during James Is reign led by Catholic dissidents
King James version of Bible printed 1611
Importance of sermons and homilies for political ends
Because less than half the male population, less of the female, could
read, and books were expensive and newspapers nonexistent, a
primary source of intellectual and philosophical guidance was the
Sunday sermon. The government saw to it that such a forum did not go
to waste. Elizabeth and her ministers were ever conscious of their
power to use the pulpit for political ends, and they did so by
encouraging the clergy to promulgate an ideology of order and
obedience (319).
Doctrine of Great Chain of Being

The sun was chief among heavenly bodies, the king chief among men,
the lion among beasts, the rose among flowers, and so on (320).
Ideology of order (applies to both politics and religion)

Textual Variants
Know the following about the problems of authority and authenticity in a
Shakespeare text:
Obstacles to textual authority in Shakespeare: no manuscripts, evolving
orthographic (spelling/writing) system with irregular spellings and
punctuation; printing process in early stages of development; difficulties in
reading penmanship; changes made by scribes, actors, prompters,
compositors (typesetters); mistakes in casting off copy; Shakespeares
apparent indifference to publishing; lack of copyright laws; bad quartos or
pirated texts
Meaning of publication in Shakespeares time; notion that play belonged to
dramatic company
Know the following about the process of printing/publishing a play in Shakespeares
time:
Process from pen to press (terms): foul papers, fair copy, book of the play,
sides, sheet (the large piece of paper with which the printer began and which
was pressed onto the inked typeprobably at least 18x14, handmade, size
may have varied), casting off copy, quarto, folio
First Folio published 1623 (contained 36 plays, 18 of which had never been
printed) 37 plays are commonly attributed to Shakespearethe one not in
the First Folio is Pericles, which had not yet been published.
Shakespeares Reading
Know the following about Shakespeares reading and intellectual background:
remember that the world Shakespeare inhabited was much more of an oral
culture than ours (Bedford 147).
Knowledge of Latin
Shakespeares classical learning was respectable for the age in which
he lived, and for the age in which we live, it was formidable (Bedford
148).
For the Renaissance reader, classical meant primarily Latin (149).
He rarely made up his own plots but instead adapted them from
fictions, biographies, dramas, and even current events that fired his
imagination (153).
Influence from
classical Roman authors
Plutarchs Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans
Ovids Metamorphoses
Both in Latin and Elizabethan translation by Arthur Golding
Arguably, Shakespeares favorite book
Histories
Holinsheds Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland
Edward Halls The Union of the Two Nobel and Illustre Families of
Lancaster and York
European fiction

Christopher Marlowe
Ben Johnson
Arthur Brookes The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet
Cinthiosource for Othello
Bible
Not the KJV (1611)
Bishops Bible
Geneva Bible
Book of Common Prayer (Church of England)
Ballads
travel literature
contemporary plays
Ben Johnson
Christopher Marlowe
Montaignes Essays
Not a source of stories or characters but ideas and philosophical
viewpoints (156).
contemporary poetry (Spenser and Sidney)
Spensers sonnets and The Fairie Queene
Sidneys Arcadia and Astrophil and Stella
Shakespeares propensity to adapt plots from fictions, biographies, dramas,
current events
Shakespeares talent for synthesis and his ability to create a story that
maximized the conventions of Elizabethan theater
Shakespeares three favorite sources: Ovids Metamorphoses, Plutarchs Lives
of the Noble Grecians and Romans, and Holinsheds Chronicles of England,
Scotland, and Ireland
Tragedy
Focus on one or two individuals. Comedies are more community-based. Comedies
usually general title; MAAN, MSND, AWTEW. Tragedy titles have narrowed focus:
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, Othello
moves toward unhappy endingimplies unfavorable assessment of human
experience.
The Plays
For each play, you should concentrate on the major themes and relationships,
structural elements, and language patterns and novelties. Of course you should
know the basic plot lines and characters (or you will not be able to identify and
discuss the quotes, passages, or the plays), but the exam essays will focus on
thematic, structural, and language issues. Although I do not expect you to
memorize passages from the play, you should be able to recognize passages and
discuss them in some depth. (In other words, an overall broad understanding of the
play is not enough; you should be able to cite specific examples from various points
in the play as support for essay questions. I should be able to tell that you have
carefully read and studied each play.) I have listed below the principal questions we
discussed in class in conjunction with each play. Obviously not all of them will be
addressed on the exam, but you can use

them to help you review the major points and ideas. You should also look over the
major critical speeches in each play, as those are the ones I am most likely to
choose for the passage identification and discussion section of the exam.
Othello
Themes and Relationships
How are themes of deception and jealousy manifested and treated in the play?
Iago jealous of Cassio and Othello, in turn manipulates Othello into being jealous
of Cassio.
Os distrust and assumption of jealousy
Desdemonda deceives her fatherIago uses this to structure his plot.
I about OYet that I put the Moor A least into a jealousy so strong That
judgement canot

How is the theme of appearance vs. reality treated and explored in the play?
I follow him to serve my turn upon him. Iago 1.1.42
Knaverys plain face is never seen till used. Iago 2.3.299
Iagos animal imagery about Othello
By Janus (two-faced God), I think no.
Brabanzio thinks Othello must have charmed, deceived Desdemona.
Iago 1.1.157-58 I must show out a flag and sign of love, which is indeed but a
sign.
Iago realizes on everyone, including his wife, to accept his appearance. He is
fully conscience of his deception, even speaks directly to the audience about his
plans and how they are going, what he has left to do. As Iago speaks with
Roderigo at the beginning, Shakespeare uses phrases like abhor me, despise
me, which Iago uses to insist hes not lying to Roderigo. But these words are
hints to the audience of Iagos evil nature. He can convince Roderigo, and all the
other characters, but he cant fool the audience, so in Act 1, Shakespeare
doesnt even try.
Desdemonas increasing silence from Act 3 to her death in Act 5 are both
appearance and reality. One way to interpret her actions, which are so different
from the Desdemona, the wooer of Othello, the woman who exchanges boldy,
witty banter with Iago in defense of Emilia, is that her silence and, at the end,
refusal to accuse Othello of her murder is that she is attempting to have her
outward appearance be more in tune with her inwardness. She is a virtuous
woman, but all the things which made Othello love herher desire, boldness,
etc.now are part of what Iago is using to create suspicions for Othello. Perhaps
she intuitively hopes that being the picture of a silent, accepting woman will
speak louder than any words she can use in trying to calm Othellos rage. One
critic I read argued that she goes so far as to make herself an image, a portrait
of the perfect woman, which in fact she is. But this is problematic because in
order to appear to be who she really is, she must change how she appears.
Iago uses the tiniest appearance to

What are Iagos issues with Othello?

How does Othello explain his relationship with Desdemona?

How is Desdemona characterized? How does she reverse the Renaissance

stereotype of the quiet, submissive female?
How does Iago manipulate each characters frailties for his own benefit?
How does Othellos relationship with Desdemona gradually unravel and
deteriorate?
Why does Othello trust Iago so much? Why does he refuse to believe anyone but
Iago? How does Iago use the power of suggestion to influence Othello?
What is the gist of Desdemona and Emilias discussion about men in 4.3? What
might you say about the gender relationships in the play?
Why is Desdemona so seemingly passive in her rebuttals to Othellos
accusations? Why does she seem to accept her death sentence? Why does she
refuse to accuse Othello of her death?
Why does Othello kill Desdemona? How does logic become irrelevant in his
world?
How is it particularly fitting that Desdemona is smothered in her bed? How does
this relate to the overall themes of the play?
Why is Emilia so willing to lay her life on the line to clear Desdemona?
Why does Othello kill himself?
Structure
What is the effect of Iagos characterizing himself as a villain from the very
beginning of the play? Is he purposely trying to alienate his audience? How
does he employ dramatic irony with his audience? What effect does this have?
How might Iago be viewed as a playwright developing the plot of the play?
How does Iago construct his plot against Cassio and Othello? How does he
ultimately involve Desdemona in his scheme?
The play moves from Venice to Cyprus to Othellos residence on the island to his
bedchamber. How does this increasingly inward movement create a sense of
claustrophobia? How/why is this important thematically?
What is the structural and symbolic importance of the handkerchief within the
play?
How is this play different from other Shakespearean tragedies?
Does Othello fit Aristotles definition of a tragic hero? If so, what is his hamartia?
Imagery and Language
How is Othello characterized as an other through the plays language and
imagery?
What do you make of Iagos playful diatribe against women in 2.1? How is this
contrasted with Othellos expressions of love for Desdemona?
How is the concept of honesty explored and exploited through the plays
language?
How do we see Othellos increasing paranoia reflected in his speech utterings?
How are verbal and situational irony used throughout the play?
How does Shakespeare use light/dark imagery throughout the play and for what
purpose?
King Lear

Themes and Relationships

What does Lears test for his daughters tell us about his character and
motivations? What do the three daughters reactions/speeches tell us about
each of them?
Why does Lear renounce Cordelia as his daughter, and why is he so harsh with
her? Why does he banish Kent? What do these actions tell us about the kings
state of mind?
How is the theme of sight vs. blindness explored in this play?
How does Edmond compare/contrast with other villains we have studied? How is
he similar to Iago in his tactics and approach?
Why does Kent disguise himself as a simple peasant? What are his motives and
what does he hope to accomplish?
What is the role of the fool in the play? How does he speak the truth? What
does the relationship seem to be between Lear and the fool?
What indications are there, even early in the play, that Lear is on the brink of
madness?
We have two fathers (Lear, Gloucester) with good vs. bad daughters/sons
(Goneril and Regan vs. Cordelia and Edmond vs. Edgar). How does Shakespeare
compare/contrast the two familial circles?
How do Goneril and Regan band together to limit and control Lears power?
How does Gloucesters rejection of Edgar parallel Lears rejection of Cordelia?
How do Regan and Cornwall show their disrespect to Lear in their treatment of
Kent?
Why does Edgar decide to change his appearance to that of a Bedlam beggar?
How does Lears mental suffering begin to be manifested in a physical
breakdown?
How and why do Regan and Goneril continually attempt to cut down Lears
forces of knights? What is the symbolic implication of diminishing Lears forces,
and how do the numbers then become representative of the daughters love
(or lack of it) to Lear?
Is Lears invocation-of-nature diatribe at the beginning of 3.2 more an indication
of his encroaching madness, or an outpouring of his disillusionment with
mankind? Does he view nature as basically good/beneficial or evil/harmful to
man? What do you make of the apocalyptic imagery?
How does Shakespeare play with role reversals in having Lear alone with the fool
on the heath in 3.2? (Who is the fool?)
What does Lear mean when he says that his wits begin to turn in 3.2.67? Is he
losing all rationality or coming to a more perceptive understanding of what is
going on?
What is the significance of Lears concern over the plight of the poor in 3.4? How
does his exposure to human cruelty seem to increase his own capacity for
compassion and understanding? How is Lear becoming humanized through his
experiences?
How does one explain the astonishing cruelty of Regan, Cornwall, and Goneril,
who seem to delight in tormenting and humiliating Gloucester in addition to their
sheer physical violence? How is Regan/Cornwalls violence mitigated by the
humanity of the servants?

How do the wicked begin betraying the wicked in Act 4? How do Albany, Goneril,
and Regan work against each other in Act 5?
Why does Gloucester want his guide (Edgar) to lead him to the cliff at Dover?
What is his intent and why?
How do we see Lear move between sanity and insanity? Is it significant that
Lear, in his madness, is embracing the natural world? What might this mean?
How does Edmond use both Goneril and Regan to further his own ambition? How
is the power struggle between Albany and Edmond replicated in the power
struggle between Goneril and Regan over Edmond?
Why does Edmond confess when he realizes he is dying in 5.3? Why does he try
to save Lear and Cordelia from his order of death? Is he a changed man, does
he fear for his soul, or what?
What do you make of Lears misguided hope that Cordelia is not dead and will
revive? Is he simply insane, or does he truly feel that he might have saved her if
he had not been so blind and prideful? Is this a gesture of remorse?
What is Lear asking in 5.3.281-282 when he says, Why should a dog, a horse, a
rat have life, and thou no breath at all? How does his question go beyond his
relationship with Cordelia to address the cruelty of the gods and the lack of
justice/order in the world?
Does justice prevail in the play, since the good people end up just as dead as the
villains?
Does Lears reconciliation with Cordelia mediate the stark despair of the play in
any way? Does he truly come to understand the quality of her self-sacrificing
love?
What do you make of Shakespeares treatment of the theme of betrayal, and the
fact that he illustrates betrayal between siblings, between parents and children,
and between husbands and wives? Are any relationships in this drama stable
and secure enough to be beyond the reach of the forces of power and jealousy?
Why do you think King Lear has been referred to as one of the darkest of
Shakespeares tragedies? Is there any sense of hope, redemption, or forgiveness
in the play? What do you make of the fact that even love leads only to death in
this play? Is Shakespeare emphasizing anything more than the inevitability of
death or the cruel injustice of the world?

Structure
In contrast to Hamlet and Othello, how does this drama move continually
outward rather than inward? How does the family chaos escalate into political
chaos?
Why does the fool drop out of the play after scene 3.6?
How do the political and familial strains of the drama converge in Act 4 and drive
to a climax?
How/why do you think Shakespeare sets the play in a pagan past with people
praying to the gods (despite the Christian imagery)? How does this highlight his
treatment of themes of despair, loneliness, and insignificance in the face of a
cruel world? Is there any sense of universal order in the play?
Why does Shakespeare devote so little space/text to the battle itself in Act 5?

How would you compare/contrast this play with Othello in terms of tragedy?
How does each employ the elements of tragedy differently?

Imagery and Language

What does Lear mean in saying that nothing will come of nothing in 1.1.88?
How does this phrase become significant later in the act? (When does it recur?)
What is the significance of Lears constant references to mythical elements,
destiny, and the stars? What are Gloucesters and Edmonds attitudes towards
destiny/the stars?
How does Shakespeare work with the terms nature, natural, and unnatural
in this play?
How does Shakespeare use the notion of plainness (2.2.85ff) to play with the
theme of appearance vs. reality or truth vs. deception? (What does Kent mean
in characterizing himself as plain? How does Cornwall use this idea to accuse
Kent of deceit?)
How is the imagery of disease used in the play?
How is Lears turmoil symbolically reflected in the storm in 3.2? How does the
chaos of nature intersect with and reflect Lears personal chaos and the looming
political chaos?
What is the significance of all of the animal imagery employed throughout the
play? What might it symbolize?
What is the symbolic significance of Gloucesters blinding?
How is Lears madness reflected in his changing speech patterns in Act 4?
How are joy and grief juxtaposed in scene 5.3 (with Gloucesters death) and
more broadly in the play at large?
What do Lears repetitive howl, howl, howl, howl (5.3.231) and never, never,
never, never, never (5.3.283) tell us about his state of mind and his view of life?
How/why is the language of these passages important?
Macbeth
Themes and Relationships
How is the theme of loyalty/betrayal explored and treated in the play, both with
regard to individuals and with regard to a nation (Scotland)?
How are themes of power and ambition treated in the play?
What does the play tell us about Scottish culture? What ideals hold this society
together? How is treason regarded?
How is Macbeth initially characterized? What kind of a thane is he? What are his
strengths? How do we see Macbeths ambition and desire for power manifest in
his reaction to Duncans announcement that Malcolm will be the next king?
If Macbeth is so unsure about the reality of the witches, why does he take their
prophecies so seriously? Why does he so quickly contemplate murder as a way
to fulfill the prophecy?
What do we learn about Lady Macbeths character in her reaction to Macbeths
letter? What does she see as her role in Macbeths climb to power? What drives
her, since she decides Duncan must be murdered before she has even spoken to
Macbeth?

Why is Lady Macbeth concerned about Macbeths ability to bring the witches
prophecies to fruition? What is your impression of the relationship between
Macbeth and Lady Macbeth?
How do Macbeth and Lady Macbeth use the notion of appearance (deception) vs.
reality to accomplish their purposes?
What are Macbeths principal concerns about murdering Duncan? What kind of
an individual is Duncan? When Macbeth initially talks himself out of murder,
what strategies does Lady Macbeth employ to push him to action?
How do we see the character differences between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in
their reactions to the murder of Duncan?
What is the significance of the scene between Macduff and the porter (2.3)?
How is this scene at the gate ironic, considering whats going on inside the
castle?
In Act 3, Macbeth moves from being unable to commit to murder to murdering
freely and multiple times without much compunction. What has changed? Is his
true character just being revealed, or has the smell of power emboldened him?
How much has Lady Macbeth had to do with his newfound courage?
Beginning in Act 3, Lady Macbeth becomes increasingly hesitant and paranoid
about the ongoing murders. Do Macbeth and Lady Macbeth trade roles?
We see Macbeths paranoia in the ghost scene. What is the ghosts purpose? Is
it only a hallucination of Macbeth?
Why is Macbeth so much more haunted by Banquos murder that that of
Duncan?
Are the witches independent agents or agents of fate (like the Fates in Greek
mythology)? Are their prophecies self-fulfilling, or do they predict the future?
What is the significance of all of the supernatural occurrences in the play? What
is their symbolic connection with the political and moral condition of Scotland
under Macbeth?
What is Macbeths motive in murdering Macduffs family? Has he simply
descended into madness, since there is no political gain for him in murdering
Macduffs wife and children?
How/why does Malcolm decide to test Macduff? What point is Shakespeare
making here about the proper kind of kingship for Scotland?
How would you chart/explain Lady Macbeths descent into madness? Does
Macbeth also go mad?
What are Lady Macbeths chief concerns in the famous hand-washing scene
(5.1)? How does this scene tie back to her earlier remark that a little water
clears us of this deed?
How does Macbeth react when he knows the end is near? How has he changed
(or has he changed) over the course of the play?

Structure
How are the prophecies of the three witches for Macbeth and Banquo used to
structure the play?
How does the drama eclipse time and play with the coming together of past,
present, and future (especially with regard to the witches prophecies)?
How does Shakespeare use nature, both natural and unnatural, to help structure
the play? How do the perversions of nature act as premonitions of the evil within

the castle in 2.3? How does unnatural nature reflect the chaos of the universe
in 2.4?
Why do you think Shakespeare decides to convey the election of Macbeth as
king (seemingly a major event) secondhand through the old man, Ross, and
Macduff without allowing us to see the event?
How is the banquet the central scene structurally in the drama?
Why is Act 5 divided into so many short scenes?

Imagery and Language

Why do the witches speak in rhyme? Why do they use a language of
juxtaposition or contradiction (as with fair is foul, and foul is fair)?
What is the significance of the weather/storm imagery? How does Shakespeare
use it to foreshadow events and themes of the play?
What do you make of Lady Macbeths entreaty in 1.5.39-42 to unsex her and
fill her with direst cruelty, to make thick my blood, stop up th access and
passage to remorse? How is Shakespeare playing with gender roles here?
How do you interpret Macbeths dream sequence soliloquy in 2.1?
Why does the porter speak in prose (2.3) rather than verse?
How/why does Macbeths speech change in 2.3 following the murder of Duncan?
What is the symbolic significance of the word done in 1.7 and 3.2? Can whats
done ever be undone?
How is the imagery of blood used throughout the play?
Why do you think Shakespeare employs so many hallucinatory images and
sounds in this play? What might the three apparitions in 4.1 symbolize?
Why is light so important to Lady Macbeth in Act 5? What might this
symbolize?
Malcolm is described as the medicine of the state in 5.2. How does this tie in
with all of the disease imagery with regard to Scotland?
How/why does Shakespeare parallel Lady Macbeths out, out damned spot
speech in 5.1 with Macbeths out, out, brief candle speech in 5.5? What is the
connection?
How do you interpret Macbeths famous speech Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and
tomorrow . . . in 5.5.18-27?