Summer Reading

Assignments

2019

Dear AP English Literature and Composition Students,

Welcome to the Senior AP English Literature and Composition course. To prepare us for the start of

the 2019-2020 school year, there are 3 summer reading assignments with instructions and

guidelines attached for Assignments #1 and #2. For Assignment #3, choose one of the two

books and just read the book; we will complete assignments in class for this book. These

works are foundational works for this course; we will reference them all year long.

ASSIGNMENT #1: How to Read Literature Like a Professor (Revised Edition 2014) by Thomas C. Foster

ASSIGNMENT #2: Macbeth by William Shakespeare

ASSIGNMENT #3: Read: The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien

OR

Read: The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

I look forward to our AP journey together this year. Our class functions as a “community of

learners”; therefore, come prepared to share and learn :)

If you have any questions about these assignments or the class, please email me:

julie.knoblauch@wilmington.k12.oh.us *I’ll be out-of-state part of the summer with limited email access ---be patient if you don’t hear back from me right away—I will return your email the first opportunity that I am able to :)

Happy Reading!

Thank you,

Mrs. K

How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster Revised Edition 2014

Overview and Book Review: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/

Ever wonder if something is a symbol? What does it mean when a literary hero is traveling along a dusty road?

When he hands a drink to his companion? When he’s drenched in a sudden rain shower?

Thomas C. Foster’s classic guide—a lively and entertaining introduction to literature and literary basics, including symbols, themes and contexts, shows you how to make your everyday reading experience more rewarding and enjoyable. This reference book will help you know what to look for in a story – which patterns show up over and over in literature (and what these patterns mean.) While many books can be enjoyed for their basic stories, there are often deeper literary meanings interwoven in these texts. How to Read Literature Like a Professor helps us to discover those hidden truths by looking at literature with the eyes—and the literary codes-of the ultimate professional reader, the college professor. Ranging from major themes to literary models, narrative devices and form, Thomas C. Foster provides us with a broad overview of literature—a world where a road leads to a quest, a shared meal may signify a communion, and rain, whether cleansing or destructive, is never just a shower-and shows us how to make our reading experience more enriching, satisfying, and fun.

** You will explore this book by completing short writing reflections for 18 of 25 chapters.

(Read ALL the chapters, but you choose which 18 chapters to explore through brief writing

exercises where you relate the topic of the chapter to something you’ve read or viewed.)

ASSIGNMENT ATTACHED.

1st Quarter: You will complete a group project about this book. Throughout the year, you will make references to this book as we read short stories, plays, novels, and poems.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor - by Thomas C. Foster

2019 AP Summer Reading Assignment #1

How to Read Literature Like a Professor Online Text: Revised Edition 2014—Click on link below

http://staff.katyisd.org/sites/0501079/PublishingImages/Pages/documents/How%20to%20Read%20Literature%20Like%20a%20Professor%20[REVISED].pdf

Directions: As you read, respond to 18 of the 25 (YOUR CHOICE) chapter prompts thoughtfully, using complete sentences. Answer thoroughly by explaining connections between your literary examples and the focus of each chapter in the book. Answers may vary in length; in the boxes below the chapter titles, type or write as much as you need to support your ideas. ALL WORK MUST BE INDIVIDUAL and ORIGINAL. Copied or plagiarized work will earn a zero. Email me if you would like an electronic version of this assignment in which to type your answers. You may also hand write your answers in the TEXT BOXES below. julie.knoblauch@wilmington.k12.oh.us

DUE DATE: First day of school

Introduction: How’d He Do That?

How do memory, symbol, and pattern affect the reading of literature? How does the recognition of patterns make it easier to read complicated literature? Discuss (in writing) a time when your appreciation of a literary work was enhanced by understanding symbol or pattern. Type OR write answer in text box below.

Chapter 1 – Every Trip Is a Quest (Except When It’s Not).

List the five aspects of the QUEST and then apply them to something you have read (or viewed) in the form used on pages 3-5. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 2 – Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Communion.

Choose a meal from a literary work and apply the ideas of Chapter 2 to this literary depiction. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 3 – Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires.

What are the essentials of the Vampire story? Apply these ideas to a literary work you have read or viewed. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 4 – Now, Where Have I Seen Her Before?

Define intertextuality. Discuss three examples that have helped you in reading specific works. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 5 – When in Doubt, It’s from Shakespeare…

Discuss a work that you are familiar with that alludes to or reflects Shakespeare. Show how the author uses this connection thematically. Read pages 44-46 carefully. In these pages, Foster shows how Fugard reflects Shakespeare through both plot and theme. In your discussion, focus on theme. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 6 – … Or the Bible Many authors have included allusions to the Garden of Eden within their works. After reading a print or online version of Genesis, Chapters 2 and 3 in the Bible (www.bibleontheweb.com is a good source), compare the story of the garden to either William Golding’s use of the allusion in Lord of the Flies, or to another literary work you’ve read that

incorporates Biblical elements. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 7 – Hanseldee and Greteldum

Think of a work of literature that reflects a fairy tale. Discuss the parallels. In the story you selected, how does allusions to a fairy tale or fairy tales create irony or deepen appreciation? Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 8 — It’s Greek to Me: Write a free verse poem derived or inspired by characters or situations from Greek mythology. Be creative and have fun with this. Need some help or a memory refresher on Greek mythology? Type or write answer in text box below. Try these sites: http://web.uvic.ca/grs/bowman/myth/index.html or http://www.pantheon.org or http://www.mythweb.com

Chapter 9 – It’s More Than Just Rain or Snow Discuss the importance of weather in a specific literary work, not in terms of plot. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 10 – Never Stand Next to the Hero What is the “surrogacy phenomenon” and what purpose does it serve in a narrative? Give an example from either a novel or movie and explain how it fits the surrogacy phenomenon. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 11 – …More Than It’s Gonna Hurt You: Concerning Violence Present examples of the two kinds of violence found in literature. Show how the effects are different. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 14 – Yes, She's a Christ Figure, Too

Apply the criteria on page 119 to a major character in a significant literary work. Try to choose a character that will have many matches. This is a particularly apt tool for analyzing film -- for example, Star Wars, Cool Hand Luke, Excalibur, Malcolm X, Braveheart, Spartacus, Gladiator and Ben-Hur. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 15 – Flights of Fancy Select a literary work in which flight signifies escape or freedom. Explain in detail. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 16 — It’s All About Sex…Chapter 17 — …Except the Sex: OK…the sex chapters. The key idea from this chapter is that “scenes in which sex is coded rather than explicit can work at multiple levels and sometimes be more intense that literal depictions” (141). In other words, sex is often suggested with much more art and effort than it is described, and, if the author is doing his job, it reflects and creates theme or character. Choose a novel or movie in which sex is suggested, but not described, and discuss how the relationship is suggested and how this implication affects the theme or develops characterization. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 18 – If She Comes Up, It's Baptism

Think of a "baptism scene" from a significant literary work. How was the character different after the experience? Discuss. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 19 – Geography Matters…

Discuss at least four different aspects of a specific literary work that Foster would classify under "geography."

Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 21 – Marked for Greatness

Figure out Harry Potter's scar. If you aren't familiar with Harry Potter, select another character with a physical imperfection and analyze its implications for characterization. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 22 — He’s Blind for a Reason, You Know

Recall two characters who were either literally or metaphorically blind. Discuss how their blindness affected plot or developed theme. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 23 – It's Never Just Heart Disease... – ...And Rarely Just Illness Recall two characters who died of a disease in a literary work. Consider how these deaths reflect the "principles governing the use of disease in literature" (215-217). Discuss the effectiveness of the death as related to plot, theme, or symbolism. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 24 – Don't Read with Your Eyes

After reading Chapter 24, choose a scene or episode from a novel, play or epic written before the twentieth century. Contrast how it could be viewed by a reader from the twenty-first century with how it might be viewed by a contemporary reader. Focus on specific assumptions that the author makes, assumptions that would not make it in this century. Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 25 – It’s My Symbol and I’ll Cry If I Want To

What are some strategies for dealing with non-standard or “private” symbols in texts? Give an example of a text you have read that contained odd or uncommon symbolism. How did you figure out the meaning of the text and the symbolism? Type or write answer in text box below.

Chapter 26 – Is He Serious? And Other Ironies

Select an ironic literary work and explain the multi-vocal nature of the irony in the work. Type or write answer in text box below.

REQUIRED ENTRY: Postlude — Who’s in Charge Here? and Envoi: Describe your thoughts about the book. Were you surprised? Enlightened? Bored? Do you feel as though it will help you as you continue your journey through literature? Name 3 things you learned about analyzing literature that you DIDN’T KNOW until you read this book.

REQUIRED: Finally, provide a question that you would ask Professor Foster.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor – End of Assignment#1 :)

The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare The Guided Notes and Reading Questions Begin on the next page…

The Tragedy of Macbeth Key Quotes

Macbeth By William Shakespeare

Guided Questions Acts 1-5

Name___________________________________

Due Date: 2nd

day of school

Grade ______/

Elements of a Shakespearean Tragedy : TERMS to KNOW The Tragic hero is usually a person of noble birth, of a generally admirable character (i.e. a person

who is admired by others).

The hero brings about his own downfall because of the tragic flaw (hamartia) in his character.

There is a conflict between the hero and other characters, and between the hero and himself. The conflict involves others around him who are not directly involved in the original situation.

The main source of the action which causes the suffering is plain moral evil. The ultimate goal in the tragic world is a restoration of moral order – the triumph of good over evil; the tragedy cannot be resolved until evil is eradicated.

Chance (often unlucky chance) plays the part of fate. The supernatural also often plays a part in

advancing the plot.

Abnormal conditions of mind are often present.

The catastrophe of the tragedy must involve some kind of emotional purge or catharsis. The emotional reaction of the audience to tragedy is one of pity and horror; there is always an impression of

waste, of what ‘could have been’ if the hero could have overcome his tragic flaw.

Elements of Plot in Shakespearean Tragedy

Plot is the related series of events that make up a story. In other words, plot is the action that makes up a story. Every Shakespearean tragedy is divided into five Acts and contains the following six elements of plot:

A. Exposition (introduction)-the beginning of the story that gives background information on characters and previous action 1. Exciting Force - a scene or event that starts the action and triggers later conflict B. Rising Action- the beginning of the action that will lead to a high point in the story C. Climax- turning point of story; the part of the story in which the protagonist reaches an emotional high point or a peak in power *Dramatic Climax = Highest emotional point in the play *Technical Climax = Turning point in the play – the tragic hero’s fortune begins to turn D. Return or Falling action- the action that occurs after the climax, before everything is wrapped up in the story E. Catastrophe - when the events of the falling action bring the protagonist to his fate.

*For more information about ShakespeareanTragedies: https://accessdl.state.al.us/AventaCourses/access_courses/theatre_ua_v13/05_unit/05_word/05-

01_shakespearean_elements.pdf

MMaaccbbeetthh –Character Map

Map of Scotland- 11th

Century

Elizabethan Era Beliefs: The Great Chain of Being

THE GREAT CHAIN OF BEING:

Basic Chart of Ranks:

GGoodd Angels

Humans Animals

Vegetables Minerals

The Chain of Being describes the Renaissance belief in a hierarchical universe ordained by God.

Literary ramifications: Artists in the period have ready at their fingertips a catalog of instant symbols and connotations all conveniently ranked in status. If Shakespeare compares a woman to a vine and her husband to an oak, he doesn't do so merely to talk about her beauty or his strength. Instead, he emphasizes her subordination to him in the Chain of Being. Likewise, if two characters fight for the throne, one compared to a lion, the other compared to a boar, the comparison implies something about which one has a legitimate claim. Likewise, imagery from the sun, the moon, or other parts of nature often involve an implied set of connotations concerning that object or animal's place in nature.

Moral ramifications: It becomes a moral imperative for each creature to know its place in the Chain of Being and fulfill its own function without striving to rise above its station or debasing itself by behavior proper to the lower links in the chain. A human who is as gluttonous as a pig, or as lecherous as goat, has allowed the lower, bestial instincts in his nature to supercede his divine capability of reason. He is guilty of fleshly or carnal sin, and denies the rational, spiritual aspect of his nature. Likewise, a human who attempts to rise above his social rank does so through arrogance, pride, or envy of his betters. Here, the error is an intellectual or spiritual sin akin to that of the fallen angels = hubris.

Political ramifications: The belief in the Chain of Being meant that monarchy was ordained by God and inherent in the very structure of the universe. Rebellion was a sin not only against the state, but against heaven itself, for the king was God's appointed deputy on earth, with semi-divine powers. Conversely, the King has a moral responsibility to God and his people. In return for his absolute power, he is expected to rule his subjects with love, wisdom, and justice. To do otherwise is to abandon those natural qualities that make a noble fit to rule in the first place. Misusing regal authority is a perversion of divine order. To kill a king (regicide) is the worst sin one could commit. To kill a king is to kill God’s representative on earth. That is why Kings used the “royal we” when they spoke. “We” implies the King and God.

Elizabethan Era Beliefs: Witches

Specifically, the Three Witches in Macbeth…

Macbeth Study Guide - AAcctt II

((wwrriittee aannsswweerrss iinn uunnddeerr tthhee qquueessttiioonnss-- iiff yyoouu nneeeedd mmoorree rroooomm,, aattttaacchh nnootteebbooookk ppaappeerr))

SScceennee 11

1. List the setting (time, place, mood.) How would you stage this scene? What methods would you use to create thunder,

lightning, darkness, and fog? What other special effects would you include?

2. At the end of the scene, the three witches say, "Fair is foul, and foul is fair." What do you think they mean? How do

you think they should sound when they speak this line?

3. Name at least two paradoxes established in Scene i. What is the author’s purpose(s) for using these paradoxes?

4. Shakespeare calls the witches the “Weird sisters.” This phrase is a derivative of the Anglo-Saxon word “Wyrd”

(Fate); what are we supposed to assume about the witches?

SScceennee 22

1. Who are the two Scottish traitors helping foreign countries try to overthrow Scotland? Which traitor was helping

Ireland-what happened to him? Which traitor was helping Norway-what happened to him?

2. What information do you learn about Macbeth, and what is your first impression of him as you learn this information?

3. What relationship exists between King Duncan and Macbeth?

4. Macbeth enters the play indirectly -- we hear about him before we see him. Why do you think Shakespeare introduces

him this way?

SScceennee 33

1. Revisit the witches’ conversations in Scenes i and iii paying special attention to their diction. How does Shakespeare

use diction choices to characterize the witches and set them apart from other characters?

2. List the three prophesies the witches make for Macbeth.

3. List the three prophesies the witches make for Banquo. Why are these in the form of paradoxes?

4. Which of the two men is more greatly disturbed by the prophecies?

5. After you meet Ross and Angus, who confirm Macbeth's new role as Thane of Cawdor, compare

Macbeth and Banquo’s differing reactions to this startling information: Macbeth vs. Banquo

6. What is Banquo's warning to Macbeth ?

7. Quote lines which reveal Macbeth's darker motives. “Quote” (Act. Scene. Lines).

8. What more do you learn of Macbeth's character in this scene?

9. What is Macbeth's conclusion about his becoming king?

10. What does Macbeth mean when he says: "My dull brain was wrought with things forgotten"?

SScceennee 44

1. Look at the lines that King Duncan says just before Macbeth enters this scene. What do you think Shakespeare wants

the audience to think by using these words as Macbeth's entrance cue?

2. When Duncan reveals that his son will succeed him as king, what do you think Macbeth is thinking?

3. This scene is filled with courteous language. Who is sincere in his use of this language?

SScceennee 55

1. We meet Lady Macbeth in this scene. Based on her lines, characterize her.

2. What does this scene tell you about the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth? Explain.

3. Macbeth speaks only 15 words in this scene. What does this scene do to develop the characterization of Macbeth?

What new ideas do you have about him? Why?

4. What do you think Lady Macbeth means by her last words in this scene: "Leave all the rest to me"?

SScceennee 66

1. The audience is aware that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are planning to kill Duncan tonight as he sleeps under their

roof, yet Duncan uses several positive diction choices to describe their castle. What does that tell you about King Duncan?

2. Why do you think Lady Macbeth alone greets Duncan? Why isn’t Macbeth there to greet him?

SScceennee 77

1. Throughout Act I, Macbeth struggles with the question of whether or not he should murder Duncan (regicide). Read

each set of lines below. If the lines indicate that Macbeth will go through with the murder, write Yes. If the lines indicate

he will not murder Duncan, write No.

a. Scene iii, lines 143-144 ________ d. scene vii, lines 7-10 _________

b. Scene iv, lines 48-53 ________ e. scene vii, lines 12-28 _________

c. Scene vii, lines 1-7 ________ f. scene vii, lines 31-35 _________

2. Lady Macbeth uses three techniques to try to persuade Macbeth to murder Duncan.

What technique/persuasion tactic does she use in lines 35-44? _____________

What technique/persuasion tactic does she use in lines 47-58? _____________

What technique/persuasion tactic does she use in lines 60-71? _____________

3. What is the proposed murder plan? Why does Shakespeare make it clear that it is Lady Macbeth’s plan?

4. What is Macbeth’s final decision about murdering Duncan (lines 79-80)? How does Lady M change his mind?

Macbeth Study Guide - AAcctt IIII

SScceennee 11

1. What mood/atmosphere is established at the beginning of Scene 1? How? Why? 2. Banquo gives Macbeth a diamond, a gift to Lady Macbeth from Duncan. 1) Why do you suppose Shakespeare had Banquo, not Duncan, present this gift to Macbeth? 2) Why do you suppose Banquo chose this particular moment? 3. Why do you suppose Banquo also chooses this moment/conversation to mention his dream to Macbeth?

4. What is Shakespeare’s purpose in including the dagger scene? 5. How does Macbeth reveal to us, the audience, that he is aware dreadfulness of what he is about to do?

SScceennee 22

1. Why Shakespeare has the murder enacted off stage instead of in front of the audience? Through what means does the audience experience the murder? 2. List the different “sounds” in this scene. What patterns do you notice? Why is there such an emphasis on auditory imagery in this scene? 3. What does this line reveal about Lady Macbeth: “Had he not resembled/My father as he slept, I had done’t.” 4. List all the allusions to blood in this scene. Why does Shakespeare include so many references to blood? 5. Look through this scene and count the number of times Shakespeare uses the word “sleep” and forms of the word. Why do you think he emphasizes this word so much? (Keep this in mind for the rest of the play.)

SScceennee 33::

1. This famous scene is known as a “Comic Relief” scene. Why would Shakespeare include a bit of comedy (via the Porter) at this point in the play? 2. How is the castle like hell at this moment? What is the Porter’s role? What role does Macbeth play in hell?

SScceennee 44::

1. In Act II Scene 4, various unnatural or strange events are discussed. List three strange and unnatural occurrences below.

Macbeth Study Guide - AAcctt IIIIII

SScceennee 11

1. Find one word in Banquo's opening soliloquy (III.i.1-10) that lets us know that Banquo suspects Macbeth of murder. What is that word? Do you think Banquo will voice his suspicions? Why/why not?

2. Macbeth plays a detective game with Banquo (lines 21-43). What does Macbeth want to learn from Banquo? Why? 3. Read Macbeth’s soliloquy : “To be thus is nothing/But to be safely thus…”

Given Banquo’s earlier soliloquy, to what extent are Macbeth’s fears justified?

4. In his soliloquy, Macbeth states his intentions to defy Fate. What do you think the end result will be? 5. Ironically, what tactic does Macbeth use to convince the murderers to kill Banquo and Fleance?

6. In what major way has Macbeth's planning of Banquo's murder differed from his planning of Duncan's? What does this tell us about Macbeth and his character progression in the play?

SScceennee 22

1. Name at least two examples of irony in Act III Scene 2.

2. Review the imagery in this scene. What patterns do you find? Connect Shakespeare’s use of imagery to Macbeth: How has he changed since the murder?

SScceennee 33

1. One of the great mysteries of this play is the identity of the third murderer. Who do you think he is?

2. In Scene i, Macbeth openly says he will defy Fate. What does Fleance’s escape signify?

SScceennee 44

1. If your production of The Scottish Play has a big budget, how would you set the stage for this scene? In the rectangle below (representing a stage), indicate what you would use and where you would place everything you need for this scene.

2. In many of his plays, Shakespeare uses ghosts. In some productions, a ghost really appears on the stage. In others, the ghost exists only in Macbeth's imagination. What decision would you make about Banquo’s ghost? Why?

3. Much like after Duncan’s murder, Macbeth becomes rattled. How does she try to snap Macbeth out of his “fit”? 4. Why do you think Macbeth decides to visit the witches again? What questions do you think Macbeth will ask the

"Weird Sisters?" 5. Analyze what Macbeth means in lines 135-138. 6. What does Macduff’s absence from the state banquet signify?

SScceennee 55

1. Read Hecate’s (the Queen of witches) speech closely. What does she suggest about the witches’ plan for Macbeth? 2. Hecate’s comment , "Security is mortals' chiefest enemy," gives the audience insight about how the witches will get

their revenge concerning Macbeth and his lack of respect for them and their powers. If you were the witches, how would you make Macbeth feel “secure” but still enact your revenge?

3. In many productions of the play, this scene is left out. What effect does leaving the scene out have on our understanding of the role of the witches in this play?

SScceennee 66

1. What does the conversation between Lennox and the Lord achieve? 2. What is the tone of Lennox’s speech about Macbeth?

3. We also learn about Malcolm, the dead King’s eldest son who fled Scotland after his father was murdered. Malcolm

has been missing from the play for a while –he fled to England—and is about to join forces with Macduff. Make a prediction about what these two will do in the final acts of the play.

Prediction:

Macbeth Study Guide - AAcctt IIVV

SScceennee 11

1. Shakespeare often used spectacles, or grand displays used to grab the attention of the audience. With that in mind, what two-fold purpose do the witches serve in Scene 1?

2. Shakespearean plays are written in unrhymed iambic pentameter (blank verse.) What do you notice about the witches’ diction/speech? Why does Shakespeare use these speech patterns with the witches?

3. In Act IV, Scene 1, Macbeth demands and the witches grant him three visions regarding his own future. List their

3 new predictions for Macbeth below:

3. In lines 144-156, what does Macbeth vow to do? What does this tell us about Macbeth? (characterization)

4. List two examples of irony in this scene.

SScceennee 22

1. What is the setting change?

2. How does Lady Macduff’s anger at her husband fit into the “foul is fair and fair is foul” paradox?

3. Who does the “owl” symbolize in line 11?

4. Why does Shakespeare include the conversation between mother and son?

5. This is the first murder to be committed on stage. What effect does this have on the audience? Why do you think Shakespeare deems it necessary to create this effect at this particular point in the play?

6. Macbeth sought to gain security by killing Banquo. He also seeks to gain security by striking Macduff’s family. What is ironic about the end results of these actions?

SScceennee 33

1. What is significant about the setting change- Which country symbolizes good and which country symbolizes evil?

2. In Malcolm’s lines (15-17), which character in the play is the “innocent lamb”? Who is the “angry god”? Why is Shakespeare using Biblical allusions at this point in the play?

3. Why is Shakespeare’s allusion to Macbeth (line 22) especially appropriate?

4. Note Macduff’s reaction to his family’s murder. Trace and describe Macduff’s reaction to Ross’ news: 1st reaction (lines 211-219) = 2nd reaction (lines 220-227) = 3rd reaction (lines 230-234) = 5. At the end of the scene, what is Malcolm preparing to do?

Macbeth Study Guide - AAcctt VV

SScceennee 11

1. What is the purpose of Lady Macbeth’s sleepwalking scene? What is the irony ? (hint: review Act II, Scene ii). 2. List Lady Macbeth’s actions. In what ways is this scene linked to her “unsex me” speech in Act I, Scene v? 3. Look carefully at the images/phrases that come out of her unconscious mind (lines 30-59). Which are connected to Duncan? Macbeth? Lady Macduff? Banquo murder/ghost? 4. How has her inability to cope with her guilt been foreshadowed?

SScceennee 22

1. How does the reader know that the Scottish thanes will join with Malcolm’s forces against Macbeth? 2. What is the significance of the mention of “Birnam Wood” (l.5) and “Dunsinane” (l. 12)? 3. We see shades of the Macbeth of old (Act I) in line 14. What do some attribute his frantic preparations to? How does this phrase serve to remind us of the way Macbeth used to be?

SScceennee 33

1. What do Macbeth’s mood swings in this scene indicate? 2. Read Macbeth’s speech (lines 19-28). Why is he disillusioned? 3. How do we know Macbeth is still deeply dependent on his wife? What is verbally ironic about the questions he asks the doctor? 4. In the scene as a whole, in what ways is Macbeth still placing his faith in the witches? 5. In what ways does Shakespeare help/enable the audience to sympathize with Macbeth? What is Shakespeare’s purpose in doing so?

SScceennee 44

1. How does the audience know that Macbeth is no longer safe from the witches’ prophesies? 2. How does the sense of Macbeth’s “aloneness” become even more forceful than the previous scenes?

SScceennee 55

1. Read Macbeth’s response to Lady Macbeth’s death. What is he saying about life (Write a THEME)? 2. Read Macbeth’s “To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow…” soliloquy. What is its tone? Why is the extended metaphor/conceit effective? Within this metaphor, what kind of actor does Macbeth see himself as?

SScceennee 66,, 77 ,,88

1. How is Macbeth like a “bear tied to a stake”? How does this image evoke sympathy for Macbeth? 2. How is Macduff “not of woman born?” 3. What does Macbeth’s reply to Macduff suggest? At what moment does Macbeth realize the witches have duped him? 4. Macbeth, finally denying his belief in the witches, fights and dies with valiant fury (reread his last line). To what extent is his death heroic? 5. Ironically, of what does the visual image of Macbeth’s head on a stake remind the reader in Act I? 6. At the end of the play, how do we know order has been restored to Scotland? (Hint: See the Great Chain of Being Notes at the beginning of this packet…

Name: _____________________________________________________

Questions you still have about the play?

Write them in the space below: