Macbeth Context
The Great Chain of Being:
● Authority was derived from God - God was at the top then angles, mankind etc - in the
order of human beings - the King was at the top - completely dominant - if you disrupt the
Chain of Being you cause chaos = you weren’t accepting your position in society
King James 1:
● Shakespeare crafts the story of Macbeth to purposefully please the King - the overriding
message is that there are consequences to trying to kill a King - why both Macbeth + Lady
Macbeth die
● King James had an obsession with witches + the supernatural - wrote a book called
Daemonologie
● James also survived an assassination attempt - Gunpowder Plot
● James was a great believer in the Great Chain of Being
● A silver medal was created to honour the discovery of the Gunpowder Plot - the front
shows a snake among lilies + roses symbolising intrigue + deception - the reverse shows the
name of God in Hebrew in a circle of thorns with the inscription ‘You (God), the keeper of
James, have not slept) - mention of sleep - once Macbeth has killed Duncan he can’t sleep
Gunpowder Plot;
● “Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under’t” - she echoes the medal - well
known - Shakespeare’s audience would have known this - associates their planned
deception of Duncan with treason + the Gunpowder Plot
Holinshed’s Chronicles:
● Written 20 years before Macbeth - contains three witches meeting Macbeth + Banquo
● Shakespeare plays with the presentation of the witches - presents them as a caricature -
presents them as ‘hags’ unlike how they are in Holinshed’s Chronicles - does this to show
how he doesn’t believe in them at all - believes they are just not real
The Great Chain of Being:
● Authority was derived from God - God was at the top then angles, mankind etc - in the
order of human beings - the King was at the top - completely dominant - if you disrupt the
Chain of Being you cause chaos = you weren’t accepting your position in society
King James 1:
● Shakespeare crafts the story of Macbeth to purposefully please the King - the overriding
message is that there are consequences to trying to kill a King - why both Macbeth + Lady
Macbeth die
● King James had an obsession with witches + the supernatural - wrote a book called
Daemonologie
● James also survived an assassination attempt - Gunpowder Plot
● James was a great believer in the Great Chain of Being
● A silver medal was created to honour the discovery of the Gunpowder Plot - the front
shows a snake among lilies + roses symbolising intrigue + deception - the reverse shows the
name of God in Hebrew in a circle of thorns with the inscription ‘You (God), the keeper of
James, have not slept) - mention of sleep - once Macbeth has killed Duncan he can’t sleep
Gunpowder Plot;
● “Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under’t” - she echoes the medal - well
known - Shakespeare’s audience would have known this - associates their planned
deception of Duncan with treason + the Gunpowder Plot
Holinshed’s Chronicles:
● Written 20 years before Macbeth - contains three witches meeting Macbeth + Banquo
● Shakespeare plays with the presentation of the witches - presents them as a caricature -
presents them as ‘hags’ unlike how they are in Holinshed’s Chronicles - does this to show
how he doesn’t believe in them at all - believes they are just not real
