Examine Act 1 Scene 7, Act 2 Scene 1 and Act 2 Scene 2 in Terms of Dramatic Presentation

Macbeth is a very dramatic play, due to events of murder, deceit and also battle. It consists of soliloquys to build up tension, and also because of the way the play is structured such as Macbeth changing his mind whether to kill Duncan. These three scenes, Act 1 Scene 7, Act 2 Scene 1 and Act 2 Scene 2 are made to be dramatic due to things such as Macbeth talking to the audience through a soliloquy, so the audience knows what he is thinking, and if he will kill Duncan or not. In these scenes Duncan is going to Macbeths castle to celebrate winning a battle against the Norwegians. Macbeth plans to kill Duncan while he stays at the castle, and does. Certain methods Shakespeare uses to create drama is things such as soliloquys to let the audience know what the character is thinking. He also uses Imagery combined with stage direction for example where Macbeth sees the dagger, the audience cant actually see this but he uses Macbeth to describe it and act as if it is there so the audience then knows. Act 1 Scene 7 is the first of the three scenes. This scene is so dramatic because it comes at the very end of Act 1 which has been leading up to the murder, and if Macbeth will murder the king, how and if it all plans out afterwards. Also there is a sense of a soliloquy in Scene 7 which creates drama because of all the activity going on around him, such as the workers preparing for the feast. One of the first things Macbeth says in his soliloquy is the line to plague th inventor this basically means what goes around comes around showing that if Macbeth kills King Duncan, in the future someone may try and kill him if he is king. This Is an effective line because this kind of has a sense of irony because of course later on in the play Macbeth is killed. Also in this soliloquy Macbeth mostly lists reasons of why he shouldnt kill the king, which for the audience makes them think that Macbeth will not kill Duncan.

Things that make the audience feel like this is where Macbeth says First, as I am his kinsman and his subject strong both against the deed; then as his host which basically means that he shouldnt do it for the reason that he is related to the kind and also he has invited the king to his castle and he is his host. Again this is dramatic to the audience because they are not sure still whether he will kill Duncan or not. Other lines such as, that his virtues will plead like angles, trumpet tongued and also That tears shall drown the wind which shows how much everyone will miss the king if he is killed that so many people will grieve for the king if he does die. Towards the end of this soliloquy Macbeth starts to change his mind and says I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition which oerleaps itself and falls on thother. This creates an image of someone jumping onto a horse onto a saddle which shows that Macbeth is cheating his way to the throne, as if he is quickly getting on. Shakespeare then uses stage direction very well also at the end of this soliloquy by when Macbeth is in the middle of talking and suddenly Lady Macbeth walks in. This could shock the audience and create more tension, and keep it building towards the murder scene. This brings Macbeth back to reality. Lady Macbeth then starts to question Macbeths manhood. This makes Macbeth start to feel angry and this of course pushes Macbeth to start thinking more about killing Duncan. Macbeth then comes speaks with a line that says Prithee, peace. I dare do all that may become a man, who dares do more is none which basically means that once he is has killed Duncan he will no longer be human and will be a monster. Lady Macbeth then says to Macbeth I have given suck and know how tender this to love the babe that milks me: I would, while it was smiling in my face, have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this which means that if she promised her babys head, she would do that. This puts pressure on Macbeth to fulfil his promise. This creates drama because the audience now thinks that Macbeth will do it.

Macbeth finishes the scene by saying that I am settled and bend up this now means that Macbeth will kill Duncan and now the audience ready for the murder scene. The start to Act 2 has Banquo asking his son how goes the night which is done to let the audience know that it is night. Banquo starts to think that something is wrong as he says Theres husbandry in heaven. Their candles are all out. By this he means no stars are out. This creates tension as the audience may start to think that Banquo may catch Macbeth killing Duncan.

Macbeth Redraft Callum Melia 10Y2

Banquo later says he dreamed of three weird sisters, this can give a shock to the audience as we know Macbeth has had the same thing, they may think Banquo may want to fulfil the things the witches told him. Macbeth then has another soliloquy, where he has a hallucination of a dagger. This creates dramatic feelings between the audience because, they will think he is not mentally coping with the situation. This then leads on to Act 2 Scene 2. Tis scene starts with Lady Macbeth talking to herself, whilst Macbeth is currently murdering the king. This creates drama in itself because the audience dont know if Macbeth will come back, and the reason Shakespeare has not shown the murder is because of course at the time of when the play was staged they couldnt do certain effects such as blood. It also leaves it to the audiences imagination. At line 16 Macbeth and Lady Macbeth start being jumpy responding to each other to 3 words or less, this creates tension and suspense as they are getting nervous as to whether they will be caught. Also the fact that they killed a king can relate to the audience because when they put on this play there was a king in charge so it makes the play more realistic. The next page is Lady Macbeth trying to calm Macbeth down. This creates tension as the audience may start to think that Macbeth may not be able to control himself and may give himself away. Another line that shows this is when Macbeth says that he cannot be associated with anything holy because he has killed God. This would have been quite dramatic for the audience because at the time of the play most people were very religious so they would have been shocked. Macbeth starts to mention that he cannot wash the blood off his hands which he is doing whilst someone is knocking for Duncan. This creates tension and suspense because Macbeth may get caught, and the knocking starts to get louder and louder creating even more suspense. In conclusion Shakespeare very well creates a lot of tension, drama and suspense. He uses many techniques such as Stage Directions, imagery and soliloquys but the most effective is the language that he uses to

describe certain situations. For this reason this is why this play is so famous and successful due to all of the dramatic qualities in it.