Grade 9 30/30 AQA essay on Macbeth. English Literature Paper 1
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Course
English
Institution
GCSE
This document consists of a full mark Macbeth answer answering 'How far does shakespeare present Macbeth as noble in Act 1 Scene 4 and the rest of the play?' Includes top analysis, great essay structure and argues the statement considering both sides but leans towards one side more than the other. ...
How far is Macbeth presented as noble in A1S4 and in the rest of the play?
PLAN:
INTRO: Play is about his downfall from nobility (messages about ambition vs morality)
P1: Extract is ambiguous- he may be lying to Duncan about his loyalty or he may be trying to cling to it and
resist his ambition
P2: Sh. initially shows Macbeth’s reluctance to kill the King to highlight the nobility he had within him and
chose to neglect
P3: Sh. uses the theme of religion to show there are consequences for being ignoble
P4/Conc: The final stage of M’s character development highlights how he pays the price for neglecting his
nobility.
Essay:
Shakespeare’s tragic play Macbeth tells the tale of how a noble individual can become
corrupted by greed. Shakespeare uses the character arc of his eponymous1 hero to present
ideas about rightful kingship and the perils2 of putting ambition above morality.
In this extract, Shakespeare presents Macbeth in the midst of an inner conflict
about whether or not to put his ambition above his morality and kill the King. Whilst
he outwardly presents the appearance that he is loyal to the King, the audience are already
aware that ever since he received the witches’ prophecies, he has begun to grapple with the
idea of killing the King, however horrifying he finds this idea. The concept of loyalty
dominates Macbeth’s speech as he claims to need no further reward for serving the King
because ‘the service and loyalty I owe, in doing it, pays itself’. There is an emphasis in his
language on the idea of debt reinforcing the idea that a subject of the King is naturally
bound to and obliged to serve the King, which indeed echoes the religious and civic beliefs
of the Jacobean audience watching the play. Macbeth refers to his actions as a ‘service’ that
is ‘owed’, characterising himself as Duncan’s humble inferior and willing servant. It
is ambiguous at this point is whether Macbeth is dissimulating3 and equivocating4,
pretending to be loyal to the King or whether part of him still believes these ideas that he
has been brought up to believe and that are widely held in his society. Structurally speaking,
this comes after Macbeth has already visualised a ‘horrid image’ of murdering the King so
that he can usurp5 him. But, Shakespeare has also shown us that Macbeth would much
rather remain loyal and be crowned ‘without my stir’. Therefore, it is too complex and
ambiguous to say at this point whether Macbeth’s words to Duncan in this scene are a
disloyal fabrication or if they are in fact some lingering remnant6 of his former nobility. It is
possible that what we are seeing here is the part of Macbeth’s conscience that still wants to
be a loyal subject who honours his King rather than a treasonous murderer.
It is important to note that Shakespeare deliberately draws out the question of whether or
not Macbeth will go through with the murder of Duncan right up to Act 1 Scene 7, when he
makes an extended soliloquy about the many reasons ethical, humane and logical why he
should not go through with the murder. The fact that these appear in a soliloquy is
significant as this device7 is used to lay bare the true inner thoughts of a character when no
other characters are able to hear. This soliloquy is crucial in exposing the wealth of inner
nobility within Macbeth that he soon after deliberately makes the decision to set aside
when Lady Macbeth challenges him. At this point, Macbeth recognises that Duncan is a
1
Of the same name
2
dangers
3
Pretending, lying
4
Using deliberately unclear language
5
overthrow
6
remains
7
technique
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