Week of December 7th

Apologies -- I had to leave school early on Monday of this week due to the rain, and it seems I missed the blog.

The week began (for most classes) by looking at Act II in depth.

Each class had lessons focused on developing the skills of creating a prompt book (notes a director makes to help him or her direct a scene and the actors). Students did prompt book work both in and out of class.

We especially considered the question of "the dagger;" that is why does or doesn't a director choose to let the audience see the dagger. How does the audience seeing or not seeing the dagger affect their perceptions of Macbeth.

On Friday Mr. Zartler gave an important lecture about the Great Chain of Being following this outline:

The Chain of Being and Macbeth

Name __________________________

Essential Questions:

Why is Macbeth’s ambition a fatal flaw?

How does the Renaissance worldview help you understand figurative language in Macbeth?

Questions/Insights
The Chain of Being

Some Parts of the Chain:

God

Angels

Humans

Animals

Vegetables

Minerals

King James I himself wrote, "The state of monarchy is the supremest thing upon earth: for kings are not only God's Lieutenants upon earth, and sit upon God's throne, but even by God himself they are called Gods."

What do you see in this image? What  ideas do you understand it to show?

Robert Fludd 1617

Definitions and vocabulary:

Elizabethan Time

Jacobian Time

Primate

World View