Macbeth Assignments



Macbeth Assignments

As we read the play, you will complete a variety of writing and performance assignments:

1. Daily Journals – (approximately 12-14) 10 points each = 140 points

On most days there will be a thoughtful writing assignment to complete at the beginning of class, usually based on the portion of the play we read and discussed the day before. Some of these will be creative assignments where you assume the point of view of one of the characters and write what their thoughts might be. Some of the assignments will be simple analysis.

In every journal entry, you MUST show that you have read and understood the play – you must cite passages from the dialogue and/or refer to events that have taken place to show that your comments are based on your understanding and the class discussion of the play.

2. Key Quotes – (10 total) 10 points each = 100 points

For each of the 5 acts of the play, you must choose 2 key quotes – that is, two passages of dialogue that are important to the plot, characterizations, mood, tone or themes of the play.

The format of the quotes should be consistent and should include the quotation itself, with Act, Scene and Line following it in parenthesis, and then one full paragraph of commentary explaining why that quote is important.

3. Performance – 50 Points

You will join a small group of other students from the class and form an “acting company” which will then perform one scene (or a part of a longer scene) from Macbeth. The scene must be performed entirely from memory – which means you must memorize all of your lines and then perform the scene in front of the class. You may have another student act as prompter – following along with a copy of the script, ready to prompt you with your lines if you forget some of them. Each part must be at least 14 lines.

4. Essay – 100 Points

You are a movie writer/producer/director. Choose one line from the play that will serve as the title for an upcoming movie you are writing, producing and directing.

Explain, in a 1 ½ - 2 page essay, the premise of the film (a brief plot summary list of characters, setting) and, MOST IMPORTANTLY, show how the title will embody the theme of your film.

The title should probably have a double meaning, or at least be open to another interpretation, or perhaps be a play on words. The idea of this assignment is for you to choose an important line from the play, explain the context in which the line occurs and how it relates to the theme of Macbeth, and then show how you carry that theme forward in your movie.

Example: William Faulkner wrote a famous novel entitle, The Sound and the Fury, based on a line from a soliloquy by Macbeth. In that soliloquy Macbeth says:

“It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

This is one of the most famous lines of the play and represents his despairing view of life. Faulkner picks up that dark vision but with a twist: his novel is told from the perspective of a mentally retarded man who sees the world but does not understand it or interpret it (a tale told by an idiot), and then the author tells the story again, from a more informed point of view, and the reader understands some of the images that were a mystery the first time through. The quote from Macbeth, then, leads the writer to a clever story-telling device, but also lends a powerful, dark mood to a novel that deals with hope and despair.

You may choose, like Faulkner did, to use a quote from the play as a title for a novel or TV show rather than a film, but for most students it will help to visualize a movie based on a quote

5. Unit Test – 100 points

Who said it? From what Act and Scene? You will be given 25 quotes from the play and you will need to identify the speaker or speakers and the act, scene and line where the quote occurs. Relax, you can use the text of the play for this one – but if you don’t already have some idea of where the quote comes from you will have a hard time finishing on time – so pay attention!

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