The following links should help you with your research on Macbeth.
An Introduction to Macbeth
SITE DESCRIPTION: A lecture prepared for English 366: Studies in Shakespeare, by Ian Johnston of Malaspina-University College, Nanaimo, BC. This text is in the public domain, released July 1999. It was last revised in minor ways in June, 2001.
Classic Notes
SITE DESCRIPTION: This site contains summaries and analysis as well as the full text of the play and various essays.
Darkness, Sign of Chaos in Macbeth
SITE DESCRIPTION: Darkness in our society
is indicative of evil. For instance, a black cat, a dark night, and a
dark place are all symbolic of diablerie. Authors use these symbols to
describe an evil character or setting. William Shakespeare employs the
imagery of darkness in Act 4 of his play Macbeth to describe the agents
of disorder. The witches,
Macbeth, and Scotland are all described as dark because they represent
the agents of chaos.
Enjoying Macbeth by Ed Friedlander
SITE DESCRIPTION: If you are a student assigned to read or see Macbeth, or an adult approaching it for the first time, you are in for a lot of fun. Everybody brings a different set of experiences to a book, a theater, or a classroom. Although I've tried to help, ultimately you'll need to decide for yourself about Shakespeare and Macbeth. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Shakespeare's Stories
SITE DESCRIPTION: This site looks at the history of the play. Who was Macbeth.The Scottish Play is based loosely on an episode from Scottish history, the death of King Duncan at the hands of his kinsman Macbeth.
Macbeth: A Case Study
SITE DESCRIPTION: If you were to ask any foreigner to name a Scots king, he would eventually mention Macbeth, and his knowledge would be based on Shakespeare’s famous play. However, Shakespeare’s drama was written more than 500 years after the real Macbeth was on the throne and the plot of the fictitious drama has somewhat overshadowed the true life of Macbeth
Macbeth: Tragic Hero (An Essay).
SITE DESCRIPTION: The character of Macbeth is a classic example of a Shakespearean tragic hero. There are many factors which contribute to thedegeneration of Macbeth of which three will be discussed. The three points which contribute greatly to Macbeth'sdegeneration are the prophecy which was told to him by the witches, how Lady Macbeth influenced and manipulated Macbeth's judgment, and finally Macbeth's long time ambition which drove his desire to be king. Macbeth's growing character degenerates from a noble man to violent individual.
Macbeth: An In Depth Analysis.
SITE DESCRIPTION: A very useful site for studying the play. The summaries, notes, and definitions are all stored in large files that serve you throughout the play. It is a good idea to let them load completely into your browser's cache the first time you access them, and from then on there will be a minimal delay.
The Witches Influence on Macbeth
SITE DESCRIPTION: The essay that follows was researched and written by Jennifer Riedel as part of the course on Shakespeare by Individual Studies, 1995; it is reprinted here with her permission. While copyright is retained by Jennifer Riedel and the University of Victoria, this material may freely be used for educational and non-profit purposes, so long as the author and source are cited.Please remember that plagiarism is not research.
A Hypertext Guide to Macbeth
SITE DESCRIPTION: This is a hypertext study guide to Macbeth.
Hypertext means you can click on words (or graphics) and link to another page.
This guide also makes use of HTML frames, which let you see web pages that are arranged in separate windows.
This study guide is an ongoing project. Scene summaries are complete for the whole play. Speech summaries, analytical comments and glossary entries are included in Act I only.
Major Themes in Macbeth
SITE DESCRIPTION: This site explores some of the major themes in Macbeth.
Shakespeare Macbeth Guide
SITE DESCRIPTION: A guide that includes summaries, questions and answers and a brief overview.
