Hello, my name is Ms. Grant.

I'm so glad you've decided to learn with me today.

We're gonna be looking at the play, "Macbeth," specifically Lady Macbeth's increasing desperation between Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 1, Scene 7.

I'm gonna be your support and guide as we go through this lesson.

Let's get started.

So by the end of today's lesson, you're gonna be able to compare the ways that Lady Macbeth has been presented in two different Scenes.

We're gonna look really carefully at the language in Act 1, Scene 5, and the language in Act 1, Scene 7.

And we can think what is happening with Lady Macbeth's language between these two Scenes.

We've got some key words to support us in today's lesson.

They are rhetoric, desperation, emasculate, ruthless, and imagery.

We're gonna be referring to these throughout.

They're gonna help us achieve our objective.

Their definitions are gonna come up one by one on the next slide.

Read through them and if you want to spend some more time with our keywords and their definitions, pause the video at the end of the next slide.

(no audio) (no audio) (no audio) So let's look at our lesson outline for today.

We're gonna start off by looking at Lady Macbeth's language in Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 1, Scene 7.

And we're gonna finish with a comparative analysis of Lady Macbeth's language in these two Scenes.

Let's start off with Lady Macbeth's language in Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 1, Scene 7.

Arguably Lady Macbeth's language changes over the course of Act 1.

Let's look at what she says in Act 1, Scene 5, or some of the things she says.

When she's talking about Macbeth, she says, "Yet do I fear thy nature.

It is too full of the milk of human kindness." She's alone when she says this.

I'd like you to pause the video and discuss what image does Lady Macbeth use to describe Macbeth's goodness, explore its connotations.

Pause the video and discuss the question.

(no audio) Some lovely exploration of language there.

Looking at this idea of milk of human kindness.

That image arguably suggesting Macbeth's innocence.

And often we think of innocence as quite positive.

But Lady Macbeth here is saying that she's scared of that innocence.

She's scared of his compassion, his milk of human kindness.

Another discussion question for this important image, this important quotation to the play.

Is this imagery positive? And what kind of tone might you direct the actor playing Lady Macbeth to adopt? Pause the video and discuss this question.

Lovely discussion.

There are lots of people noting that it is a positive image, but Lady Macbeth is annoyed about it or fearful, anxious about it.

Anyway, she knows that it might prevent him from committing the regicide, from killing King Duncan.

And a kind of variation of what people, how they would direct the actor playing Lady Macbeth to adopt, some people saying that she'd sound quite angry, angry that her husband has this compassion within him.

Others saying that actually you thought she would sound a bit more cunning thinking, how am I going to overcome this milk of human kindness? This is an obstacle.

How am I going to get past this obstacle? Always nice to think about how actors or directors might choose to say this line, because it is after all a play.

It is designed to be performed.

Now let's look at Act 1, Scene 7, where arguably her language has changed.

When Macbeth says, "I will not kill King Duncan," one of the things Lady Macbeth says to him is, "Was the hope drunk wherein you dress'd yourself, wakes it now to look so green and pale at what it did so freely?" I'd like you to discuss this question.

What image is being used to describe Macbeth's cowardice and how does it differ from her description of Macbeth's kindness? Pause the video, look at this quotation and discuss the question.

(no audio) Some great discussions there, some great comparative discussions.

Lots of people saying this image is very different to Lady Macbeth, saying, Macbeth's kind, he's innocent, saying that alone, rather than throwing this insult in his face to him, and she's using an image where she's saying, "You are like a man who has a hangover." You were brave last night when you were drinking, but now you regret your decision.

And she's liking that to his decision to commit regicide.

She's saying green and pale to try and show that he's now being quite weak.

She wants him to commit the regicide, so she's trying to use language to force him to do that.

But a very different image from her description of Macbeth's kindness.

Let's go back to Act 1, Scene 5.

This is how Lady Macbeth greets Macbeth when they first meet after he's come back from battle.

She says, "Great Glamis, worthy Cawdor, greater than both by the all hail hereafter." She says this directly to Macbeth.

So I'd like us to discuss how might this greeting make Macbeth feel, and why do you think Lady Macbeth greets him in this way? Pause the video and discuss this question.

(no audio) Some heated discussions there about that second question, why you think Lady Macbeth greets him in this way? Let's deal with the first question first.

So lots of people saying, well, Macbeth is gonna feel pretty good if Lady Macbeth greets him in this way.

It is designed to build him up, to praise him for getting promoted and to also anticipate that he will get a further promotion, he will be king.

And some people saying, well, I think that Lady Macbeth greets him in this way 'cause she's genuinely excited, genuinely happy that he has been promoted and thinks he deserves to be king.

Another saying, no, this is an example of Lady Macbeth's manipulation.

She's calling him King so that he feels like he has to commit the Regicide, that it's already part of his life.

So two different interpretations there of Lady Macbeth's greeting.

Let's compare it to Act 1, Scene 7, when she says to Macbeth, "When you durst do it," the regicide, "then you were a man." I'd like you to discuss this question.

How do you think this statement is gonna make Macbeth feel and how does it differ from her previous greeting? Pause the video and discuss the question.

(no audio) Again, really nice comparison here between those two quotations.

You are right that she's absolutely linking the regicide to his idea, his identity of being a man, which is very important to Macbeth.

Lots of people referencing the fact that he is a thane and that the play starts with him bravely fighting in battle.

She's connecting the Regicide to his masculinity and therefore she's undermining him.

In A, Scene 5, she was building him up, and here she's now undermining him.

So very different image, very different from her previous greeting.

We're gonna go back to Act 1, Scene 5, a final time, Lady Macbeth says to Macbeth, who she can see is clearly not very happy about the regicide, "You shall put this night's great business," the regicide, "into my dispatch.

Leave all the rest to me." I'd like you to discuss how is Lady Macbeth trying to make Macbeth feel about the regicide? And how might you direct an actor to say these lines, pause the video and discuss these questions.

(no audio) Again, really nice to hear some disagreement about how to interpret these lines.

And that's what plays are all about, interpretation.

So some people saying that Lady Macbeth is trying to make Macbeth not think about the regicide at all, to reassure him, to calm him, and others saying this is part of her plot to get power and actually it's not a nice thing, it might look like reassurance, but actually it's part of her manipulation.

And again, some people saying, look, we need Lady Macbeth here to be calming, to be soothing because Macbeth is clearly very stressed about the idea of regicide.

But others saying, she will be more direct, she will be more forceful.

She's in control here.

So that anger might be seeping out.

Let's compare it to Act 1, Scene 7.

Macbeth who said "I don't want to commit the regicide." Lady Macbeth is here trying to convince him, and here's one of the images that she uses.

She says, "When feeding our child, I would, have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out.

Had I so sworn, as you have done to this." I'd like you to discuss why is this a desperate image? What is Lady Macbeth hoping to achieve? And how might you direct and actor to say this? Pause the video and discuss these questions.

(no audio) Some beautiful discussions about this very violent, desperate image that Lady Macbeth uses and lots of people saying, well, yeah, it's desperate because she's talking about killing her own child.

Killing a child obviously an absolutely terrible idea to bring up and kind of increased by talking about her own child and those violent verbs, dashed and plucked, really showing the aggression that she can exhibit.

And Lady Macbeth is trying here to emasculate Macbeth to emotionally blackmail him, show him what she's willing to do to prove her loyalty and it's extreme.

And how might you direct an actor to say this? Some people saying that they would want that violence to be acted out so that Lady Macbeth is really showing Macbeth what she's willing to do.

So kind of using her arms to mimic the action and others saying that it might be quieter, slightly more insidious, so that the kind of undercurrent of violence within Lady Macbeth is really clear.

Really nice to think about the way in which this Scene might play out.

So we know that Lady Macbeth is using increasingly desperate language.

We've looked at that comparison between 1.

5 and 1.

7.

And just to frame your discussion, to bring your discussion together, I'd like you to consider her ambition.

So why is she using increasingly desperate language? How does it link to her ambition? The seriousness of the crime and Macbeth's soliloquy in 1.

7, remember he said he has a desire to proceed no further in this business, to not commit the regicide.

Pause the video, discuss the question using those three bullet points to frame your answer.

(no audio) Lovely to hear people moving from what Lady Macbeth is saying and unpicking that language to why she might be saying it.

Here are some ideas that you might have had.

So her ambition, as soon as Lady Macbeth hears about prophecy, she clearly decides the golden round.

So she is desperate for power.

That's why her language becomes increasingly desperate, the seriousness of the crime.

While regicide has consequences on earth and in the afterlife, her language is desperate because it's a desperate and life altering act.

And finally, Macbeth's soliloquy.

Macbeth needs convincing to commit the regicide.

So she uses the most manipulative, the most desperate language she can to goad him into doing it.

Lovely discussions there, tied together.

Language, but also motivations of a particular character.

So a quick check for understanding.

Which sentences do you think are valid explanations of this quotation? "When you durst do it, then you were a man." We've got A, this persuasive rhetoric is a continuation of her language in 1.

5 when she called him "Great Glamis," and is equally desperate.

B, this is a more desperate example of Lady Macbeth's initial description of Macbeth's limitations, "Too full of the milk of human kindness." C, this persuasive rhetoric works, 'cause it's a violent image showing Lady Macbeth's own capacity for violence.

Or D, this persuasive rhetoric ruthlessly attacks Macbeth's sense of self.

Pause the video and select the two responses that you think are the most valid explanations of the quotation.

(no audio) Well done if you selected B and D.

A single paragraph outline is a way of planning for an essay question.

A single paragraph outline contains a topic sentence, bullet pointed supporting detail from the text, a concluding summary sentence.

I'd like you to complete the single paragraph outline which answers this question.

How does Shakespeare present Lady Macbeth's increasing desperation? Here's our table to complete the single paragraph outline, and I'm gonna give you the topic sentence, which is Shakespeare presents Lady Macbeth as increasingly desperate for power.

Entranced by the idea of the golden round in 1.

5, Her rhetoric becomes ruthlessly emasculating in 1.

7 as she reacts against her husband's hesitancy.

I'd like you to find four pieces of supporting detail, but I've given you the concluding summary sentence as well to help you.

It says, "In this way, Shakespeare explores the idea of responsibility, seemingly suggesting that without Lady Macbeth's persuasive rhetoric, Macbeth would've remained a loyal Thane." Pause the video and identify what you would like to use as your supporting detail.

(no audio) Lovely to see people looking back at Act 1, Scene 5, and Act 1, Scene 7 in such close detail and using a real range of evidence to prove this topic sentence is valid.

Here are some ideas that you might have had.

in Act 1, Scene 5 it's clear Lady Macbeth is aware of her husband's limitations, "Too full of the milk of human kindness," but she builds him up, "Great Glamis," rather than immediately emasculating him.

She's happy to be the one filled with cruelty and gall, poison, and doesn't expect it from Macbeth.

But as soon as Macbeth says, 'We shall proceed no further in this business," Lady Macbeth uses imagery to suggest he's like a drunkard who has a hangover and regrets his earlier decision to drink, i.

e.

accusing him of being pathetic, weak, green and pale.

In Act 1, Scene 5, she avoids agitating Macbeth, tries to calm him with, "Leave all the rest to me," but by 1.

7, her rhetoric attacks Macbeth's sense of self, "When you durst do it, then you were a man." Finally, in Act 1, Scene 7, Lady Macbeth weaponizes their relationship stating she would never break a promise to Macbeth regardless of what it was.

Plus shows her own capacity for violence, a shocking, desperate image of dashing her own child's brains to the floor.

Those are just some ideas you might have had that might have been different quotations or moments in either of those scenes, which you really want to explore in your single paragraph outline.

So we're going to look at our second learning cycle now, we're gonna look at a comparative analysis.

Let's read the first section of the student's response to the question.

How does Shakespeare present Lady Macbeth's increasing desperation? This student wrote, "Shakespeare presents Lady Macbeth as increasingly desperate for power.

Entranced by the idea of the golden round in 1.

5, her rhetoric becomes ruthlessly emasculating in 1.

7 as she reacts against her husband's hesitancy.

Shakespeare's presentation of Lady Macbeth in Act 1, Scene 5 reveals she's a shrewd and preemptive character.

She knows that her husband is too full of the milk of human kindness to kill King Duncan and so asks spirits to fill her with cruelty so she can make up for her husband's deficiencies and they can still achieve the throne.

This is borne out when Macbeth returns to their castle and she builds them up with compliments.

'Great Glamis, worthy Cawdor, greater than both,' and reassures him with, 'Leave all the rest to me.

' But these softer tactics are short-lived." So a really nice paragraph there.

Just the first section where the student is answering the question.

How does Shakespeare present Lady Macbeth's increasing desperation? I'd like you to discuss how does the student begin to compare both scenes? So they need to look at Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 1, Scene 7.

Where have they started to do that comparison? Pause the video and discuss the question.

(no audio) Lovely here to hear people celebrating the student's work, but also picking apart really specific details of what makes it so strong.

Here are some ideas that you might have had.

We can see that the student has focused on the idea of development and change.

So Shakespeare presents Lady Macbeth as increasingly desperate.

So there's a change there.

And her rhetoric becomes ruthlessly emasculating in Act 1, Scene 7.

So those two words there increasingly and becomes showing a change, a development.

They've got a really nice developed analysis of 1.

5, Shakespeare's presentation of Lady Macbeth in Act 1, Scene 5 reveals and they really spent some time unpacking the language that they want to focus on there.

And they also signal that there is a change in behaviour by saying, "These softer tactics are short-lived." So you can see that they're gonna move on to Act 1, Scene 7 in the next bit of their paragraph.

So really nice analysis, but also really, really nice comparison.

Quick check for understanding.

Which sentences do you think analyse Lady Macbeth's increasing desperation by comparing Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 1, Scene 7.

Select all that apply.

Pause the video and select which you think show Lady Macbeth's increasing desperation through comparison.

(no audio) Well done if you selected A, B, and C.

A, we've got increasingly violent.

And B, we can see Lady Macbeth abandons her earlier tactics.

And C, the ruthless emasculation is a marked change.

So all of those showing that there is comparison between Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 1, Scene 7.

So you're gonna use your single paragraph outline to write your own answer to the question.

How does Shakespeare present Lady Macbeth's increasing desperation? You've got the topic sentence and summary sentence, and you've already selected your supporting detail.

Pause the video and create a developed paragraph which compares the language of Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 1, Scene 7.

Good luck.

(no audio) Beautiful to see people writing and really unpacking their ideas about Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 1, Scene 7.

And nice to see that range of evidence selected, people really exploring language in a lot of depth.

Before we celebrate your responses, let's do some self-assessment.

So I'd like you to self-assess your answer using the questions below to guide you.

Have you included a topic sentence? Have you included four pieces of supporting detail from across both scenes? Have you established that there is a change in Lady Macbeth's language between the two scenes? And have you got a summary sentence? Pause the video and self-assess your work using the questions to guide you.

(no audio) It was lovely to see people writing, but equally lovely to see people self-assessing their work.

Such a crucial part of the writing process.

You should really celebrate the writing that you've done today.

Looking at two incredibly rich scenes and determining why you think Lady Macbeth's language becomes increasingly desperate.

In summary, Lady Macbeth seems to become more desperate for power throughout Act 1.

Lady Macbeth's desperation could be interpreted as what leads her to manipulating her husband.

And Lady Macbeth's language appears to get more aggressive and violent in Act 1, Scene 7.

Finally, Lady Macbeth uses persuasive rhetoric in Act 1, Scene 7.

It's been a pleasure working through this lesson with you today, hearing all of your fantastic ideas.

I look forward to seeing you next time.