Thursday, February 5, 2015

All Boys, All Blogged: February 5, 2015

Focus: What does it mean to lead a noble life? What does it mean to have a noble death?


"It is his capacity for self-scrutiny that makes Macbeth a worthy tragic subject. He never lies to himself about the nature of his deed, never rationalizes to justify his actions. Aware that he doomed, he pursues his damnation headlong to his own destruction." (Norrie Epstein)

1. Warming up by responding to the focus question and quotation above

2. Recapping the first part of 4.3, watching Macduff's reaction to the sad news, and considering Macduff as a foil:

A foil is a character who serves by contrast to highlight the opposing qualities in another character.  For example, in Harry Potter, Malfoy serves as a foil to Harry Potter; while Malfoy is a bully who manipulates and hurts others, Harry is a hero who selflessly saves and protects others. They both, however, are able to using magic in cunning and powerful ways.

      4.3: How does Macduff serve as a foil to Macbeth? Try to come up with at least two ways.

3. Reading and watching Act 5, scene 1

  • What, specifically, is Lady Macbeth having nightmares about in this scene?
  • Find two things she says or does that are symbolic, and argue what they symbolize.
  • How has Lady Macbeth changed throughout the play?

4. Battling out Act 5, if time allows

  • Which characters are the most noble and how? Which are the least noble and how?
  • Which characters die nobly and how? Which die ignobly and how?



HW:
1. Final versions of your word traces are due Tuesday at the latest. Remember that you should have at least eight entries.

2. Read your banned book; make sure you're on track to finish by March 2.

3. Prepare for tomorrow's brief quiz on subjects and verbs.

2 comments:

  1. To have a noble life, one must be fairly rounded, a good person, and intelligent. Not necessarily knowing facts but being a knowledgeable person. A man who makes mistakes but does not make them again. To have a noble death it must be one with honor. Whether it be fighting in a war or saving another person.

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  2. To lead a noble life, one does not have to do something incredible. They must just be generally good people. They should be humble and courageous and serve others. To die a noble death is to die at either a noble time, or just dying after leading a noble life.

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