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Macbeth (1982 Film)
''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambitions and power. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book, and is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy. Scholars believe ''Macbeth'', of all the plays that Shakespeare wrote during the reign of King James I, contains the most allusions to James, patron of Shakespeare's acting company. In the play, a brave Scottish general named Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to violence by his wife, Macbeth murders the king and takes the Scottish throne for himself. Then, racked with guilt and paranoia, he commits further violent murders to protect himself from enmity and suspicion, soon becoming a tyrannical ruler. The blood ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
First Folio
''Mr. William Shakespeare's Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies'' is a collection of plays by William Shakespeare, commonly referred to by modern scholars as the First Folio, published in 1623, about seven years after Shakespeare's death. It is considered one of the most influential books ever published. Printed in Folio (printing), folio format and containing 36 of Shakespeare's plays#Canonical plays, Shakespeare's plays, it was prepared by Shakespeare's colleagues John Heminges and Henry Condell. It was dedication (publishing), dedicated to the "incomparable pair of brethren" William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke, and his brother Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke, Philip Herbert, Earl of Montgomery (later 4th Earl of Pembroke). Although 19 of Shakespeare's plays had been published in quarto before 1623, the First Folio is arguably the only reliable text for about 20 of the plays, and a valuable source text for many of those previously published. Eighteen of the plays in the Fir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Three Witches
The Three Witches, also known as the Weird Sisters, Weyward Sisters or Wayward Sisters, are characters in William Shakespeare's play ''Macbeth'' (c. 1603–1607). The witches eventually lead Macbeth (Macbeth), Macbeth to his demise, and they hold a striking resemblance to Moirai, the three Fates of classical mythology. Their origin lies in Holinshed's Chronicles, Holinshed's ''Chronicles'' (1587), a history of England, Scotland and Ireland. Other possible sources, apart from Shakespeare, include British folklore, contemporary treatises on witchcraft as James I of England, King James VI of Scotland's ''Daemonologie'', the Witch of Endor from the Bible, the Norns of Norse mythology, and ancient classical myths of the Fates: the Greek Moirai and the Roman Parcae. Shakespeare's witches are prophets who hail Macbeth early in the play, and predict his ascent to kingship. Upon killing the king and gaining the throne of Scotland, Macbeth hears them ambiguously predict his eventual dow ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thane (Scotland)
Thane (; ) was the title given to a local royal official in medieval eastern Scotland, equivalent in rank to the son of an earl, who was at the head of an administrative and socio-economic unit known as a thanedom or thanage. History The earliest documentary record of a thane is in the written judgement of a land dispute settled at a provincial assembly of Fife between 1128 and 1136, at which one attendee is described as the thane of Falkland. A further eleven thanes are recorded over the course of the rest of the 12th century, attached to estates from East Lothian to Moray, all of which were at the time under the control of the King of Alba. From around the beginning of the 13th century a few thanes also start to be documented attached to estates under the control of earls, including Dunning and Strowan, which both lay within the Earldom of Strathearn. A statute of 1221 explicitly allowed that some thanes could be responsible to an earl rather than the king, though the o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Scottish Play
''The Scottish Play'' and ''the Bard's play'' are euphemism, euphemisms for the William Shakespeare play ''Macbeth''. The first is a reference to the play's Scotland, Scottish setting, and the second is a reference to Shakespeare's popular nickname. According to a theatrical superstitions, theatrical superstition, called the ''Scottish curse'', speaking the name ''Macbeth'' inside a theatre, other than as called for in the script while rehearsing or performing, will cause disaster. On top of the aforementioned alternative titles, some people also refer to the classical tragedy as ''Mackers'' for this reason. Variations of the superstition may also forbid quoting lines from the play within a theatre except as part of an actual rehearsal or performance of the play. Because of this superstition, the Macbeth (character), title character is often referred to as the ''Scottish King'' or ''Scottish Lord''. Lady Macbeth is often referred to as the ''Scottish Lady'' or ''Lady M''. Howe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was an unsuccessful attempted regicide against James VI and I, King James VI of Scotland and I of England by a group of English Catholics, English Roman Catholics, led by Robert Catesby, who considered their actions attempted tyrannicide and who sought regime change in England after decades of religious persecution. The plan was to blow up the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament on Tuesday 5 November 1605, as the prelude to a popular revolt in the English Midlands, Midlands during which King James's nine-year-old daughter, Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia, Princess Elizabeth, was to be installed as the new head of state. Catesby is suspected by historians to have embarked on the scheme after hopes of greater religious tolerance under James VI and I, King James I had faded, leaving many English Catholics disappointed. His fellow conspirators were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Henry Garnet
Henry Garnet (July 1555 – 3 May 1606), sometimes Henry Garnett, was an English Jesuit priest executed for high treason in the United Kingdom, high treason, based solely on having had advance knowledge of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot and having refused to violate the Seal of the Confessional by notifying the authorities. Born in Heanor, Derbyshire, he was educated in Nottingham and later at Winchester College before he moved to London in 1571 to work for a publisher. There he professed an interest in legal studies and in 1575, he travelled to the continent and joined the Society of Jesus. He was ordained in Rome some time around 1582. In 1586 Garnet returned to England as part of the Jesuit mission, soon succeeding Father William Weston (Jesuit), William Weston as Jesuit Superior (hierarchy), superior, following the latter's capture by the English authorities. Garnet established a secret press, which lasted until late 1588, and in 1594 he interceded in the Wisbech Stirs, a disp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Holinshed's Chronicles
''Holinshed's Chronicles'', also known as ''Holinshed's Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland'', is a collaborative work published in several volumes and two editions, the first edition in 1577, and the second in 1587. It was a large, comprehensive description of British history published in three volumes (England, Scotland and Ireland). The ''Chronicles'' have been a source of interest because of their extensive links to Shakespearean history, as well as '' King Lear'', '' Macbeth'' and '' Cymbeline''. Recent studies of the ''Chronicles'' have focused on an inter-disciplinary approach; numerous literary scholars have studied the traditional historiographical materials through a literary lens, with a focus on how contemporary men and women would have read historical texts. The ''Chronicles'' would have been a primary source for many other literary writers of the Renaissance such as Christopher Marlowe, Edmund Spenser and George Daniel. Description In 1548, Re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Duncan I Of Scotland
Donnchad mac Crinain (; anglicised as Duncan I, and nicknamed An t-Ilgarach, "the Diseased" or "the Sick"; – 14 August 1040)Broun, "Duncan I (d. 1040)". was king of Scotland (''Alba'') from 1034 to 1040. He is the historical basis of the " King Duncan" in Shakespeare's play ''Macbeth''. Life The ancestry of King Duncan is not certain. In modern texts, he is the son of Crínán, hereditary lay abbot of Dunkeld, and Bethóc, daughter of King Malcolm II. However, in the late 17th century the historian Frederic Van Bossen, after collecting historical accounts throughout Europe, identified King Duncan as the first son of Abonarhl ap crinan (the grandson of Crinan) and princess Beatrice, the eldest daughter to King Malcom II, and Gunnor who was the daughter of the " 2nd Duke of Normandy". Unlike the "King Duncan" of Shakespeare's ''Macbeth'', the historical Duncan appears to have been a young man. He followed his grandfather Malcolm as king after the latter's death on 25 N ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Macduff (Macbeth)
Lord Macduff, the Thane of Fife, is a character and the heroic main antagonist in William Shakespeare's ''Macbeth'' (c.1603–1607) that is loosely based on history. Macduff, a legendary hero, plays a pivotal role in the play: he suspects Macbeth of regicide and eventually kills Macbeth in the final act. He can be seen as the avenging hero who helps save Scotland from Macbeth's tyranny in the play. The character is first known from '' Chronica Gentis Scotorum'' (late 14th century) and '' Orygynale Cronykil of Scotland'' (early 15th century). Shakespeare drew mostly from ''Holinshed's Chronicles'' (1587). Although characterised sporadically throughout the play, Macduff serves as a foil to Macbeth and a figure of morality. Origin The overall plot that would serve as the basis for ''Macbeth'' is first seen in the writings of two chroniclers of Scottish history, John of Fordun, whose prose '' Chronica Gentis Scotorum'' was begun about 1363, and Andrew of Wyntoun's Scots verse ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Macbeth, King Of Scotland
Macbethad mac Findláech (anglicised as Macbeth MacFinlay; died 15 August 1057), nicknamed the Red King (), was King of Scotland from 1040 until his death in 1057. He ruled during the period of Scottish history known as the Kingdom of Alba. Little is known about Macbeth's early life, although he was the son of Findláech of Moray and may have been a grandson of Malcolm II, presumably through the latter's daughter Donada. He became Mormaer (Earl) of Moray – a semi-autonomous province – in 1032, and was probably responsible for the death of the previous mormaer, Gille Coemgáin. He subsequently married Gille Coemgáin's widow, Gruoch. In 1040, Duncan I launched an attack into Moray and was killed in action by Macbeth's troops. Macbeth succeeded him as King of Alba, apparently with little opposition. His 17-year reign was mostly peaceful, although in 1054 he was faced with an English invasion, led by Siward, Earl of Northumbria, on behalf of Edward the Confessor. Macbe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tyrant
A tyrant (), in the modern English usage of the word, is an absolute ruler who is unrestrained by law, or one who has usurped a legitimate ruler's sovereignty. Often portrayed as cruel, tyrants may defend their positions by resorting to repressive means. The original Greek term meant an absolute sovereign who came to power without constitutional right, yet the word had a neutral connotation during the Archaic and early Classical periods. However, Greek philosopher Plato saw ''tyrannos'' as a negative form of government, and on account of the decisive influence of philosophy on politics, deemed tyranny the "fourth and worst disorder of a state."Plato, ''The Republic'' Book VIII The philosophers Plato and Aristotle defined a tyrant as a person who rules without law, using extreme and cruel methods against both his own people and others. The ''Encyclopédie'' defined the term as a usurper of sovereign power who makes "his subjects the victims of his passions and unjust ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
