12/11/19 Alex Li (P5) : Hecate the Malicious and Sadistic.

Sophomore 2020 

Alex Li 

Period 5 

Aim: How does Act III, scenes iv and v function as essential plot movement to structure Macbeth's ultimate fate?

   We start off the class with our teacher, Ms. Fusaro, explaining a bit of background for this section of the book. She talks about what's going on with Hecate and the Witches, while Macbeth is traveling to them. Ms. Fusaro talks about the stigma with Hecate and those that are cast out. Although these people may not be exactly evil we perceive them as such because of what happened to them. A comparison is drawn between the Hecate and Satan because of how we as people perceive them. 

   We continue the class by reading Act III, scenes v-vi, while listening to a women recite Hecate's speech. These two scenes are generally about Hecate's interaction with the witches and how Macduff and Lennox are going to go against Macbeth because they suspect he committed the murder of king Duncan and Banquo. Following the two scene we read are some questions which we answered within our groups:

Read Aloud (part 2) Act III scene vi  

1. What is Lennox’s tone? How do we know?
1. Lennox’s tone is sarcastic and mocking because he is talking about how Macbeth is a tyrant, saying how there is no way Fleance killed Banquo and insulting the fact that Macbeth killed the guards. 
2. How does Lennox feel about Macbeth?
1. Lennox feels that Macbeth is the one who caused all the problems. He’s the one that killed Duncan and Banquo. 
3. What is Macduff’s plan and how do Lennox (and the others of Scotland) feel about it? 
1. Macduff’s plan is to flee to England and ask King Edward for help.

Act III, scene v-Groups

1. Why is Hecate irritated at the Witched? 
1. Hecate is irritated because the witches didn’t tell her they conversed with Macbeth and didn’t properly perform the art of witchcraft. She’s angry that they wasted the gift for someone who already had the characteristic. 
2. How does Hecate illustrate a flaw in Macbeth?
1. Hecate shows that Macbeth is overly ambitious and selfish, wanting his own gain. She wants to trick him with even more illusions.  
3. What is her plan for Macbeth?
1. She plans for Macbeth to have a tragic end. 
4. Do you agree with Hecate? What evidence do you have for your assertion?
1. I agree with Hecate about scolding the witches because they never talked to her about Macbeth and performed the incorrect procedure. They wasted the prophecy basically. My evidence is that she is the goddess of witches and so she should know if the witches are going to act upon something. 
5. Some people believe Shakespeare didn’t write this scene, as much, Roman Polanski opted not to add it to the film version we’re watching. If you were the director of a contemporary film version of Macbeth, how would you stage this scene? What would it look like? Who would be the actors you choose for each character? Why?
1. If I were the director of a contemporary film version of Macbeth, I would stage this scene at night in a cave or enclosed space somewhere. Hecate would be shot with low angle shots making her look bigger and thus emphasizing her anger with the witches. The actors would probably all be women and maybe on the older side to really show the witches and Hecate properly.  

Fun Fact: hubris- excessive pride which the Greeks though was the root of all sin. Overall, I believe that Hecate was trying a bit to hard to destroy Macbeth. Not only did Macbeth already have over ambition within himself, the witches had to give him that prophecy. Hecate is just going for the overkill by messing Macbeth with even more illusions.

My Reflection:

  Today I learned about characterization and how what a character feels can be translated into actions/words. For instance, through Hecate's speech we can tell that she is mad at the witches. There are phrases like, "Saucy and overbold, how did you dare" and "Was never called to bear my part" which clearly show that Hecate is mad. Furthermore when Lennox is talking to one of the lords we can see how sarcastic Lennox is and how he goes against Macbeth. Lennox mocks Macbeth and the whole situation in which people are expected to believe Fleance killed his own father as a little boy. “What ‘twere kill a father. So should Fleance.” I learned it because it is a very element idea among all literature. In every book with characters, we have to know their traits to fully understand them. Again and again characterization will pop up and so that’s why it is very important. Without the use of characterization, plot cannot move forward. I will use what I learned in the future for future books when trying to understand a character or make one up myself when writing. I will use these skills to develop/understand complex characters and really get to know them as it helps tremendously with understanding the book as a whole.