More Witchery in Macbeth Than You Think!
The “Scottish Drama” so called by cast members during a production of the play for fear of the superstition: that calling the play Macbeth, will awaken the dark forces of the story and—terrible thing will happen.
The dark-depressive-treacherous tone of the tragedy ironically make it the most loved—unloved drama of the Shakespeare cannon.
“Tomorrow’s, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.” — Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 5, lines 19-28)
King James I, who came from Scotland after Queen Elizabeth’s Death, was so obsessed with witchcraft that he wrote a book about it. Shakespeare knew what side his bread-was-buttered-on and practiced dramatic witchery (also called “Poetic License”) to please and legitimize the new king.
Shakespeare was a playwright, not a historian.
There was a King Macbeth of Scotland who lived four-hundred years before Shakespeare and he was killed in a battle with Macduff; that’s about the only match between fact and fiction.
To see a fascinating video on the real King Macbeth and his relation to Shakespeare: Watch it here:
You will discover that the tragic result of the death of the real King Macbeth in the loss of the Scottish Highlander Culture and it’s eventual Europeanization is a darker tragedy.
Truth and (or) fiction, the difference between—a good story and reality? Good stories are easier to believe than hard facts. Something to think about in the sea of political witchery that we swim in today—nothing has changed—treachery and power are two words with the same meaning, that’s the darkness that makes Shakespeare’s Macbeth uncomfortable.
From my Tub to yours
Carpe Diem,
Carl
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