Macbeth Media Text Essay, Research Paper

Macbeth

Media Text In

the scenes leading up to Act 5 scene 8, we see Macduff and his army making

their way to Dunsinane, ready to fight Macbeth. On their way to Dunsinane they

stop at Birnam wood. They cut it down and hold branches above their heads, so when

Macbeth looks out of the castle it looks like Birnam wood is coming towards the

castle. This is the first of the prophecies ? Macbeth shall never vanquished

be, until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill Shall come against him?to

come true In

Act 5 scene 8, it opens to the battleground, in the book. In the video, Macbeth

is on a balcony in his castle looking down at a crowd of people, who are there

to fight him. In the book we may get the idea that Macbeth is very angry and is

shouting, but in the video it is portrayed very well, Macbeth is literally

going mad- Macbeth still wants to kill people so why should he die? ?Why should

I play the Roman fool, and die of mine own sword? Whiles I see lives, the

gashes Do better upon them.? At

this point Macbeth seems undaunted by the first prophecy coming true, and he

still believes in the prophecy that he cannot be harmed by any man born of

woman. There is not a hint of nervousness shown by Macbeth. When

Macduff and Macbeth begin to fight, Macbeth explains to Macduff that it is not

worth fighting because he cannot be harmed by anyone born from woman and

Macbeth is in a way boasting about it. That is until, Macduff tells Macbeth how

he was born prematurely and was delivered through a caesarean, so Macduff was

not considered to be born of woman. On hearing this Macbeth is stunned and it

is like a bomb has been dropped, it is a very intense moment, perhaps the most

intense moment throughout the whole of the play and I think Shakespeare did a

brilliant job in portraying this across to the audience. It is not just because

Macbeth has found out the truth about Macduff, but he has also realised that

the witches had just been playing with his mind the whole time and he has

realised what they have done to his life. This is very dramatic and we can

almost feel the silence that comes after Macduff tells Macbeth. After

this Macbeth is disheartened and refuses to fight, until Macduff calls him a

coward and tells him he will be the spectacle of the age ?Then yield thee,

coward And live to be the show and gaze o? th? time.? At

this, Macbeth changes his mind ?Yet I will try the last?. The

ending of the scene is not very dramatic, we are just told that Macbeth is

slain, Shakespeare did not want to make the killing any more dramatic, I

suppose because it is already a dramatic scene and he does not need to emphasise

on the killing of Macbeth. In

the script, Act 5 scene 8 is a dramatic scene, but we have to use our

imagination, whereas in the video we have a clearer picture of what happened,

although it is slightly different to the book. The realised

form of Macbeth that I watched was the Polanski film. It was quite similar to

the book, and it was directed in close reference to the book. In the

video, from the very start of the scene we can see Macbeth shouting and

screaming at the crowd, showing his madness. When

Macduff enters there is complete silence, I think this is appropriate and

Shakespeare would have approved of this, as it is the meeting of the two

rivals. After

a brief conversation they begin to fight. Macbeth has the opportunity to kill

Macduff but feels a twinge of guilt ?my soul is too much charged with blood of

thine already?. I think this is a strange twist because I thought Macbeth would

have killed Macduff at the first opportunity he got, it would not have been in

co-ordinance with the prophecies though. ?When they start fighting Macbeth tells

Macduff about the prophecy that ?none of woman born Shall harm Macbeth?. When Macduff

replies we see the fear in Macbeths face, and we see the flashbacks from the

time when Macbeth was with the witches and the apparitions were revealed to him,

this is quite good because in the book we have to use our imagination for this.

After

this Macbeth doesn?t show much fear but in the book it is portrayed that

Macbeth is very afraid, whereas in the video, he starts to fight again more

quickly, and does not show fear. During the fight we can see that Macbeth and

Macduff are evenly matched. As they

are fighting Macbeth holds on to his crown, as if it was the sole determination

of his being king. Then

during a tense moment Macduff puts his sword under Macbeths arm through to his

chest. Then there is a dramatic moment with scary, eerie music as Macbeth

staggers up the steps to the balcony and as Macduff goes of after him and chops

Macbeths head of. ?Macbeths head is then mounted on a pole and

carried around like in the third prophecy. I think

this scene was acted out well and it was directed very well, there were good

special effects used and it turned out to be very realistic. I liked this scene

and I think that it is better in the realised form, due to the special effects

used. ?Macbeths head is then mounted on a pole and

held above the crowds. I think it made a more dramatic ending to the scene and I

think it was appropriate for the video, as you would have had to have a vivid

imagination to imagine something like that from reading it in the book. ? ? ?