William Shakespeare's 'Macbeth'

Course Overview

Students will study the classic English play, William Shakespeare's 'Macbeth.' They will begin with lessons introducing them to Shakespeare's works and his language. They will be taken through the plot of the play, learning the significance of key characters and themes that appear throughout. The play's rich context will be explored, with a discussion of issues such as witchcraft, evil and the Supernatural. Students will read and analyse the text through extracts. They will conduct extract analysis of key scenes, explore thematic and character significance across the text, learn historical and social contexts and the play's overarching messages. They will explore the ethics and moral issues Shakespeare poses, such as morality, free will and human nature. Students will learn oracy, analytical reading, analytical writing, close language analysis, amongst other fundamental literacy skills. Students will also learn the dramatic value of the text, exploring the role of dramatic irony, setting, stage directions and how these contribute to the play's success. Students will prepare for an assessment to conclude the course, which asks them to analyse a key area of the play in the style of a typical exam question: 'Discuss the significance of X in the text.' There will be opportunities for assessment feedback and improvement, following the submission of the essay. By the end of the course, students will be able to read, understand and analyse Shakespearean English, having studied Macbeth in its entirety.