WEEK SIX: UPDATE

On Monday we began the actual text of the play. Students were introduced to the witches:

“What are these
So wither’d and so wild in their attire,
That look not like the inhabitants o’ the earth,
And yet are on’t? Live you? or are you aught
That man may question? You seem to understand me,
By each at once her choppy finger laying
Upon her skinny lips: you should be women,
And yet your beards forbid me to interpret
That you are so” (1.3.40-48).

As I dressed in my withered and wild attire, students were better able visualize the appearance of these weird sisters. In Act One, the witches are used to propel the plot, while the battles are used to establish the heroic nature of Macbeth.

While we are studying the play in class, students should continue to read their ISU novels at home. At this point, each student should have completed the first-third of the book. Today students submitted a brief biography of the author, and a paragraph explaining why they selected their novel. In small groups, students shared their books, and discussed one reason why the novel is still relevant to today’s reader.