Macbeth 10 -The Prompt Book (Act 3, scene 4)
"It will have blood, they say; blood will have blood."
Macbeth 10 - The Prompt Book - Act 3, scene 4): This is perhaps the trickiest lesson for me to present here because it originated so strongly from the Folger's Shakespeare Set Free. As I have said before - that book is indispensable - and I will not repeat the instructions that are in it - but instead rely on you to purchase a copy for yourself. I will present here the handout that I give to my students along with some general background and directions - and it will be up to you to put my handout together with the instructions from The Folger's Shakespeare Set Free - Macbeth. I will say that this is one of the most important lessons in the entire Macbeth unit. A prompt book, for the unitiated, is the annotated script that a director or actor would use in a putting on a play. This promptbook is an amalgamation of all the actors (in the scene), the director, the costume designer, the set designer and everyone else associated with that scene.
What makes this lesson so valuable? It is impossible to plan (in very minute detail) a scene without figuring out what is happening in that scene. For this activity, the students must not use any outside sources (such as their footnote-laden copies of Macbeth), except for 2 dictionaries - a regular dictionary, and C.T. Onions dictionary which contains words used in Shakespeare's play that we either do not currently use OR the meaning of that word has changed - sometimes subtly; sometimes dramatically.
I gave my students two days to complete this in class. They were not allowed to work on it at home - unless they were sick for one or both days - in that case, a group would be consulted and that person would be contacted - supplementing whatever the group felt was weakest in their Prompt Book - with work that the absent person did on their own - for a period of time equaling the two days of classtime.
Again, you will need the Folger's Library's Shakespeare Set Free to fully understand this assignment.
Lesson Overview - The Macbeth Prompt Book - Macbeth Act 3 Scene 4
The Quiz
No quiz today - the students were quizzed days ago on Act III. Which is great as they will need every minute for two days of class.
No quiz today - the students were quizzed days ago on Act III. Which is great as they will need every minute for two days of class.
The Prompt Book
Please see the Folger Shakespeare Library's Shakespeare Set Free - Macbeth for instructions on creating a Prompt Book (Lessons 9, 10, and 13).
You must begin immediately. I usually tell the students the day before that they will be working in larger (than normal) groups and suggest they pair up with another group (from the usual Group Work groups), so when they come in - they can get started. I also usually have the desks already pushed together for when they come in - the ideal group for a prompt book is 6 to 8 students.
For each group there is a packet in a manila folder. The packet contains -
1) copies of the Prompt Book Directions (see below) for everyone in the group. (6-8)
2) three copies of the script with plenty of room for annotations, marking up, drawings, etc. (Act 2, Scene 4) - one for stage annotations, one for definitions, and a spare (see below)
3) Four copies of a stage diagram for showing movement or anything else (see below)
4) Two Prompt Book worksheets with questions (see Shakespeare Set Free)
5) Prompt Book Example from Romeo & Juliet (see Shakespeare Set Free)
After doing this for 20 some years, I learned the most important job the teacher has during this process is to help keep the students focused and to make sure they understand they will ALL have to work constantly and intensely in order to get this done. Remind them of what is required. Make sure they are all working and that their work is concrete and productive. There is no time for TALKING about what they are going to do in the scene - unless they are incorporating that into the script. It should be controlled intensity.
In fact, in the directions to the students I suggest that they choose one member of their group as an expiditer - much like there would be in a professional kitchen. A person who makes sure that they are on track to get everything done in two days.
The very first thing that students need to do is to pick a THEME. A setting that somehow makes a lot of critical thinking sense for this banquet scene (remember, they've read this once on their own already [and taken a quiz on it]). Here are the instructions from their handout (found below):
Begin with this! The setting and time of your scene. Choose a setting and time period for your scene. This should NOT be either Elizabethan England or Ancient Scotland (when the historical action took place), or mob (gangsters) – it’s simply too easy . Come up with a setting that makes sense for the scene and more importantly for the play. Before you can do anything else (for reasons that should become obvious) you must choose the setting.
For instance, a recent movie version of A Midsummer Night's Dream set that play in Italy of the late 19th century. The director believed this reflected the mythology and “magic” inherent in the play. A recent movie of Richard III (a ruthless tyrant) set it in a Nazi-like country (the “horse” of my kingdom for a “horse” was a jeep that wouldn’t start). You may also be familiar with the recent version of Romeo & Juliet that used modern gangs for the warring Montegues and Capulets (swords were a brand name for a gun.
Think about what Macbeth is about (power, ambition, witches) and find a setting for it. Remember, your Beowulf scenes and how you made the setting fit the story there too. Though this is quite important for everything that follows you cannot devote MORE than 5 minutes to choosing your setting.
Why do this first? Well all of the blocking, notes to actors, etc. will depend on the theme they've chosen. A "Breaking Bad" Banquet Scene is very different than a "Cat in the Hat" Banquet scene. In any case, choose a relevant theme is great practice for what will come up in a few weeks when they choose their Macbeth groups, scenes - and of course themes. They've already done this one before when they did their Beowulf Plays.
The majority of the students should be going through the scene - sketching out who moves where and WHY. They should read through the script as many times as possible (make sure their Macbeth books are put away). They then write those moves - I always suggest they start in pencil - and move to pen once they've blocked and written notes for the entire scene. Some groups will use little characters or coins to show the stage movement. The script with the movement, notes, etc is Script #1.
Script #2 is a marked up script with definitions for words or phrases that the actors need to know. There should be dictionaries for everyone (ALL PHONES AWAY) and I also had two copies of C.T. Onions Glossary. This is a great book that has words or phrases that are unknown to us today or are used very differently. I put these at two different desks with the instructions they were not to leave those desks so that everyone would have a chance to use them.
At the end of the period of the first day - Remember to collect everything they've been working on. I supply a Manilia folder (it's what all the handouts initially came in) and they are instructed to come up with a creative name for their group and put it on the outside so they can easily grab it the next day. I also tell them they can get started as soon as they arrive the next day (this helps build that sense of urgency).
Please see the relevant pages in Shakespeare Set Free and the handout for the rest of the instructions - they are pretty complete.
Here is the description from Amazon: "This volume of the Shakespeare Set Free series is written by institute faculty and participants, and includes the latest developments in recent scholarship. It bristles with the energy created by teaching and learning Shakespeare from the text and through active performance, and reflects the experience, wisdom, and wit of real classroom teachers in schools and colleges throughout the United States. "
Macbeth Prompt Book Handout
See the actual handout and the above Lesson Overview for more directions on the use of these Handouts. At the end of the period I collect all of the materials they've been working on - this handout is the only thing they are allowed to take home - in case they want to look over the instructions before coming in for the second day of working on this.
I print out three copies of this scene (and staple them) for each group. One for stage directions, one for definitions, one spare.
Pretty much the same handout - except rather than being done in two days, the students are given three days with perhaps a little more guidance in the instructions.
The Folger Script for today's reading.
Please note that the Folger Online Edition of Macbeth will have the same corresponding page & line numbers that I reference. Also, the script is available to download from them as a PDF, Microsoft Doc, and with or without line numbers. My students had their own copies (which I strongly recommend) that they could take notes directly in - and which have so many valuable footnotes on the left side of the page. See my handout on Reading Shakespeare in my opening Macbeth Lesson.
Remote Teaching
We did Prompt Books remotely AND I have a completely revised Handout that has students maximize the efficiency of that medium. The other handouts you will need can be found above.
I wanted to give my remote students an idea of how they could work collaboratively and produce a detailed Prompt Book. This is it.
The Folger Library has an online edition of the play without the annotations - Shakespeare words (what appears on the right hand page in the paperback edition. It also includes in this online edition the very useful synopses that appear before each scene.
Macbeth 11 - Hitting our Thoughts - Finishing Act 3, in-class reading and discussion: We finish what little is left of Act 3. We will not go over Scene 4 - the students have just spent two days going over it with a fine tooth comb. We will also skip Scene 5 - mainly because Shakespeare did not write it - and it is just there to appeal to the witchcraft loving public (and king). We will finish with the exchange between Lennox and his Lord. In my class, I often used the extra time we had to give out the Scene List for Macbeth Day - and let the students form groups.
WHAT CAME BEFORE:
Thoughts on the Lesson
Though there is no "direct" teaching, I remember being so incredibly exhausted after this lesson. Esspecially on the first day. You have to convince them that they have to use every second in order to get it done. To create a kind of controlled stress. I wholeheartedly believe that by creating this kind of environment in a warm, supportive environment - we are creating resilience in our students - to deal with that kind of stress on their own - in a nondestructive way.