Lesson Overview - Is this an expendable line I see before me?   - Cutting Lines - Act 4.3

No Quiz

They've already been quizzed on Act 4.

Part 1 - Initial Cuts  in their Groups (18 minutes)

The students will (mainly) work with the groups that they were in yesterday - where they were reading through and answering questions about the scene.  Each group will now quickly divide themselves into two different subgroups.  The script (make sure their Macbeth books are away - they need to do this without outside help) is divided into an A and a B.  If their group from yesterday is too small (smaller than 7) - you will need to quickly rearrange the groups to get them in groups of 7 or 8 total.

Each subgroup - with pencils (important to use pencils as the edits may change) wil read through their part of the scene - marking possible candidates for removal. Each group will cut about 1/3 of the total lines from the scene.  Here are the instructions from the handout (see the actual handout for complete instructions):

1. Read through your section of the scene (A or B), as you read through indicate (with pencil) possible candidates for editing.  These marks do NOT need to be the same across the group – you are just reading NOT discussing – but each of you should note possible candidates for cutting.

 2. Next, you are to make actual cuts to the scene.  Remember you CANNOT change any words or add words; you are merely deleting words and lines.  Make identical changes to all the scripts in your group (that’s why you’re using a pencil).  MAKE SURE YOU ALL HAVE THE SAME CUTS.

In the handout they are given some major considerations for which lines to cut - here are three of them: - 1) are you removing a line that while it may not be important is beautiful for its own sake.  2) meter – you have to maintain whatever meter is present.
3) effects on plot and character – not only on this scene but in the rest of the play (cuts in one scene often lead to cuts in another).

Notice the first one - that's so important.  If Shakespeare is read because of the words (not the plot) - you need to be very careful about the words that are cut.

Part 2 - Jigsawing with other groups (8 minutes)

Now, they get together - this part is hard and you'll just have to do it by eye - with like letters - two groups of like "A"'s (7 or 8 each) and two groups of like "B"'s (also 7 or 8 each).  They will share with these other letters (the other groups) the cuts they made and take copious notes to bring back to their own group.

Part 3 - Back to their original groups and final cuts (8 minutes)

Now they return to their original group with what they've learned from the other "editors" and make their final cuts to get to the required 1/3 lines gone.

Part 4 - The entire group reads through the scene (rest of the period)

Now A & B assign parts and they read their section to the other.  While they do - the other letter ("B" while "A" is performing; "A" while "B" is performing) pays close attention to make sure the cuts still allow the scene to make sense and that they haven't cut any important lines.  Imagine the horror of cutting "All my pretty ones".  

And that is it!  Simple but so useful and important.  Remember, soon the students will be putting on their own scenes - and they will be allowed to cut (depending on how many students they have for a given scene).

Macbeth - Folger Shakespeare Library Edition  Paperback
Macbeth - Folger Edition - Text Only 

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.