Are a citizen’s first responsibilities to family, political leader, or country?  Explain.

Would assassination or civil war ever be a justifiable response to tyranny?

What would you do if the leader of your country became a vicious tyrant?

I think a citizen’s first responsibilities are to family then to the country. This is because in order for the country to be strong and to have a high living standard. It is important for citizens to maintain and work hard for a living, increasing the income status of the country. Meanwhile, if a citizen works hard for what he or she does, it helps them to raise their own family. They will then be able to feed their children, give them shelter to live in, and the ability to gain experiences through traveling, where they can bond together as a family. Therefore, I think citizen’s first responsibilities are to family then to the family.

Would assassination or civil war ever be a justifiable response to tyranny?  What would you do if the leader of your country became a vicious tyrant?
I do not stand to either yes or no to this question, but I believe it will work depending on the situation you are in. For example, the civil war between the patriots and the England soldiers back in the mid 18th century is a justifiable response to tyranny. The patriots want freedom and the rights to establish their own new country, the United States, but England does not allow them to do so. Therefore, a long lasting civil war was fought between the two groups of people. This is a justifiable response to tyranny if the England government is not governing well in the new world. However, an example of when civil war or assassination will not be justifiable response to tyranny is the assassin of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Because of this act, it had begun a long lasting world war 1, killing millions of innocent lives.

I would fight against the vicious tyrant if this happens. This is because I believe human beings have the right and the freedom to do whatever they want to do. If we are restricted to do the stuff we want and act the way we want to, then I will for sure fight for the human rights we suppose ttohave, until one day this vicious ruler is destroyed.

Explain in your view, what is the most striking image or line from Act III of Shakespeare’s Macbeth?
Please copy this post into your own blog and respond there.

My Act III favourite has to be scene 3. This is the scene where Banquo is murdered by the three murders sent by Macbeth. They are to kill Banquo so that Macbeth can secure his crown. Unfortunately, the three murders are unable to kill Fleance as he escapes from the crime scene. As a result, the three murders are unable to complete what Macbeth has asked them to do. The scene ends of with the first murderer saying: “Well, let’s away, and say how much is done.” Meaning, they will tell Macbeth what they have accomplished.

The setting of this scene is at a park with a gate leading to the palace. The environment is very dark, where the murders are planning to assassin Banquo with an ambush attack. Through this line spoken by the second murderer: “A light, a light!” we can tell that the environment around them is very dark and they are unable to see clearly. The line that fascinates me is the line spoken by Banquo: “O, treachery! Fly, good Fleance, fly, fly, fly! Thou mayst revenge. O slave!” I find this the most striking line of this scene because there are a few literary devices used to enrich the scene. First, a foreshadowing is used, where this line foreshadows the outcome in the end where Fleance will become the King, since he is unable to be killed by the murders. Second, alliteration is used, where a repetition of the “f” sound is kept repeating. Also, the name given by the playwright is something that I find interesting because the first syllable of Fleance, sort of rhyme with the word “flee”. The diction “flee” meaning to run away from a place or a situation of danger. Therefore, giving a strong image of Fleance running away from the three murders.

Act 3 Scene 3 is a short scene, but it is very intensive. That is why I have picked this scene for the reenactment play, where we have to pick a scene to perform in front of the class.

Explain in your view, what is the most striking image or line from Act II of Shakespeare’s Macbeth?
The most striking image or line from Act II of the Shakespeare’s Macbeth has to be the lines spoken between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in scene ii. In this scene, Lady Macbeth is waiting impatiently for her husband to murder the king and it reveals that she is also very nervous about the murder, even though she is the one who purposed it.

“My husband!” (Lady Macbeth), “I have done the deed. Didst thou not hear a noise?” (Macbeth), “I heard the owl scream and the crickets cry. Did you not speak?” (Lady Macbeth), “When?” (Macbeth) “Now” (Lady Macbeth Act II, scene ii).

This conversation between the two couples is fascinating because readers can tell they are starting to get paranoid. They know that killing the King is wrong, but yet they killed him. Again, dark imagery is used in the scene; “the owl scream and the crickets cry” gives the reader a negative connotation. Ironically, they are scared that someone is watching them. Moreover, this scene is interesting because a fight scene is not presented. Shakespeare purposely skipped the killing scene probably because he wants the audience or the reader to imagine it and to have his or her own interpretation of it.

Watch the opening scene and Macbeth’s first encounter with the witches and comment on their effectiveness.

The Opening Scenes
The opening scene in the movie is not filmed according to the book. In the book, the setting is sat at a desert place, where the atmosphere is terrible: thunder and lightning. However, in the movie, there is no such atmosphere, but it starts of with an image of a sunrise. It does not create a dark image to the viewers. AS a result, I don’t think the film is as effective as the book.

Macbeth’s first encounter with the witches
Same with the opening scene, the movie is not filmed according to the book. This scene is sat at a heath, where there is thunder. However, there is no thunder in the movie, creating more of a dull scene. Furthermore, the acting skills of the actors are not very good because I don’t see the excitement and the curiosity from the actors once they hear that Macbeth is going to be king. Also, there is not a strong demanding and forceful tone to Macbeth’s voice when he wants to know more from the witches. As a result, this is scene is not very effective as well. The book version is slightly better.

Recall a time when nothing else mattered but achieving your desire or goal. Did you ultimately succeed or fail? How did you feel about what happened?

OR

Explain a time when you persuaded someone to do something, or a situation in which you were persuaded to do something about which you felt hesitant. What happened and how did you feel? Now, connect these questions to Act I of Macbeth.

During my 7th year at CDNIS, I was determined to get into the school’s under14 boys basketball team. At that time, nothing could stop me from achieving this goal. Every morning before classes started, I went to the gym to practice my shots. And every time after school, I would also go for a run, so that I could improve on my endurance. In the end, I was drafted in the team and had won the HKSSF championship that year. The success that I achieved was incredible. However, basketball practices were very time demanding. As a result, my mark for the second term dropped significantly. Even though my academic mark went down, I learned that I have to manage my time well and improve on my organization, so that I will not make the same mistake next year.

Explain in your view, what is the most striking image or line from Act I of Shakespeare’s Macbeth?

The most striking line from Act I of Shakespeare’s Macbeth has to be the following: “Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it.” Lady Macbeth (I, V, 73-74). This is a line when Lady Macbeth is trying to convince Macbeth to kill King Duncan after she received the news that the King is staying over night at their castle. Lady Macbeth wants to take this chance to kill the King, so that she can be the new queen. As a result to achieve her desire, she orders Macbeth to pretend to look innocent, so that the King will have no idea and will not know that Macbeth is actually going to kill him. But, at the same time, be evil without showing it to the public. This method is purely sinful because never harm your neighbour if the neighbour didn’t do any harm to you.
Also, through this line, we can tell that Lady Macbeth is somewhat overpowering Macbeth. It seems to the reader that Lady Macbeth has the power at home. She is being very forceful, very demanding, and is absolutely ambitious. Through this character development, we can foreshadow that some sort of plan is going to be informed later on in the book, telling us how Lady Macbeth is going to kill King Duncan.

Ms Root is awesome!!