Context & Introduction

Understanding the context of Macbeth is essential for achieving top marks at GCSE. The examiner wants to see that you can connect Shakespeare's choices to the world he was writing in. This lesson covers Shakespeare's life, the Jacobean era, and why Macbeth was the perfect play for its time.

Shakespeare: The Basics

Fact	Detail
Born	1564, Stratford-upon-Avon
Died	1616
Theatre	The Globe Theatre, London
Company	The King's Men (from 1603)
Macbeth written	c. 1606
Macbeth genre	Tragedy

Shakespeare wrote Macbeth around 1606, shortly after James I came to the English throne (1603). The play was almost certainly performed for James himself.

The Jacobean Era

The Jacobean era (from the Latin Jacobus = James) began when James VI of Scotland became James I of England in 1603, uniting the two crowns.

Key features of Jacobean society

Rigid social hierarchy — everyone had a fixed place in society ordained by God.
Patriarchal — women were subordinate to men in law, religion, and culture.
Deeply religious — the Protestant Church of England was dominant; questioning God's order was dangerous.
Superstitious — belief in witchcraft, omens, and the supernatural was widespread and taken seriously.

The Divine Right of Kings

One of the most important contextual ideas for Macbeth is the Divine Right of Kings:

The monarch is chosen by God and answerable only to God. To challenge the king is to challenge God himself.

This belief underpins the entire moral framework of the play. When Macbeth murders Duncan, he is not merely committing murder — he is committing an act against the natural and divine order.

The Great Chain of Being

Jacobeans believed in a cosmic hierarchy called the Great Chain of Being:

        God
         |
       Angels
         |
    The Monarch
         |
      Nobility
         |
      Gentry
         |
     Commoners
         |
      Animals
         |
      Plants
         |
     Minerals

When Macbeth kills Duncan, he breaks this chain. Shakespeare dramatises the consequences: nature itself is thrown into chaos — storms, unnatural darkness, horses eating each other.

Examiner's tip: Always link the Great Chain of Being to specific moments in the play. For example, when Ross describes how "darkness does the face of earth entomb" (Act 2, Scene 4), this reflects the Jacobean belief that regicide would cause cosmic disorder.

King James I and the Gunpowder Plot

James I is crucial to understanding Macbeth for several reasons:

1. The Gunpowder Plot (1605)

Just a year before Macbeth was written, Guy Fawkes and a group of Catholic conspirators attempted to blow up Parliament and kill King James. This event terrified England and made the themes of regicide (king-killing) and treason intensely relevant.

Shakespeare's portrayal of Macbeth as a regicide who suffers terrible consequences would have pleased James — it served as a warning against treason.

2. James's interest in witchcraft

James I wrote a book called Daemonologie (1597), which argued that witches were real, dangerous, and in league with the Devil. He even personally interrogated accused witches.

Shakespeare includes the Weird Sisters (witches) partly to flatter James's known interest.

3. James's Scottish ancestry

James was a Scottish king. By setting the play in Scotland and basing it loosely on the historical Scottish king Macbeth (from Holinshed's Chronicles), Shakespeare was flattering his patron.

4. Banquo as James's ancestor

According to legend, James I was descended from Banquo. In the play, Banquo is noble, loyal, and resists evil — Shakespeare deliberately portrays him favourably to flatter the king.

Examiner's tip: When writing about context, avoid simply listing facts. Instead, show how the context shaped Shakespeare's choices. For example: "Shakespeare portrays Banquo as morally upright partly because James I believed Banquo was his ancestor; presenting Banquo as corrupt would have insulted the king."

Beliefs About Witchcraft

In Jacobean England:

Witchcraft was a criminal offence — the Witchcraft Act of 1604 made it punishable by death.
Witches were believed to be able to predict the future, cause illness, raise storms, and consort with the Devil.
Women were particularly suspected of witchcraft, especially those who were old, poor, or lived alone.

In Macbeth, the witches (the Weird Sisters) embody these fears. They are ambiguous — Shakespeare never makes it entirely clear whether they control Macbeth's fate or merely reveal what he already desires.

Interpretation	Evidence
The witches control Macbeth's fate	They seek him out; their prophecies all come true
Macbeth already harboured ambition	He immediately thinks of murder — "why do I yield to that suggestion" (1.3)
The witches are agents of chaos	"Fair is foul, and foul is fair" (1.1) — they invert natural order

Why Was Macbeth Written?

Shakespeare wrote Macbeth for several interconnected reasons:

To flatter James I — Scottish setting, Banquo as noble ancestor, condemnation of regicide, inclusion of witchcraft.
To respond to the Gunpowder Plot — the play dramatises the horror and consequences of treason.
To explore universal themes — ambition, guilt, power, and the human capacity for evil.
To entertain — Macbeth is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy, full of action, blood, and supernatural spectacle.

The Original Audience

Shakespeare's audience at the Globe Theatre was diverse:

Section	Audience	Price
The Pit	Groundlings (standing)	1 penny
Lower gallery	Middle class (seated)	2 pennies
Upper gallery	Wealthier patrons	3 pennies
Lord's rooms	Nobility	6 pennies

The play also received court performances for King James. Shakespeare had to appeal to both the groundlings (who wanted spectacle and violence) and the educated elite (who appreciated moral and political complexity).

Genre: Tragedy

Macbeth is a tragedy — a genre with specific conventions:

Convention	How Macbeth fulfils it
Noble protagonist	Macbeth begins as a brave, respected warrior and thane
Fatal flaw (hamartia)	Macbeth's "vaulting ambition" (1.7)
Reversal of fortune	From honoured hero to despised tyrant
Suffering	Guilt, paranoia, isolation, madness
Catastrophe (death)	Macbeth is killed by Macduff; order is restored

Examiner's tip: Use the term hamartia (tragic flaw) in your essays — it shows sophisticated understanding of the genre. You could write: "Shakespeare presents Macbeth's hamartia as his 'vaulting ambition', which drives him to commit regicide and ultimately leads to his destruction."

Key Context Revision Checklist

Summary

Macbeth was written in a world where kings ruled by divine right, witchcraft was a capital offence, and a recent assassination attempt had shaken the nation. Every choice Shakespeare makes — from the Scottish setting to the supernatural elements to the horrifying consequences of regicide — is shaped by this context. Understanding this world is the foundation for everything that follows.