WHAT WE DID IN CLASS TODAY:
We reread Act I, Scene 3 of Macbeth and discussed Macbeth and Banquo's visit to the Weird Sisters who we were disturbed to find out have beards. We then discussed paradoxes and did the following exercise:
A. Identify the speaker and the addressee, and explain as much as you can about the context of the situation.
B. Explain the specific terms in the quotation that make it a paradox.
C. Explain the hidden truth to be found in the paradox.
1. “So foul and fair a day I have not seen.” –1.3.39
2. “Lesser than Macbeth and greater.” –1.3.68
3. “Not so happy, yet much happier.” –1.3.69
4. “This supernatural soliciting / Cannot be ill, cannot be good.” –1.3.143-144
5. “And nothing is but what is not.” –1.3.155
HOMEWORK:
Finish the paradox exercise and read Act I, Scenes 4-7.
