Macbeth (AQA GCSE English Literature): Exam Questions

to reflect the ritualistic nature of the witches' chants

to represent the speech patterns of characters losing their minds

to express human feelings in speeches and soliloquies

to denote the formal language of letters

It creates confusion among the audience about the plot.

It makes the audience feel detached from the characters.

It allows the audience to understand the fate of the tragic hero.

It helps the characters understand their own flaws.

to show her elevated social status

to reflect her descent into madness

to denote her supernatural powers

to convey her power and authority

by using prose in all the characters' dialogue and speeches

by deliberately contrasting it with the peaceful resolution of the play

by depicting unnatural events and hallucinations

through the harmonious reign of Macbeth

Macbeth’s decision to kill King Duncan

the introduction of the witches in the storm

Macbeth's realisation of his inevitable defeat

when Malcolm becomes king

The witches' rhymed verse represents their connection to nature, while Macbeth's represents his power.

The witches' rhymed verse signifies their evil, supernatural nature, while Macbeth's signifies his alignment with the supernatural.

The witches' rhymed verse shows their wisdom, while Macbeth's shows his self-confidence.

The witches' rhymed verse depicts their purity, while Macbeth's depicts his corruption.

to explore the motivations and internal conflicts of characters

to provide comic relief to the audience

to confuse the audience about the characters' intentions

to elaborate on the play’s historical context

It underscores his innocence and purity.

It highlights his growing connection to the witches.

It represents his detachment from reality.

It marks a return to the natural order.

It deepens the audience's sympathy for Macbeth by highlighting his internal struggle and inevitable downfall.

It portrays Macbeth as a villain without any redeeming qualities, making him less relatable to the audience.

It minimises Macbeth's actions by focusing more on the supernatural elements than on his personal choices.

It causes the audience to view Macbeth as a passive character, manipulated entirely by external forces.

Shakespeare uses soliloquies to express Macbeth’s ambition but hide his darker desires.

The witches’ prophecies foreshadow the inevitability of Macbeth’s downfall from the very beginning.

Lady Macbeth’s sleepwalking in Act 5 foreshadows the mental collapse of both characters.

Macbeth’s hallucinations foreshadow his growing madness but not his death.

Shakespeare uses prose to reflect Lady Macbeth’s shift in power, showing her dominance over Macbeth.

Shakespeare uses prose to make Lady Macbeth appear more relatable to the audience, rather than a figure of madness.

Shakespeare uses prose to show Lady Macbeth’s growing intelligence and rationality as she deals with the consequences of her actions.

Shakespeare uses prose to reflect Lady Macbeth’s loss of sanity and disconnection from the controlled verse of her earlier speeches.

Sleep is used to symbolise peace and order, which are destroyed when Macbeth murders Duncan.

Sleep represents guilt and violence, with Macbeth unable to sleep after the murder, reflecting his increasing thirst for violence.

Sleep is used as a sign of weakness, especially in Lady Macbeth, who is frequently depicted as sleeping.

The motif of sleep primarily serves to highlight Macbeth's deteriorating mental state, with little significance beyond this portrayal.