A complete GCSE English Literature lesson on the witches and the supernatural in Macbeth. It covers the prophecies, the witches’ language, the dagger and Banquo’s ghost, the apparitions and equivocation, and the debate over fate and free will, with Jacobean context and an exam style extract question with a mark scheme.
- 29 slides
- GCSE English Literature
- Macbeth
- Key quotations
- Exam question and mark scheme
- Teacher notes
- Fully editable
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What the lesson covers
- Starter and key words: a recap quiz, eight key terms including equivocation and paradox, and a timeline of every supernatural moment.
- Context: King James and Daemonologie, the North Berwick witch trials and the 1604 Witchcraft Act.
- Act 1, the prophecies: “Fair is foul”, Macbeth’s first words, Banquo’s warning and a close look at the witches’ language.
- Banquo and Macbeth: a comparison of how each reacts to the same prophecies.
- Visions and ghosts: the dagger and Banquo’s ghost: real, or in Macbeth’s mind?
- Act 4, the apparitions: the three prophecies, what Macbeth thinks they mean and how they come true.
- Tasks and exam practice: a fate or free will debate, quotation quizzes, an AQA style extract question, a six level mark scheme, a model paragraph and common mistakes.
Who it is for
GCSE English Literature teachers and students studying Macbeth. The exam question is written in the style of AQA Paper 1, and the lesson works just as well for Edexcel, OCR and Eduqas. Every slide has teacher notes, and quiz answers are on the slides that follow each task.
Download this PowerPoint free (.pptx)
More resources
The Macbeth series: Lady Macbeth, Macbeth’s ambition and the witches and the supernatural. Browse all premium PowerPoints, or find more teacher made slides in our free English literature PowerPoints.