Monday, November 28, 2016

Macbeth and Twelfth Night

I attended the Loyola Theatre Department’s performance of Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare.  The play was packed and nearly every seat was filled.  I was really impressed with the quality of the acting, since my peers were the actors in the play.  Also, I learned that for some of the actors this was their first performance and they did very well, given their lack of experience.  I’d never been to a live play before and Macbeth was a very good first play.  The acting was superb and true to the way that Shakespeare wrote the play.  I found that Macbeth and Twelfth Night complement each other, one play is a comedy and the other is a drama.
Macbeth is a drama that focuses on the themes of loyalty, power, and fate.  The play’s overall tone is very dark because of the murder and bloodshed that takes place.  The corruption of absolute power is an important aspect of the play, as shown by Macbeth’s eventual death.  Twelfth Night, on the other hand, is a much more positive play.  Shakespeare incorporates comedy and dramatic irony to create a much more positive tone than in Macbeth.  However, there are some similarities between the two plays.  They both use dramatic irony and have a common theme of love.  Love is the main theme in Twelfth Night, but it also plays an important role in Macbeth.  Macbeth’s love for his wife is what drives him to kill the king. So, although love plays a different role in each play, it plays an important role nonetheless. 

A few important lessons can be drawn from each of these plays.   Macbeth teaches us that power corrupt.  Therefore, when we are placed in positions of leadership, we must be fair to everyone and make a conscious effort to help others.  Twelfth Night teaches us not to let our emotions get the best of us and to always keep hope.  Both of these lessons can be applied to everyday life, especially here at Loyola.    

No comments:

Post a Comment