Free Will, Witches, Murder, and Macbeth, Part 1: Crash Course Literature 409

[@sawrirocks]

I love how John Green is still doing these videos. I mean he doesn't have to, but he still does and i freaking love it. Thank you.

[@ZenDoggie]

He's my hero. Plus, as a teacher of middle and high school students, he's TOTALLY MY HERO!!

[@samudeh7064]

@@ZenDoggie ikr

[@kitthornton2336]

I have been in three productions of this play, and directed it once. In the first, our Lady MacB had a nervous breakdown the first night of tech week. In the second, our MacB was in a car accident on the way to cast call for opening night, and could not perform. The third time, I was playing MacDuff and was hit with a broadsword in the ending fight scene needing 17 stitches. I finished the scene (after catching my breath in the wings, leading to the longest improvised fight scene in the history of theatre, in which two more actors were injured.) When I directed it, on closing night, some of the scenery caught fire requiring the house to be evacuated. Needless to say, I call it, "MacB," or "The Witches' Play."

[@josephbrennan370]

Wow. It really was cursed

[@KiaraaVelez]

When I was younger and first started in theatre I said Macbeth out loud doubting its ‘curse’, one of my cast members dropped a prop on my head and my costume got stuck around my leg so I walked funny for an entire scene. Never again.

[@rueluxprince6982]

The only thing I remember about Macbeth was that Tolkien was pissed because trees didn't actually come to knock down Macbeth's front door and a woman wasn't the one who killed him with the prophecy "no man can kill Macbeth." So he wrote his own medieval fanfiction where actual trees did knocked down a castle front door and a woman killed the "no man can kill me" prophecy person.

[@pheonixrises11]

Ruelux Prince nice

[@sarahgrin]

+

[@sheepgray08]

This was a great comment 😂😂

[@garymcmascelyn]

"none of woman born. Shall harm Macbeth." As far as I know women are also "woman born"

[@Antiganos]

The prophecy was "no man of woman born", the "no *man*" part is what Tolkien saw as a missed opportunity as Shakespeare instead focused on the "of woman born" part. Hence Eowyn and her moment in the LOTR.

[@georgetuipeatau7873]

"I'M A C-SECTION BABY" is gonna be in my head for the next few weeks......

[@nebulan]

I like how the witches look like the fates from Disneys Hercules

[@nebulan]

I would have also loved it if the wyrd sisters had white, yellow and black hair

[@marquis911]

Indoor plumbing. It’s gonna be big.

[@jimbohalpert6647]

Mona Teasley *huge,It's gonna be huge.

[@zvimur]

Who do you think Shakespeare was inspired by? I meant Greek mythology, not Disney.

[@codybeasenburg6275]

Honey, you mean HUNKules

[@EvelynDayless]

Clearly the witches just tell everyone they come across that. Sure 99.99999999% of the time they look a little silly, but that ONE time they get it right man it amazes everyone.

[@DarkComputerGirl]

Munashiimaru its a legitimate curse.

[@Tsukiko.97]

Macbeth is what stopped me from overthrowing the government.

[@merrittanimation7721]

Abyssinia Empire Seems like it should have MADE you overthrow the government

[@steelarsenal5843]

You can’t overthrow the government with out using something crazy like a salted nuke

[@zhamenable]

Tommy B lol

[@The__Creeper]

No, I'm pretty sure you being a weak child that knows nothing about the government is what kept you from overthrowing a teapot let alone the government.

[@NoU-jc4kq]

Abyssinia Empire Good For You

[@Ash-xu2fv]

I'm sure this isn't an unusual thing for you to hear, CrashCourse team, but I want you to hear it again. I am 25, have a master's degree, and have been out of any type of formal schooling for 2 years...and I absolutely love watching CrashCourse (esp. CrashCourse Literature). I know that you are commonly used inside and outside the classroom, and I want you to know how much I value your contribution to my ongoing, informal, life-long education as an adult. Much love, and thanks for being awesome!

[@ComputerChris2]

WHAT, YOU EGG?

[@mandyberry2500]

[He stabs him.]

[@jrdi3574]

Young fry of treachery

[@TheAdamDavid]

+

[@rafaymughal9908]

He has killed me, Mother

[@TisaMai]

(dies)

[@Pfhorrest]

OUT, DAMNED SPOT! [puppy whimpers as it crawls out the doggy door, tail between its legs]

[@soccerandtrack10]

oh,so other people write weird comments other then me?

[@Pfhorrest]

"Spot" is a stereotypically common name for a dog. "Out, damned spot!" is a famous line from MacBeth.

[@syourke3]

I always think of a little dog who just made a mess on the carpet and gets sent outdoors by an angry owner.

[@rueluxprince6982]

*Hades at three am in the morning, realizing Cerberus has snuck onto his bed again*

[@margaritam.9118]

Damned Spot xD

[@fizzmcdermott902]

I feel robbed, you didn't address the savageness of Lady MacBeth

[@thatjillgirl]

Maybe in part 2?

[@fizzmcdermott902]

Yeah, I hope so

[@whalesharko4465]

@Bogy 1 Kinoby she used her feminity (which she had asked to be rid of) to manipulate Macbeth, only to use HIS masculinity or lack thereof to humiliate and intimate him, she didn't feel any remorse due to her *entire existence* being a fable to any woman who tried to escape the bounds of a Shakespeareian society She never had any remorse, she was worried the blood would sell her out She wasn't allowed any remorse because she was a powerful woman, Shakespeare was saying that was a recipe for disaster

[@ladyvoso6392]

Whale Sharko her remorse shows in Act 5, or have you forgotten that?

[@IshaIsSomehowTaken]

John Green: so macbeth is like "well trees can't travel so i got this." Also John Green: He says no one of a woman born can hurt me and Macduff's like, "I was a C-section baby!" And then he lops of Macbeth's head. Me: **hysterically rolling on the floor in tears**

[@yaumelepire6310]

I love it how, in the video, John refers to the King as King James I, but the intro refers to him as King James VI, and that both of these ways to call him are entirely valid.

[@johnmacdonald1094]

James had been King of Scotland before receiving the crown of England. He was the son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and was James VI, King of Scots. With the unification of the crown, he became James I in England, while remaining James VI in Scotland. As an aside, since Elizabeth I was never the Queen of Scots, many Scots consider the current Queen to be Elizabeth I.

[@varana]

There's a QI snippet on that flying around KZbin somewhere. (For exactly the Elizabethan problem, they decided to go with the highest number in any constituent kingdom.)

[@yaumelepire6310]

I still love the fact that both names are good and that the intro and John disagree. It's a fun historical tidbit.

[@rebeccajoubert7536]

Bro this dude wrote “The Fault in our Stars”

[@mutasimnabilmannan3741]

“So far, so Macbeth” probably one of the greatest quote ever

[@roberthill3811]

Interesting that this play should come after the dystopian stories. When I was a student at UNC Greensboro, the theatre department put on a wonderful performance of Macbeth. It was set in a post-apocalyptic land, inspired by the original Mad Max movies. Also, the actor playing Macbeth was missing his left forearm, which definitely fit the dystopic theme. It is, to this day, my favorite experience with the Scottish Play.

[@rexappleby4981]

that's awesome

[@pravdadandunjadmiko436]

Could you please do russian literatures such as War and Peace, Anna Karenina, and many others

[@merrittanimation7721]

Pravda Dandun Jadmiko Crime and Punishment !

[@DanielR0828]

The master and margarita?

[@thatjillgirl]

Agreed, but Madame Bovary is French. ;)

[@michaelwu7678]

Also Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Turgenev, and Chekhov

[@aliasjon8320]

I really want one on war and peace, let's get this comment loaded with likes!

[@samuelchen2994]

Sorry, for Lady Macbeth isn’t the blood spot on her hand?

[@soslothful]

Yes, I caught that too.

[@lailatbarbie1884]

Yea I was thinking that too

[@lailatbarbie1884]

She kept washing her hands saying they were dirty.

[@BISlover544]

I always imagined the dagger hallucinaton as a crazy taxi-style arrow floating in the air above macbeth's head. How could he refuse the beckoning of a quest marker?

[@hannahmerrill575]

This channel is the backbone of the American school system. 10/10.

[@emersonmaesmith3808]

this is one of my all time favorite plays!! i love the analysis and history you gave us in the episode but i have to admit i'm a little bummed at the lack of Lady Macbeth! she is equally fascinating and the way Shakespeare approaches gender in the tragedy is, in my opinion, part of what makes it so great!! i hope we'll get to hear more about her next time. 'come you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts!'

[@diabeticparxie]

My teacher emphasized that Lady Macbeth showed the times view that if a woman was equal or above a man in a relationship that bad things would happen, that woman in power brought bad things. The captains wife, witches, and Lady Macbeth all showed this.

[@MissBrekel]

Yaasss! I love me some Lady M!

[@JBLuv78]

What I remember as a take away in high school was the gender roles, too. How Macbeth, with all that power, etc, still sought out the witches. Listening to this analysis, tho, made me aware of the historical context. Elizabeth's recent passing fresh in people's mind -- there must've been some early forms of feminism there, seeing how a queen ascended the throne... Two of them, in fact...

[@ryanscottmccormick191]

Is this the dagger I see before me?

[@mangaluver1231]

Every time I hear about Macbeth, I think of that episode of Jimmy Neutron where they did this for the school play and Sheen kept trying to figure out how to deliver his line: "My Lord, your wife, Lady Macbeth approaches." I was quite saddened to find out that that line isn't even in the play.

[@merrittanimation7721]

mangaluver1231 Me too! It amazed me when I learned what the play was actually about and how different it was. I was like 12 at the time.

[@pancreasnostalgia]

I think that I forgot about that episode until I saw this comment.

[@andrewollmann304]

That play is just a mish-mosh of Shakespeare quotes....hecka funny, though.

[@alexdemarchi5310]

absolutely no one: my brain at work: WHOS HORRID IMAGE DOTH UNFIX MY HAIR

[@Captainpast6]

I learned that much from this video which I can't learn in a month by attending my Literature classes. Love you, John Green! You're awesome.

[@cthulhumetalheart182]

The play that shall not be named.

[@merrittanimation7721]

Henry Henderson Don't you mean Macb-

[@dense_and_dull]

You theatre nerds I swear...

[@katliu6169]

I'm sorry but you're making *a lot of mistakes* on the plot. 1. Macbeth only calls the witches 'imperfect speakers' because he wants the witches to tell him more since they stop giving him more information after just a few sentences, not because he doesn't believe the witches. 2. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth don't plan to kill Duncan's sons. They only plan to kill Duncan. 3. Lady Macbeth keeps washing blood that she can see on her hands, not on her clothes.

[@bullrun2772]

Kat Liu wrong

[@emans8762]

Do you know how much I love crash course because of this I can finally ace GCSE literature

[@dorka9268]

"I am opposed to the social order blindly attacking the weak." - Thanks, John

[@juliabustos-gusse8821]

I can’t believe you didn’t talk about the porter he’s THE BEST CHARACTER HE INVENTED THE KNOCK KNOCK JOKE

[@Mia-tu6oy]

I was a witch in this play last year... And now I'm reading it in English. *fist pump* Thank you, John Green, I love this play.

[@williammassey8761]

Seyton

[@paulharris3000]

"If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me without my stir..." Indeed, the simplest solution to all of the difficulties!

[@hannamakela6989]

I love how Macbeth's ambition makes him do things that are not pleasurable even though they are tempting. An apt paradox to describe contemporary careerism, as well.

[@PurrrDLyte]

reminds me of the matrix: "Ohh, what's really going to bake your noodle later on is, would you still have broken it if I hadn't said anything?"

[@CODYj423]

Finally! More Shakespeare! Thanks John and the CC Crew.

[@Libn8rGleek]

I've totally been noticing and appreciating how awesome the thought cafe illustrations are! They make me happy!!

[@KierstenPurcell]

I have an exam on this play tomorrow and this just got uploaded. YAS MAN YAS

[@kevind814]

Unfortunately, all the correct answers to the exam won't be revealed until Part 2 ;-)

[@laraibkamran3554]

i just loved it, loved the explanation and the person explaining it, crash course is my favorite channel among all education channels,

[@theokchannel2081]

What did you say about V?

[@Jader7777]

It's overrated. O V E R R A T E D. **Truth bomb**

[@dan7564]

START A BOYCOTT!

[@covenawhite4855]

It is a comic/movie if England had a disease epidemic wiping out so many that a fascist organization NorseFire solved the disease by killing undesirables. A women meets a man named V who does terrorist attacks to overthrow the government to learn NorseFire started the disease epidemic they claimed to stop. Several books and artworks are illegal and is in V's home. The women is also tortured by what appears to be the government just to come back stronger and a better rebel against the government that tortured her

[@adhhxgxhhg]

The novel by Pynchon?

[@cholten99]

The film is pretty good but the graphic novel is excellent. It'd be fascinating to know if John also thinks that is overrated and, if so, why.

[@DanielleHevey]

Just saw the show "Sleep No More" in New York, which is based on Macbeth. All I kept thinking while running around was "I wish I remembered what happened in the normal play!" So this video is very helpful, thanks!

[@rachelelizabeth6017]

Who else is SUUPER excited about the upcoming Jane Austen episodes!!!! 😄✋😄✋😄

[@SandKeats]

wisegirl_ 1227 when is it?

[@rachelelizabeth6017]

I’m not sure. In the last episode he said that there was going to be an “upcoming” Jane Austen episodes!!

[@SandKeats]

Ugh I can't waiiiiiit, the one about Jane Eyre was already fantastic! I have a false hope every week ha ha

[@rachelelizabeth6017]

biguattipoptropica I hope so too! That’s one thing I REALLY love about Jane Austen!! 😄

[@crazyrabbitbob]

Anyone else love shakespeare's history plays? ( i know this isnt one, butas he said its baseed on real history). I love them! My favourite is Richard III. I dont understand why the history plays tend to scare people off!

[@clairestafford1415]

Right on time for exams THANK YOU JOHN GREEN

[@hansooled]

i love listening to john green talk about anything related to literature.

[@vignesh0208]

Interestingly in the Greek Tale of Pandora, the One Sin That remained in the box after Pandora shut it , it Foreboding. That feeling of knowing what is to come in a person's life. Here the knowledge or foreboding of his future is what led to Macbeth's downfall.

[@whalesharko4465]

That is really interesting, as if Shakespeare wanted Macbeth to seem so unholy and such a deterrent, he made him follow a sin so bad the devil didn't wish it on the world

[@Skeptical28]

disappointing that John Green doesn't know that V for Vendetta was actually a graphic novel first

[@cbeech8622]

I have an exam on this Friday. This video truly is a gift from the heavens.

[@milliern]

Loved the video. None of those annoying speech breaks and editing madness that's in the older Crash Course vids.

[@King-jy5vt]

Doing a project on this, thanks John!

[@rebekahlundin8401]

i love the historical context; it truly helps me see and understand the authorial intent

[@Zara-pu9xx]

We’re doing this is English so this is great!!

[@HawmQuinzy]

It must also be noted that many persecuted for witchcraft throughout Europe were not persecuted for actually being witches, as many scholars at the time didn't believe actual witchcraft was real. They were persecuted for just believing they were witches, which meant they had attempted to court and worship the devil, and that was the real crime they were done for. Of course whether they really did believe they were witches themselves is another story. Also not to say that all academics didn't really believe in witchcraft, but the most influential texts at the time indicate that to be the case.

[@RaaghavKulshreshtha]

OMG thanks @crashcourse +crashcourse for listening to my comment earlier and to make a video on Macbeth omg thanks a lot love you John and I personally like world history the best

[@dannyp2970]

Can you do the Master and Margarita, or any other works of Russian Literature. It's fun to read Master and Margarita, but it's better to read it from the point of view of an author who lived under an oppressed regime, wrote books that destabilize it, and the only reason he wasn't executed was because Stalin loved his work so much. Them da Credentials!

[@arielhe5506]

yes omg i love master and margarita!

[@hatfm]

I second this emotion. The Master and Margarita is one of my favorite books

[@rachellawhead6923]

Heck yes! He mentioned Cymbeline!! That’s one of my favorite Shakespeare plays!!!

[@afd1040]

After the machbeth two part series could you visit "les miserables" ?

[@gkarjala]

Sheakspears ability to play with cause/affect/predetermination was amazing, leaving a trough on the side of my head from scratching.But he was so skilled at slowely, unknowingly to you, to develop characters as well. Yet the other side of my head has a trough too because.... just becuz.

[@amylovesbroccoli]

Thank you, John Green.

[@yosoyysoyyo]

He could have said "Best witches" but he didn't, and I've never been more disappointed in the past 5 minutes

[@quiroz923]

I recommend Harry Berger Jr's essays on Macbeth in Making Trifles of Terrors. He basically does a deconstructive analysis and points at the subtext of the play contradicting its most visible conservative, pro-king, pro-Stewart stance. “In a society that sanctions violence, that relies on the contentiousness of its members no less than on their solidarity, and in which ferocity and praise mutually inspire and intensify each other, the success of outstanding warriors must always be greeted with muffled concern as well as ‘great happiness’”. In his view, Shakespeare is subtextually criticizing the would be glorified Scotsmen as self justifying participants in a harmful social order, whose cosmogony they create to conceal their own fears and justify their actions.

[@LilyMilos]

Do people still do the "+" thing? Because as someone who studied the House of Stuart, plus this!

[@TianWu]

how awesome? This is my last year of high school, and I have a test over Macbeth tomorrow and you just happen to upload this a month before. Thanks John,

[@SplatterInker]

I mean... England was pretty into prosecuting witches in thw 16th century. But apart from that, as an early modern historian, I was super impressed! You even mentioned Garnet. Love you guys. Can't wait for the next one.

[@吴熙凯]

first 50 this is going to be a big help, we are learning this right now.

[@jadamendez3015]

omg thanks sm this is on my midterm in two days

[@sabrcaptainprice8590]

Jada Mendez but is January how are u mid term?

[@jadamendez3015]

OnlyOneGam1r i'm in high school

[@wrybreadspread]

OnlyOneGam1r When I was in high school, the first term would carry over after Christmas vacation into January. Having said that, I should mention that I attended high school in the 1960s and it changed soon after I went to college.

[@jadamendez3015]

wrybreadspread high school midterms r still the same schedule. that's pretty cool. something they haven't changed

[@tokkahafez]

I have waited for this for TOO LONG

[@natesath5270]

Oh, I already had my lit test on this😂😂😂

[@maddijackson134]

I would love it if you could cover some of the key literary periods like the renaissance and romantic periods :)

[@Sodaburger]

I absolutely LOVE that the witches are represented in the Thought Bubble as The Fates from Disney's Hercules!

[@traumara]

Just this morning I had an exam about Macbeth, this video would've been so useful ... yesterday! Hahaha

[@mikeor-]

My favorite line from Macbeth is: "Show your eyes and grieve with your heart. Come like shadows and prepare to depart!"

[@robinita46853]

That witch hunt description. Shots fired Mr. President

[@balisong46]

Best open letter yet

[@yourlocalclosetedgaybestie3165]

Wow... That's cool. To be honest I'm not a fan of literature I just don't find it interesting. But... These videos on literature are really cool and interesting. I never thought that I'll like literature. Thank you for making me realise this.

[@SirAutismo]

Can someone jog my memory, werent the three apparitions that the witches foretold of Macbeths downfall; 1. The lights will flicker on and off 2. The phone will ring and no one will answer 3.THE WALLS WILL OOZE GREEN SLIME!

[@danielputnam7431]

The weird sisters were not apparitions and they obviously didn't make those predictions. Shakespeare's play was largely based on Rafael Holinshed's Chronicles, a history of England, Scotland and I think Ireland. Though it was not fiction, he did include the three sisters, who were part of pre-Christian Scottish folklore. The word weird meant wayward. Another interesting fact is that King James was the one who told Holinshed about Banquo, and other than Chronicles, he seems to appear in no other history books.

[@humanityyy]

@@danielputnam7431 The comment was a joke. It was a reference to a Spongebob episode.

[@ellakim6976]

What perfect timing. We started it a few days ago.

[@muslimkurd7432]

I get so into these videos they are really great, and a plus for my drama/literature studies on Shakespeare next semester!!😊👍

[@janeyu2001]

Pls. do more Shakespeare! Thanks John~

[@adamlevine1914]

You mean I can't call everything I don't like a "witch hunt"? Dammit, this is a witch hunt!

[@shikawgoh]

Well done. I look forward to future episodes. For those who are fans of Macbeth (and would you be watching this if you weren't?) if you haven't seen it, I highly suggest Roman Polanski's film version. In my opinion, by far the best film adaptation (that stays fairly faithful to the source material).

[@MsDefectiveToaster]

I graduated with an English and History degree and TO THIS VERY DAY whenever someone brings up Cymbeline, all I can think of is the Bratz doll of the same name

[@EmpressStacyTheEternal]

sitting atop my throne of blood i could watch this play till the end of time

[@lukezuzga6460]

Ive been sub'd for only a short time but love all your stuff CrashCourse!

[@Ireallylikepotatoesandbg3]

Thank you so much for this video, this'll really help with my GCSE's in English.

[@aLukepop]

I would love it if you did another series of History. Maybe just go over more general concepts/time periods or go kind of in-depth on a particular country or region. Obviously if you were to go into the level of detail you did with US history you'd probably end up taking a far longer time but I'd really enjoy it. I like a lot of the other series you've done & do but history (all three series) are, I am fairly sure, the only ones I watched all the way through.

[@Wkumar07]

This is why Macbeth is so fascinating. By far, it is one of the best morality stories ever written.

[@Ralalaize]

Reading MacBeth in class right now, so this was perfect timing!

[@ren7068]

this helps me so much because I'm studying this in school right now

[@thecount3437]

thanks for uploading this the day after my midterm

[@prestonianone4802]

I literally needed this not 24 hours ago...

[@tysongarcia4170]

4:45 V for Vendetta overrated?... You crazy? :o

[@Misssmexxii]

Can you do an analysis on Ray Bradbury's"The Martin Chronicles"?

[@jenkins_onpiano]

just wait a little, Extra Credits (Extra Sci Fi) is about to do an episode on exactly that

[@lauramaniscalco9114]

Thankyou. This came out exactly when im going to do my o level exam.

[@mapl3af]

Thanks for making this video AFTER my huge test on this

[@milesbrust5591]

V for vendetta is great John what are you talking about

[@nathantucker9995]

Miles Brust I think he's referring more to how the movie got such a weird cult following by internet warriors. Ya know, the guys on Facebook who have guy fawkes mask as profile pics and think they're hackers because they follow an Anonymous blog. That kind of overrated

[@michaelwu7678]

Something can be both great and overrated. Just look at the IMDb best movies list.

[@digitalampersand1802]

The movie is rather overrated. The book is far better than the movie that hacked it to pieces.

[@CoyotesOwn]

THe book is great, the movie... not so much.

[@Jaydoggy531]

I do recommend reading it. You'll find V to be far more judgmental to the society about him.

[@starrykev]

literally just in time. i'm reading Macbeth for English and we have an essay coming up and this is great!!

[@quinnaza2705]

How often will this being coming out ? ...I want it to help with my exams. Something about this teaching style is far more effective than how i have been taught the play so far . In posing questions to the audience i genuinely feel like I'm able to think and interpret the play in the way it probably should have been and therefore it's far more enjoyable than just being told to repeat information to an exam board. Thank you for restoring my love of Shakespeare .

[@yellowsquashbanana]

Pretty funny seeing this right after finishing Wyrd Sisters today.

[@warrengday]

Brilliantly done as ever.

[@kyled1813]

I was NOT expecting that beheading. Damn . . .

[@binny4480]

The 3 witches from Hercules! I love this channel ❤️😋

[@Rudy__]

I actually have my final in English on Macbeth so... thanks for clearing up stuff!