John Adams High School - Clipper Yearbook (Ozone Park, NY)

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Think of what a wonderful diplomat Claudius would have made! How he could have used that talent which he had. But he all but buried it, in favor of power, which in the end was to bring him nothing. Macbeth did not have Claudius' talent for Hattery, but he did have another talent. He was a great general. He was an expert in military strategy. In fact, he was on his way home from one of his great battles when he met the witches who told him that he would be king. Duncan admired him for his ability, and showed his admiration by con- ferring upon him the title of Thane of Cawdor, the title of the man he had just defeated in battle. But Macbeth also wasted his talent. Instead of remaining a great warrior, he turned on a man who trusted him implicitly. Instead of fighting to protect Scotland, he almost destroyed it. With his ability, he could have given the world to Scotland, But he chose instead to give himself to the devil. It may seem that Macbeth and Claudius were entirely evil. But here is another way in which they were somewhat alike. Both of them were bothered by conscience. Mac- beth was conscience-stricken from the time of the murder until his own eternal sleep. In speaking to Lady Macbeth of the night's events, he said: Stiff it cried 'Sfeep 120 moref' to all zhe home: 'Glfzuzif hath 7lZllJ'd6l'.5Zl ffeep, and zherefore Ctzzmloi' Shall sleep 720 more: illtzrheth Jhaff sleep no INDIE.: Little did Macbeth know how true this prediction was. Claudius did not appear to be bothered by his conscience until Hamlet presented his play within a play. As the troup reenacted the murder of Gonzago Ca crime which was committed in the same manner as the murder of King Hamletj, Claudius showed his first signs of remorse and fear. He ran from the room, shrieking, Give me some light. Away! It is quite interesting to note that, however false Macbeth and Claudius were, neither was so false that he could go through the motions of prayer. For both knew that it would be merely lip service and not actual prayer. Macbeth was quite disturbed when he described to Lady Macbeth the murder of the king, One cried 'God hleu ui. and 'Amen' the other, ,jJ,f A5 they had Jeezz me uilh these hafzgfmzfff handy: Listezzizzg their fear, I Cozzfd not my 'Ameazf 'I 'xv P5 When! e' i Ja' 0 err us 'Xfww 19,44 y'GdhZ X Q 5592295 13

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K 'I Gi Q 41111571 BARBARA MUNCH lt TH E A RD ti t s l 011 DTD WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE was a master of the art of portraying evil. In two plays with which I have become acquainted this term, Shakespeare presents two evil kings. In Macbeth, the intricate pattern of the life of a power-hungry man is studied. In the other, Hamlet, Shakespeare outlines the actions of a young man trying to avenge the death of his father, a murder committed by King Claudius, his fathers brother. Macbeth and Claudius had a lot in common. Each had a lust for power and neither could contain himself in his overpowering desire to be ruler of all he surveyed. Mac- beth was informed by witches that he would become king. Although the thought had entered his mind before, the seed did not begin to grow until then. His wife, whom he loved more than anything or anyone else, greeted the thought with anticipation. She was quite ambitious for her husband, and scorned his cowardice and most important, his love, when he refused to kill the present king, Duncan. With her encouragement, Lady Macbeth produced the desired effect, for Macbeth killed Duncan with his wife's pleading foremost in his mind. Claudius also was driven by love, but his love was not for a wife. He was in love with Gertrude, Queen of Denmark, and mother of Hamlet. Her husband was the brother of Claudius. By killing King Hamlet he could do two things: he could claim the throne in Hamlet's absence, and he could marry Gertrude. So driven by his intense love for Gertrude, as Macbeth was driven by his love for Lady Macbeth, and driven by his desire to be king, Claudius murdered his own brother. Claudius was a great charmer. He was such a flatterer that we today would say that he had been kissing the Blarney Stonefl It was probably because of his sweet words that the lonely Gertrude accepted him. He hoped to use this skill to win Hamlet to his side. This is shown in one of his speeches to Hamlet, 'Tjs sweet and coflzflzefzcftzhle 212 your mztzzre, Hamlet, To give these rzzouwzizzg duties to your futher: Bzzt, you Hill!! hztow, your father lost tl futher. That futher fost, fost his, mm' the sz11'z'iz'o1' hound 111 jffitzf ohfigtztiozz for some term To do ohseqzziozzs so1'1'ozz': ht!! to ,lversezere 111 ohstimzte fozzefofezlfeiit is L1 r'oz11'se Of tlllLl'7f0!l.f 5fllbb07'1?6.l',l'4,' 'tis .7l1lNlz7llf'1' grief: . . Uwe ,Duty you, throw to earth This 1t11,tv1'ez'rzt!i11g woe, mm' think of zzs fls of 11 father: for fel the world ttzhe note. You tire the most ilzflfleditzte Io om' throne, fluff with no fess Jzohiftty of fore Thtm that which czhetzrest futher hears his sou Do I i111,1n11't tozmrei yoztf' I2 , its Z

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Claudius tried to pray after he saw Hamlets play. He tried to ask forgiveness. He tried to repent. He expresses a regret that he cannot pray in these words: O, my oyjleure lr muh, if mzells I0 heuzfeug If hath the ,willful elcleff eurre u,t10u'f, A br0fher'.r muruler. Pruy mu I uot, Though lueluuzfiou be ur Jhmfp uf will: My 5z'1'0uge1' guilt llefeuzif ul y Jtroug luleul, Azul like u uuzu to double bufluefr bouucl, I rfuful lu juzure u'he1'e I .fhull fir!! beglu, U flufl bofh ueglecf. After trying to pray, he said: My ZUOVLZIJ fly up, my ihoughlf remuuz below: llyorulr zvlfhoul thoughts uezfer I0 heuzfeu go. There is one last great similarity between these two evil men: that is their deaths. Macbeth would not surrender to Macduff, a man whose family he had destroyed. Mac- beth had nothing to live for, he was friendless, near insanity because of his gnawing conscience, and grief-stricken at his wife's death, thought to have been a suicide. He was finally killed by Macdulf, who brought his head, once so full of wicked schemes, to the new king, Duncan's son. Claudius did not refuse to fight. He was not given the chance to. Hamlet caught him unaware and ran his sword through him. He also was almost friendless, except for the few members of the court who shouted 'lTreason! when Hamlet killed his uncle. Ironically, his wife, like Macbeth's, died first, from a poisoned wine meant for her son, Hamlet. So, Claudius and Macbeth met with untimely deaths. Shakespeare made them pay for their misdeeds. He seemed to believe the saying that we hear so often today: Crime does not pay! Indeed, for these men, the evil they did, lived after them. Laertes, who had plotted to kill Hamlet with Claudius said of the king as he died: ,MV m fr, t F, 55,5535 He if juftl y Jerzfezlg I' ' ' ' Il 15 u pozyou ieuzpefd by hzmselffl W 1 af: , I f ,E In speaking of Macbeth, Duncan s son Malcolm said if ,L 5.25-5' .1-1h,,- , - gy f gf- tif -'J: 1',,? 1 . , pg -if b .. lVhu! J more I0 do, . . . . YS WF N., 3 ,try gig, A ll' l ' l cl cl X 1 A ,M . , :,g ,, ,,, 7, 5 eu Zllg aome oui eaz e fizeu 5 ubrolul ' ' 1' .:.' , -gg, Q 13 fhul fled the 51u11'e5 of watchful tyrumzy, W 5 'V I - .- - - . Q, 1 . g.,t,i1i7g,g ,a5j5gQ.-'.g-if Producuzg forth the cruel uzzuzrlem l ' X l' WFEQ' zmflw' riff iT':3Qf ff' . . . Q jg 2Q.,55-,.,,,,,,.i.31'5.r1. W,3fi5,,3 Of fhzr aleful butcher mul hir jieml-lzke queen D 1 ,rf f-.Q I -ilj.f,vfH an.,1:'. -, 1 f K x 1 f I ,L '- 7-1.