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Paul G. Rozzi
Seth Burgess
English 10
9 January 2015
Scotland, PA as an Adaptation of Shapespeares Macbeth
The adaptation of Macbeth titled Scotland, PA makes changes in the original storyline to
make itself better through the modernized setting, comedic employment, and overall
simplification.
First, the modernized setting of Scotland, PA helps convey the original story of Macbeth,
making it more appealing in the modern day whilst staying true to the original play. For example,
Scotland, PA helps appeal to the modern age through converting everything in Macbeth to a
more modern equivalent. Duncans kingdom becomes a hamburger shop, where Duncan is the
owner and Joe Mac McBeth aspires to create his own fast food empire. By creating a more
modern analogy for Macbeths plot elements, Scotland, PA creates its own unique image that can
be better enjoyed as the original Macbeth was in the time that Macbeth was more modern
relative to today. However, Scotland, PA preserves Macbeths original plotline, the idea behind
the story, about power, paranoia, and always wanting more is the same, the events are more or
less the same, but lets face it; in Shakespeares Macbeth, Lady Macbeth wouldnt make a
honey of a cone with the ice-cream machine, and Macbeth definitely wouldnt think of a
French fry truck (Meulenkamp). Though it is set in a more recent time, Scotland, PA contains
the same content as Macbeth does at its most basic level. These modern analogies of classic story

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elements in Scotland, PA help it appeal to viewers who enjoyed the original play, providing a
happy medium between the classic storyline and need for a modern rendition.
Secondly, the employment of comedy in Scotland, PA both adds its own edge to the original
Macbeth and accentuates some of the original tragic concepts from Shakespeares original play.
An example of which is each of the characters having their own twist; the witches become
stoned hippies, nobleman Macduff becomes a vegetarian Lieutenant and Malcolm turns into a
rebellious teenager whose biggest dream is becoming a rock star (Meulenkamp). These unique
spin-offs of characters gives the play its own identity as a low-brow comedy, inviting a wider
audience to enjoy a classic storyline. On the other hand, Scotland, PA uses its comedy to help
underline some of the tragic elements of Macbeth, such as that at the end of the film, the
parking lot of Macduffs, home of the garden burger, is empty therefore, its a hollow
victory; ultimately (White Trash Macbeth). After the Macbeth of Scotland, PA is murdered, the
film still retains the tragic aspect of Macbeth through conveying that the victory over Macbeth is
hollow, and that even after the conflict is over there is no prosperity for the protagonists such as
Macduff that fought Macbeth. By both adding its own spin-off of Macbeths original details and
accentuating the plays tragic elements, the black comedy of Scotland, PA betters it as a film.
Thirdly and finally, the overall simplification of all of Macbeths elements by Scotland, PA
helps its viewers appreciate the concepts of Macbeth through its simplified language and
concepts. For example, the language that the actors of Scotland, PA use abandons the
Elizabethan style of the original and opts for a more typical 1970s form of speech. This prevents
any loss of meaning through difficult to understand texts such as Macbeths complicated poetrylike speech. Furthermore, Scotland, PA provides simplified concepts that well represent the
plays original plotline, including Lady Macbeth murdering Duncan under the guise of an

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unidentified robber which later causes the arrest of a homeless man as a parallel to others being
framed for Duncans murder. These simplified plot elements allow those who may not grasp the
specific events of the original play to still enjoy the fundamental concepts in a simplified format.
The simplification of Macbeth through Scotland, PAs language and storyline help the audience
appreciate it on a greater level.

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Works Cited
Meulenkamp, Madelien, and Vera Voort. Shakespeares Macbeth. Shakespeares Macbeth.
N.p., Mar. 2007. Web. 09 Feb. 2015. http://macbeth.awardspace.com/scotlandpa.html
White Trash Macbeth. White Trash Macbeth. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, n.d.
Web. 09 Feb. 2015