1. Critical Theory: Which theory have you focused on while reading King Lear / MacBeth?

What interests you most about this theory as you understand it at this point? Why does
that interest you?

Psychological, because the idea behind analyzing and understanding the behavior of
main characters is a key piece in understanding the theme of the story. It helps us understand
why the main character did what they did, as well as their thinking patterns, which led them to
questionable actions.

2. Focus: What is the subject (e.g., madness, power, identity) of your paper? What is it
about that subject that interests you? What will you say about this subject? Why does
this interest you? How would it help you or your readers better understand King Lear /
MacBeth?

How power can be a strong unconscious desire and can corrupt decisions. When our
unconscious desires arise, an individuals thoughts and behaviors are altered and motives
change. Power and feelings of superiority are a common desire among people, it is an
unconscious desire for anyone, and Macbeths drive for power is an extreme case of this.

3. Organization: How will you organize your paper? What are the chunks and how will
they be arranged? Why those chunks and this arrangement?

1st part - Define theory. Explain the inner parts of it (What is the unconscious, How can we
study behavior, How can we know whats going on in peoples heads, etc.)

2nd part - Explain the basic story of Macbeth so that readers can understand what were talking
about

3rd part - Go back through the story, analyzing each important scene to see how Macbeth was
thinking and what was motivating him to do what he did.

4. Development: What evidence, details, examples, or key quotations will you use to
support and illustrate your main idea? What are the sources of your information?

Evidence from Macbeth itself - Scenes to analyze: After the prophecy, Lady Macbeth telling him
to do it, After killing King, Killing Banquo, Seeing the ghost of Banquo, Killing Macduffs
family, Other events from notes

Notes from Psychology 101 and textbook used

Online sources - Google major psychology theory, see if any match up with what was going on

5. Purpose: What are you trying to achieve in this paper? How will the contents of the
previous answers help you achieve this purpose?
 An understanding of the psyche of Macbeth. We look to look to understand how he went
from an noble war hero to a murderous tyrant. By explaining psychological theory, we can more
accurately prove our ideas and not get them dismissed as random ideas. The examples from
our notes will help to guide what places to stop and analyze.

6. So What? What is the So what? about your paper? What are you trying to say and why
should we find it so interesting or important? Why should we care?

The want for power is a common feeling for most people. Macbeth acted in a very
extreme way to satisfy his power lust. This is a warning to others of what following your desires
can cause. If we can understand what Macbeths thought process was, we have a better chance
of figuring out if other people are thinking in the same way.