Michelle Kraft

I'm not sure I'll be able to make this one, but I'll try!

This is my song. “Those are the real stakes — not white children feeling guilty, but white children armed with truth, history and a righteous desire to work with others to change the world.”

I wanted to read this in 2025, but (like a lot of things) it didn't happen. I'll prioritize it in 2026.

Anna Karenina is my favorite book of all time. I should probably read it again to see if that's still true. I was nineteen when I read it, but I still remember how it made me feel.

happy new year written in gold balloons on a purple background ALT: happy new year written in gold balloons on a purple background

Happy New Year, Everyone! May 2026 bring us more justice and some peace.

When I was an undergrad, I felt like I needed to own all the classics even if I had no desire to read them. I thought it was part of being an English major.

They are no longer on my main shelves, but I still have most of them.

Agreed. I don't need or want a review of 2025.

My goal is always to read the books I own, but that rarely happens. I need to figure out how to pause time.

It has been a long time since I've spent time with Shakespeare, but I'd probably put Othello, The Tempest, and King Lear as my top three.

Romeo and Juliet would also be close to the bottom of my list.

I'm focusing on "hereafter." I'm reading it in The Norton Shakespeare and the footnotes offer differing interpretations.

"She would have certainly died someday."

and

"She should have died at another, more peaceful time."

Then there's McKellen's offering of "future."

It's quite interesting.

A2: This is one of the most interesting moments of the play especially now that I've watched Ian McKellen's analysis. I love the complexities and how meaning changes depending on your interpretation of certain words.

#SundayMacbethChat

A5: I'm going to agree with Marcus and put it closer to the bottom of my rankings. This may be because I've never taught it or studied it in depth, but it didn't measure up to the others I've read, taught, and/or studied.

#SundayMacbethChat

A4: I made the mistake of reading everyone else's answers before fully thinking through mine, but the first word that popped into my head was power. I think it can encompass hubris and ambition, which are also apt.

#SundayMacbethChat

A3: It adds to the suspense and creates a bit of chaos as Macbeth realizes that the prophecies are coming true and he's probably not going to make it out of this alive.

#SundayMacbethChat

A1: My initial reaction was, "That's it?" Yes, everything is resolved, but I was expecting some sort of profound statement or a return of the witches to bring everything full circle.

#SundayMacbethChat

This makes me wonder why he isn't focusing more on finding Fleance.

A5: This is hard, and it's come up in my classroom in so many contexts. I'd like to say that it depends on the situation, but even if good comes out of the deception, you've still violated someone's trust to get there. There's always the chance that you won't be forgiven for that.
#SundayMacbethChat

A agree. He's messy and he seems unsure of what to do at this point.

Like you, I expected him to be more heroic and a clear contrast to Macbeth.

A3: I want to know why she assumes the worst of her husband? She also points out that fleeing makes him look like a traitor, which takes me back to my questions after they fled.

How much danger would they have been in had they stayed?
Could their presence have changed anything?

#SundayMacbethChat

A2: What stand out is how quickly he writes off the prophecies as being impossible and thinking that he's safe. There's so much hubris there.

If I were teaching this, I'd ask students to figure out how these prophecies could come true.

#SundayMacbethChat

I'm seeing what you're saying about them being a device, and I'm thinking about all the ways I can view their role. Are they an embodiment of evil? A reminder not to tempt or attempt to change our fates? (I wish I had more time to spend with this.)

A blue, gold, and white menorah with blue and white pomegranates on it in front of red and pink poinsettias on a wood table. The menorah is lit for the first night of Hannukah.

It’s the first night of Hanukkah and the world seems like a very dark place. But we can bring light to the darkness. We can fight for each other and make goodness, love, and community shine through.

Show me your menorahs and let’s light up the timeline!

A5: I can't think of many instances of ghosts in storytelling at the moment, but in this instance, I think it's necessary to show Macbeth's unraveling. I see the ghost as a product of his own guilt/uncertainty.

My mind went to Oedipus (AGAIN). My brain was comparing Hecate to Apollo.

I think it would be interesting to have students debate the relevance of this scene.

We read Macbeth in 11th grade and Oedipus in 12th. I wish I had been more familiar with Macbeth when I taught Oedipus. I'm seeing very interesting parallels.

She seems to be trying to hold everything together as Macbeth is visibly unraveling.

All of their actions (murders) seem very impulsive to me, so it's not surprising that Act III is chaotic.

When I read Act I, I kept thinking about Oedipus Rex and what happened when characters tried to subvert the prophecies.

This is where my mind went. Macbeth doesn't know why or how Banquo's sons will inherit the throne, so he may fear that they will murder him.

Yeah. I felt like shaking him as I was reading Scene 1.

This is very close to my A1. He says that he fears Macbeth "played most foully for't," but stops there. I wonder what was going on in his head. Would he have said or done something had he lived? He seems to have no idea that he's in any danger.

#SundayMacbethChat