Macbeth Pre-Reading Work

Individual Work:
1) AGREE. Without the support and encouragement from great women such as our mothers, grandmothers, and aunties, men may find it difficult to discover their own greatness. Through my own personal experience, I observed how women can play an influential role in the lives of men. For example, my dad recently was promoted at work and was hesitant to accept because of the difficulty of the task, but my mom encouraged him and was able to convince him to take on the position.

2) DISAGREE. I don't believe in witches, demons, and evil spirits because it's not real; they all are just made up to scare people. My grandma tells me about her stories about spirits and demons, but I never really believed any of them, because it's hard to accept something you've never experienced first hand.

3) DISAGREE. If it takes something wrong in order to get what you want, then maybe what you want isn't necessary or beneficial for you. There's a difference between what we want and what we need and some things are just not worth fighting for. When I was seven I really wanted a set of crystal rocks from Thinker Toys and so I stole them and tried to hide it in my jacket. When my mom took me to the bathroom the rocks fell out of my pocket and she was very upset with what I had done.

4) AGREE. It's somewhat similar to the golden rule: Treat others the way you want to be treated. If you treat others with respect, majority of the time they will respect you back. However sometimes there are people who are rude and mean, but what goes around comes around so in turn for their cold-hearted personalities no one will want to be friends or hang out with them. In middle school there was this new girl and she was so mean; she gossiped about everyone, therefore no one wanted to be friends with her.

5) DISAGREE. Not all of us are easily persuaded by what we want. People who practice or are raised with the right morals and principles are able to evade the evil temptations brought upon us in today's society. One of my class mates in elementary school was homeless and his parents weren't always there to care for him so he wanted to quit school, but he realized that it wouldn't help him out of his situation.

6) AGREE. If the person truly believes that the ruler isn't doing what's right for the common good then he/she has the responsibility to fight for what they stand for. Overthrowing the ruler may lead to consequences, but none as great as the consequences they would suffer if the ruler destroyed their country. For example, at school I received an F on an assignment that I turned in so I had talked with the teacher and showed her that I actually did turn in my work. Had I not talked to her I would have received an unsatisfactory grade for the quarter.

7) DISAGREE. No matter the hurt or pain someone has caused upon another it will never justify hurting them back. By reacting to their actions you are acting just as foolish as that person and have no reason to be upset, because you are responsible for your own actions and in the end there is no one else to blame but yourself. When I was little, I got really mad at my brother for taking my crayons so I purposely slammed the door on his fingers when he walked out of our room. When my parents got home, I told them that I shut the door because I was mad that he took my crayons, but it didn't help my case and I got punished for it.

8) DISAGREE. Yes, being successful is important especially in our society, but it's not more important than the relationships you have with those you love and being happy with the life you live. If being successful means working late nights in the office and coming home at midnight barely having enough time to see your family or working on the weekends skipping out on your child's games and activities then why do it. It all depends on your definition of being successful. Through my experience, someone I know got the job they wanted, but now they barely have enough time to spend with their family and is always tired and stressed out.

9) DISAGREE. We are all equals and we are all blessed with our own talents. It's our responsibility to share our gifts and talents for the greater good; no one human being is greater than another, we all have the potential to be representatives of God, but only if we allow are actions and lifestyles to portray His ways. At one of the retreats I attended for my Confirmation class, the priest told us that you can find God in everyone and we all have it in us to serve our Lord. He taught us that despite our social status we all have the power to reflect and share his ways with others.

10) DISAGREE. I don't fully believe in horoscopes only because if you read them it will ruin your day. You will constantly go about your day expecting for something good to happen, but when it doesn't you will be disappointed or vise versa. Maybe your horoscope expects something bad to happen to you so you act cautious and are freaking out the whole day, but nothing happens. One time I read my horoscope and it said something good will happen in your household and to expect positivity within my home. So you know of course I went along with it and I told myself okay this is good, parents are happy so I'm happy. However, that day mid quarter progress report cards went out and I was getting bad grades. When I got home they were upset and all I got was negative vibes, an earful of lecturing, and an endless list of chores.

11) NEUTRAL. Traitors should be given the opportunity to explain themselves. Depending on the severity of the situation, the punishment should fit the crime and what happens thereon after will determine the traitor's fate. It's like when you're getting in trouble with your parents. Say for example you are out with your friends and you come home an hour late. It doesn't make sense to ground you for six months, but maybe it would make more sense if you came home an hour late and you dented the car. 

Partner Work (Emree Sato):
1) No, evil is not ingrained in human nature. At birth we are all born innocent and are blessed with tabula rasa or a blank mind as John Locke once said. As we grow older we become accustomed to the cruel realities of our society. We observe and witness the happening world around us as we too become victims of the evil in our environment. It becomes a habit for us to act as others do therefore we allow the evil to ruin the pureness of our childhoods and in exchange fill it with evil and hatred.

2) Our lives are determined by our free will because if we had a “fate” we could easily change it. We don’t know how our life is going to turn out in the end, but we are the rulers of our own. Fate is the development of events beyond a person’s control, regarded as determined by a supernatural power. Unlike free will, it’s the ability to act at one’s own discretion. We write our own story, by the acts of our free will.


3) Depending on the severity of the evil they committed, we think that redemption may or may not be possible. A person who committed an act of genuine evil may not have been in the right state of mind and was just acting reckless to cope with the hardships they were going through at the moment. On the other hand, the person could have fully understood the consequences of their actions and probably intended for evil to be done. Therefore, a person may be able to recover but it all depends on the person and if they truly feel guilty about their actions or if they feel justice has been served and stand by their wrongdoing.


4) It’s not possible to admire/respect someone who’s committed acts of evil, but wouldn’t we wouldn’t despise them. Everyone’s not perfect, but we decide on how we act upon situations. Although if someone has committed multiple acts of evil we wouldn’t be able to have respect or trust for that person. You do it once, you could easily do it again.

5) No, the ends do not justify the means. Your goals can only be truly attained and justified by hard work. Any other means of reaching that goal will only set you further in your guilt and will trouble you forever. Using morally evil methods to acquire your goal will only lead to grave consequences therefore, you will never be fully content with yourself, because the burden of guilt will eat at you. The goal will forever be tainted and polluted by your actions, because what’s done is done and you can’t change the past.