Classical Stuff You Should Know

Episode 288: Macbeth Inverted

Date: December 2, 2025
Hosts: A.J. Hanenburg, Graeme Donaldson, Thomas Magbee

Episode Overview

This episode centers on an interpretive lens for understanding Shakespeare’s Macbeth: the theme of inversion—how natural and social order is upended by Macbeth’s regicide. Instead of a straightforward play-by-play summary, the hosts guide listeners through the cosmological, ethical, and symbolic frameworks that underpin the play, focusing especially on the medieval worldview and its implications for reading Macbeth. The episode is especially useful for educators, students, and lovers of Shakespeare who wish to delve deeper into the play’s thematic architecture.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The "Macbeth" Superstition and Episode Origin

• The episode starts with jokes about the theater superstition of not saying "Macbeth" on stage, referencing historical mishaps and the play's "dark" reputation ([00:37]).
• The episode was chosen via Patreon poll, emphasizing an audience request to revisit Macbeth from a thematic rather than summary perspective ([01:53]).

2. Medieval Cosmology: The Foundation for Order

• A.J. gives a detailed overview of medieval cosmology and its geocentric, hierarchical model:
  • Earth is at the mutable, lowest point in a chain of being.
  • "The way that man is built—with reason, spirit, and appetite—is a reflection of the universe" ([05:22]).
  • Harmony in the spheres and society mirrors harmony in individuals ([06:55]).
  • Quote:

    “The big takeaway is that… the universe is full of light. The sun is constantly filling the whole thing with light…” – B (A.J.) [07:08]

3. The Principle of "As Above, So Below"

• Graeme connects cosmology to medieval understandings of authority—God rules creation as the king rules his people, reason rules the soul, parents rule the family, health governs the body, and harmony directs music ([07:44]-[11:48]).
• When Macbeth kills Duncan, he not only disrupts a political order ("king to people") but imprisons the entire cosmic and social arrangement.

4. Kingship and Sacrifice

• Ideal kingship is modeled on the self-sacrificing Christ rather than authoritarian might ([13:08]):
  • Quote:

    “The image that the medievals had… of the ultimate king was a man sacrificing himself for his people.” – C (Graeme) [13:08]

  • Duncan’s language is laden with agricultural metaphors—he “plants” his subjects so they may flourish ([14:13]).

5. Sin as Inversion of Good

• The murder of Duncan inverts all the "authority-subject" relationships ([16:00]-[19:00]):
  • Nature rebels ("falcon killed by an owl," "horses eat each other"—unnatural events) ([16:00]–[18:48]).
  • Graeme:

    “This inversion that happens with their murder of Duncan and their alliance with the witches is unnaturing, an unnatural thing, going against the natural order.” [16:54]

6. The Witches as Agents of Inversion

• The witches themselves embody the theme of inversion ("fair is foul and foul is fair" [19:02]), confusing gender, reality, and language:
  • “You have these characters that they're not men, they're not women… their language is presented in order to confuse.” – C (Graeme) [19:03]

7. Prophecy, Language, and Self-Destruction

• Witches’ prophecies are self-fulfilling and manipulative, achieved not by magical force but by exploiting ambiguity and Macbeth’s ambition ([19:59]-[21:20]).
• The play’s moral catastrophe begins with the subversion of truthful language.

8. Femininity, Masculinity, and Domestic Inversion

• Lady Macbeth’s iconic “unsex me here” speech (read aloud at [27:12–29:57]) is dissected:
  • She rejects compassion and hospitality—asks to be filled with “direst cruelty” from “the crown to the toe,” suggesting an upside-down self.
  • Her home becomes a place of murder rather than life ([31:44]), and hospitality is inverted into hostility.
  • Quote:

    “She wants, literally, her milk to be gall.” – C (Graeme) [30:00]

• Macbeth, for his part, relinquishes reasoned masculinity for impulsive, appetite-driven violence:
  • Quote:

    “The first things of my heart shall be the first things of my hand.” – Paraphrased by C (Graeme) [35:30]

9. Disintegration of Mind, Sleep, and Conscience

• Macbeth’s guilt manifests in insomnia; sleep is another motif of natural order, and its loss marks psychological and cosmic disorder:
  • “Methought I heard a voice cry, sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep—the innocent sleep… Chief nourisher in life's feast.” – Macbeth [40:09]
• Lady Macbeth’s fate is insomnia and madness—her sleepwalking exposes her inescapable guilt ([43:26]-[45:32]).
  • Quote:

    “Unnatural deeds do breed unnatural troubles… infected minds to their deaf pillows will discharge their secrets.” – Doctor [45:37]

10. The Collapse of Social and Natural Order

• The fallout from regicide is catastrophic:
  • Nature, government, reason, and family all unravel.
  • “This is what sin does, right? It promises the crown, and you get it, but you lose everything else… hell is getting what you want.” – C (Graeme) [51:24]

11. Inversion and the Power of Language

• The witches' real magic is linguistic: they “win us with honest trifles to betray us in deepest consequence” ([56:49]).
• Using language to “obfuscate” and trap others is likened to a kind of witchcraft, or even an “antichrist” spirit ([53:50]–[56:45]).

12. Nuances in Kingship and Rebellion

• The hosts discuss ambiguous moments: Duncan is not portrayed as a perfect king; the play opens with rebellion against him, and his sons’ lack of open grief is noted ([61:09]).
• Several possible readings for Duncan’s overthrow are debated—was he a bad king, or merely the victim of ambition?

13. Final Reflections and Modern Lessons

• Medieval cosmology offers a lens not only for reading Macbeth but for considering modern disruptions of order:
  • The contemporary cultural push toward individualism and breaking norms has its virtues, but unchecked, can lead to “a lot of heartbreak” ([65:27]).
  • The play warns that attempting to “fight against ordered reality” may give you what you want—but not what you need.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Medieval Cosmology and Order

• "So there's this beautiful symmetry between God, the universe, the state and man." – B (A.J.) [06:55]

On Inversion in Macbeth

• “Sin is not an opposite of good. Sin is an inverting of good, a twisting of good.” – C (Graeme) [16:56]
• "This inversion… is everywhere. Nature, health, music, family, king, people… and it's embodied in these witches." – C (Graeme) [51:45]

On Sleep and Conscience

• "Sleep that knits up the raveled sleeve of care... balm of hurt minds, chief nourisher in life’s feast." – Macbeth [40:31]

On the Power of Language

• “The power… is not that they, like, pour a potion on him… it’s that they plant in him… his base desires through misusing words.” – C (Graeme) [56:03]
• "When you are using language not in good faith… you are, like, aligning yourself with this inversion of the witches." – C (Graeme) [53:50]

On Rebellion and Kingship

• "If you were playing Malcolm, the son of Duncan, you need to make a decision. Because it's unclear… if you are sad your dad has died or if you're kind of like, now it's my turn." – C (Graeme) [61:09]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [03:52] — A.J. explains medieval cosmology.
• [07:44] — “As above, so below”: mapping cosmic order to political/familial order.
• [13:08] — Kingship as Christ-like sacrifice.
• [16:00] — Macbeth’s murder of Duncan as cosmic and natural inversion: omens in nature.
• [19:03] — The witches, gender confusion, and language inversion.
• [27:12–29:57] — Lady Macbeth’s “unsex me here” speech and its symbolism.
• [40:09] — Macbeth's insomnia and "murder of sleep."
• [45:37] — Lady Macbeth’s madness; “unnatural deeds breed unnatural troubles.”
• [51:45] — The theme of inversion as a key to the entire play.
• [56:45] — The witches and the subversive power of language.
• [61:09] — Ambiguity in Duncan’s kingship and Macbeth’s rebellion.

Closing Thoughts

This episode emphasizes Macbeth’s enduring resonance as a fable of disorder, not just at the level of plot, but of language, psychology, nature, society, and the cosmos itself. The hosts’ blend of banter, direct Shakespearean citation, and classical knowledge makes high-level themes accessible and applicable—whether you’re teaching, studying, or simply re-reading Macbeth for pleasure.

Recommended for:
Fans of Shakespeare, teachers, students, and anyone seeking deeper meanings in classic texts.