"Light Thickens": Political Tyranny and Personal Freedom in Macbeth

Christendom College Lectures

Dr. R.V. Young reflects on the influences of tyranny throughout Shakespeare's play, most uniquely seen in Macbeth. In Macbeth, the protagonist is entangled by his own tyranny and destroys his character and freedom.

R.V. Young is Professor of English Emeritus, North Carolina State University and former editor of the quarterly review, Modern Age. He co-founded and for 25 years co-edited The John Donne Journal. His books include At War With the Word: Literary Theory and Liberal Education, and Doctrine and Devotion in Seventeenth-Century Poetry: Studies in Donne, Herbert, Crashaw, and Vaughan. In addition to academic work, he has published articles and reviews in such journals as The National Review, The Human Life Review, The Weekly Standard, First Things, and Touchstone, of which he is a contributing editor.