MACBETH “Bloody Instructions”

ACT 1, SCENE VII.

Macbeth's castle.

Hautboys and torches. Enter a Sewer, and divers Servants with dishes and service, and pass over
the stage. Then enter MACBETH
MACBETH
1 If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well
It were done quickly: if the assassination
Could trammel up the consequence, and catch
With his surcease success; that but this blow
5 Might be the be-all and the end-all here,
But here, upon this bank and shoal of time,
We'd jump the life to come. But in these cases
We still have judgment here; that we but teach
Bloody instructions, which, being taught, return
10 To plague the inventor: this even-handed justice
Commends the ingredients of our poison'd chalice
To our own lips. He's here in double trust;
First, as I am his kinsman and his subject,
Strong both against the deed; then, as his host,
15 Who should against his murderer shut the door,
Not bear the knife myself. Besides, this Duncan
Hath borne his faculties so meek, hath been
So clear in his great office, that his virtues
Will plead like angels, trumpet-tongued, against
20 The deep damnation of his taking-off;
And pity, like a naked new-born babe,
Striding the blast, or heaven's cherubim, horsed
Upon the sightless couriers of the air,
Shall blow the horrid deed in every eye,
25 That tears shall drown the wind. I have no spur
To prick the sides of my intent, but only
Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself
And falls on the other.
Activities

1. Read the first stage direction and identify the setting and the characters on the stage.

2. Read the first 4 lines and underline the key words.

3. Continue reading Macbeth’s monologue (lines 5-28) and answer these questions:

1. What is the effect of “teaching bloody instructions”?

2. What are the reasons against Duncan’s murder?

3. What kind of king is he?

4. What is Pity compared to?

5. What urges Macbeth to act badly?

4. What is the function of Macbeth’s monologue?

It provides an insight into Macbeth’s:

a. thoughts about a specific problem; b. plans for the future; c. feelings and reactions.

5. Find the lines where the following themes appear.

1. Ambition …

2. Hospitality …

3. Conscience and guilt …

4. Order and disorder …

6. What tragic elements can you recognise in the text?

7. What images in the text strike you most? Do you sympathise with Macbeth? Why?

8. A final image is used to symbolize ambition. Choose from the following options:

a. Ambition is like a horse whose own jumps make it stumble and fall.

b. Ambition is like an evil angel.

c. Ambition is like a jump in a river.

9. Complete the analysis with the words given below.

dishonourable – king – justification – ambition – murder – condemnation – weak - actions

In this passage, Macbeth presents himself as a rather ......................... hero. His bravery diminishes when he
begins to see that he might have to face the consequences of his ......................... . Macbeth contemplates
the many reasons why this deed is ......................... . This is not a ‘simple’ ......................... because, first of
all, Duncan is a near relation, secondly he is also his ......................... and, finally, Duncan is his guest. For all
these reasons, Macbeth is bound to protect Duncan, not to murder him. He also realises that killing such a
beloved ruler would bring the ......................... not only of God but of the country as well. Therefore,
Macbeth’s soliloquy is a clear and logical analysis of the full ramifications of the assassination. The hero is
not acting in ignorance. At the end of his reflections, Macbeth admits that the only ......................... he has
to commit this assassination is his own ‘vaulting .........................’ , knowing that he may jump too far and
suffer unwanted consequences.