Discussion Questions Act 1

3. Macbeth is first pointed out as a fearless and ruthless man deserving of his name. He fights the battle
as a brave hero helping to defeat the Norwegians merciless. He is shown to be merciless because with
no wait for punishment, he kills off Macdonwald’s head. With this recent achievement, he is titled as
Thane of Cawdor and Thane of Glamis by King Duncan himself. Both prestigious titles which only
means Duncan trusts him tremendously and Macbeth has his full loyalty. Although, the readers see a
darker side of Macbeth when he speaks to Lady Macbeth of his deep desires. He plans to commit
treason by killing King Duncan and being announced as king. The readers later see how easy Macbeth
is peer pressured when he chooses to back off until his wife mocking his manliness.

4. Lady Macbeth is firstly described as an attractive hostess by King Duncan. He excuses himself for
the trouble he is causing for admiring her. Although her innocent facade is nothing to her wicked
personality. Instead of convincing Macbeth to give up his desire of murdering the king, she tries to
push his ambition further. She is also portrayed to be manipulative. She tries to use words to convince
him to go forward with the murder. She challenges his masculinity when he chooses to abandon the
murder. Lastly, she is shown to be rather desperate. After the realization that his husband cannot handle
the murder, she pleads to the witches for him to be crueler as a human.