“MACBETH”

A TRAGEDY BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

ABOUT THE PLAY:

• Shakespeare’s Macbeth, possibly performed as early as 1606, was
first printed in the 1623 edition of Shakespeare’s works known as the
First Folio.
• His principal source was Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland
(1577) by the English chronicler Raphael Holinshed.
• Shakespeare based this tragedy on actual events that took place 600
years before he wrote the play.
• Now, after 900 years, it is still relevant, as it concerns the struggle for
Power.
• The play depicts the downfall of a man who has many fine qualities but
commits murder because of his flaw of ambition and his fallibility to the
influence of others.
• Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a study of the evil that is in every human
heart and of one man’s downfall as he wilfully gives way to its
temptations. Ultimately, Macbeth brings about his own downfall,
deliberately yielding himself to the destiny suggested by his prophetic
encounter with the witches—fleeting kingship and eternal damnation.
• In 1847, Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi adapted William
Shakespeare’s play Macbeth for the operatic stage. Verdi revised and
expanded his operatic version of Macbeth for the Paris Opéra in 1865
and went on to create two other masterpieces based on Shakespeare
plays, Othello (1887) and Falstaff (1893).
• The play is a tragedy – we mourn the loss of Macbeth at the end of the
play and do not rejoice at the death of the brutal, selfish, tyrant that he
has become. (At the beginning of the play we come to know him as a
fine man with good qualities – loyal, brave, kind, capable, fearless,
honourable, courageous, good husband, and friend and subject to his
King.)
• It is his humanness that we identify with and we are saddened at the
end that a brutal death is his fate.

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SUMMARY
Returning from battle, Macbeth and Banquo meet three witches who reveal
to them their future. The first part of the witches’ prophecy comes true when
Macbeth is made Thane of Cawdor by King Duncan. Emboldened by Lady
Macbeth, the new Thane takes the second part of the prophecy into his own
hands, murdering Duncan (who is staying with Macbeth at Inverness) and
crowning himself King of Scotland. Remembering that the witches also
predicted Banquo would be the father of kings, though never one himself,
Macbeth orders that he and his son, Fleance, be killed. Banquo is slain but
Fleance survives. Haunted by Banquo's ghost, Macbeth returns to the
witches. They warn him against Macduff, but also tell him that no man born
of woman can kill him and that he will not be defeated until Birnam Wood
comes to Dunsinane. Hearing that Duncan's son, Malcolm, has joined forces
with Macduff, Macbeth slaughters Macduff's wife and children. Lady
Macbeth goes mad with guilt and commits suicide. Meanwhile, Macbeth's
enemies close in on him at Dunsinane, having covered themselves with
branches cut from Birnam Wood to conceal their approach. Macbeth is slain
by Macduff, who reveals he was not born naturally but was 'from his mother's
womb untimely ripp'd'. Malcolm is declared king.

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THE CHARACTERS:
• Duncan – King of Scotland, a well-liked, just, and fair man, with an
unsuspecting, naïve nature. He is betrayed by the Thane of Cawdor
twice. (First time – Battle against Norway, the Thane betrays Scotland
and Duncan. Then Macbeth becomes the Thane of Cawdor and
betrays Duncan by killing him.) His death sets up the theme of the
natural order being disturbed, as referred to by the Old Man.

• Malcolm – Duncan’s eldest son and heir to the Scottish throne. (Prince
of Cumberland) He escapes to England after his father’s murder. He
leads the revolt against Macbeth. Pronounced King after he kills
Macbeth.

• Donalbain – Duncan’s second son. Escapes to Ireland after father’s

murder. Does not join Malcolm in revolt against Macbeth. After his
escape to Ireland, he is not mentioned in the play again.

• Macbeth – The tragic focus of the play. A general in Duncan’s army,

Thane of Glamis, becomes Thane of Cawdor and King. (Murders the
King, Banquo, and Macduff’s family) Originally a loyal and honest man.
His descent into murder and betrayal is the tale of how ambition can
destroy a person and his reputation. Plagued by ghosts and
hallucinations. The man who is killed at the end of the play is barely
recognisable from the loyal and brave Macbeth we meet in Act One.
Killed by Macduff in a duel.

• Lady Macbeth – wife of Macbeth. Ruthless and irrational. Her ambition

for Macbeth’s future exceeds that of Macbeth’s. Urges Macbeth to kill
Duncan. Willing to sacrifice her femininity to ensure Macbeth's place
on the throne. She becomes obsessed with her guilt and continues to
see blood on her hands – a sure sign of her guilty conscience. Loses
all resolve and commits suicide.

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• Banquo – Macbeth’s loyal friend and a general in Duncan’s army.
Witches predicted his sons would be Kings. He did not pursue the
witches’ prophesies, like Macbeth did. Murdered by Macbeth. Haunts
Macbeth. He serves as a counterpoint to how one should deal with
fate.

• Fleance – son of Banquo and first in line of kings prophesied by the

Three Witches. Macbeth tries to have him killed, but he escapes.
Because he escapes, he represents a future Macbeth cannot bear – a
line of kings following Banquo and not his own sons.

• Macduff – Thane of Fife, Macbeth’s greatest rival in Scotland,

nobleman in Scotland. He suspects Macbeth of foul play after
Duncan’s murder. His whole family is killed by Macbeth. Kills Macbeth.
Born (‘unnaturally’) by caesarean section. He is pivotal in restoring
order to Scotland by ensuring that Malcolm becomes the King.

• Lady Macduff – wife to Macduff. Brutally murdered under Macbeth’s

orders

• Boy – Son to Macduff. Brutally murdered under Macbeth’s orders

• Lennox – nobleman in Scotland. Seems to be on Macbeth’s side at

first, but then urges Macduff to bring Malcolm back from England as
rightful heir to the throne.

• Ross, Menteith, Angus, Caithness - noblemen in Scotland. Helps

Malcolm in coup d’état.

• Siward – brother of Duncan, Earl of Northumberland, general of

English forces. Helps in coup d’état.

• Young Siward – Siward’s son. Killed by Macbeth in a duel. Being of

natural birth, his death at Macbeth’s hands strengthens Macbeth’s
belief of invincibility.

• Seton – (sometimes called Seyton) an officer to Macbeth.

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• English doctor

• Scottish doctor – diagnoses that Lady Macbeth sleepwalks because

internal suffering and agony.

• Porter – provides comic relief - Imagines the gates of Inverness to be

the gates to Hell.

• Old Man – Talks to Ross about the strange events that occurred on
the night of Duncan’s murder. Although a peripheral character, he is
important in highlighting the disruption of the Order of Being. he
alludes to storms that reign while Macbeth does.

• Three Murderers – enlisted by Macbeth to kill Banquo and Fleance.

• Gentlewoman - attends on Lady Macbeth – observes her strange

behaviour and enlists a doctor.

• Hecate – Protector of witches and the weird sisters’ mistress –

concocts potion that will lead Macbeth to his ruin. She decides that
Macbeth must be punished for his selfishness and greed. She
commands and demands the respect and loyalty of the Three Weird
Sisters.

• Three Witches – weird sisters – instigators of the play, their prophesies

prompt Macbeth to action – they symbolise the evil that pervades the
play and the retribution that results from sinful deeds. They are
symbolic of both the underworld and the mysticism of the 16th
Century.

• Apparitions – summoned by witches – 3 forms – helmeted head,

bloody child and child holding a tree.

• Lords, Gentlemen, Officers, Soldiers, Attendants, Messengers

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ACTS AND SCENES
ACT I
Play begins with the meeting of the witches who are planning to bring about
Macbeth’s downfall. Scotland is engaged in a battle with Sweno, the King of
Norway, and his army. We meet Macbeth when he has killed a rebel
Scotsman, Macdonwald and his army had defeated the traitor, the Thane of
Cawdor. King Duncan of Scotland gives Macbeth the title of Thane of
Cawdor. Macbeth and Banquo meet the witches and the prophesies are
heard – Macbeth is excited about the prospect of being King Duncan to stay
at Inverness, Macbeth, and his wife plot to kill Duncan.
ACT I: SCENE I
• On a heath, three witches wait to meet Macbeth amid thunder and
lightning. (representative of chaos and evil)
• Their conversation is filled with paradoxes - fair is foul…
• Themes of fate and supernatural introduced – this sets the tone for the
play.
ACT I: SCENE II
• Scottish army at war with Norwegian army
• Introduces Macbeth through the eyes of other people.
• Word brought to Duncan about Macbeth’s heroism in fighting
Norwegian forces and killing Macdonwald.
• Ross and Angus tell Duncan that Thane of Cawdor defected to
Norwegian side, was caught, and executed.
• Macbeth given title of Thane of Cawdor.
ACT I: SCENE III
• Contact with the witches and theme of equivocation surfaces – first
prophesy came true, so they reconvene at the predetermined heath.
• Sleeplessness (witch cursed a sailor’s wife) introduced as part of ‘evil’.
• Macbeth and Banquo enter area – Macbeth ignores their ghastly
appearances, Banquo horrified.
• Witches greet Macbeth with the three titles and tell Banquo that he will
beget a line of kings, but never be a king himself.
• After intense questioning, the witches disappear into thin air.

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 • Macbeth told by Ross and Angus about Macbeth’s new title – Macbeth
is incredibly surprised!
• Banquo warns Macbeth that witches are evil and not to be believed.
• Leave and travel towards the residence of the King.
ACT I: SCENE IV
• Duncan and Malcolm discuss execution of Thane of Cawdor –
Malcolm says the man repented his sins.
• Duncan says that there is no way of determining a person’s thought,
whether good or evil. Thane of Cawdor betrayed him, although
Duncan trusted him completely. IRONY!
• Macbeth enters and Duncan lavishes praise on him,
• Duncan proclaims Malcolm to be heir to the throne.
• Macbeth writes letter to wife informing her of Duncan’s visit to
Inverness.
ACT I: SCENE V
• Lady Macbeth reads Macbeth’s letter concerning meeting with
witches and visit from King – resolves to support Macbeth in carrying
out of murders to become King. (regicide = killing of a King)
• She says Macbeth is too kind (“too full o’th’ milk of human kindness”)
and gentle to commit such an act and she is more morally courageous
and daring.
• Lady Macbeth interrupted by messenger who tells her that Macbeth
and King Duncan will be arriving at Inverness, their castle, in a few
moments.
• Lady Macbeth realises this is her chance to kill Duncan. Prays for
confidence (“unsex me here”)
• Encourages Macbeth to be kind, hospitable and servile so that nobody
will suspect their plans.
ACT I: SCENE VI
• Duncan and Banquo enter Inverness and admire its beauty and
advantageous situation.
• Duncan informs Lady Macbeth that he intends to stay the night.

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ACT I: SCENE VII
• Macbeth confused about course of action – wondering whether crime
is worth the effort.
• Realises it is host’s duty to ENTERTAIN and safeguard the King, not kill
him!
• Lady Macbeth furious at Macbeth for being coward – assures Macbeth
that they will not fail in their mission.
• Lady Macbeth explains she will poison Duncan and guards’ wine with
sleeping pills and that Macbeth must kill Duncan in his sleep.
• Macbeth agrees with Lady Macbeth’s plans.

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ACT II
The entire act is concerned with Duncan’s murder and the discovery thereof.
Macbeth (after encouragement from his wife) goes to Duncan’s chamber
and kills him. When he emerges with the bloodstained dagger, she is
angered and takes them back to Duncan’s room – she frames the sleeping
guards for the murder. Macduff arrives and the murder is discovered.
Malcolm and Donalbain flee for their lives from Scotland.
ACT II: SCENE I
• Banquo and Fleance walk towards their rooms after merrymaking with
other guests.
• Banquo is troubled over Macbeth’s believing of witches.
• Banquo and Fleance meet Macbeth in hallway, questions Macbeth
about witches – Macbeth falsely responds that he has not given it any
thought.
• Macbeth summons Lady Macbeth and finds himself clutching a dagger
– sees imaginary drops of blood.
• Lady Macbeth gives Macbeth a signal and he proceeds towards
Duncan’s room to kill him.
ACT II: SCENE II
• Macbeth kills Duncan and returns to chamber where Lady Macbeth
waits.
• Shrieks of owls and crickets – evil omens – as Macbeth tells Lady
Macbeth about the murder.
• Macbeth is unable to bless himself when he needed a blessing.
• Macbeth thinks he heard voice saying that he will never sleep again.
• Neither Macbeth nor Lady Macbeth able to sleep.
• Lady Macbeth sees Macbeth still clutching the bloody dagger – tells
him to wash up – he is frozen!
• Lady Macbeth takes over – smears blood on servants of Duncan –
washes herself and tells Macbeth to be calm.
• Loud knocking at south entrance to castle and couple retire fearfully
to bed.

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ACT II: SCENE III
• Drunken porter answers knocking at the gate.
• Compares himself to devil-porter and castle is place of Beelzebub
(Devil) – Inverness = EVIL!
• Macduff and Lennox enter and ask for Macbeth.
• Also ask for Duncan, as he had requested to be woken.
• Macduff goes to Duncan’s room.
• Lennox tells about raging storms – symbolic of stormy events in castle.
• Macduff re-enters with news that Duncan had been murdered.
• Lady Macbeth enters, seemingly sleepy – ‘faints’ at news that Duncan
murdered.
• Malcolm and Donalbain told of father’s death – no grieving – flee to
England and Ireland, respectively.
• Macbeth asks all to meet in hall to discuss events.
ACT II: SCENE IV
• Old man tells Ross he has never seen a stranger night – although
technically day, country still covered in darkness – shrieks of ominous
creatures pervade the land.
• Macduff enters and tells Ross that Norwegians are main suspects for
the murder – to wreak revenge on Macbeth for defeating them in
battle.
• Thinks Malcolm and Donalbain consorted with murderers, that is why
fled the country.
• Macduff tells Ross that Macbeth in new king and is travelling to Scone
to be ordained.

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ACT III
Macbeth is now King of Scotland – he feels threatened. All his subsequent
actions are to retain his position and the first thereof, is the murder of Banquo
(and attempted murder of Fleance). Macbeth and his wife are drifting apart.
Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost at a feast at Forres, near Dunsinane Hill (the
King’s castle) – his odd behaviour creates suspicion about his involvement
in the murders. Macbeth decides to seek advice from the Weird Sisters. In
England, Malcolm has been joined by Macduff and they are rallying to get
help from the English troops to overthrow Macbeth in Scotland.
ACT III: SCENE I
• Banquo troubled by fact that witches’ prophesies came true –
suspects foul play on Macbeth’s part.
• Macbeth and Lady Macbeth enter and announce that dinner to be
held, all – especially Banquo – invited.
• Banquo explains he will be late, as Fleance and he have duties to
attend to.
• After Banquo leaves, Macbeth declares that Banquo is now his
greatest threat – prophesies say Banquo’s sons will be kings.
• Plots to kill Banquo and Fleance when they travel through the forest
that night – hires two murderers – tells them that Banquo is the reason
why they are so poor!
ACT III: SCENE II
• Macbeth and Lady Macbeth situation in castle – Macbeth restless and
anxious
• Lady Macbeth thinks plan to kill Banquo and Fleance is unnecessary.
• Turn of events – Macbeth now calms Lady Macbeth and tells her to
act like gracious hostess – Macbeth now enveloped in role of murderer
and evil King.
ACT III: SCENE III
• 2 Murderers await Banquo + Fleance one mile from the gate to
Macbeth’s castle, joined by 3rd murderer.
• Father and son attacked while walking the last part to the castle.
• Banquo dies, Fleance escapes.

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 • Murderers to report to Macbeth about failed mission. Macbeth
doomed – Fleance lives!
ACT III: SCENE IV
• Banquet – Macbeth gracious and calm host
• Murderers report to Macbeth about Fleance’s escape – Macbeth
angry and afraid
• Macbeth asks assembly why Banquo not there – Banquo’s ghost
enters and only Macbeth can see him – assembly thinks Macbeth has
gone mad.
• Lady Macbeth tries to cover up by saying that m is prone to fits of
delirium.
• Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth to calm down in order NOT to be
suspected of the crime/s.
• Banquo’s ghost leaves banquet, but not after creating chaos in the
castle.
• Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth that he fears for his life now that Banquo’s
ghost is roaming the castle.
• Macbeth troubled that Macduff did not attend feast.
• Decides to visit weird sisters next day to hear more prophesies – good
or bad.
ACT III: SCENE V
• Witches meet Hecate – queen of the night and protector of witches /
enchantresses.
• Hecate angry that witches had not asked her for help in their dealings
with Macbeth and that Macbeth has been ungrateful to them despite
all their assistance.
• Hecate decides to make potion that will lead Macbeth to his ruin.
ACT III: SCENE VI
• Lennox and another lord discuss macabre atmosphere in palace.
Lennox notes that all in contact with Macbeth is dead or has
disappeared.
• Glad that Donalbain and Malcolm not near Macbeth and thus not
vulnerable to his murderous hands.

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• Lennox finds out that Macduff has gone to England to ask help from
Malcolm, Edward (king of England) and Siward (Earl of
Northumberland) in overthrowing Macbeth.

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ACT IV
Macbeth visits the three witches who, by means of three apparitions,
(beware Macduff; none of woman born shall kill him; stay calm until Birnam
Wood comes to Dunsinane) lead him to believe that he cannot be overthrown
or killed. Despite this consolation, Macbeth’s fear of Macduff (The Thane of
Fife) leads him to organise the murders of Macduff’s entire family, while
Macduff is in England, preparing for battle against Macbeth. Macduff is now
even more determined to destroy Macbeth – in anger and so that his family’s
ghosts will not haunt him.
ACT IV: SCENE I
• Witches and Hecate preparing potion.
• Macbeth enters, asks to speak to witches’ master about his future.
• Apparition (helmeted head) tells Macbeth to beware the Thane of Fife
– Macduff
• 2nd Apparition (bloody child) tells Macbeth to be brave as “none of
woman born” can kill him.
• 3rd Apparition (crowned child with tree in hand) tells Macbeth he will
never be vanquished until Great Birnam Wood travels to Dunsinane
Hill.
• Macbeth relieved and asks witches if Banquo’s sons will ever reign
Scotland.
• Eight ghosts with crowns emerge – represent future sons of Banquo –
mirror in Banquo’s hand represents infinite number of descendants.
• Macbeth is angry!
• Witches disappear and Lennox enters the haunt – informs Macbeth
that Macduff has fled to England.
• Macbeth decides to kill Macduff’s wife and children as his first step of
revenge.
ACT IV: SCENE II
• Lady Macduff asks Ross why her husband suddenly fled to England –
does not realise she is in trouble – thinks he left because he does not
love his family anymore.
• Ross tries to comfort her and warns her that Scotland is dangerous
place to be in at present.

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 • Lady Macduff tells her son that Macduff is dead to ease pain of his
departure. – says father was a traitor
• Messenger runs in and interrupts to warn Lady and son to escape
while they can.
• Murderers enter and kill family under instructions of Macbeth.
ACT IV: SCENE III
• Macduff finds Malcolm in England – they lament the evil that reigns in
Scotland – tyrant Macbeth.
• Macduff tries to convince Malcolm to overthrow Macbeth – Malcolm
wary of anyone from Scotland – lies about himself and makes himself
seem inferior to Macbeth.
• Macduff convinces Malcolm – both agree to go back to Scotland and
fight Macbeth.
• Malcolm tells Macduff about virtues of English King – Edward – heals
people by touching them – direct contrast to Macbeth who kills people.
• Ross enters and tells Macduff about his family’s slaughter.
• Macduff enraged and wrought with grief – vows to get revenge by
killing Macbeth, otherwise his family’s ghosts will haunt him forever.
• Ross, Macduff, Malcolm, Siward and 10 000 men immediately leave
England to fight war against Macbeth.

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ACT V
Lady Macbeth is sleepwalking and suffering from hallucinations – she is
tormented by guilt and is finally driven to suicide. Macbeth seems apathetic
about his wife’s death. Macbeth prepares for battle against the approaching
English forces. When he sees Birnam Wood approaching Dunsinane, he
starts to doubt the witches’ prophesies. Macduff finds Macbeth and they duel
– Macduff admits that he is ‘not of woman born’. Macbeth realises that the
witches duped him and with courage, he fights Macduff. Macbeth is killed.
Malcolm is instated as the rightful King of Scotland.
ACT V: SCENE I
• At Forres/Dunsinane, gentlewoman speaks to doctor about Lady
Macbeth’s sleepwalking – somnambulism.
• While they are talking, they witness Lady Macbeth sleepwalking and
rubbing her hands as if trying to wash away some stain – she weeps,
mutters about Thane of Fife and Banquo
• Doctor and gentlewoman shocked – Lady Macbeth has revealed her
source of stress.
ACT V: SCENE II
• Menteith, Caithness, Angus and Lennox rally the soldiers – reports that
Malcolm, Siward, Macduff and English army are to join them shortly.
• Men march to Birnam Wood.
ACT V: SCENE III
• In the castle, Macbeth overconfident due to the apparitions
• Servant tells Macbeth that 10 000 English soldiers directly outside
castle.
• Macbeth dismisses servant is fears and decides to ride out and fight.
• Doctor enters and tells Macbeth that Lady Macbeth is extremely ill –
says her ailment is mental, not physical, so he cannot treat her.
ACT V: SCENE IV
• Forces against Macbeth are ready to fight.
• Malcolm orders men to chop down trees in Birnam Wood and carry it
until they come to the castle – it will hide their true numbers until the
fight starts – Birnam Wood is travelling to Dunsinane!
• Siward reports that Macbeth remains confident.
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ACT V: SCENE V
• Inside the castle, Macbeth prepares for battle with Malcolm and
Macduff.
• Learns that Lady Macbeth has committed suicide and he hardly
mourns her death – he is devoid of proper emotion and compassion.
• Messenger tells Macbeth that he saw trees of Birnam Wood move
towards castle – Macbeth does not believe him and looks out the
window – resolves to fight Malcolm and Macduff honourably.
ACT V: SCENE VI
• Rebel army has reached Dunsinane.
• Malcolm orders Siward and Young Siward to lead men on to the castle.
• Malcolm and Macduff stay behind to finish everyone else off.
ACT V: SCENE VII
• Macbeth captured by soldiers and tied to a stake.
• Young Siward approaches and challenges Macbeth to a duel –
Macbeth kills him.
• Macduff enters castle, followed by Siward.
• Macduff wants to kill Macbeth so that his family’s ghosts will not haunt
him.
ACT V: SCENE VIII
• Macbeth and Macduff meet up – they duel.
• Macbeth tells Macduff he does not fear anyone who was born of
woman – Macduff informs Macbeth that he was ripped from his
mother’s womb – caesarean section.
• Macduff kills Macbeth.
ACT V: SCENE IX
• Macduff returns to Malcolm with Macbeth’s head lanced onto a pole.
• Siward learns his son is dead.
• Malcolm hailed as rightful heir to the throne.
• Malcolm proclaims that he will reward all followers by making them
Earls and that all who fled Scotland under Macbeth’s rule must return.
• Invites everyone to his coronation at Scone.

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THE CHARACTERS IN MORE DETAIL
MACBETH
• Loyal Scotsman who challenges and kills the traitor Macdonwald.
• Rewarded with the title of Thane of Cawdor by King Duncan.
• He has ambitious intentions but struggles with his evil desires.
• He confuses conscience with fear – convinced he is a coward to fear
killing Duncan.
• Encouraged by his wife, he kills the King.
• Once he is King, he is insecure about his position and sense of
security.
• He drifts apart from his wife and stops consulting her about his plans.
• He fears Banquo – has him killed.
• He fears the future and revisits the witches for advice.
• He has Macduff’s family murdered.
• When Scotland turns against him, he prepares to fight bravely, as he
feels immortal / invincible because of the witches’ prophesies and the
Apparitions.
• Towards the end, he is remorseless, pitiless, and guiltless – a cruel
tyrant who kills at a whim and makes Scotland ‘bleed’ for his own
ambitions and selfish goals.
• He recognises the emptiness and meaninglessness of his life before
he duels with Macduff.
• At the end of the play, Malcolm refers to Macbeth as “this dead
butcher”.
• Macbeth is a cruel tyrant, bloodthirsty and without remorse, BUT he
was courageous – although he knew he was defeated, he died fighting
bravely and somehow nobly.

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LADY MACBETH
• Determined to be in control, single-minded and strong-willed in her
ambition for her husband to be king.
• Calls on the forces of Evil to prevent her from having any conscience
or feminine tenderness.
• Cunning in her persuasion of her husband, she is plays on his sense of
manhood.
• She remains calm and controlled before the murder of Duncan.
• Only show of humanity and sensitivity was that she was unable to kill
Duncan herself and needed a drink to follow through the plan.
• She loses control over her husband, experiences a sense of futility and
joylessness at what they had done – “What’s done cannot be
undone…”
• Becomes isolated and troubled, distanced from her husband,
• Her conscience drives her mad, she is haunted and plagued by
hallucinations and eventually her guilt leads her to commit suicide – a
sad, lonely, and troubled woman.

BANQUO
• Like Macbeth, Banquo is a brave soldier and nobleman. Together, they
defeat the Scottish traitor in the opening battle.
• He is resolute, courageous, and modest about his achievements.
• He is promised great things by the witches – his heirs will be Kings in
the future.
• The choices he makes after hearing the prophesies set him apart from
his friend – although he is plagued by temptation, he prays to Heaven
to help him resist temptations and restless thoughts.
• He is aware of the evil and possible harm concerning the witches’
prophesies.
• He makes a clear choice not to do anything disloyal or evil.
• He is committed to justice and honesty.
• He suspects Macbeth of evil after the murder of Duncan.

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MACDUFF
• He is ultimately responsible for the defeat of Macbeth.
• From early in the play, despite being oblivious to the witches’
prophecies, he suspects foul play from Macbeth (he discovers
Duncan’s body at Inverness) and never pretends to be loyal to
Macbeth as the King, in fact, he has an intense loathing of Macbeth.
• He is noble-natured – he sees the murder of the King as an attack on
the Lord’s anointed temple.
• He snubs Macbeth by refusing to attend his coronation and ignoring
his invitation to the banquet at Forres. (Where Banquo’s ghost haunts
Macbeth.)
• He is very patriotic – he leaves his family unprotected to go to England
to raise an army to defeat Macbeth.
• His ambitions are fuelled further with the news of his family’s death at
the hands of the tyrant his is trying to overthrow.
• He kills Macbeth to avenge his family’s murders.

MALCOLM
• Eldest son of King Duncan and named as successor to the throne.
• Unlike his father, Malcolm does not easily trust people – he is cautious
and flees from Scotland after his father’s death.
• He tests Macduff’s loyalty and sincerity when Macduff joins him in
England.
• He is determined and single-minded.
• He is an able and competent military leader – proven by his instruction
to his men to camouflage themselves in the branches from trees from
Birnam Wood.
• He is instated as King after Macduff kills Macbeth.
• He is a competent King with no doubt better judgement and
discernment than Macbeth.

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THE DIVINE / GREAT CHAIN OF BEING:
The Elizabethans believed very strongly in the Great Chain of Being. This
was a philosophy that stated that all creatures in the universe were arranged
in a hierarchy: 1. God 2. Top Classes of Angels 3. Dominations. Powers and
Virtues 4. Princes 5. Archangels and Angels 6. Man – at the top of the Human
hierarchy = the King 7. Earls, Dukes, and the rest of the aristocracy down to
peasants and beggars. 8. Animals – Lion at the top and the worm at the
bottom. 9. Plants 10. Rocks and stones. You could not rise above your state
in life, no matter how hard you worked. No single entity was left out – all had
their place in the order of existence.
In Macbeth, when the natural order of “Chain of Being” is disturbed, Scotland
falls into disarray. It is only when Macbeth is killed and Malcolm becomes
King, that the order of Scotland is restored.

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THEMES AND MOTIFS:
INSOMNIA
• Sleep is referred to often in the play.
• Duncan is murdered in his sleep, while his guards sleep outside. (albeit
a drug-induced sleep.)
• Macbeth states: “Sleep no more! /Macbeth does murder sleep, the
innocent sleep…”
• After Duncan’s murder, neither Macbeth not Lady Macbeth sleep
peacefully again – they are both plagued with insomnia and
somnambulism.
• The Macbeths’ insomnia is evidence of their guilt.
• Fear of sleep represents Macbeth’s fear of his inevitable death.

FULL CIRCLE
• The play starts with the Thane of Cawdor proving to be a traitor to
Scotland and he is executed.
• The play ends with the new Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth, proving to be
a traitor to Scotland and his head mounted on a stake.

BLOOD
• Features often and prominently in the play.
• Opening scene is bloody, final scene sees Macbeth decapitated.
• Mentioned more than 100 times in the play – daggers, warfare,
hallucinations.
• Although most of the killings take place off-stage, the characters give
vivid and gory descriptions of the deaths and murders to the audience.
• Blood symbolises the Macbeths’ guilt – they feel that their crimes have
stained them (their consciences) in a way that they can never be
washed clean.

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TROUBLED MIND
• One is responsible for one’s actions.
• A saintly life puts one in harmony with nature and one’s mind remains
tranquil. But just step aside from that…!
• Troubled minds are restless, trust no-one, are distraught, isolated
Hallucinations.
• Visions and hallucinations recur throughout the play and serve as
reminders of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s joint culpability for the
many murders committed – supernatural signs of their guilt.
• When he is about to kill Duncan, Macbeth sees a dagger floating in
front of him – the fact that the dagger is bloody and pointing towards
Duncan’s room, represents the bloody course on which Macbeth is
about to embark.
• When he sees Banquo’s ghost at the feast, his conscience is pricked
that he murdered his friend.
• Lady Macbeth also gives way to visions and hallucinations – she is
permanently trying to get ‘blood’ off her hands – a sure sign of her guilt
over the crimes.
• Lady Macbeth also sleepwalks.

EQUIVOCATION
• Use of ambiguous words to hide the real meaning – to prevaricate (be
deliberately misleading).
• Where there is a very thin line between truth and deception – to lie by
saying something that sounds fair, but which has a hidden, foul
meaning.
• Porter speaks of equivocation at great length when he must go open
gate to Macduff who has arrived to awaken the King. He pretends to
be porter of Hell – putting souls of the dead-on trial and sentencing
them to eternal damnation for their equivocation.
• He also says alcohol is the greatest equivocator.
• Macbeth is ultimate victim of equivocation – witches’ prophesies –
mislead.

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SUPERSTITIONS
• Ancient people believed there was direct link between nature and the
goodness of one’s actions.
• Darkness before Duncan’s murder, Macbeth believes to be ‘sign’.
• Hallucinates – sees dagger, hears noises – owl, wolves, blood – all evil
omens Witches and Witchcraft.
• Played a natural role in medieval society.
• Probably skilled in magic, both good and evil – could place and remove
curses.
• Superstitions played great roles in their ‘treatments’ and ‘diagnoses’.
• Believed to be able to see into the future.
• That is why Macbeth was not hesitant in believing them.

APPEARANCE AND REALITY

• False appearances belie the true reality beneath the surface.
• Throughout the play, there are many situations and characters’
conflicts which are paradoxical.
• The witches’ prophesies seem good and well but are evil and aimed at
the destruction of Macbeth.
• The Thane of Cawdor betrays the King and although Macbeth seems
to be a good and loyal servant, he too betrays the King and his country.
• Inverness LOOKS hospitable and welcoming, but is in fact a
murderous place, filled with evil.
• Both Macbeths’ are deceitful in their appearances versus their real
natures. She instructs Macbeth to “look like the innocent flower, but
be the serpent under it”.
• Much of the theme of Appearance vs. Reality relies on the equivocation
of the witches – their double meanings.
o “when the battle’s lost and won” – I,i,4
o “fair is foul and foul is fair” – I,i,13
o “Lesser than Macbeth, and greater” - I,iii,65
o “So foul and fair a day I have not seen” – I,iii,38
o “they doubly redoubled strokes upon the foe” – I,ii,42
o “the service and the loyalty I owe in doing pays itself.” – I,iv,25-26
o “I have thee not, and yet I see thee still” – II,i,46
o “double, double, toil and trouble” – IV,i,10
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CHANCE VERSUS CHOICE
• Was Macbeth responsible for his own downfall or was he the victim of
manipulation by supernatural powers?
• Banquo, other than Macbeth, decides to choose NOT to be evil and
not to pursue the witches’ prophesies.
• Macbeth chooses to do something about the prophesies.

THE STRUGGLE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL

• This theme is prevalent in most of Shakespeare’s tragedies.
• Macbeth's soul struggles between good and evil.
• Disorder and chaos versus organised Kingdom.
• Macbeth’s ambitions are fuelled by evil.
• Lady Macbeth purposefully asks the powers of evil to possess her soul;
there is no struggle for her at first.
• However, good does triumph over evil at the end of the play.

DARKNESS
• Many scenes take place in darkness or at night – mostly evil.
• The Macbeths call upon actual darkness (forces of evil) to hide their
own evil ambitions and deeds.
• Witches are associated with evil and darkness.
• Darkness also associated with fear and foreboding – Banquo and
Fleance scared, then killed in darkness.
• Darkness also indicative of disorder and turmoil.
• Each murder is accompanied by several unnatural occurrences in
nature – thunder, lightning, storms.

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THE CORRUPTING POWER OF UNCHECKED AMBITION
• In “Macbeth”, destruction is wrought when ambition goes unchecked
by moral constraints.
• Macbeth is courageous and not naturally inclined to commit evil deeds,
yet he deeply desires power and advancement. He kills Duncan
against his better judgement and afterwards, stews in guilt in paranoia.
Yet, towards the end of the play, the guilt and paranoia are gone and
replaced by boastful madness due to no moral constraints.
• Lady Macbeth pursues her goals with great determination, yet she is
incapable of living with the repercussions on calling on the forces of
darkness and evil. Although she spurs her husband to be calm and
collected after the murder, she is unable to be so herself.
• The play suggests that once one decides to use violence to further
one’s quest for power, it is exceedingly difficult to stop. As Macbeth
saw – after Duncan was dead, Banquo, Fleance, Malcolm and Macduff
became potential threats that had to be eliminated. Violence had to be
used to try and dispose of them.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CRUELTY AND MASCULINITY

• Characters in “Macbeth” frequently dwell in issues of gender
ambiguity.
• Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband by questioning his manhood,
when he has doubts about killing Duncan. (“When you durst do it, then
you are a man” – I,vii,48)
• She wishes to be ‘unsexed’ and agrees with her husband when he says
a woman like her should only give birth to boys.
• Macbeth provokes the murderers (hired to kill Banquo and Fleance)
by questioning their manhood. (Nifty trick he learned from his wife?)
• These acts show that both the Macbeths equate masculinity with
aggression and violence and soon thereafter, chaos.
• Women in “Macbeth” are sources of evil – the witches, Hecate, Lady
Macbeth – they manipulate him into doing their dirty work.
• Although the males in the play are violent and aggressive, the females
go against prevailing expectations of how women ought to behave.
• Women can be just as ambitious and cruel as men! (She uses
manipulation and deception to achieve her goals…)

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THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN KINGSHIP AND TYRANNY
• In the play, Duncan is always referred to as the King and Macbeth is
soon known as the “tyrant”.
• Malcolm explains the difference in Act IV when he tells Macduff (whilst
they are in England) that Macbeth has a thirst for personal power and
a violent temperament.
• The model king, according to Malcolm, should have ‘justice, verity,
temp’rance, stableness, bounty, perseverance, mercy and lowliness”.
• The model King should offer his subjects (and country) order and
justice, comfort, and affection.
• A King should be loyal and reward his subjects according to their
merits.
• Macbeth’s reign is symbolised by the bad weather and bizarre
supernatural events that pervades.
• He offers no justice and murders whomever he sees as a threat.
• Macbeth is the embodiment of tyranny and justice is restored when
Malcolm becomes the King after his death.

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METAPHOR + THEME ANALYSIS:
“FAIR IS FOUL AND FOUL IS FAIR”
• Act 1, scene 1, line 10 – part of witches’ conservation
o Fair appearances hide Foul realities.
o Phrase is a metaphor that describes the situation within Macbeth
and Scotland.
o Macbeth views the witches’ prophesies to be “fair” and Banquo
considers them to be “foul”. (their intentions are foul)
o To the Weird Sisters, what is ugly is beautiful and what is
beautiful is ugly,
o Although Macbeth and Lady Macbeth play the gracious hosts
(fair), their intentions are evil (foul) – KILL Duncan.
o Inverness seems hospitable (fair) but is playing ground of
Beelzebub (foul) – porter scene.
o Evil and sinister – Macbeth is tyrant who consorts with evil –
Macbeth + Lady Macbeth are evil and suffer from illusions and
paranoia.
o Throughout the play, fair appearances hide foul realities.
o This theme illustrates the central theme of appearance versus
reality. “And oftentimes, to win us to our harm / The instruments
of darkness tell us truths…”
• Act 1, Scene 3 – Banquo to Macbeth about the witches.
o Comparison of witches to instruments of darkness reveal their
truly foul nature.
o Shakespeare is implying through Banquo that the honeyed
prophesies of the weird sisters will only bring about M’s downfall.
o In addition, since Macbeth listens to the witches, he can be
considered an instrument of darkness himself. “Upon my head
they placed a fruitless crown / And put a barren sceptre in my
grip / Thence to be wrenched with an unlineal hand, / No son of
mine succeeding.”
• Act 3, Scene 1 – Macbeth about the witches’ prophesies
o Macbeth laments that although the witches prophesised that he
would become King, they also said that Banquo’s posterity
would possess the throne as well.
o His jealousy from this statement induces him to kill B and attempt
to kill Fleance. “There the grown serpent lies; the worm that’s /

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 fled / Hath nature that in time will venom breed, / No teeth for
th’present.”
• Act 3, Scene 4 – Macbeth to himself about Banquo and Fleance
o Macbeth likens dead Banquo to a deceased serpent and his
son, Fleance, to a young snake.
o This metaphor is NB because it implies that Macbeth still
considers Fleance a threat, even though Banquo is dead.

MACBETH AS THE TRAGIC HERO

• Tragic hero is a character that the audience sympathises with despite
his/her actions that would indicate the contrary.
• Macbeth, despite his horrible deeds, is a pitiable man.
• Macbeth, the play’s chief protagonist, is a tragic hero. He is a man of
noble birth and he is a great warrior at the start of the play.
• His great fault/flaw is his unfulfilled desire – his evil ambition and secret
desire to be King, lead to his demise.
• When Macbeth achieves the fulfilment (he is King), his fortunes and
morals begin to decline rapidly. He is tortured with anxiety and seeks
to get rid of all who he sees as threatening. Fear, paranoia, exhaustion,
and sleeplessness plague him, despite his sovereignty
• He starts to lose control of himself and the situation. He deteriorates
into becoming a blood-thirsty tyrant who murders even innocents.
• He is destroyed and the situation is restored to order – Malcolm takes
his rightful place as King of Scotland.
• His redeeming quality is the fact that he DID NOT want to kill Duncan
initially but changed his mind after listening to his wife. Also – when
realising that he had been duped by the witches, he fights Macduff
bravely.

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LADY MACBETH AS A TRAGIC HERO
• The reader does not get to know Lady Macbeth before she reads the
letter from her husband. We do not know whether she is a good person
before being introduced to the mastermind behind Duncan’s murder.
• She is courageous, at first and most determined.
• Her initial courage and daring do not last long, and she quickly
deteriorates into a delusional, hapless somnambulist.
• She broke down mentally and physically because of the strain of the
crime.
• Like her husband, a pitiable character – reader can follow their every
thought and action.
• BUT CAN WE REALLY SYMPATHISE WITH THEM?

INDECISION AND INTERNAL CONFLICT

• Macbeth was indecisive up until the very night of the murder about
whether to kill Duncan.
• Afterwards, he was unsure of a course of action.
• He rashly decided to kill Banquo – visited witches and remained
confident when castle was besieged.
• Lady Macbeth initial lack of indecision is what brought about the pair’s
downfall – later she becomes tentative about the potential benefits of
Banquo’s death – by end of play, she has become a delusional recluse
that is almost entirely ignored by her husband.

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COMPARING AND CONTRASTING: MACBETH AND LADY MACBETH

BEFORE THE MURDER OF DUNCAN

Lady Macbeth: Ambitious, actively opens herself to evil influence, single-
minded, determined, convinced their plan will work.
Macbeth: Hesitates, has doubts, open to evil influence but tries briefly to
avoid it, wavers in deciding, fears failure.

AFTER THE MURDER OF DUNCAN

Macbeth: Distraught, hears voices shocked and repulsed by blood, thinks
blood will never be washed away.
Lady Macbeth: Calm and in control, does not mind the blood, thinks blood
will easily be washed away.

AT THE DISCOVERY OF THE MURDER

Macbeth: Kills again immediately, own plans take effect.
Lady Macbeth: Shows signs of strain, plan to show grief fails feels fear and
insecurity feels a sense of despair and futility.

FROM HERE ON THEY DRIFT APART

Macbeth: Plots murders alone – fear of enemies and what may happen –
drives him to more murders alone, spills more and more blood, despairs
about life – dies in battle – has one last courageous stand.
Lady Macbeth: Haunted by guilt. fears what has happened – drives her mad,
cannot rid herself of the smell of blood, despairs about life – commits suicide.

ORIGINALLY ‘PARTNERS OF GREATNESS’, THEY ARE NOT PARTNERS

IN THEIR SUFFERING. EACH ONE DRIFTS TO HIS OR HER END IN A
STATE OF LONELY ISOLATION.

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