WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE: THE AUTHOR AND HIS TIMESMacbeth was first performed in 1606, three years after James Isucceeded Elizabeth I on the English throne.  By that time, WilliamShakespeare was the most popular playwright in England, and hiscompany, which had been called the Chamberlain's Men under QueenElizabeth, was renamed the King's Men.You can see from the subject and content of Macbeth that Shakespearewas writing to please the new king.  At the time James became James Iof England, he was already James VI of Scotland, so a play likeMacbeth about Scottish history was a tribute to him.  This play wasespecially flattering because James was of the Stuart line of kings,and supposedly the Stuarts were descended from Banquo, who appears inthe play as a brave, noble, honest man.  Also, James wrote a bookcalled Demonology, and he would have been very interested in thescenes with the witches.It is not unusual that Shakespeare would have written Macbeth with aneye toward gratifying his patron.  Shakespeare was a commercialplaywright--he wrote and produced plays to sell tickets and makemoney.One of his early plays--Titus Andronicus--was popular for the samereason certain movies sell a lot of tickets today:  it is full ofblood and gore.  The witches and the battles of Macbeth, too, mayhave been there in part to appeal to the audience.It was Shakespeare's financial success as a playwright that restoredhis family's sagging fortunes.  John Shakespeare, William's father,was the son of a farmer.  He opened a shop in Stratford-upon-Avon andeventually become one of the town's leading citizens.John married Mary Arden, the daughter of his father's landlord.  Marywas a gentle, cultivated woman, and their marriage helped Johnsocially in Stratford.William, their first son, was born in 1564.  It seems that by thetime he was twenty his father was deeply in debt, and John's namedisappeared from the list of town councillors.  Years later, whenWilliam was financially well off, he bought his father a coat ofarms, which let John sign himself as an official "gentleman."So Shakespeare was no aristocrat who wrote plays as an intellectualpursuit.  He was a craftsman who earned his living as a dramatist.We don't know much about Shakespeare's life.  When he was eighteen,he married Anne Hathaway, who was twenty-six.  They had threechildren, two girls and a boy, and the boy, Hamnet, died young.  Byhis mid-twenties, Shakespeare was a successful actor and playwrightin London, and he stayed in the theater until he died, in 1616.Macbeth was written relatively late in Shakespeare's career--when hewas in his forties.  It was the last of what are considered the fourgreat tragedies.  (The others are Hamlet, Othello, and King Lear.)Macbeth is one of the shortest of Shakespeare's works, and itseconomy is a sign that its author was a master of his craft.  You areamazed at the playwright's keen understanding of human nature and hisskill in expressing his insights through dramatic verse as, step bystep, he makes the spiritual downfall of Macbeth, the titlecharacter, horrifyingly clear.All Shakespeare's plays seem to brim over with ideas--he is alwaysjuggling several possibilities about life.  England, too, was in themidst of a highly interesting period, full of change.Queen Elizabeth was a great queen, and under her rule England had wona war against Spain, which established it as a world power.  Americawas being explored.  Old ideas about government and law werechanging.  London was becoming a fabulous city, filling with peoplefrom the countryside.  Even the English language was changing, aspeople from distant areas came together and added new words andexpressions to the common language.More than a half-century earlier, Henry VIII, Elizabeth's father, hadbroken away from the Roman Catholic Church and established the Churchof England.  Forty years later, in the middle of the 17th century,King Charles I would lose his head, executed by the Puritans in acivil war.Elizabeth was not as secure on the throne as you might think.  Thoughher grandfather, Henry VII, had stripped the nobles of England ofmuch power, Elizabeth still struggled with them throughout her reign.She had to be a political genius to play them against each other, toavoid the plottings of the Roman Catholics and to overcome thecountry's financial mess created by her father, Henry VIII.A lot was "modern," a lot was "medieval" about the way people thoughtin Shakespeare's time.  People were superstitious, and thesuperstitions became mixed up with religion.  Things that nobodyunderstood were often attributed to supernatural forces.You can feel some of these things moving behind the scenes as youread Macbeth.  But none of this background--not the influence ofJames I or the intrigues of Elizabeth's court or the superstitions ofthe times--should determine the way you read the play.  It has a lifeof its own, breathed into it by Shakespeare's talent and art.  Itstands on its own and must be evaluated on its own terms.  So nowlet's turn to the play itself.MACBETH: THE PLOTOn a deserted field, with lightning and thunder overhead, we seethree eerie witches.  They chant spells, make plans to meet someonenamed Macbeth, and vanish into thin air.In a military camp not far away are King Duncan of Scotland and someof his followers.  A battle is raging nearby.  We learn there is arebellion against the King.  He is too old to fight himself, andwants to know how his army is doing.A badly wounded soldier reports that the battle was horribly bloodybut the brave Thane of Glamis, Macbeth, saved the day, fightingfearlessly and killing the rebels' leader.  (Thanes were Scottishnoblemen.) Duncan is moved by Macbeth's courage.The Thane of Ross arrives with more news:  the Thane of Cawdor, oneof Duncan's trusted captains, is a traitor.  When Duncan learns thathis army has won, he orders the Thane of Cawdor executed andindicates that Macbeth inherit his title.Before Duncan's men can reach Macbeth to tell him the good news,Macbeth and Banquo, who have led Duncan's army together, come uponthe three witches.  Banquo thinks the three weird women are bizarreand funny, but Macbeth is strangely fascinated by them.  They greetMacbeth with two predictions:  that he will be Thane of Cawdor andthat he will be king.  Then they prophesy that though Banquo willnever be a king, his children will be kings.  And then the witchesvanish.Macbeth and Banquo cannot believe their eyes.  As they joke uneasilyabout the predictions, they are interrupted by Duncan's messengers,who announce that Macbeth is now Thane of Cawdor.  Suddenly, thewitches are no laughing matter.  Macbeth's mind is racing.  Could heactually become king someday?  King Duncan personally thanks Macbethfor his bravery in the following scene, at his palace.  But at thesame time Duncan announces that his son Malcolm will inherit thethrone.  That is not good news for Macbeth.  You can see already thathe wants to wear the crown himself.At Macbeth's castle, Lady Macbeth reads a letter from her husbandtelling her about the witches.  It is clear that she will be willingto do anything to see Macbeth king.  When the news arrives thatDuncan will spend the night at her castle, she's amazed at hisstupidity--or his innocence--and thrilled to have the chance tomurder him.That night, as the royal party is being entertained, Duncan's hostssecretly plot his death.  Macbeth is scared of what he is about todo, and wants to back out, but his wife makes it clear that if hedoesn't kill Duncan, she won't consider him a man.  Macbeth commitsthe murder, but he is appalled by his deed.When the King's body is discovered the next morning, nobody seemsmore shocked or surprised than Macbeth and his Lady.  Macbeth blamesDuncan's servants and kills them--pretending he is so enraged hecannot stop himself.  Duncan's sons, Malcolm and Donalbain, sensetreason and treachery and decide to run away, afraid that they willbe killed, too.  Macbeth has himself crowned king.  The witches'predictions have come true, and Macbeth seems to have all he wants.But Macbeth is not happy.  He's afraid that some of the thanessuspect Duncan was not really killed by his servants.  Worse,Macbeth's friend Banquo was told by the witches that he would fatherkings.  To prevent that, Macbeth decides, he must also murder Banquo.This time without Lady Macbeth's help, Macbeth sends three men tokill Banquo and his son, Fleance.  Banquo's throat is slit, butFleance manages to escape.On the night of his friend's murder Macbeth holds a great feast.  Butthe merrymaking is spoiled by the appearance of Banquo's ghost.Macbeth is the only person there who can see him, and it makes himrave like a madman.Terrified now of losing the crown, Macbeth goes back to the witches.They tell him three things:  first, that he should fear Macduff, theThane of Fife; second, that Macbeth will never be harmed by any manborn of woman; and third, that he will never be defeated until BirnamWood moves to Dunsinane Hill.  Two out of three of the predictionssound comforting, but the witches go on to show Macbeth a vision ofBanquo as father to a line of kings.  The vision makes Macbethfurious, but the predictions make him even more ruthless.Macbeth soon learns that the witches gave him good advice aboutfearing Macduff.  The Thane of Fife has gone to England to meet withMalcolm, the rightful king, and plan a revolt.  In his rage, Macbethhas Macduff's wife and children murdered.When Macduff hears the news, his grief makes him even more determinedto overthrow the tyrant Macbeth.  He and Malcolm set out from Englandwith ten thousand men.In Scotland, Macbeth's world is falling apart.  His followers aredeserting him; his wife has lost her mind.  Only his pride and hisconfidence in the witches' predictions keep him going.As Malcolm is approaching Macbeth's castle at Dunsinane, he ordershis troops to cut branches from trees in nearby Birnam Wood and carrythem as disguises.Macbeth at Dunsinane is waiting for the attackers when he's told thathis wife is dead; she has killed herself.  He barely has time toreact before a report arrives that Birnam Wood seems to bemoving--toward the castle!  Furious, frightened, and desperate,Macbeth calls out his troops.Malcolm's army throw down the branches and the battle begins.Macbeth's men hardly put up a fight, but Macbeth battles like atrapped animal.Finally, Macbeth comes face to face with Macduff, who has beenlooking for him in the battlefield.  Macbeth warns his enemy that noman born of woman can harm him.  Macduff isn't frightened--he was"untimely ripped" from his mother's womb.  (Today we would call it acesarean section.) Though he knows the end has come, Macbeth fightson and is killed.  In triumph, Macduff carries Macbeth's severed headout to the people, who turn to Malcolm as their rightful king.MACBETH: MACBETHMacbeth is a character of powerful contradictions.  He is a man who,for the sake of his ambition, is willing to murder his king and hisbest friend.  At the same time, he has a conscience that is so strongthat just the thought of his crimes torments him.  In fact, evenbefore he commits his crimes the thought of them makes him miserable.Is Macbeth a horrible monster or is he a sensitive man--a victim ofwitches and his own ambitions?  Or is he both?  If he is both, howcan the two sides of his nature exist side by side?To answer those questions, let's first look at what he does.  Then wewill look at how he feels about what he does.  In the play, ofcourse, the two go together.His actions are monstrous.  If Macbeth were a criminal brought totrial, the list of the charges against him would be long:1.  He murders his king, who is also a relative.  The crime istreasonous and sacrilegious, since every king is set on his throne byGod.  Macbeth's guilt is even blacker because the King was his guestat the time of the murder.  A host has responsibility to protect hisguest.2.  He hires men to kill his best friend, Banquo.  He wants the mento kill Banquo's young son, Fleance, too, but Fleance escapes.3. He sends men to kill Macduff's wife and children.4.  Having taken the crown by murder, he keeps it by deception.  Heplants spies in all the nobles' homes and spreads lies about Malcolm,who should rightfully inherit the throne.5.  More crimes are referred to but not specified.  Macbeth rules byterror, since he does not deserve--or have--anybody's loyalty.Describing Scotland under Macbeth's rule, Macduff says, "Each newmorn / New widows howl, new orphans cry, new sorrows / Strike heavenon the face..." (Act IV, Scene iii, lines 4-6).So Macbeth does horrible things, but that is not the whole story.Macbeth is different from some of Shakespeare's other villains likeIago (in Othello) and Richard III.  The latter enjoy doing evil; theyhave renounced what we think of as normal ethics and morality.Macbeth's feelings are more complicated.  In the beginning of theplay, at least, he appears to have a conscience that tells him whathe's doing is wrong.  Or is he just afraid of the consequences of hisactions?He is never able to enjoy the crown he has taken.  He experiencesnothing but anguish.  Is that simply because he is afraid of losingthe crown, or is his conscience bothering him?None of these questions is answered directly in the play.  Eachreader has to form his or her own opinion, based on the text.Let's look at how Macbeth feels about each of the crimes we listed before:1.  Killing Duncan horrifies Macbeth.  Before the murder, he tries totell Lady Macbeth that he will not go through with it.  She has togoad him into killing the King.  After committing the murder, Macbethseems almost delirious.  He says that "...all great Neptune's ocean[will not] wash this blood / Clean from my hand" (Act II, Scene ii,lines 60-61).2.  When he murders Banquo, Macbeth is still in torment, but thecause of his anguish seems to have changed.  He is afraid of Banquo,because Banquo knows about the witches and because the witchespredicted that his descendents would be kings.  Banquo's death, hesays, will put his mind at rest.3.  We are never told how Macbeth feels about the murder of Macduff'swife and children.  Their killing gains him nothing.  He has goodreason to fear Macduff, but slaughtering his enemy's family ispointless.Macbeth seems to order their murder for spite, out of a feeling ofdesperation.  Despite the witches' new prophesies, which appear to bereassuring, he is afraid of losing the crown.  Since he cannot get atMacduff directly, he lets loose this senseless violence.4.  The spies Macbeth plants show how desperate and paranoid he is.He sees enemies--real or imagined--everywhere.5.  The other unspecified acts of violence serve no purpose, as faras we can see, beyond terrifying his subjects so much they won'tresist him.  Macbeth is striking out at random, and his moral senseseems to have entirely disappeared.  The brave hero we met in Act I,who at least seemed honorable, is completely twisted.You can see how much his crimes have cost Macbeth.  His reaction toLady Macbeth's death is a sign of complete despair--all feeling isdead in him.  His famous speech upon hearing of hersuicide--"Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow..." (Act V, Scene v,lines 17-28)--is less an expression of grief than it is a speechabout the utter meaninglessness of life.You wonder how all this has happened.  If he was so horrified byfirst the idea and then the fact of Duncan's murder, why did he doit?  And why commit the other crimes?Apparently his ambition is stronger than his conscience.  The witchestempt him with the idea of becoming king.  Lady Macbeth helps himovercome his natural hesitation to commit murder.  But Macbethhimself chooses between his honor and the crown--and betweensalvation in the next world and material gain in this one.Once he has killed to get the crown, the other crimes seeminevitable.  In order to keep what he has taken, Macbeth learns tolie and kill as a matter of course.  His values become totallyconfused.  "Fair is foul, and foul is fair" to him now; he has losttrack of the difference.All that seems left in the end is his pride.  You respect him when hefights to the death rather than be displayed as the monster he is.But some people think that if Macbeth had not been so proud he wouldnot have wanted to be king to begin with, and that if he had beenhumbler he would have repented.Another aspect of Macbeth is his active imagination.  ConsideringDuncan's murder, he can vividly picture all the possibleconsequences.  His imagination pursues him throughout the play.  He'scontinually reliving his crimes and fantasizing about present andfuture dangers.  Nothing Lady Macbeth can say will quiet his mind.At times he seems crazy--or haunted.Before he kills Duncan, Macbeth sees a dagger floating in the air.After the murder, he hears voices.  And later he sees Banquo's ghost.You are never quite sure if these are hallucinations--the imaginingsof a sick mind--or if they are apparitions, like the witches.  Youbegin to wonder how real they are.MACBETH: LADY MACBETHAt the beginning of the play Lady Macbeth, unlike her husband, seemsto have only one opinion about murder:  if it helps her to get whatshe wants, she is in favor of it.  For the first two acts of theplay, some readers think she is the most interesting character.Their fascination is probably based on her total lack of scruples.Lady Macbeth is a strong woman.  She is a twisted example of thesaying, "Behind every great man there's a woman." Once she sees thather husband's ambition has been inflamed, she is willing to riskanything to help him get the crown.She understands her husband very well:Yet do I fear thy nature;It is too full o' th' milk of human kindnessTo catch the nearest way.(Act I, Scene v, lines 17-19)In other words, she knows that Macbeth's conscience will stand in theway of his ambition.For the sake of their "prize," she renounces all the soft, humanparts of her own nature.  In a play so full of supernatural events,we can take her literally if we want to when she calls upon"...spirits / That tend on mortal thoughts..." to "Stop up th' accessand passage to remorse / That no compunctious visitings of nature /Shake my fell purpose..." (Act I, Scene v, lines 41-42 and 45-47).It is as if she were tearing her heart out to make her husband king.Lady Macbeth's singleness of purpose seems to prove that she has beensuccessful in emptying herself of human feeling.  When Macbeth triesto back out of committing the murder, she treats him with contempt.She questions his manhood and shames him into doing it.Look at how effortlessly she lies.  When Duncan, whom she plans tokill, arrives at the castle, her welcoming speech drips with falsegraciousness.  While Macbeth has horrifying visions, Lady Macbethseems cool and literal minded.  To her, Duncan's blood is justsomething to be washed off her hands.  Worrying over things youcannot alter is a waste of time, she says.But Lady Macbeth is not as simple as she seems.  By the end of theplay she has killed herself to escape the horrible nightmares thattorment her.  Shakespeare seems to be saying that guilt and fear canbe suppressed for a time, but they cannot be done away with entirely.Some readers find Lady Macbeth a fascinating portrait of a horriblemurderer.  They see her actions as frighteningly amoral, and hermadness and death as divine justice.  Others see Lady Macbeth as atragic figure.  They are awed by her strength, her determination, andher resourcefulness.  To them, the tragedy is that she wastes suchqualities on evil deeds.  And by the end, when her mind is rottenwith madness, they can say she has struggled with her guilt every bitas much as her husband has with his.MACBETH: BANQUOWe can learn a lot about Macbeth by looking at Banquo.  Banquo is aman of integrity.  He is brave in battle but cautious in his actions.It is valuable to look at how he and Macbeth react differently tosimilar circumstances.At the beginning of the play, they are equals.  Macbeth and Banquoare leading Duncan's army--they fight side by side.  They seem to beequally brave in combat.Banquo and Macbeth meet the witches together, and Banquo's responseto the prophesies is wiser than Macbeth's.  He is skeptical from thebeginning.  When the witches first appear, he taunts them:  "Speakthen to me, who neither beg nor fear / Your favors nor your hate."(Act I, Scene iii, lines 61-62).  After the prediction that Macbethwill become Thane of Cawdor comes true, Banquo is more cautious.  Hewarns his friend not to be won over by small truths only to bebetrayed in more important matters.  He senses the women are evil,and he expects a trick.Banquo has an honest and trusting nature.  It never occurs to himthat Macbeth may want to kill Duncan to make the prophesy come true.Later, even when he suspects that Macbeth killed the old King, Banquodoes not suspect that he himself is in any danger.It is interesting to note that Banquo does have some interest in thethings the "weird sisters" promise him.  He tells Macbeth that hedreamed about them.  He also wonders if, since their prophesy forMacbeth came true, he should hope that his descendents will be kings.But Banquo refuses to compromise his honor and his integrity to getthe things he wants.  He is willing to wait for the fullness of timeto bring about whatever is coming.  Also notice that Banquo, unlikeMacbeth, does not hide the fact that he sometimes thinks about thethree witches.So it seems that Shakespeare formed Banquo's character the way he didto show how a man of honor would respond to the kind of temptationthat Macbeth gives in to.  There is probably another reason whyBanquo is portrayed as he is.  historically, Banquo was an ancestorof King James I of England.  Macbeth was first presented for James.In Holinshed's Chronicles, which was Shakespeare's source for thestory, Banquo helped Macbeth murder the king.  Many critics believethat Shakespeare changed Banquo's role to please King James.MACBETH: THE WITCHESThe three witches that Macbeth and Banquo meet are also called the"weird sisters." In Old English wyrd meant "fate." And it is part oftheir role in the play to act as the forces of fate.But "fate" in what sense?  Do they cause Macbeth's actions?  Whatpowers do they have, and what are the limits of their powers?  Inother words, do they dictate what will happen?They certainly know things that no mortal could know.  Even a personwho knew that the Thane of Cawdor was a traitor would be awfullyshrewd to guess that Macbeth would be given his title.  And whowithout supernatural powers could have known that Macbeth would onlybe defeated when Birnam Wood moved to Dunsinane?The witches have other supernatural powers.  They can cause storms,and they appear and disappear at will.But their powers are limited.  Look at Act I, Scene iii.  The FirstWitch has been insulted by a sailor's wife.  When the witch asked thewoman for a chestnut, the woman says, "Aroint thee, witch!" In otherwords, "Get lost!" The witch doesn't seem to be able to harm thewoman directly.  Instead, she sends a storm to disturb the sailor'sship.  Even at that, her powers are limited:  "...his bark cannot belost...", the witch says.These hags lead Macbeth on to destroy himself.  Their predictions aretemptations.  They never lie, they never tell Macbeth he has to doanything, they just give the trick answers.  In that sense they areagents of the devil, out for his soul; they trick him into damninghimself.But it is clear that the responsibility for the crimes is Macbeth's.Nothing the witches did forced him to commit them.  He was wrong tohear their words as an invitation to murder the King.  Still, youwonder if Macbeth would have murdered anybody if he had not met thewitches.  And you can argue that either way.MACBETH: MALCOLMMalcolm represents the rightful order that Macbeth disturbs.  Duncan,who is a good and wise king, names his son the Prince of Cumberlandand heir to the throne.Will Malcolm make a good king?  Clearly, Shakespeare wants us tobelieve he will.  Though Malcolm is young, he is already wise.  Heand his brother Donalbain are smart enough to get away from Macbeth'scastle as soon as possible after their father's murder.  After safelyreaching England, Malcolm does not rashly try to reclaim the throne.Instead, he waits until the time is right.In his scene with Macduff, Malcolm displays cleverness and verbalskill.  He manipulates Macduff, testing his loyalty, but he does itonly for the good of his people and his country.In the final speech of the play, Malcolm demonstrates his fitness forkingship.  Macbeth has been killed, and Malcolm is about to becrowned.  Like his father, in Act I, Malcolm's first concern is toreward those who have helped him.  The speech is full of images ofdivine grace and natural order.MACBETH: DUNCANThe King makes his final exit before the end of Act I, and he ismurdered offstage early in Act II.  Not having a lot of time todevelop Duncan's character, Shakespeare works in broad, clearstrokes.Duncan is "a most sainted king" (Act IV, Scene iii, line 109), asMacduff calls him.  His murder is a crime that has no justification.Even Macbeth calls him "the gracious Duncan" (Act III, Scene i, line66).We know that Duncan is old--otherwise he would be in combat with hisarmy.  Owing to his age, he has to anxiously await word from thefield.His generosity is clearly demonstrated by the way he treats Macbeth.He rewards the noble Macbeth immediately after hearing about hisbravery.Duncan is also gracious to Lady Macbeth.  Even though he is actuallyhonoring Macbeth and his wife by spending the night at their castle,he behaves as if they were doing him a favor.The person who best sums up Duncan's nature is his murderer--Macbeth:"...this Duncan / Hath borne his faculties so meek, hath been / Soclear in his great office, that his virtues / Will plead likeangels..." (Act I, Scene vii, lines 16-19).MACBETH: MACDUFFMacduff is Macbeth's major adversary.  Malcolm is the rightful kingand leads the forces to overthrow the tyrant, but Macduff is a thornin Macbeth's side from the beginning.  In the end, he kills Macbeth.Until the murder of his wife and children, Macduff has not been hurtpersonally by Macbeth.  He opposes Macbeth because he knows rightfrom wrong.  He never wants the crown for himself.  His desire is tosee the rightful king on the throne.He refuses to play games.  He will not attend Macbeth's crowning orput in an appearance at the tyrant's feast just to keep upappearances.Macduff is not clever with words.  He voices his disapproval ofMacbeth not by statements but by his absence.  Macduff's simplehonesty is revealed when he is tested by Malcolm in Act IV, Sceneiii.  In a play like Macbeth, in which many people and things are notwhat they appear to be, Macduff is like a breath of fresh air.Maturity is another trait of Macduff's.  He takes the news of hiswife and children's murder like a blow squarely on the chin.  Byhaving the courage to feel his grief, he is able to convert his paininto a burning desire for righteous revenge.MACBETH: SETTINGThe settings of Shakespeare's plays generally come more from thedramatic needs of the story than from any literal sense of the place.Macbeth is no exception.Most of the action takes place in Scotland.  There are at least tworeasons:  1.  Shakespeare invented the plot of Macbeth by combiningseveral stories out of Scottish history he found in Holinshed'sChronicles; and 2.  James I, who was King of England when the playwas written, was a Scot.  But reading books about the Scottishlandscape will not help you understand the setting of Macbeth.Instead, read the play.The Scotland of Macbeth seems rough and somewhat primitive.  Eachthane has his castle, and in between there are woods and fields.None of the action takes place in anything like a city.The play has a murky feeling, which is reflected in the setting.  Theaction starts in the open fields, but the air is clouded by the smokeof battle.  Lightning and thunder fill the sky.  Most of the scenesin Macbeth's castle take place at night.  Torches are needed to seeanything at all.MACBETH: THEMESHere are some of the major themes in Macbeth.  Notice that each isexpressed through some combination of plot, character, and language.1. AN ANATOMY OF EVILA powerful sense of evil hangs over every scene in the play.  Eachcharacter has to either fight or give in to it.  The play makesseveral points about the nature of evil.  The first point is thatevil is contrary to human nature.  Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have tocontort their natures to murder Duncan.  First, Lady Macbeth has tobeg evil spirits to tear all human feeling from her, and then she hasto make her husband ignore his own conscience.  But the play alsosays that human nature cannot be avoided indefinitely.  By the end ofthe play, both characters have been destroyed from within.  Fear andguilt drive Lady Macbeth mad; Macbeth sees life as an empty,meaningless charade.The second point is that it is evil to disrupt the natural order ofthe world.  In nature, everything happens in its own time.  A flowerblooms when the laws of nature say it should, neither sooner norlater.  When Macbeth takes the crown by murder, he upsets the naturalorder of his life--and the order of Scotland.  Without the rightful,God-given king on the throne all society is disordered; under ausurper there can only be evil and chaos.  Even nature becomes upset:it's dark during the day; horses eat each other; owls kill falcons.Nearly every scene has references to unnatural deeds or occurrences.When Macbeth is killed and Malcolm takes the throne, the naturalorder is restored.The third point is that evil is a disease.  Like a disease, evilinfects its victims and makes them sicken until they die.  OnceMacbeth kills Duncan, he is committed to a course of lying andkilling.  His sense of right and wrong is eaten away.  Even before heis killed, Macbeth is dying of a diseased spirit.  Scotland is alsoinfected, and Macbeth is its disease.  The longer he is king, theworse things get.  When Macbeth is overthrown, the country is healed.2. AMBITIONMany readers feel that Macbeth's downfall is caused by his ambition.At the beginning of the play, Macbeth seems to be a brave, noble, andloyal thane.  For his desire to become king, he is willing to turnhis back on what he knows to be right.  Lady Macbeth, because of herambition for her husband, uses all her strength and intelligence forevil purposes.  They are very unlike Banquo, who will not compromisehis honor for anything.3. APPEARANCE VERSUS REALITYPractically nothing in the play is what it appears to be.  Thewitches' predictions sound like good news; actually, they lead todeath and destruction.  Macbeth and his wife seem like gracioushosts; actually, they are plotting murder.  The Macbeths appear toachieve their heart's desires; in reality, they only gain torment anddeath.  In reading the play, examine each scene to compare whatappears to be happening with what is really happening.4. HONOR AND LOYALTYIn a feudal society such as the one in Macbeth, peace and order aremaintained largely through honor and loyalty.  Men of honor obeycertain rules.  Macbeth throws all ideas of honor out the window.Once he has done that, the country is in turmoil.  Nobody knows whomhe can trust.  Look at what Macduff has to go through to winMalcolm's trust in Act IV.  In Act V, it is made very clear that thefew followers Macbeth has left have been forced to stay with him.They feel no sense of loyalty toward him.  When it comes time tofight, they just give up.5. FATE AND DESTINYThe play suggests that a person should trust his destiny to a higherpower.  After encountering the three witches, Macbeth tries to takefate into his own hands, and that action brings him nothing butgrief.  Malcolm, on the other hand, trusts that all things will workout "...by the grace of Grace [in other words, heaven]" (Act V, Sceneviii, line 72).  "Be what you're meant to be," the play seems to besaying.MACBETH: SOURCESThe story of Macbeth is a combination of two stories found inHolinshed's Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Shakespeare developed many of the plots and characters for his playsfrom this book of history and legend.Holinshed tells one story about a man named Macbeth who killed a kingnamed Duncan, but this story is different from the play in severalimportant ways.  The Duncan of the story was a bad king.  He did notcare about his people, and Banquo helped Macbeth overthrow him.Shakespeare combined that story with another Holinshed story aboutsomeone named Donwald who killed a king named Duff.  Duff was a goodand pious king, and was Donwald's guest when he was murdered.  Also,Donwald killed Duff because his wife urged him to.For the supernatural elements of the play, Shakespeare might haveconsulted a book called Demonology, written by none other than KingJames I himself.  (Remember that Macbeth was first presented atJames' court.) In his book, James states that witches can predict thefuture.MACBETH: POINT OF VIEWShakespeare takes a clear moral stance in telling the story ofMacbeth.  He portrays humans as creatures capable of good but indanger of giving in to the temptations of evil.  Evil is introducedthrough supernatural beings--the witches.  You could say Macbeth isas much a victim of their deception and his own ambition as he is avictimizer of others.All evildoers are punished.  The numerous mentions of heaven and hellremind us that good people who are killed will find eternalhappiness, while those who do evil will suffer eternal damnation.It is important not to confuse the point of view that Shakespearegives to a character with the playwright's own point of view.  Forexample, Macbeth's "tomorrow and tomorrow" speech says that life ismeaningless, but the play as a whole says just the opposite.Macbeth's utter despair at that moment is a result of his evil deeds.The very fact that he and Lady Macbeth are punished for theirwickedness is proof of a higher good which gives meaning to life.MACBETH: FORM AND STRUCTURELike all of Shakespeare's plays, Macbeth is divided into five acts.Each act is broken down further into scenes.  Editors disagree aboutthe proper division of scenes in Act V.  Some divide it into sixscenes.  Others make eight scenes from the same text, as we have inthe scene-by-scene analysis, and still others make it into ninescenes.  All these versions have the same text; only the divisionsare different.Let's look at the form of the play in terms of storytelling.  At eachmoment in the play, there is a question that keeps our interest.That is called dramatic tension.From the point when Macbeth hears the witches' prophesies, he isobviously enticed by the idea of becoming king.  We wonder what hewill do about it.  Will he kill Duncan?  Once the murder has beencommitted, we wonder what the consequences will be.Macbeth becomes king, but some are suspicious.  What will happen toBanquo and Macduff?  In the next section of the play, Macbeth triesto make his position secure through murder.  We can see that thingsare only getting worse for him, and we wonder how long he can holdon.In Act IV, the end of the play is set up.  Macbeth visits thewitches, who give him new prophesies.  Anybody who is following thestory should suspect that they are deceiving him somehow, but we donot know how.  In the same act, Malcolm and Macduff join together todefeat Macbeth.  Now we wait for the final battle.Notice how skillfully Shakespeare maintains suspense up to the end.Macbeth's followers have deserted him; Birnam Wood has come toDunsinane.  He seems doomed, but we know that he cannot be defeatedby any man born of woman.  Who can beat him, then?  Finally, Macduffreveals his secret, and Macbeth is killed.  All that remains is tocheer the new and rightful king, Malcolm.MACBETH: ELIZABETHAN ENGLISHAll languages change.  Differences in pronunciation and word choiceare apparent even between parents and their children.  If languagedifferences can appear in one generation, it is only to be expectedthat the English used by Shakespeare four hundred years ago willdiverge markedly from the English that is used today.  The followinginformation on Shakespeare's language will help you to a fullerunderstanding of Macbeth.MACBETH: CHANGES IN WORD CLASSESAdjectives, nouns, and verbs were less rigidly confined to particularclasses in Shakespeare's day.  For example, verbs were often used asnouns.  In Act I, Scene vii, line 5, Macbeth uses be as a noun:...that but this blowMight be the be-all and the end-all...And nouns could be used as verbs, as when incarnadine, which was acolor, was used to mean "redden":Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this bloodClean from my hand? No; this my hand will ratherThe multitudinous seas incarndine(II, ii, 59-61)Adjectives could also be used as adverbs.  In the above quotationclean is used in a position where contemporary usage would require aform like entirely, and easy is used for "easily" in:Let's not consort with them.To show an unfelt sorrow is an officeWhich the false man does easy.(II, iii, 137-38)They could also be used as nouns, as in:If a man were porter of hell gate, he should haveold turning the key.(II, iii, 1-2)In this instance, old is the equivalent of "frequent opportunity."MACBETH: CHANGES IN MEANING OF WORDSThe meanings of words undergo changes, a process that can beillustrated by the fact that chip extended its meaning from a smallpiece of wood to a small piece of silicon.  Many of the words inShakespeare's plays still exist today but their meanings havechanged.  The "astonishment" in:and when he readsThy personal venture in the rebels' fight,His wonders and his praises do contend.(I, iii, 90-92)Or, more fundamental, earnest meant "token of an agreement" (I, iii,104), line meant "strengthen" (I, iii, 112), missives meant"messengers" (I, v, 6), illness meant "wickedness" (I, v, 20), andsightless meant "invisible":Wherever in your sightless substancesYou wait on nature's mischief.(I, v, 50-51)MACBETH: VOCABULARY LOSSWords not only change their meanings, but are frequently discardedfrom the language.  In the past leman meant "sweetheart" and soothmeant "truth." The following words used in Macbeth are no longercurrent in English but their meaning can usually be gauged from thecontext in which they occur.PADDOCK (I, i, 9): toadMASTERDOM (I, v, 70): masteryFAVOUR (I, v, 72): countenance, faceJUTTY (I, vi, 6): part of a buildingIN COMPT (I, vi, 26): subject to accountTRAMMEL UP (I, vii, 3): entangleAFEARD (I, vii, 39): afraidLIMBECK (I, vii, 68): skull, container of the brainDUDGEON (II, i, 46): handleSLEAVE (II, ii, 36): silk thread, silkGOOSE (II, iii, 15): smoothing ironAVOUCH (III, i, 119): justifyECSTASY (III, ii, 22): fitSEELING (III, ii, 46): blindingLATED (III, iii, 6): belatedTRENCHED (III, iv,, 26): cutFLAWS (III, iv, 62): sudden gustsOWE (III, iv, 112): ownDRAB (IV, i, 31): prostituteSWEATEN (IV, i, 65): irregularly formedGIN (IV, ii, 35): snareFOISONS (IV, iii, 88): abundant harvestsTEEMS (IV, iii, 176): brings forthMATED (V, i, 75): confusedMACBETH: VERBSShakespearean verb forms differ from modern usage in these three main ways.1.  Questions and negatives could be formed without using do/did, aswhen Lady Macbeth asks "Know you not, he has?" (I, vii, 30).  Todaywe would say, "Do you not know that he has?" Another instance occurswhen Macbeth tells Banquo "I think not of them" (II, i, 21); modernusage demands, "I do not think of them."Shakespeare had the option of using the following two forms, whereascontemporary usage permits only the a forms:a                                   bIs the king going?                   Goes the king?Did the king go?                     Went the king?You do not look well                 You look not wellYou did not look well                You looked not well2.  A number of past participles and past-tense forms are used thatwould be ungrammatical today.  Among these are:  forbid for"forbidden," as in:  "He shall live a man forbid" (I, iii, 21); holpfor "helped," as in:  "And his great love, sharp as his spur, hathholp him" (I, v, 23); eat for "ate," as in:'Tis said they eat each other.  They did so, to th' amazement of mineeyes" (II, iv, 18)3. Archaic verb forms sometimes occur with thou and with he/she/it:As thou art in desire? Would'st thou have thatWhich thou esteem'st the ornament of life(I, vii, 41-42)Hath he asked for me?(I, vii, 30)MACBETH: PRONOUNSShakespeare and his contemporaries had one extra pronoun--thou--whichcould be used in addressing a person who was one's equal or socialinferior.  You was obligatory if more than one person was addressed:"Stay you imperfect speakers, tell me more" (I, iii, 70), but itcould also be used to indicate respect, as when Lady Macbeth toldDuncan:Your servants everHave theirs, themselves, and what is theirs, in compt.To make their audit at your Highness' pleasure,Still to return your own.(I, vi, 25-28)Frequently, a person in power used thou to a child or a subordinatebut was addressed you in return, as when Lady Macduff spoke to herson:Lady Macduff: Now,  God help thee,  poor monkey!But how wilt thou do for a father?Son: If he were dead,  you'd weep for him.If you would not, it were a good signthat I should quickly have a new father.(IV, ii, 57-61)But if thou was used inappropriately, it might be offensive.  One ofthe witches uses thou in addressing Macbeth to underline the factthat Macbeth has, by his murders, reduced himself to their level:Say if th' hadst rather hear it from our mouths,Or from our masters?(IV, i, 62-63)One further pronominal reference warrants a comment.  Duncan uses theroyal plural we to stress the honor he is bestowing on Lady Macbethby staying with her:Fair and noble hostess,We are your guest tonight.(I, vi, 24-25)But he uses I to stress his debt to Macbeth for winning the battle:O worthiest cousin!The sin of my ingratitude even nowWas heavy on me(I, iv, 14-16)MACBETH: PREPOSITIONSPrepositions were less standardized in Elizabethan English than theyare today, and so we find several uses in Macbeth that would have tobe modified in contemporary speech.  Among these are on for "to" in:"The victory fell on us" (I, ii, 59); with for "by" in:  "Thence tobe wrenched with an unlineal hand" (III, i, 62); for for "on accountof" in:  "For certain friends that are both his and mine" (III, i,120); and at...  and for "from...  to" in:You know your own degrees; sit down:At first and last, the hearty welcome.(III, iv, 1-2)MACBETH: MULTIPLE NEGATIONContemporary English requires only one negative per statement andregards such utterances as "I haven't none" as nonstandard.Shakespeare often used two or more negatives for emphasis, as whenMacduff found the King dead:O horror, horror, horror! Tongue nor heartCannot conceive nor name thee.(II, iii, 66-67)And Macbeth says:Treason has done his worst: nor steel, nor poison,Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing,Can touch him further.(III, ii, 24-26)MACBETH: ACT I, SCENE IImagine that you are sitting in a theater waiting to see a play abouta man named Macbeth.  As the play begins lightning flashes, andinstead of seeing this Macbeth, you see three weird-looking women.They must be witches; they are chanting spells.  After making plansto meet Macbeth, they leave.That's the whole scene-ten lines!  Look at what Shakespeareaccomplishes with this opening.  By beginning the play with thewitches instead of starting with Macbeth, he makes it clear thatsomething wicked is going to happen.  When we hear more about Macbethand finally see him, we have to wonder why the three witches havebusiness with him.  So this scene establishes the mood of the play.NOTE:  Always read a scene in Shakespeare first to find out whathappens and what the characters say to each other.  Then read itagain to see what you can learn not from what they say but how theysay it.  In other words, examine Shakespeare's use of language.  Forexample:  The witches say "Fair is foul, and foul is fair" (line 10).That line is like a riddle; it seems like nonsense but you can see itmeans something.  Different versions of the same idea turn up allthrough the play.  One thing the line is saying is that nothing inthe play will be what it seems to be.  And it is also letting youknow, right away, that in Macbeth's Scotland everything is going tobe confused and perverted.MACBETH: ACT I, SCENE IILightning, thunder, and witches give way in this scene to blood,soldiers, and fighting.  We still do not meet Macbeth, but we learnmore about him.What happens is simple:  King Duncan, too old to fight, wants to knowhow his army is doing.  A wounded soldier tells him.  We learn thatthe Scottish soldiers are fighting two enemies at once:  rebels fromtheir own country and invaders from Norway.The main thing we learn from this "bloody captain" is that Macbeth isa hero.  The battle was awful but Macbeth was fearless, fighting hisway through the enemy and literally cutting the rebel leader in half.King Duncan is suitably impressed.  We also hear for the first timeabout Macbeth's fellow-captain, Banquo, who is described as beingjust as brave as Macbeth.The Thane of Ross arrives with a new report:  the Thane of Cawdor isa traitor, but King Duncan's army has won.  Duncan is upset that theThane of Cawdor, whom he trusted, is a traitor.  At the same time, heis very moved by Macbeth's bravery.  He orders Cawdor's execution andrewards Macbeth by making him the new Thane of Cawdor.  The Thanes ofRoss and Angus leave to tell Macbeth.NOTE:  A lot of what you find out in this scene is"exposition"--information you have to have so you will know whopeople are and what has been happening before the play starts.  Haveyou ever seen a play or movie in which somebody comes on and, for noapparent reason, starts telling who is who and what is going on?That is bad exposition.  Look how skillfully Shakespeare gets hisinformation across.  By bringing on a bloody soldier, he dramatizesthe offstage battle.  Even without the words, you can tell how badthe fighting must have been.  By keeping Duncan in the dark,Shakespeare justifies having the soldier give his report.The theme of honor is introduced in this scene.  Duncan says thebloody soldier's words and wounds both "smack of honor" (line 45).Macbeth is described as "brave" and "worthy," and he gets his reward.You can see that honor is very important to these people.MACBETH: ACT I, SCENE IIIIn this scene we finally meet Macbeth.  Macbeth encounters thewitches, who tempt him with the idea of becoming king.MACBETH: LINES 1-37We learn more about the nature of the witches.  They talk amongthemselves about the nasty things they have been doing.  One has beenpassing the time killing swine (pigs), another has been plottingrevenge on a sailor's wife who refused to give her a chestnut.Listening to them, we get the impression that a lot of bad thingsthat happen to people and are called bad luck are actually caused bythese hags.MACBETH: LINES 37-87Now we have heard that Macbeth is brave and worthy, but we also knowthat these evil creatures want to meet with him.  We are ready tomeet Macbeth himself, and in he comes with Banquo.Look at the first thing he says:  "So foul and fair a day I have notseen" (line 37).  That sounds like what the witches said in Scene i!Is Shakespeare suggesting that Macbeth is not what he seems to be--abrave and loyal thane?  You do not know yet, but you begin to wonder.The witches predict what the future holds for Macbeth and Banquo.Macbeth, who is Thane of Glamis, will be Thane of Cawdor.  That comesas a surprise to Macbeth, but not to us, of course.  They also say hewill be king one day.  They tell Banquo he will be father to a lineof kings, though he will never be one himself.NOTE:  We can learn something about Macbeth by studying the differentways he and Banquo respond to these predictions.  Banquo asksMacbeth, "why do you start, and seem to fear / Things that do soundso fair?" (lines 51-52).  Why indeed?  Has he already been plottingto become king?  Does he feel the witches have read his mind, andguessed how much he wants the crown?  Or has his mind flashed ahead,wondering how this could possibly happen?  Whatever, his reaction isthat of a guilty man.  Banquo, on the other hand, makes fun of thewitches.  He is curious about what they have to say, but that is all.MACBETH: LINES 88-156Ross and Angus arrive and tell Macbeth that he is now Thane ofCawdor.  The witches told the truth!  Look once again at thedifference between Macbeth's response and Banquo's.  Banquo isskeptical:And oftentimes, to win us to our harm,The instruments of darkness tell us truths,Win us with honest trifles, to betray'sIn deepest consequence.Act I, Scene iii, lines 123-26He seems to be saying, "This could be a trick." Fair words can meanfoul things.Macbeth is already obsessed with the idea of being king.  He knowsDuncan would have to die first, and even though he says that the ideaof murder "doth unfix my hair" (line 135), he's started to thinkabout it.  From this point on, Macbeth is clearly hiding things.When Banquo comments that Macbeth is lost in thought, Macbeth lies tohis friend, saying he was thinking about something else.MACBETH: LINES 1-14Duncan learns that the traitor Cawdor has been executed.  It isimportant to note that he repented and asked for Duncan's forgivenessbefore he died.  Through his honorable death, he seems to have madeup for his sinful life.MACBETH: LINES 15-59Macbeth, Banquo, Ross, and Angus enter.  In the exchange thatfollows, you can see Macbeth's desire to become king, even if theothers can't.The King greets Macbeth with genuine love and gratitude.  In thepresence of all the thanes, however, he names his son Malcolm thePrince of Cumberland.  That means that Malcolm will inherit thethrone when Duncan dies.Macbeth responds to that announcement in an "aside," which means thathe speaks his thoughts directly to the audience and it is understoodthat the other characters don't hear what he is saying.  In hisaside, Macbeth grumbles that Malcolm is now in his way.  You begin torealize nothing will stop him.NOTE:  Notice the imagery of light and darkness in lines 15-52:"Stars, hide your fires; / Let not light see my black and deepdesires." Throughout the play, light symbolizes good, and dark standsfor evil.  Macbeth has just taken one giant step toward evil.MACBETH: ACT I, SCENE VAt Macbeth's castle, Lady Macbeth gets a letter from her husbandtelling her about the predictions.  She dedicates herself to helpingMacbeth become king.  When she learns that Duncan will spend thenight at their castle, she immediately decides to kill him.Lady Macbeth tells us something vital about her husband--that, bynature, he is not ruthless.  She says that even if he wants somethingso badly he feels like his life depends on it, he will not cheat toget it.  She sees that as a flaw in his character!Lady Macbeth does not have that problem.  The woman's resolution isso intense it is frightening.  Her speech in lines 39-55 is worthlooking at, because it expresses her determination with some of themost potent imagery to be found anywhere in Shakespeare's plays.  Sheactually asks spirits to "unsex" her and "take [her] milk for gall."And look how she picks up the light-dark imagery:  "Come, thicknight, / And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell." If Macbeth tooka giant step toward evil, his wife makes a gigantic leap!Notice how when Macbeth comes in, Lady Macbeth takes charge andstarts talking about the murder right away.  She doesn't even have toask if he's considered it; she knows he has.  She does most of thetalking, and several times she tells him to leave everything to her.Macbeth does not agree to killing Duncan, but he does not refuse,either.MACBETH: ACT I, SCENE VIDuncan, his sons Malcolm and Donalbain, and Banquo and some otherthanes arrive at Macbeth's castle.  They comment on what a pleasantplace it is.  Lady Macbeth welcomes them warmly.Here is a scene in which nothing is what it seems.  Macbeth's castleis really a place of evil and death.  The gracious hostess whodelivers such pretty speeches is actually just waiting for the chanceto murder her guest of honor.NOTE:  Shakespeare uses a technique in this scene called dramaticirony.  We as readers know about the double meanings in the scene.Except for Lady Macbeth, the characters are not aware of them.  Thescene is more interesting for us, because we know more than thecharacters do.  Depending upon the way the scene is played, theeffect can be funny, scary, or both.MACBETH: LINES 1-28Macbeth starts this scene in a state of emotional turmoil.  As LadyMacbeth predicted, he wants to be king but he's afraid to killDuncan.  Having a vivid imagination, he can picture all theconsequences of the murder before he commits it.Two things make Macbeth hesitate:  the fact that the murder ismorally wrong, and the fear that he'll be punished for his crime.It's hard to say which reason, if either, is stronger.  ThoughMacbeth does not seem like a religious man, there is a lot ofreligious imagery in this speech, with references to "angels" and"deep damnation" (lines 19-20).MACBETH: LINES 29-82Macbeth tells his wife that he cannot go through with the murder.She works on him to change his mind.Lady Macbeth's first ploy is to mock her husband.  She implies thathe is a coward and even questions his manhood.  Using the fact thatshe is a woman, and his wife, she twists the idea of motherhood intoa way to get at him further:I have given suck, and knowHow tender 'tis to love the babe that milks me:I would, while it was sniffing in my face,Have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums,And dashed the brains out, had I so sworn as youHave done to this.(Act I, Scene vii, lines 54-59)It is hard to argue with that kind of resolution.  Macbeth gives in alittle.  Instead of refusing again, he asks "If we should fail?"(line 59).Sensing she is about to win, Lady Macbeth coolly recites the detailsof their plan; while Duncan's servants are in a drunken sleep,Macbeth can kill the king and blame the servants.Macbeth himself is chilled by his wife's hard attitude toward themurder, but he's also convinced.  The scene and the act end on a noteof resolution.  Macbeth will kill Duncan.MACBETH: ACT II, SCENE IIn the first scene of Act II, Shakespeare builds up suspense before the murder.MACBETH: LINES 1-9Banquo and his son Fleance talk casually about the night.  In theirshort exchange, we learn three things:  1.  that it is late andBanquo is sleepy (and we know what will happen once everybody goes tosleep); 2.  that Banquo has some strange uneasiness which makes himunwilling to go to sleep; and 3.  that Banquo has a son (that factwill become important later).MACBETH: LINES 10-30Macbeth comes in and talks with Banquo.  Notice how nervous Banquois.  When he hears somebody coming he calls for his sword, eventhough he should feel safe in his friend's castle.Shakespeare again uses the technique of dramatic irony.  Banquo givesMacbeth a ring that is a present from Duncan for Lady Macbeth.  Weknow, as Banquo does not, that the king is giving a gift to hismurderer.  We can imagine how Macbeth feels when Banquo says hedreamed of witches, and we know Macbeth is lying when he claims, "Ithink not of them" (line 21).The two friends move further apart in this scene.  When Banquomentions the three witches, he is confiding his private thoughts tohis friend.  Macbeth dodges Banquo's honest comments, and beginshinting around by talking with Banquo about some business that will"make honor" for Banquo (line 26).  Banquo responds politely butcautiously, saying that whatever he can do for Macbeth with a clearconscience he will do.MACBETH: LINES 31-64After Banquo and Fleance leave, Macbeth sends his servant off to LadyMacbeth with a message about his nightcap drink.  That is probably asecret signal that everybody has gone to bed.Macbeth prepares to commit the murder.  His speech here is called asoliloquy because he is alone on stage.  When you read or hear asoliloquy, you can assume that the character is speaking his truethoughts.  Since he is talking to himself, why should he lie?As soon as Macbeth is alone he has a vision.  He sees a daggerfloating in the air in front of him.  It melts through his fingerswhen he tries to grab it but it will not go away.  Then suddenly, thedagger appears to be covered with blood.  Has Macbeth lost his mind?Or could the dagger be as real as the witches?  Is he hallucinatingor has some devil sent it as a sign?  You cannot tell; and neithercan Macbeth.  He does not know whether to trust his eyes or hisreason:  "Mine eyes are made the fools o' the' other senses, / Orelse worth all the rest" (lines 44-45).At line 47, Macbeth's rational will takes over.  "There's no suchthing," he says about the dagger, and he never mentions it again.The imagery in the rest of this soliloquy shows that Macbeth knowsexactly what he is doing.  He says that "nature seems dead" (line50).  He mentions witchcraft and ghosts.NOTE:  Unnatural means "perverted," and in Macbeth the word works inmany ways.  In Shakespeare's time, people thought in terms of God'splan for mankind.  This grand design was the "natural" order of theworld.  The devil was always trying to mess it up by tempting peopleto sin.  So evil was "unnatural"; it corrupted the people God wantedto be good.You will see the image of "unnaturalness" multiply around Macbeth ashe mutilates his soul--or you might say his human nature, And sincehe's the king, the country reflects his spiritual sickness.  It, too,becomes mutilated.  Also notice as you read how the unnatural actsare reflected in nature--in animals and weather, for instance.MACBETH: ACT II, SCENE IIIn this scene, the murder takes place.  Macbeth is nearly driven madby the horror of what he's done.  Lady Macbeth urges him to bepractical:  after all, there is no going back.  They have killedtheir king.NOTE:  It is interesting that Shakespeare chooses to have Macbethkill Duncan offstage.  We can only guess why he wrote the scene thatway, but here are two possible reasons:  1.  Shakespeare wanted tofocus not on the murder but on Macbeth's reaction to it; and 2.  thebloody details supplied by our imaginations will be much worse thananything that could be done onstage.MACBETH: LINES 1-13Lady Macbeth waits alone while her husband kills Duncan.  She seemsexcited by the idea of murder and pleased with herself because of herpart in the plan.Yet we also get a peek at her softer side.  She says that she wouldhave killed Duncan herself, but the old man looked too much like herfather.  This small reminder of Lady Macbeth's humanity will beimportant to our understanding of what happens to her at the end ofthe play.MACBETH: LINES 13-56Macbeth enters, his hands covered with Duncan's blood.  Notice howthe sharp, quick exchange of words between Macbeth and Lady Macbethunderscores the tension:Lady: Did you not speak?Macbeth: When?Lady: Now.Macbeth: As I descended?Lady: Ay.Act II, Scene ii, lines 16-17As the scene proceeds, Macbeth and his wife behave in a mannerexactly opposite from what we would expect.  According toconventional logic, Macbeth, who is a soldier and has already killedmany men in battle that day, should not be bothered by the murder.On the other hand, we would understand perfectly if his wife wereupset by having been involved in a killing.Look at what actually happens:  Macbeth is horrified by what he hasdone.  He says he has "hangman's hands" (line 27), and he is afraidthat after having committed such a horrible deed he will never sleepagain.  Lady Macbeth is practical.  She gives the advice you wouldexpect to come from a soldier:  "These deeds must not be thought /After these ways; so, it will make us mad" (lines 32-33).When Lady Macbeth tells her husband to take the daggers he used forthe murder back into Duncan's room, he refuses.  She makes fun of himand takes them up herself.We can understand the torture Macbeth is going through by realizingthat he seems to consider the murder one of the most evil deeds evercommitted.  We would have to call this statement exaggeration:Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this bloodClean from my hand? No; this my hand will ratherThe multitudinous seas incarnadine,Making the green one red.Act II, Scene ii, lines 59-62But he is not consciously exaggerating. That is the way he feels.Contrast his attitude with Lady Macbeth's.  She says that their handscan be cleaned with a little water and that he should be ashamed tobe carrying on so.  She tries to make him snap out of the state he'sin and get on with their plan.Macbeth's final lines as his wife hurries him off sum up how he feels:"To know my deed, 'twere best not know myself.  [There is a knock atthe gate.] / Wake Duncan with thy knocking!  I would thou couldst!"(lines 72-73) He never thought himself capable of such evil, and hewould love to be able to undo what he has done.MACBETH: LINES 1-20The previous scene of horror and murder is followed by a comic scene.The Porter, one of Macbeth's servants, is awakened by the sameknocking at the gate which sent Macbeth and his wife scurrying off toclean up.  The Porter is still drunk from the feast.  As he weaveshis way to the gate, he talks to himself as if he were the porter atthe gates of Hell.The comedy of the Porter provides a contrast to the gruesome murder.By allowing the audience to relax a little, Shakespeare makes thescenes of horror even more effective.The Porter also has a serious purpose.  The little routine he makesup about being porter of "hell gate" reminds the audience of thespiritual consequences of the murder that has just been committed.NOTE:  Audiences in Shakespeare's time would recognize the "Porter ofHell-Gate" as a stock character in the so-called morality plays ofthe time.  Morality plays were simple stories in which good wasrewarded and evil was punished.  So Shakespeare is, in effect,hinting that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are not going to get away withwhat they have just done.Let's take a moment to examine one of the imaginary sinners thePorter says he lets in:  "here's an equivocator, that could swear inboth the scales against either scale; who committed treason enoughfor God's sake, yet could not equivocate to heaven" (lines 8-11).Equivocation means lying, and we will soon see Macbeth and his wifedoing a lot of that.  But remember the Porter's speech:  the liarcannot "equivocate to heaven."MACBETH: LINES 21-42Tired of his game, the Porter opens the gate.  Macduff and Lennoxenter, annoyed at having been kept waiting.  Their scene with thePorter is classic Shakespearean "low" comedy.  Low comedy isdelivered by low-class characters.  It is generally concerned withwhat we might call "bathroom humor." In this scene the Porter jokesabout how liquor makes a man want to have sex but prevents him frombeing able to perform with a woman.NOTE:  Even in this Shakespearean "dirty joke," an important theme isbeing developed.  The Porter's talk about liquor foreshadows what wewill see about Macbeth's ambition.  The more liquor a man drinks,says the Porter, the more lecherous he becomes.  At the same time, hebecomes less able to do anything about it.  As the play progresses,the more Macbeth tries to secure his power by murder, the less securehe becomes.MACBETH: LINES 42-65Macbeth enters and learns that Macduff and Lennox have come to wakeDuncan.  Macbeth lies like an expert.  He behaves as if it were anordinary morning, and shows Macduff to Duncan's door.  Macbeth standsaside and lets Macduff go in alone.Lennox tells Macbeth some of the things that happened during thenight.  Chimneys were blown down; strange screams were heard.  Infact, "Some say, the earth / Was feverous and did shake" (lines62-63).These strange events illustrate the theme of nature reflecting thestate.  While Macbeth committed this horrible murder, which wasagainst the laws of human nature, and which wrecked theGod-sanctioned order of things, the earth itself trembled and shook.Macbeth's reply is humorous, though Lennox does not know it.  Afterhearing about all the bizarre events, Macbeth says simply, "'Twas arough night" (line 63).MACBETH: LINES 65-136The murder is discovered.  Macduff sounds the alarm and wakeseverybody in the castle.  Macbeth and Lady Macbeth do an excellentjob of pretending to be innocent.Macduff responds to the murder as an act of supernatural magnitude.Attempting to convey how horrified he is, he uses imagery from twodifferent religions.  First, Christian:Most sacrilegious murder hath broke opeThe Lord's anointed temple, and stole thenceThe life o' th' building.Act II, Scene iii, lines 9-11Then Pagan:Approach the chamber, and destroy your sightWith a new Gorgon...(lines 73-74)There is irony in the way Macduff treats Lady Macbeth.  He calls her"gentle Lady" (line 85) and says that his news is too harsh for awoman to hear.Expert liar though she is, Lady Macbeth slips a bit.  Her firstresponse when she "learns" that Duncan is dead is "What, in ourhouse!" (line 90).  That is not really the response of a lovingsubject.  Banquo scolds her, saying the murder would be "Too cruelanywhere" (line 90).Macbeth actually seems more convincing than his wife.  Could that bebecause he really is shocked and revolted by the murder he hascommitted?  We cannot be sure, but what he says to the group is rightin line with what he said in private (at the end of the last scene):"Had I but died an hour before this chance, / I had lived a blessedtime" (lines 93-94).But when Duncan's sons, Malcolm and Donalbain, enter, Macbeth goestoo far.  He waxes poetic:  "The spring, the head, the fountain ofyour blood / Is stopped" (lines 100-101) until Macduff cuts in andtells them that their father has been murdered.NOTE:  We are beginning to see that Macduff is a direct, no-nonsensesort of person.  That is the most dangerous type of person to havearound when, like Macbeth, you are trying to cover the truth.Macduff seems suspicious when Macbeth says he killed Duncan'sservants, who appeared to be responsible for the murder.  Modernpolice would call that "destroying evidence." By questioningMacbeth's action, Macduff implies that things may not actually be theway they appear.Macbeth flounders, and his wife comes to his rescue.  Trying toexplain why he killed the servants, Macbeth goes on at great lengthabout how upset he was.  In order to take attention off her husband,Lady Macbeth pretends to faint.The atmosphere of suspicion is strengthened by Malcolm and Donalbain,who keep apart from the group.  They stay behind when the others goto meet and decide what to do.MACBETH: LINES 137-148Malcolm and Donalbain realize that they are in danger.  They decidethey cannot trust anybody, and that it's wisest to run.  Malcolm willgo to England; Donalbain will head for Ireland.MACBETH: ACT II, SCENE IVThis scene moves the action outside of Macbeth's castle for the firstand only time in Act II.  By doing that, Shakespeare gives us a widerperspective on the murder.Many readers see the Old Man as a "chorus" figure.  That means that,like the chorus in ancient Greek drama, he represents the commonpeople and expresses their views.MACBETH: LINES 1-19The Old Man and Ross discuss all the strange things that have beenhappening since Duncan's murder.  Nature itself seems upset:  it isdark during the day; an owl killed a hawk (the opposite of whatnormally happens).  Duncan's horses ate each other!These events can be interpreted in several ways.  You could say thatphysical nature is reacting to protest a crime that has beencommitted against human nature.  Or, possibly, that "heaven" or "thegods" are expressing their anger.  Or you can say that nature mirrorsthe state; that when a rightful king falls all the rest of God'sorder falls apart, too.NOTE:  Remember the theme of light and darkness.  At this point, itseems the entire country has been plunged into darkness by Macbeth'sevil deed.MACBETH: LINES 20-41Macduff enters and reports the "official version" of who committedthe murder and what is going to happen.  Without coming out andsaying so, he makes it clear that he does not believe a word of it.Shakespeare conveys Macduff's skepticism with great economy.Macduff, a plain-spoken man, tells his news simply.  Asked who killedDuncan, he says, "Those that Macbeth hath slain." Asked why, hereplies, "They were suborned" (lines 23-24)--they were bribed.  Hejust gives the facts, without comment.  He also reports that, becausethey ran away, Malcolm and Donalbain are suspected of beingresponsible.Macduff doesn't bother to point out that the story sounds unlikely.Ross's responses show that he does not need any prompting to realizethat it is hard to believe.Look how Shakespeare shows that Macduff does not like what is goingon:  Macduff says that Macbeth has been named king and has gone toScone to be crowned.  Asked if he is going to Scone himself, Macduffreplies, "No, cousin, I'll to Fife" (line 36)--he is going home.That is an insult to Macbeth.  Without saying much, Macduff makes hisattitude completely clear.MACBETH: LINES 1-10Alone, Banquo voices his suspicions about the way Macbeth gained thethrone.  He comes right out and says that he is afraid Macbeth"play'dst most foully for 't" (line 3).Banquo is in an awkward position.  He has been Macbeth's friend, buthe suspects his friend of assassinating the king.  For some reason,he stays at Macbeth's castle.  Is that because he wants to?  Or is itbecause Macbeth wants to keep him nearby?Banquo also remembers that the witches who predicted a crown forMacbeth predicted that Banquo's descendents would be kings.  Shouldthat give him hope?  He wonders.MACBETH: LINES 11-44Macbeth, his Queen, and their attendants enter.  Macbeth invitesBanquo to a feast he is holding that night.In this scene, we see a new Macbeth.  He has become very good athiding his real feelings.  As we will learn later in the scene,Macbeth is planning Banquo's murder.  Yet he is gracious andfriendly.  Under the guise of friendship, Macbeth finds out Banquo'splans for the day.  This information will help him to plan hisfriend's murder.  Notice that Macbeth takes special interest inwhether Banquo's son, Fleance, will be with Banquo when he goesriding that day.When Banquo leaves, Macbeth says that he plans to spend the rest ofthe day alone until the feast.  He seems every inch the monarch as heannounces, "To make society / The sweeter welcome, we will keepourself / Till supper-time alone" (lines 41-43).MACBETH: LINES 45-72As soon as Lady Macbeth and the others leave, Macbeth sends for menwho are waiting for him outside the palace gate.  When he is leftalone, we learn what Macbeth is really feeling.Macbeth is not the confident ruler he appears to be.  He is tormentedby fears.  At the moment, those fears center on Banquo.He has many reasons to fear his friend.  Banquo has what Macbethcalls a "royalty of nature" (line 50).  In other words, he'snoble--brave, honest, and wise.  That makes him dangerous to Macbeth,who depends upon his countrymen being either not smart enough to knowwhat he's done or not brave enough to challenge him.Besides, the fact Banquo knows about the witches threatens Macbeth.Couldn't he guess how Macbeth reacted to their prophesies?  And, too,the witches predicted that Banquo's descendents would be kings.  Ifthat happened, Macbeth would have committed murder just so Banquo'schildren could inherit the throne.  That thought drives him crazy.And maybe Macbeth wonders if Banquo is enough like him to do what hedid to help fate along:  Kill for the crown.MACBETH: LINES 73-142Macbeth arranges Banquo's murder.  As we watch him manipulate the twomen he has chosen to do his dirty work, we get a picture of just whata monster Macbeth has become.First, we find out that he has already been plotting.  We also seethat he has been twisting the truth.  He reminds the men of aprevious conversation, in which he made it clear to them that Banquois their enemy.  The two men have suffered some unnamed misfortune,which was Macbeth's fault.  He has told them that Banquo was reallyresponsible.  Knowing what we do about Macbeth and Banquo, we knowMacbeth is lying.NOTE:  Macbeth is making skillful use of the atmosphere of paranoiathat has existed since Duncan's murder.  Since there's no way for thetwo men to know just what to believe, they might as well go alongwith Macbeth.  He is the king, after all.  Getting on his good sidecould bring them rewards.Macbeth has also been extremely clever in choosing his murderers.They are not criminals already.  They are just down on their luck.Hard times have made them desperate, so they are ready to tryanything.Macbeth arouses the two men's anger against Banquo by insulting them.Remember how Lady Macbeth prompted her husband to kill Duncan byquestioning his manhood?  Look at how he taunts these two:Ay, in the catalogue ye go for men;As hounds and greyhounds, mongrels, spaniels, curs,Sloughs, water-rugs and demi-wolves, are cleptAll by the name of dogs....Act III, Scene i, lines 92-95"Are you a greyhound or a mongrel?" he asks them, just as we wouldask "Are you a man or a mouse?"After insulting them, Macbeth changes tactics.  He assures them thatBanquo is his enemy as well as theirs.  Imagine how these two men whohave been enduring such hard times must feel when the king himselfsays, "I to your assistance do make love" (line 124).  They are readyto do anything for him, especially kill Banquo.Macbeth adds another condition--Fleance must be killed, too.  Weknow, as Macbeth does, that, if Fleance survives, the witches'prediction can still come true.  Having come so far, however, the twomen are not held back by the idea of killing a child.MACBETH: ACT III, SCENE IIThis scene shows us what has happened to the relationship betweenMacbeth and Lady Macbeth.  We remember how close they were at thebeginning of the play.  Macbeth rushed home to tell his wife aboutthe witches' predictions, and everything they did, they did together.MACBETH: LINES 1-7Lady Macbeth does not know why Macbeth keeps so much to himself thesedays.  You can tell that she is not enjoying the fruits of theirmurder any more than he is.  But while he is concerned about Banquo,she is mainly concerned about him.MACBETH: LINES 8-56Lady Macbeth tries to get through to her husband.  She scolds him forbrooding so much:  "Why do you keep alone, / Of sorriest fancies yourcompanions making?" (lines 8-9).  She sees his conscience isbothering him.  As she did right after the murder, she urges him tobe practical:  "Things without all remedy / Should be without regard:what's done is done" (lines 11-12).That may be good advice, and Macbeth probably wishes he could takeit.  He is thinking about Duncan.  Macbeth says that, while hehimself can't sleep because of horrible nightmares, Duncan "sleepswell" (line 23).  Macbeth actually envies the man he killed.  SinceMacbeth is partly a morality play, it is perfectly in keeping that agood man who is dead is happier than an evil man who is still alive.But Macbeth is not tortured only by his past.  As we know, he isworried about the future, too.  He reminds his wife that Banquo andFleance are alive.  Though Lady Macbeth seems more worried aboutwhether Macbeth will be able to cover up his feelings at the banquettonight than she is about Banquo and his son, she tries to comforther husband.  Appropriately enough for her, the comfort takes theform of reminding him that Banquo and Fleance can be killed.Macbeth's response to that suggestion demonstrates how theirrelationship has changed.  He hints that the murder has already beenarranged, but he does not take her into his confidence.  He conjuresnight to "Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day" and to "tear topieces" Banquo's fate with its "bloody and invisible hand" (lines47-48).Shakespeare suggests that Lady Macbeth is amazed by the change in herhusband.  Macbeth says to her, "Thou marvel'st at my words" (line54).  We do not know why she reacts that way, but it could very wellbe that she did not know he had so much evil in him.NOTE:  Trying to express how he feels, Macbeth says, "O, full ofscorpions is my mind, dear wife!" (line 36).  Can you think of anystronger way to convey his feeling?  The line is made even morepoignant by the fact he addresses her as "dear wife." Knowing how hefeels, can you wonder why he keeps to himself?MACBETH: ACT III, SCENE IIIWhen the two men from Scene i meet to murder Banquo, a third manjoins them.  He says that Macbeth sent him, and the other two assumeMacbeth doesn't trust them.There is a lot of debate over just who this Third Murderer is and whyhe is there.  In some productions, he is even played by Macbethhimself in disguise!  It is more likely, though, that he is one ofMacbeth's henchmen, and that he is there as an indication thatMacbeth does not trust anybody.In the attack, the First Murderer makes a mistake.  When Banquo andFleance walk into the trap that has been set for them, the SecondMurderer calls for a light.  The First Murderer thinks he is beingtold to put out the light, so he extinguishes the torch.  Banquo iskilled, but Fleance is able to run away in the dark.MACBETH: ACT III, SCENE IVThis scene dramatizes the fact that although Macbeth and Lady Macbethhave what they wanted, they cannot enjoy it.  At the royal feast theytry to act the noble hosts.  Reminders of their evil deeds, however,continually interrupt and ruin the evening.MACBETH: LINES 1-9The beginning of the feast gives us a chance to see Macbeth and LadyMacbeth acting the roles of king and queen.  They behave formally andgraciously.  Macbeth instructs his guests to sit down according totheir "degrees," or rank.The two seem to enjoy their privileges.  Lady Macbeth sits on herthrone, staying slightly apart from the others, as befits a ruler.Macbeth mingles with "his people," but he does it as a regal gesture:Ourself will mingle with societyAnd play the humble host.Act III, Scene iv, lines 4-5MACBETH: LINES 10-33The first interruption of this scene of royal graciousness occurswhen the First Murderer arrives.  His face has blood on it, butMacbeth is able to pull the man aside before any of the guests noticehim.  The murderer tells Macbeth that Banquo is dead.You can see a big difference between Macbeth's reaction to thismurder and his response to Duncan's.  After killing the king, Macbethwas tortured with remorse.  After having his friend killed, Macbethis delighted.How can a man lose his sense of right and wrong so quickly?Shakespeare seems to be suggesting that once a person gives in to thetemptation of evil, his morals crumble.  What ruins Macbeth'senjoyment of the news of his friend's murder is not his conscience.It is the news that Fleance was not killed too.  Look at how twistedMacbeth has become; Banquo, who is dead, he calls "safe" (line 26),while Fleance's escape galls him.  The First Murderer leaves, andLady Macbeth reminds her husband of his duties to their guests.Macbeth tries to go back to playing the sociable host.  The nextinterruption, however, is more serious than the first.Macbeth must feel somewhat relieved by the news that Banquo is nolonger a threat.  In talking with his guests, Macbeth mentions hisfriend several times, saying he wishes Banquo were there.  Thosecomments turn out to be ironic.  Sitting in the seat that has beenreserved for the king is Banquo's ghost, covered with gashes andblood.  The ghost stares at Macbeth, who is transfixed with terror.The others cannot see the ghost, and to them Macbeth is acting like alunatic.NOTE:  Readers disagree over whether the ghost is "real" or not.Because Macbeth is the only one who sees it, the ghost could be afigment of his imagination.  Macbeth saw a dagger before his firstmurder, and on previous scenes he has seemed almost on the verge of abreakdown.  On the other hand, if we have accepted the supernaturalas real, why not this ghost?  Whichever point of view you take, onething is clear; the ghost is absolutely real to Macbeth.The rest of the scene until the guests leave takes the form of atug-of-war between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.  He is talking to theghost, and she is trying to maintain appearances for their guests.She attempts to explain away her husband's strange behavior saying hehas always had these "fits." Then she takes him aside and tries toshame him into being quiet:Shame itself!Why do you make such faces? When all's done,You look but on a stool.Act III, Scene iv, lines 67-69But Macbeth knows what he sees, and her words have little effect onhim.  (Remember how Macbeth could not decide whether to believe hiscommon sense in his eyes when he saw the dagger.  Now there is nocontest.)The ghost leaves, and Macbeth apologizes to his guests.  Hisexcuse--"I have a strange infirmity" (line 87)--has a surprisingamount of truth to it.  Without realizing it, he could be referringto his conscience.  Though his moral sense appears to be dead, thereis still some part of him that refuses to allow him to enjoy hisstolen crown.  But the ghost reappears, and Macbeth begins raving; heis saying way too much, and seems totally insane to his guests.  Heasks them how they can look at such things without being frightened.Lady Macbeth realizes she has lost control of the situation, and theevening cannot be saved.  Wanting to get rid of the others before herhusband says much more, she urgently tells the guests to leave.  Allthe regal formality of the opening is now gone:  "Stand not upon theorder of your going / But go at once" (lines 120-21).MACBETH: LINES 123-141Macbeth and his wife talk after the guests leave.  We learn threethings:  1.  Macduff refused to attend the feast, just as he refusedto attend Macbeth's crowning, so Macduff is being set up as anadversary to Macbeth; 2.  Macbeth is afraid, not only of Banquo butof all his lords.  He says, "There's not a one of them but in hishouse / I keep a servant fee'd" (lines 132-33).  In other words, hehas spies.  3.  Macbeth intends to visit the three witches again.Remember that the first time he met them, the evil creatures foundhim.  Now he will seek them out.  Macbeth has reached a point wherehe is willing to do anything; "For mine own good / All causes shallgive way" (lines 136-37).  He is no longer divided between good andevil, as he was before Duncan's murder.  By killing his king, hecommitted himself to a path from which there is no return.MACBETH: ACT III, SCENE VThe witches meet Hecate, their mistress.  Many scholars believe thatthis scene was not actually written by Shakespeare.  They see thescene as an opportunity for a song and dance from the witches.NOTE:  Whether Shakespeare wrote the scene or not, it points out animportant theme:  security.  Hecate says, "...security / Is mortals'chiefest enemy" (lines 32-33).  She means what we would call "falsesecurity." In the morality plays of Shakespeare's time, all securitywas seen as false security.  The devil has laid many traps formankind, they said, and if you feel secure, it is because you refuseto see the dangers.  Macbeth will be given a false sense of securityby the witches the next time he meets them.MACBETH: ACT III, SCENE VIWe get a clear view of how the thanes of Scotland feel underMacbeth's rule in this scene.  Before, we have been able to sense theatmosphere of paranoia.  Here, it is demonstrated.Lennox and another lord enter.  They are having a privateconversation about recent events.  Notice that Lennox, who clearlymeans to say that something fishy is going on, has to get his messageacross indirectly.  His speech is loaded with irony:The gracious DuncanWas pitied of Macbeth:  marry,  he was dead.And the right-valiant Banquo walked too late;Whom, you may say, if't please you, Fleance killed,For Fleance fled.  Men must not walk too late.Act III, Scene vi, lines 3-7Translated, he is saying, "Maybe somebody believes this, but I sure don't."An important bit of news is revealed in this scene:  Macduff, who isnow commonly acknowledged as Macbeth's enemy, has gone to the Englishcourt.  There, he intends to ask the English king for troops to helpoverthrow Macbeth.Duncan's son Malcolm is already in England, where he has been treatedwith great respect.  That gives the Scottish lords hope that theEnglish king will be sympathetic to their plight.After sharing the news about Macduff, Lennox and the other lord speakmore directly.  They yearn for relief from Macbeth's tyranny.  Noticethe religious imagery used by Lennox:  "Some holy angel / Fly to thecourt of England...  that a swift blessing / May soon return to thisour suffering country / under a hand accursed!" (lines 45-48).  Thatlanguage suggests that they see Macbeth as more than just a tyrant;they consider him a devil.MACBETH: LINES 1-38Thunder crashes, and the witches appear.  They have been out of theplay since Act I, except for the unnecessary Scene V of Act III, sothe beginning of this scene reminds us of who and what they are.As the witches dance around the cauldron, they chant the recipe forthe evil mess they are brewing:Fillet of a fenny snake,In the caldron boil and bake,Eye of newt and toe of frog,Wool of bat and tongue of dogAct IV, Scene i, lines 14-17Their ingredients make a wonderfully nasty list, but an evil one too:"Scale of dragon...  Witch's mummy...  finger of birth-strangledbabe...." These are not just strange women; they are evil creatures.MACBETH: LINES 38-43Hecate appears.  Again, Shakespeare probably did not write thissection.  It seems like another excuse for music and song, and itdoes nothing to move the plot forward.MACBETH: LINES 44-135Into this creepy, dreary fog-filled place comes Macbeth.  He stridesin boldly, as if he belonged there.  In fact, when one of the witchessenses Macbeth coming, she chants, "By the pricking of my thumbs,Something wicked this way comes" (lines 44-45).The Macbeth who presents himself to the witches is not the same manthey met in Act I.  That man recoiled from these weird hags, eventhough he was enticed by what they said.  The Macbeth who comes innow is a man totally dedicated to evil.The Macbeth the witches first waylaid was afraid of what would happenif he did something evil.  (Remember how he argued with his wife inAct I, Scene vii).  This Macbeth starts by announcing that even ifthe entire world fall apart as a result, he wants answers to somequestions.  The theme of physical nature being affected when peopledo sinful things that are against human nature is found in Macbeth'sdemand for answers:though the treasureOf nature's germens tumble all together,Even till destruction sicken, answer meTo what I ask you.Act IV, Scene i, lines 58-61He is saying he does not care if the order of all creation is wreckedby what he does.  Remembering the weird events that followed Duncan'smurder, that possibility doesn't seem so far-fetched.Macbeth's resolve is further demonstrated when the witches give him achoice of talking with them or with their masters.  Any normal personwould have to think twice (at least) before asking to see the demonmasters of these hags.  Macbeth, however, immediately shouts, "Call'em, let me see 'em" (line 63).The witches conjure up three strange visions, and each gives Macbetha specific piece of information:First, an "Armed Head" appears.  That means the head of a man wearingthe headpiece from a suit of armor.  This apparition tells Macbeth tobeware Macduff, the Thane of Fife.  Macbeth says that he already wasworried about Macduff, but the figure vanishes.The second apparition is a bloody child.  The demon tells Macbeth tobe "bloody, bold, and resolute" (line 79), as if Macbeth needed thatadvice.  But he gives Macbeth a good reason to be confident:  "Laughto scorn the pow'r of man, for none of woman born / Shall harmMacbeth" (lines 79-81).  Macbeth is pleased by this prophesy, but heplans to kill Macduff anyway.Finally, a child wearing a crown and holding a tree in its handappears.  This figure says Macbeth will never be defeated until"Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill / Shall come against him"(lines 93-94).  This assurance is even more comforting to Macbeththan the previous one.  You can tell that Macbeth thinks he is beingtold that he is invincible, but you know there has to be a trick.  Inthis play, nothing is what it appears to be.The form each apparition takes is an indication of doom.  The ArmedHead could be Macbeth's head, which Macduff will cut off.  The bloodychild who tells Macbeth to fear no man born of woman could beMacduff, who was "untimely ripped" from his mother's womb.  (Thatmeans he was delivered in a crude version of what we today call acesarean section.  So, he was never born of a woman in the normalway.) The child with a tree in his hand might represent Malcolm, whowill tell his soldiers to carry branches from the trees in BirnamWood to disguise their approach.  But Macbeth knows only what he hasbeen told.  The one warning sounds helpful, the two prophesies soundlike good news to him.There is one thing more he wants to know, though.  Will Banquo's lineinherit the throne?  The witches do not want to answer, but Macbethinsists.The witches show him a ghostly procession of eight kings.  The lastking holds a mirror, which shows even more kings.  And all of themlook like Banquo!  Banquo himself appears, pointing at them andsmiling.  Macbeth interprets this vision correctly; the descendentsof Banquo will be kings.NOTE:  This last vision serves a dramatic purpose.  It enragesMacbeth and probably makes him even more evilly reckless.  But therewas another, nondramatic, purpose for this vision.  Macbeth was firstpresented for James I, who was a descendent of the historical Banquo."Banquo's issue," as Macbeth calls it, was the Stuart line of kings.MACBETH: LINES 136-56The witches vanish, leaving Macbeth standing amazed.  Macbeth callsto Lennox, who was waiting for him nearby.  Lennox says he did notsee the witches go past him, confirming that they vanished into thinair.  He also tells Macbeth that several men came to tell Macbeththat Macduff has gone to England.Is Lennox toying with Macbeth in the same way the witches were?  Weknow that Lennox was already aware of Macduff's mission to England.Perhaps he withheld the information till now for some purpose.  Likethe characters in the play, we cannot be sure what to believe.Macbeth senses that it is dangerous to trust the witches:  "damned[be] all those that trust them" (line 139).  But he no longer has anycool judgment to guide him.  Or maybe Macbeth considers himselfdamned already; he certainly places all his trust in the witches'prophesies.In the same way that the witches' earlier predictions set the actionof the first part of the play, these new prophesies have set theaction of the rest.MACBETH: ACT IV, SCENE IINow that Macbeth has completed his descent from loyal thane to eviltyrant, Shakespeare leaves him for a while.The setting changes from the eerie gloom of the witches' haunt to aquiet, domestic scene in Macduff's castle.  The characters are LadyMacduff, Macduff's son, and a kinsman, the Thane of Ross.Although Lady Macduff and her son are not part of the politicalturmoil caused by Macbeth, they are affected by it.  Good and badhave been blurred and confused for them, too.MACBETH:  LINES 1-30Macduff has gone to England without saying goodbye to his family, onwhom his lack of loyalty to King Macbeth will bring disgrace.  LadyMacduff does not understand why he has abandoned them.  She decideshe must not love them.NOTE:  Let's stop for a minute to look at his reasons for sneakingoff that way, We can guess that after enduring Macbeth's tyranny forsome time, Macduff decided something had to be done.  The only hopefor his country was to bring back Malcolm, its rightful king.  Andthat meant going to England in secret.Could Macduff have guessed what would happen?  It seems unlikely.  Hemust have known that his wife and children would be shamed andunprotected, and that Macbeth would make it hard on them.  But maybehe figured that a new king for Scotland was worth the price.  But howcould Macduff or anybody else imagine how threatened his family wouldbe?  Clearly, he underestimated Macbeth."How can you tell right from wrong, courage from cowardice, in atopsy-turvy world?" this scene asks.  Lady Macduff is a strong,intelligent woman, and she cannot understand her husband's motives.She is angry at him, because she believes he has acted unwisely.Ross seems convinced that Macduff is doing the right thing, but hecannot explain why.  He sums up the situation well:But cruel are the times, when we are traitorsAnd do not know ourselves; when we hold rumorFrom what we fear, yet know not what we fearAct IV, Scene ii, lines 18-20Ross finds Macduff's family's plight so sad, he has to leave beforehe starts crying.MACBETH: LINES 31-64Lady Macduff tells her son that his father is dead.  What she meansis that they have been left to fend for themselves; nobody knows whenMacduff will come back.The tone of the scene is light, but the intent is serious.  Macduff'sson is bright and cocky.  He doesn't believe for a minute that hisfather is dead.  Probably Lady Macduff's tone lets him know that shedoes not mean what she says literally.  But being left alone and indisgrace will be difficult for them.Lady Macduff also tells her son that his father is a traitor.  Sheprobably says it because she knows that he will hear a lot of otherpeople say it before long.MACBETH: LINES 65-85Not even the oppressed people of Scotland realize the depth ofMacbeth's evil.  Never in Lady Macduff's talks with Ross or with herson has it occurred to any of them that she and her children could bekilled.  That would be too cruel, even for Macbeth.This false sense of security is shattered when a man runs in, windedand scared to death.  He warns Lady Macduff that she and her familyare in great danger.  Then he runs away.  Lady Macduff has only a fewmoments to wonder why she should be in danger when she has done noharm before several murderers enter.One of the murderers says the same thing about Macduff his wife hasjust been saying--that he is a traitor.  This time, both she and herson defend him.  When the young Macduff is grabbed by the man andstabbed, he bravely calls to his mother to run.  She does, but she iscaught by another murderer and killed.MACBETH: ACT IV, SCENE IIIIn England, Malcolm and Macduff repair the bonds of loyalty and trustwhich have been destroyed by Macbeth.MACBETH: LINES 1-37Macduff wants Malcolm to lead a revolt against Macbeth.  Malcolmwould like to overthrow his father's murderer, but he has a problem:how does he know he can trust Macduff?Malcolm is in a delicate position.  As Scotland's rightful king, heowes it to his people to overthrow the tyrant.  But he must be verycareful.  Macbeth has been sending spies to try to lure Malcolm backto Scotland and into a trap.  So far, Malcolm has seen through alltheir plots.Now Malcolm has to figure out whether or not Macduff is what heappears to be.  In Macduff's favor is the fact that he is known as anhonest man.  But Macbeth was considered an honest man at one time.Also, Macbeth has not actually done Macduff any personal harm yet.(Neither of them knows about the murder of Macduff's family.)Malcolm's problem is how to tell a good man from a bad man actinggood:  "Though all things foul would wear the brows of grace, / Yetgrace must still look so" (lines 24-25).  In other words, "foul"wants to seem "fair," and "fair" is "fair" by nature, so how can youtell them apart?Fortunately for Malcolm, he has a quick mind and a clever tongue.When one approach fails, he can try another.  His direct questioningof Macduff ("Wouldn't you get a lot for turning me in to Macbeth?""If you are Macbeth's enemy, how can you have left your familyexposed to him?") only makes the older man angry.  That does nothelp.  Macduff's anger could be either that of a guilty man found outor an innocent man unjustly accused.MACBETH: LINES 137-139Malcolm tries another tactic.  He tells lies about himself.  Hedescribes in great detail what an awful person he is and what aterrible king he would make.At first, Macduff tries to downplay the faults Malcolm gives himself.After all, Macduff thinks, anybody would be better than Macbeth.As Malcolm goes on, he gives an anatomy of a bad king.  He says thathe is lustful.  Macduff does not approve, but he knows that there areplenty of women willing to satisfy a king's sexual appetites.Malcolm adds greed to his list of faults.  Macduff likes this faulteven less, but says that there are enough riches in Scotland tosatisfy anybody's desire for wealth.  Malcolm's virtues, saysMacduff, will outweigh his faults.Malcolm gives Macduff one final chance to reject him.  He lists everyvirtue a king could have.  Then he declares that he doesn't have anyof them.  He says that, if he were king, he would "Pour the sweetmilk of concord into hell" (line 98).That is just what Macbeth has done.  Finally, Macduff sees thatMalcolm would not be an improvement.  He gives up hope.By giving up hope, Macduff passes Malcolm's test.  Malcolm revealsthat he has been telling lies about himself in order to test Macduff.The truth, he says, is just the opposite.  Because of the extremityof the situation, we can forgive Malcolm for his lack of humility ashe informs Macduff of his virtues."Old Siward, with ten thousand warlike men" (line 134) are alreadyprepared to march on Scotland, Malcolm tells Macduff.MACBETH: LINES 139-159This interlude about the king of England and his healing powersserves to contrast with the sickness a bad king like Macbeth bringson his country.  The imagery is religious:  "How he solicits heaven,Himself best knows" (lines 149-150), suggesting that a true king isgood, and a gift from God.MACBETH: LINES 160-192Ross appears, having just arrived from Scotland.  He is bringing theterrible news about Macduff's family, but he cannot bring himself tosay it at first.NOTE:  Notice that when Ross first enters, Malcolm does not recognizehim.  Macbeth has kept the rightful king away from his country for solong that he does not even know his people anymore.  Of course, afterriding hard for several days to be the bearer of bad news, Ross maynot look his best!When Ross describes Scotland, it sounds as if he were trying to tellsomebody about a nightmare:Where sighs, and groans, and shrieks that rent the air,Are made, not marked; where violent sorrow seemsA modern ecstasy.Act IV, Scene iii, lines 168-170Ross is going through his own personal nightmare trying to bringhimself to tell Macduff that his wife and children have been killed.When Macduff asks about his family, Ross dodges the question.  Hisanswer has a weird blend of horror and humor:Macduff:  The tyrant has not battered at their peace?Ross:  No; they were well at peace when I did leave 'em.Act IV, Scene iii, lines 178-79Macduff can tell that Ross is holding something back. He presses him for news.Ross changes the subject for a moment, saying that he has seenMacbeth's army.  He appeals to Malcolm to come home and lead therevolt.  When he is told that the troops are ready to march, he knowsthat he can no longer wait to tell Macduff about his family.MACBETH: LINES 192-240Macduff's reaction to the news is the most touching passage in theplay for many readers.  This blunt, practical man, this soldier whohas seen many of his comrades die on the field, stands blinking indisbelief.  He must ask Ross to tell him several times.  He canunderstand the words but he cannot fathom anything so horrible.There is a lesson in the way Macduff takes the news.  Malcolm, who isstill relatively inexperienced, tries to snap Macduff out of hisgrief:Malcolm:  Dispute it like a man.Macduff:                           I shall do so;But I must also feel it as a man.Act IV, Scene iii, lines 220-21Macduff is not only brave in fighting.  He is brave enough to facehis own personal tragedy.Finally, Macduff converts his grief to rage.  Strong as his resolveto overthrow Macbeth was before, it is now even stronger.NOTE:  Shakespeare has just set up the last act of the play.  We knowthat Macbeth is depending on the witches' new prophesies and believeshimself invincible.  We also know that a mighty army is setting outfrom England to defeat him.  The stage is set for the final battle,in Act V.MACBETH: ACT V, SCENE IThe scene shifts back to Scotland and Macbeth's castle.  Lady Macbethmakes her last appearance in the play.In this scene, Lady Macbeth is entirely lost in a nightmare world.This is one of the most famous scenes in all Shakespeare.  It isusually called "the sleepwalking scene."MACBETH: LINES 1-20Lady Macbeth's Gentlewoman--her maid--and the Doctor prepare us forwhat is coming.  The Gentlewoman has seen Lady Macbeth walk in hersleep every night since Macbeth left the castle with his army.Tonight, she has asked the Doctor to watch the strange ritual withher.  The Gentlewoman says that she would not dare repeat what shehas heard Lady Macbeth say while sleepwalking.MACBETH: LINES 21-72Lady Macbeth enters, carrying a candle.  Her eyes are open, but, asthe Gentlewoman says, "their sense are shut" (line 28).In her nightmare, Lady Macbeth relives the murders she and herhusband have committed.  She talks to her husband, repeatingassurances she has given him:  "What need we fear who knows it, whennone can call our power to accompt?" (lines 40-42), and "I tell youyet again, Banquo's buried" (lines 66-67).These words take on a horrible irony in this context.  Obviously, sheis tortured by fear.  Have terror and guilt worried away an evilcharacter?  Or was the confidence she showed earlier in the play justan act for her husband's sake?  Perhaps she even fooled herself, andthese nightmares are her subconscious mind making her face the truth.NOTE:  Shakespeare, of course, would not have known about modernpsychological concepts like "subconscious mind." Yet it appears thathe instinctively understood what psychologists tell us:  thatemotions we suppress come back to harm us.What is even more ironic, as she sleepwalks Lady Macbeth compulsivelymakes motions as if she were washing her hands.  She says, "who wouldhave thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?" (lines42-43), and "Here's the smell of the blood still" (line 53).Remember how she had assured Macbeth that they could easily washtheir hands and be "clear[ed] of the deed"?MACBETH: LINES 73-84After Lady Macbeth returns to bed, the Doctor and the Gentlewomantalk about what they have seen.The Doctor says something that sums up one of the major themes of theplay:  that of evil as a perversion of nature.  "Unnatural deeds / Dobreed unnatural troubles" (lines 75-76).  Macbeth and Lady Macbethgot what they wanted by committing deeds that went against God's lawsand human nature.  For a time, they seemed to get away with it.  Nowthey are paying the price.MACBETH: ACT V, SCENE IIShakespeare begins the build up to the final battle.  Like modernmovies do, he will "cut" from scene to scene--back and forth betweenscenes showing the English forces that are approaching Macbeth'scastle and scenes showing Macbeth preparing for their attack.This short scene among the Scottish thanes gets across several plotpoints:  1.  the English army is near, led by Malcolm, Macduff, andSiward; 2.  the invaders will meet the Scottish forces near BirnamWood (remember the prophesy); 3.  Malcolm's brother, Donalbain, isnot with them.  (You can consider him a loose thread in the plot:  henever reappears.)The second half of the scene touches on several important points.Menteith picks up the theme of "unnatural deeds" when he says ofMacbeth "all that is within him does condemn / Itself for beingthere" (lines 24-25).  That statement is based on the idea that humannature is fundamentally good.  Therefore, the evil deeds Macbeth hascommitted have made him fight with his own nature.Now that the trust that Macbeth destroyed for a time has beenrepaired by Macduff and Malcolm, a theme of loyalty begins to emerge.Malcolm and Macduff lead an army that is fueled by a strong cause:to revenge the wrongs committed by Macbeth.  Macbeth's army, on theother hand, moves "only in command, / Nothing in love" (lines 19-20).MACBETH: ACT V, SCENE IIISeeing Macbeth back at his castle, we can understand why even thosefollowers who have stuck with him do not love him, as subjects shouldlove a king.  He raves like a madman, talking about how invincibleand unafraid he is.  His boasts sound empty:  "the heart I bear /Shall never sag with doubt nor shake with fear" (lines 9-10).Macbeth has not lost touch with reality completely, though.  In aquieter moment, he reflects on all he has given up.  He seems tosense that his life is nearly over.  What he says to the Doctor (orto himself, depending on how you read it) is touching:And that which should accompany old age,As honor, love, obedience, troops of friends,I must not look to have; but, in their stead,Curses not loud but deep.Act V, Scene iii, lines 24-27Do you feel sorry for him, or do you see him as a monster who isgetting what he deserves?Seyton actually seems to be making fun of Macbeth when he enters andasks, "What's your gracious pleasure?" (line 29).  Seyton confirms areport that ten thousand soldiers are approaching.Macbeth is terrified but determined not to admit it.  He commandsSeyton to help him put on his armor, even though it is not reallyneeded yet, but ten lines later he is snapping at Seyton to help himtake it off.Macbeth sounds very different when he asks the doctor about his wife.She is sick, with "thick-coming fantasies." Macbeth asks the Doctorif he can cure her:  "Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased?"(line 40).  But he knows the Doctor's answer before he hears it.  Sheis beyond all help.Macbeth demonstrates that even he doesn't realize the extent of hisevil and the destruction it has caused.  He wishes the Doctor couldcure Scotland of its disease.  He is talking about the invading armyfrom England.NOTE:  Actually, Macbeth himself is the cause of Scotland's disease.The image of Macbeth as a bringer of disease is made even sharper byour memory of the English king's ability to heal disease.Appropriately, the English troops are coming to heal Scotland'sdisease by overthrowing Macbeth.MACBETH: ACT V, SCENE IVThe scene shifts to Malcolm, Macduff, and the English troops, nowunited with the Scottish thanes.  In a short scene, one importantplot point and several thematic points are brought out.Malcolm gives an order that makes one of the witches' prophesies cometrue.  He orders each soldier to cut a branch from a tree in BirnamWood and carry it in front of him, to disguise their movements.Something Malcolm says to his troops points up the theme of loyalty.Referring to Macbeth, he says, "none serve with him but constrainedthings / Whose hearts are absent too" (lines 13-14).Malcolm also promises that confusion will soon come to an end:The time approaches,That will with due decision make us knowWhat we shall say we have and what we owe.Act V, Scene iv, lines 16-18In other words, the battle will decide whether Malcolm's claim to thethrone is still all words or whether he will really be king.MACBETH: LINES 1-28Macbeth, in Dunsinane, is puffing himself up with thoughts about howimpregnable the castle is.  If so many Scottish soldiers had not goneover to Malcolm, he says, he could have met the invaders openly.  Asit is, he plans to stay put--and let them try to come and get him.Then offstage, some women scream.  Alone while Seyton goes toinvestigate, Macbeth reflects grimly how unstartled he was at thatsound:  he has trained himself to horrors so completely.  Seytonreturns and announces, "The Queen, my lord, is dead." Macbeth's firstwords are "She should have died hereafter / There would have been atime for such a word."What is he saying?  Readers disagree.  You can argue that Macbethmeans, "She should have waited to die.  I'm busy now"; that he haslost feeling now even for her.  Or you can read the lines as "Shewould have died inevitably, as we all do.  But there would have beentime for grief another day." Whether inspired by grief or by totalindifference, what follows is an eloquent rush of despair.  Day afterday after interminable day, our lives creep along to our dustydeaths, he says.  And then:  "Out, out, brief candle!"--enough oflife!  He calls life a pathetic, strutting actor briefly on a stage,and then says:It is a taleTold by an idiot, full of sound and furySignifying nothing.Act V, Scene v, lines 26-28A messenger enters with news Macbeth never imagined he would hear:it looks as if the wood is on the move.Macbeth rages at the man, but sees he is lost.  He calls his troopsout, and says, bitterly, "I 'gin to be a weary of the sun" (line49)--he is ready to die.He is a savage, doomed man, but you can see the wreckage of nobilityin him.  It is chilling to hear his battle cry:Blow wind, come wrack!At least we'll die with harness on our back.Act V, Scene v, lines 51-52MACBETH: ACT V, SCENE VIMalcolm's forces arrive outside Macbeth's castle carrying branchesfrom Birnam Wood.  The final battle is now only moments away.Malcolm's order to his troops has a symbolic significance:  "Yourheavy screens throw down, / And show like those you are." UnderMalcolm's reign, things will be what they appear to be.  Theconfusion caused by Macbeth's evil will be banished from the land.MACBETH: ACT V, SCENE VIIThe English forces attack, and the battle begins.  Somewhere on thefield, Macbeth encounters Old Siward's son.  They fight and youngSiward is killed.Young Siward is courageous.  Macbeth expects the young soldier to runwhen he finds out who he is facing.  Instead, he bravely attacksMacbeth.Macbeth seems almost unwilling to fight, but he has no choice.  Wecan almost pity him.  He is trapped and despairing.  Life has nomeaning for him, but pride makes him fight on.Macbeth leaves, and Macduff passes through.  He has only one thought:to find and kill Macbeth.Next, Malcolm and Old Siward appear.  The battle is almost won, theysay.  What few followers Macbeth has left are fighting halfheartedly.MACBETH: LINES 1-34Malcolm and Old Siward leave, and Macbeth reappears.  He knows he haslost, and he remembers the Roman custom of the defeated commanderdying on his own sword.  But Macbeth refuses to do that.  He willfight to the end.The end arrives in the person of Macduff.  He addresses Macbeth as adevil, saying, "Turn, hellhound, turn!"Oddly enough, Macbeth seems to soften.  Is he afraid?  He was warnedto "beware Macduff." Or does some remaining shred of humanity in hisnature hold him back?  "My soul is too much charged / With blood ofthine already," he tells Macduff.  Macbeth's words and behaviorsuggest that he actually regrets the murder of Macduff's family, buthe cannot undo what has been done.Macbeth must expect Macduff to be frightened when he warns him thathe lives a "charmed" life, which must not yield / To one of womanborn." Instead, Macduff laughs at him.  Macduff was not born of womanin the normal way; he was pulled from his mother's womb before he wasdue.Now there can be no doubt in Macbeth's mind that the end has arrived.He knows that by trusting the hags who seemed to be offering him hisheart's desire, he has thrown away his honor, his dignity, his life,and his soul.For a moment, Macbeth seems to want to save his life; he seemsscared.  He refuses to fight.  In response, Macduff says:We'll have thee, as our rarer monsters are,Painted upon a pole, and underwrit,"Here may you see the tyrant."Act V, Scene viii, lines 25-27That humiliation Macbeth is too proud to bear, and he chooses tofight for whatever last shred of dignity he can salvage.  Reachingdeep inside himself, he finds some of the courage for which he was soadmired at the beginning of the play:Lay on, Macduff;And damned be him that first cries "Hold, enough!"Act V, Scene viii, lines 33-34He and Macduff fight, and Macbeth is killed.MACBETH: LINES 35-53With Macbeth dead, the remainder of the play is devoted toestablishing new order.  Themes of honor and loyalty dominate thissection.Malcolm, Old Siward, the thanes, and the soldiers enter and surveythe battleground.  The dead and wounded are still being counted.Clearly, however, the day has been a great success for their side.Old Siward is told that his son has been killed in battle.Shakespeare uses Siward's reaction to his son's death to point up thetheme of honor.  Siward wants to know if Young Siward was wounded inthe front of his body.  (That is where he would be wounded if he wasfighting.  If he were running away, he would have been wounded in theback.) Told that his son's wounds are in the front, he says he is notgrieved.  He is proud, because his son died a good soldier's death.Some of us who read the play today might question Old Siward'sreadiness to accept his son's death.  But one thing is clear:  he hasa code of honor, and he lives by it.Malcolm's attitude suggests that he will be a good king.  He insiststhat Young Siward is "worth more sorrow."MACBETH: LINES 53-75Macduff enters, carrying Macbeth's head.  He hails Malcolm as king ofScotland.  Macbeth's death brings only joy to his people.NOTE:  You might wonder at some point what has happened to Fleanceand all of Banquo's royal sons that Macbeth saw in the witches'caldron.  It is never spelled out in the play, but we're meant tobelieve that the crown will fall into Banquo's family line sometimelater--in another generation.  And, needless to say, it will follownaturally and honorably.Malcolm's speech ends the play on an optimistic note.  The rightfulking will now assume the throne, and he will be a good and lovingruler.The first thing Malcolm does is acknowledge how much he owes to thethanes.  Remember that his father, who was a good king, went out ofhis way to show love and gratitude to those who served him well.To reward the thanes, Malcolm starts by making them earls.  Thataction is significant.  Under Macbeth, Scotland became barbaric.Malcolm is saying that under his rule, the land will become morecivilized.We learn from Malcolm that Lady Macbeth is thought to have committedsuicide.  She has come to the most ignoble end possible.With Malcolm's crowning the right and natural order of things isrestored.  Malcolm has God's blessing.  He says he will do all thatis required of him "by the grace of Grace" and "in measure, time, andplace."The play concludes with Malcolm's invitation to his people to see himcrowned at Scone.  We can bet that, unlike when Macbeth went to Sconefor the same purpose, Macduff will be there to pay honor to hisrightful king.MACBETH: GLOSSARYALARUM  Trumpet callAUGURS  ProphesiesBELLONA  Goddess of WarBENISON  BlessingCHARNEL HOUSES  Bone-storage vaultsEQUIVOCATOR  LiarGOLGOTHA Place of the Skull, in Hebrew; the hill near Jerusalem whereChrist was crucified, hence a place of torture or martyrdomGORGON A mythical female monster who was so hideous that anyone wholooked at her turned to stoneGRAYMALKIN  A witch's familiar (a gray cat)HECATE  Goddess of SorcerySECOND COCK  About three in the morningSENNET  Trumpet callTARQUIN  Roman Tyrant who raped LucreceTHANES  Scottish noblemenWASSAIL  CarousingWEIRD SISTERS Wyrd, Old English for "fate"; possibly the three Fates,or DestiniesMACBETH: ON LADY MACBETHThe magnitude of her resolution almost covers the magnitude of herguilt.  She is a great bad woman, whom we hate, but whom we fear morethan we hate....  She is only wicked to gain a great end; and isperhaps more distinguished by her commanding presence of mind andinexorable self-will, which do not suffer her to be diverted from abad purpose, when once formed, by weak and womanly regrets, than bythe hardness of her heart or want of natural affections.-William Hazlitt, Characters ofShakespeare's Plays, 1817MACBETH: ON MACBETHMacbeth himself appears driven along by the violence of his fate likea vessel driven along before a storm:  he reels to and fro like adrunken man; he staggers under the weight of his own purposes and thesuggestions of others; he stands at bay with his situation; and fromthe superstitious awe and breathless suspense into which thecommunications of the Weird Sisters throw him, is hurried on withdaring impatience to verify their predictions, and with impious andbloody hand to tear aside the veil which hides the uncertainty of thefuture.-William Hazlitt, Characters ofShakespeare's Plays, 1817MACBETH: ON MACBETH'S MORALITYMacbeth remains an honorable gentleman.  He is not a criminal; he hasno criminal tendencies.  But once permit his self-love to demand asatisfaction which cannot be honestly attained, and he is likely tograsp any dishonorable means to that end which may be safelyemployed.  In other words, Macbeth has much of the natural good inhim unimpaired; environment has conspired with his nature to make himupright in all his dealings with those about him.  But moral goodnessin him is undeveloped and indeed still rudimentary, for his voluntaryacts are scarcely brought into harmony with ultimate ends.-Walter Clyde Curry, Shakespeare'sPhilosophical Patterns, 1937MACBETH: ON THE IMAGERY OF DARKNESSDarkness, we may even say blackness, broods over this tragedy.  It isremarkable that almost all the scenes which at once recur to memorytake place either at night or in some dark spot.  The vision of thedagger, the murder of Duncan, the sleep-walking of Lady Macbeth, allcome in night-scenes.  The Witches dance in the thick air of a storm,or "black and midnight hags" receive Macbeth in a cavern.  Theblackness of night is to the hero a thing of fear, even of horror;and that which he feels becomes the spirit of the play.  -A.  C.Bradley, Shakespearean Tragedy, 1964MACBETH: ON THE IMAGERY IN MACBETHThe play opens with thunder and the appearance of the witches, and asuccession of immediate and effective visual or auditory images ispresented directly to an audience or imaginative reader by means ofthe bleeding sergeant, the bloody daggers and hands, the knocking atthe gate, the banquet with the ghost of Banquo, the apparitions, andthe sleep-walking.  These effects establish the play's atmosphere,and form a kind of framework to the poetic imagery.-R. A. Foakes, "Suggestions for a NewApproach to Shakespeare's Imagery." 1952MACBETH: ON LADY MACBETHLady Macbeth, like all in Shakespeare, is a class individualized:--ofhigh rank, left much alone, and feeding herself with day-dreams ofambition, she mistakes the courage of fantasy for the power ofbearing the consequences of the realities of guilt.  Hers is the mockfortitude of a mind deluded by ambition; she shames her husband witha superhuman audacity of fancy which she cannot support, but sinks inthe season of remorse, and dies in suicidal agony.-Samuel Taylor Coleridge,Coleridge's Shakespearean Criticism;edited by Thomas M. Raysor, 1959                               THE END