MACBETH

William Shakespeare
Context
The most influential writer in all of English literature, William Shakespeare was born in 1564 to
a successful middle-class gloe-maker in Stratford-upon-!on, England" Shakespeare attended
grammar school, but his formal education proceeded no further" #n 15$% he married an older
woman, !nne &athawa', and had three children with her" !round 15() he left his famil' behind
and traeled to *ondon to work as an actor and pla'wright" +ublic and critical acclaim ,uickl'
followed, and Shakespeare eentuall' became the most popular pla'wright in England and part-
owner of the -lobe Theater" &is career bridged the reigns of Eli.abeth # /ruled 155$016)12 and
3ames # /ruled 16)1016%52, and he was a faorite of both monarchs" #ndeed, 3ames granted
Shakespeare4s compan' the greatest possible compliment b' bestowing upon its members the
title of 5ing4s 6en" Wealth' and renowned, Shakespeare retired to Stratford and died in 1616 at
the age of fift'-two" !t the time of Shakespeare4s death, literar' luminaries such as 7en 3onson
hailed his works as timeless" Shakespeare4s works were collected and printed in arious editions
in the centur' following his death, and b' the earl' eighteenth centur' his reputation as the
greatest poet eer to write in English was well established" The unprecedented admiration
garnered b' his works led to a fierce curiosit' about Shakespeare4s life, but the dearth of
biographical information has left man' details of Shakespeare4s personal histor' shrouded in
m'ster'" Some people hae concluded from this fact and from Shakespeare4s modest education
that Shakespeare4s pla's were actuall' written b' someone else89rancis 7acon and the Earl of
:;ford are the two most popular candidates8but the support for this claim is oerwhelmingl'
circumstantial, and the theor' is not taken seriousl' b' man' scholars"
#n the absence of credible eidence to the contrar', Shakespeare must be iewed as the author of
the thirt'-seen pla's and 154 sonnets that bear his name" The legac' of this bod' of work is
immense" ! number of Shakespeare4s pla's seem to hae transcended een the categor' of
brilliance, becoming so influential as to affect profoundl' the course of Western literature and
culture eer after"
1
Shakespeare4s shortest and bloodiest traged', Macbeth tells the stor' of a brae Scottish general
/6acbeth2 who receies a prophec' from a trio of sinister witches that one da' he will become
5ing of Scotland" <onsumed with ambitious thoughts and spurred to action b' his wife, 6acbeth
murders 5ing =uncan and sei.es the throne for himself" &e begins his reign racked with guilt
and fear and soon becomes a t'rannical ruler, as he is forced to commit more and more murders
to protect himself from enmit' and suspicion" The bloodbath swiftl' propels 6acbeth and *ad'
6acbeth to arrogance, madness, and death"
Macbeth was most likel' written in 16)6, earl' in the reign of 3ames #, who had been 3ames >#
of Scotland before he succeeded to the English throne in 16)1" 3ames was a patron of
Shakespeare4s acting compan', and of all the pla's Shakespeare wrote under 3ames4s
reign, Macbeth most clearl' reflects the pla'wright4s close relationship with the soereign" #n
focusing on 6acbeth, a figure from Scottish histor', Shakespeare paid homage to his king4s
Scottish lineage" !dditionall', the witches4 prophec' that 7an,uo will found a line of kings is a
clear nod to 3ames4s famil'4s claim to hae descended from the historical 7an,uo" #n a larger
sense, the theme of bad ersus good kingship, embodied b' 6acbeth and =uncan, respectiel',
would hae resonated at the ro'al court, where 3ames was bus' deeloping his English ersion
of the theor' of diine right"
Macbeth is not Shakespeare4s most comple; pla', but it is certainl' one of his most powerful and
emotionall' intense" Whereas Shakespeare4s other ma?or tragedies, such
as Hamlet and Othello, fastidiousl' e;plore the intellectual predicaments faced b' their sub?ects
and the fine nuances of their sub?ects4 characters, Macbeth tumbles madl' from its opening to its
conclusion" #t is a sharp, ?agged sketch of theme and character@ as such, it has shocked and
fascinated audiences for nearl' four hundred 'ears"
Plot Overview
The pla' begins with the brief appearance of a trio of witches and then moes to a militar' camp,
where the Scottish 5ing =uncan hears the news that his generals, 6acbeth and 7an,uo, hae
defeated two separate inading armies8one from #reland, led b' the rebel 6acdonwald, and one
from Aorwa'" 9ollowing their pitched battle with these enem' forces, 6acbeth and 7an,uo
encounter the witches as the' cross a moor" The witches prophes' that 6acbeth will be made
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thane /a rank of Scottish nobilit'2 of <awdor and eentuall' 5ing of Scotland" The' also
prophes' that 6acbeth4s companion, 7an,uo, will beget a line of Scottish kings, although
7an,uo will neer be king himself" The witches anish, and 6acbeth and 7an,uo treat their
prophecies skepticall' until some of 5ing =uncan4s men come to thank the two generals for their
ictories in battle and to tell 6acbeth that he has indeed been named thane of <awdor" The
preious thane betra'ed Scotland b' fighting for the Aorwegians and =uncan has condemned
him to death" 6acbeth is intrigued b' the possibilit' that the remainder of the witches4 prophec'
8that he will be crowned king8might be true, but he is uncertain what to e;pect" &e isits with
5ing =uncan, and the' plan to dine together at #nerness, 6acbeth4s castle, that night" 6acbeth
writes ahead to his wife, *ad' 6acbeth, telling her all that has happened"
*ad' 6acbeth suffers none of her husband4s uncertaint'" She desires the kingship for him and
wants him to murder =uncan in order to obtain it" When 6acbeth arries at #nerness, she
oerrides all of her husband4s ob?ections and persuades him to kill the king that er' night" &e
and *ad' 6acbeth plan to get =uncan4s two chamberlains drunk so the' will black out@ the ne;t
morning the' will blame the murder on the chamberlains, who will be defenseless, as the' will
remember nothing" While =uncan is asleep, 6acbeth stabs him, despite his doubts and a number
of supernatural portents, including a ision of a blood' dagger" When =uncan4s death is
discoered the ne;t morning, 6acbeth kills the chamberlains8ostensibl' out of rage at their
crime8and easil' assumes the kingship" =uncan4s sons 6alcolm and =onalbain flee to England
and #reland, respectiel', fearing that whoeer killed =uncan desires their demise as well"
9earful of the witches4 prophec' that 7an,uo4s heirs will sei.e the throne, 6acbeth hires a group
of murderers to kill 7an,uo and his son 9leance" The' ambush 7an,uo on his wa' to a ro'al
feast, but the' fail to kill 9leance, who escapes into the night" 6acbeth becomes furiousB as long
as 9leance is alie, he fears that his power remains insecure" !t the feast that night, 7an,uo4s
ghost isits 6acbeth" When he sees the ghost, 6acbeth raes fearfull', startling his guests, who
include most of the great Scottish nobilit'" *ad' 6acbeth tries to neutrali.e the damage, but
6acbeth4s kingship incites increasing resistance from his nobles and sub?ects" 9rightened,
6acbeth goes to isit the witches in their caern" There, the' show him a se,uence of demons
and spirits who present him with further propheciesB he must beware of 6acduff, a Scottish
nobleman who opposed 6acbeth4s accession to the throne@ he is incapable of being harmed b'
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an' man born of woman@ and he will be safe until 7irnam Wood comes to =unsinane <astle"
6acbeth is relieed and feels secure, because he knows that all men are born of women and that
forests cannot moe" When he learns that 6acduff has fled to England to ?oin 6alcolm, 6acbeth
orders that 6acduff4s castle be sei.ed and, most cruell', that *ad' 6acduff and her children be
murdered"
When news of his famil'4s e;ecution reaches 6acduff in England, he is stricken with grief and
ows reenge" +rince 6alcolm, =uncan4s son, has succeeded in raising an arm' in England, and
6acduff ?oins him as he rides to Scotland to challenge 6acbeth4s forces" The inasion has the
support of the Scottish nobles, who are appalled and frightened b' 6acbeth4s t'rannical and
murderous behaior" *ad' 6acbeth, meanwhile, becomes plagued with fits of sleepwalking in
which she bemoans what she beliees to be bloodstains on her hands" 7efore 6acbeth4s
opponents arrie, 6acbeth receies news that she has killed herself, causing him to sink into a
deep and pessimistic despair" Aeertheless, he awaits the English and fortifies =unsinane, to
which he seems to hae withdrawn in order to defend himself, certain that the witches4
prophecies guarantee his inincibilit'" &e is struck numb with fear, howeer, when he learns that
the English arm' is adancing on =unsinane shielded with boughs cut from 7irnam Wood"
7irnam Wood is indeed coming to =unsinane, fulfilling half of the witches4 prophec'"
#n the battle, 6acbeth hews iolentl', but the English forces graduall' oerwhelm his arm' and
castle" :n the battlefield, 6acbeth encounters the engeful 6acduff, who declares that he was
not Cof woman bornD but was instead Cuntimel' rippedD from his mother4s womb /what we now
call birth b' cesarean section2" Though he reali.es that he is doomed, 6acbeth continues to fight
until 6acduff kills and beheads him" 6alcolm, now the 5ing of Scotland, declares his
beneolent intentions for the countr' and inites all to see him crowned at Scone"
Character List
Macbeth - 6acbeth is a Scottish general and the thane of -lamis who is led to wicked thoughts
b' the prophecies of the three witches, especiall' after their prophec' that he will be made thane
of <awdor comes true" 6acbeth is a brae soldier and a powerful man, but he is not a irtuous
one" &e is easil' tempted into murder to fulfill his ambitions to the throne, and once he commits
his first crime and is crowned 5ing of Scotland, he embarks on further atrocities with increasing
4
ease" Eltimatel', 6acbeth proes himself better suited to the battlefield than to political intrigue,
because he lacks the skills necessar' to rule without being a t'rant" &is response to eer'
problem is iolence and murder" Enlike Shakespeare4s great illains, such as #ago in Othello and
Fichard ### in Richard III,6acbeth is neer comfortable in his role as a criminal" &e is unable to
bear the ps'chological conse,uences of his atrocities"
Lady Macbeth - 6acbeth4s wife, a deepl' ambitious woman who lusts for power and position"
Earl' in the pla' she seems to be the stronger and more ruthless of the two, as she urges her
husband to kill =uncan and sei.e the crown" !fter the bloodshed begins, howeer, *ad' 6acbeth
falls ictim to guilt and madness to an een greater degree than her husband" &er conscience
affects her to such an e;tent that she eentuall' commits suicide" #nterestingl', she and 6acbeth
are presented as being deepl' in loe, and man' of *ad' 6acbeth4s speeches impl' that her
influence oer her husband is primaril' se;ual" Their ?oint alienation from the world, occasioned
b' their partnership in crime, seems to strengthen the attachment that the' feel to each another"
The Three Witches - Three Cblack and midnight hagsD who plot mischief against 6acbeth
using charms, spells, and prophecies" Their predictions prompt him to murder =uncan, to order
the deaths of 7an,uo and his son, and to blindl' beliee in his own immortalit'" The pla' leaes
the witches4 true identit' unclear8aside from the fact that the' are serants of &ecate, we know
little about their place in the cosmos" #n some wa's the' resemble the m'thological 9ates, who
impersonall' weae the threads of human destin'" The' clearl' take a pererse delight in using
their knowledge of the future to to' with and destro' human beings"
Banquo - The brae, noble general whose children, according to the witches4 prophec', will
inherit the Scottish throne" *ike 6acbeth, 7an,uo thinks ambitious thoughts, but he does not
translate those thoughts into action" #n a sense, 7an,uo4s character stands as a rebuke to
6acbeth, since he represents the path 6acbeth chose not to takeB a path in which ambition need
not lead to betra'al and murder" !ppropriatel', then, it is 7an,uo4s ghost8and not =uncan4s8
that haunts 6acbeth" #n addition to embod'ing 6acbeth4s guilt for killing 7an,uo, the ghost also
reminds 6acbeth that he did not emulate 7an,uo4s reaction to the witches4 prophec'"
in! "uncan - The good 5ing of Scotland whom 6acbeth, in his ambition for the crown,
murders" =uncan is the model of a irtuous, beneolent, and farsighted ruler" &is death
s'mboli.es the destruction of an order in Scotland that can be restored onl' when =uncan4s line,
in the person of 6alcolm, once more occupies the throne"
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Macdu## - ! Scottish nobleman hostile to 6acbeth4s kingship from the start" &e eentuall'
becomes a leader of the crusade to unseat 6acbeth" The crusade4s mission is to place the rightful
king, 6alcolm, on the throne, but 6acduff also desires engeance for 6acbeth4s murder of
6acduff4s wife and 'oung son"
Malcol$ - The son of =uncan, whose restoration to the throne signals Scotland4s return to order
following 6acbeth4s reign of terror" 6alcolm becomes a serious challenge to 6acbeth with
6acduff4s aid /and the support of England2" +rior to this, he appears weak and uncertain of his
own power, as when he and =onalbain flee Scotland after their father4s murder"
Hecate - The goddess of witchcraft, who helps the three witches work their mischief on
6acbeth"
%leance - 7an,uo4s son, who suries 6acbeth4s attempt to murder him" !t the end of the pla',
9leance4s whereabouts are unknown" +resumabl', he ma' come to rule Scotland, fulfilling the
witches4 prophec' that 7an,uo4s sons will sit on the Scottish throne"
Lennox - ! Scottish nobleman"
&oss - ! Scottish nobleman"
The Murderers - ! group of ruffians conscripted b' 6acbeth to murder 7an,uo, 9leance
/whom the' fail to kill2, and 6acduff4s wife and children"
Porter - The drunken doorman of 6acbeth4s castle"
Lady Macdu## - 6acduff4s wife" The scene in her castle proides our onl' glimpse of a
domestic realm other than that of 6acbeth and *ad' 6acbeth" She and her home sere as
contrasts to *ad' 6acbeth and the hellish world of #nerness"
"onalbain - =uncan4s son and 6alcolm4s 'ounger brother"
Analysis o# Ma'or Characters
6
Macbeth
7ecause we first hear of 6acbeth in the wounded captain4s account of his battlefield alor, our
initial impression is of a brae and capable warrior" This perspectie is complicated, howeer,
once we see 6acbeth interact with the three witches" We reali.e that his ph'sical courage is
?oined b' a consuming ambition and a tendenc' to self-doubt8the prediction that he will be king
brings him ?o', but it also creates inner turmoil" These three attributes8braer', ambition, and
self-doubt8struggle for master' of 6acbeth throughout the pla'" Shakespeare uses 6acbeth to
show the terrible effects that ambition and guilt can hae on a man who lacks strength of
character" We ma' classif' 6acbeth as irreocabl' eil, but his weak character separates him
from Shakespeare4s great illains8#ago in Othello, Fichard ### in Richard III, Edmund in King
Lear8who are all strong enough to con,uer guilt and self-doubt" 6acbeth, great warrior though
he is, is ill e,uipped for the ps'chic conse,uences of crime"
7efore he kills =uncan, 6acbeth is plagued b' worr' and almost aborts the crime" #t takes *ad'
6acbeth4s steel' sense of purpose to push him into the deed" !fter the murder, howeer, her
powerful personalit' begins to disintegrate, leaing 6acbeth increasingl' alone" &e fluctuates
between fits of feered action, in which he plots a series of murders to secure his throne, and
moments of terrible guilt /as when 7an,uo4s ghost appears2 and absolute pessimism /after his
wife4s death, when he seems to succumb to despair2" These fluctuations reflect the tragic tension
within 6acbethB he is at once too ambitious to allow his conscience to stop him from murdering
his wa' to the top and too conscientious to be happ' with himself as a murderer" !s things fall
apart for him at the end of the pla', he seems almost relieed8with the English arm' at his
gates, he can finall' return to life as a warrior, and he displa's a kind of reckless braado as his
enemies surround him and drag him down" #n part, this stems from his fatal confidence in the
witches4 prophecies, but it also seems to derie from the fact that he has returned to the arena
where he has been most successful and where his internal turmoil need not affect him8namel',
the battlefield" Enlike man' of Shakespeare4s other tragic heroes, 6acbeth neer seems to
contemplate suicideB CWh' should # pla' the Foman fool,D he asks, Cand die G :n mine own
swordHD /5"1)"10%2" #nstead, he goes down fighting, bringing the pla' full circleB it begins with
6acbeth winning on the battlefield and ends with him d'ing in combat"
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Lady Macbeth
*ad' 6acbeth is one of Shakespeare4s most famous and frightening female characters" When we
first see her, she is alread' plotting =uncan4s murder, and she is stronger, more ruthless, and
more ambitious than her husband" She seems full' aware of this and knows that she will hae to
push 6acbeth into committing murder" !t one point, she wishes that she were not a woman so
that she could do it herself" This theme of the relationship between gender and power is ke' to
*ad' 6acbeth4s characterB her husband implies that she is a masculine soul inhabiting a female
bod', which seems to link masculinit' to ambition and iolence" Shakespeare, howeer, seems to
use her, and the witches, to undercut 6acbeth4s idea that Cundaunted mettle should compose G
Aothing but malesD /1"I"I10I42" These craft' women use female methods of achieing power8
that is, manipulation8to further their supposedl' male ambitions" Women, the pla' implies, can
be as ambitious and cruel as men, 'et social constraints den' them the means to pursue these
ambitions on their own"
*ad' 6acbeth manipulates her husband with remarkable effectieness, oerriding all his
ob?ections@ when he hesitates to murder, she repeatedl' ,uestions his manhood until he feels that
he must commit murder to proe himself" *ad' 6acbeth4s remarkable strength of will persists
through the murder of the king8it is she who steadies her husband4s neres immediatel' after
the crime has been perpetrated" !fterward, howeer, she begins a slow slide into madness8?ust
as ambition affects her more strongl' than 6acbeth before the crime, so does guilt plague her
more strongl' afterward" 7' the close of the pla', she has been reduced to sleepwalking through
the castle, desperatel' tr'ing to wash awa' an inisible bloodstain" :nce the sense of guilt comes
home to roost, *ad' 6acbeth4s sensitiit' becomes a weakness, and she is unable to cope"
Significantl', she /apparentl'2 kills herself, signaling her total inabilit' to deal with the legac' of
their crimes"
The Three Witches
Throughout the pla', the witches8referred to as the Cweird sistersD b' man' of the characters8
lurk like dark thoughts and unconscious temptations to eil" #n part, the mischief the' cause
stems from their supernatural powers, but mainl' it is the result of their understanding of the
weaknesses of their specific interlocutors8the' pla' upon 6acbeth4s ambition like puppeteers"
8
The witches4 beards, bi.arre potions, and rh'med speech make them seem slightl' ridiculous,
like caricatures of the supernatural" Shakespeare has them speak in rh'ming couplets throughout
/their most famous line is probabl' C=ouble, double, toil and trouble, G 9ire burn and cauldron
bubbleD in 4"1"1)0112, which separates them from the other characters, who mostl' speak in
blank erse" The witches4 words seem almost comical, like maleolent nurser' rh'mes" =espite
the absurdit' of their Ce'e of newt and toe of frogD recipes, howeer, the' are clearl' the most
dangerous characters in the pla', being both tremendousl' powerful and utterl' wicked /4"1"142"
The audience is left to ask whether the witches are independent agents to'ing with human lies,
or agents of fate, whose prophecies are onl' reports of the ineitable" The witches bear a striking
and obiousl' intentional resemblance to the 9ates, female characters in both Aorse and -reek
m'tholog' who weae the fabric of human lies and then cut the threads to end them" Some of
their prophecies seem self-fulfilling" 9or e;ample, it is doubtful that 6acbeth would hae
murdered his king without the push gien b' the witches4 predictions" #n other cases, though,
their prophecies are ?ust remarkabl' accurate readings of the future8it is hard to see 7irnam
Wood coming to =unsinane as being self-fulfilling in an' wa'" The pla' offers no eas' answers"
#nstead, Shakespeare keeps the witches well outside the limits of human comprehension" The'
embod' an unreasoning, instinctie eil"
The$es( Moti#s ) *y$bols
The$es
Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary or!"
The Corru+tin! Power o# ,nchec-ed A$bition
The main theme of Macbeth8the destruction wrought when ambition goes unchecked b' moral
constraints8finds its most powerful e;pression in the pla'4s two main characters" 6acbeth is a
courageous Scottish general who is not naturall' inclined to commit eil deeds, 'et he deepl'
desires power and adancement" &e kills =uncan against his better ?udgment and afterward
stews in guilt and paranoia" Toward the end of the pla' he descends into a kind of frantic,
boastful madness" *ad' 6acbeth, on the other hand, pursues her goals with greater
determination, 'et she is less capable of withstanding the repercussions of her immoral acts" :ne
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of Shakespeare4s most forcefull' drawn female characters, she spurs her husband mercilessl' to
kill =uncan and urges him to be strong in the murder4s aftermath, but she is eentuall' drien to
distraction b' the effect of 6acbeth4s repeated bloodshed on her conscience" #n each case,
ambition8helped, of course, b' the malign prophecies of the witches8is what dries the couple
to eer more terrible atrocities" The problem, the pla' suggests, is that once one decides to use
iolence to further one4s ,uest for power, it is difficult to stop" There are alwa's potential threats
to the throne87an,uo, 9leance, 6acduff8and it is alwa's tempting to use iolent means to
dispose of them"
The &elationshi+ Between Cruelty and Masculinity
<haracters in Macbethfre,uentl' dwell on issues of gender" *ad' 6acbeth manipulates her
husband b' ,uestioning his manhood, wishes that she herself could be Cunse;ed,D and does not
contradict 6acbeth when he sa's that a woman like her should gie birth onl' to bo's" #n the
same manner that *ad' 6acbeth goads her husband on to murder, 6acbeth prookes the
murderers he hires to kill 7an,uo b' ,uestioning their manhood" Such acts show that both
6acbeth and *ad' 6acbeth e,uate masculinit' with naked aggression, and wheneer the'
conerse about manhood, iolence soon follows" Their understanding of manhood allows the
political order depicted in the pla' to descend into chaos"
!t the same time, howeer, the audience cannot help noticing that women are also sources of
iolence and eil" The witches4 prophecies spark 6acbeth4s ambitions and then encourage his
iolent behaior@ *ad' 6acbeth proides the brains and the will behind her husband4s plotting@
and the onl' diine being to appear is &ecate, the goddess of witchcraft"
!rguabl', Macbeth traces the root of chaos and eil to women, which has led some critics to
argue that this is Shakespeare4s most misog'nistic pla'" While the male characters are ?ust as
iolent and prone to eil as the women, the aggression of the female characters is more striking
because it goes against preailing e;pectations of how women ought to behae" *ad' 6acbeth4s
behaior certainl' shows that women can be as ambitious and cruel as men" Whether because of
the constraints of her societ' or because she is not fearless enough to kill, *ad' 6acbeth relies
on deception and manipulation rather than iolence to achiee her ends"
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Eltimatel', the pla' does put forth a reised and less destructie definition of manhood" #n the
scene where 6acduff learns of the murders of his wife and child, 6alcolm consoles him b'
encouraging him to take the news in Cmanl'D fashion, b' seeking reenge upon 6acbeth"
6acduff shows the 'oung heir apparent that he has a mistaken understanding of masculinit'" To
6alcolm4s suggestion, C=ispute it like a man,D 6acduff replies, C# shall do so" 7ut # must also
feel it as a manD /4"1"%%10%%12" !t the end of the pla', Siward receies news of his son4s death
rather complacentl'" 6alcolm respondsB C&e4s worth more sorrow Jthan 'ou hae e;pressedK G
!nd that #4ll spend for himD /5"11"1601I2" 6alcolm4s comment shows that he has learned the
lesson 6acduff gae him on the sentient nature of true masculinit'" #t also suggests that, with
6alcolm4s coronation, order will be restored to the 5ingdom of Scotland"
The "i##erence Between in!shi+ and Tyranny
#n the pla', =uncan is alwa's referred to as a Cking,D while 6acbeth soon becomes known as the
Ct'rant"D The difference between the two t'pes of rulers seems to be e;pressed in a conersation
that occurs in !ct 4, scene 1, when 6acduff meets 6alcolm in England" #n order to test
6acduff4s lo'alt' to Scotland, 6alcolm pretends that he would make an een worse king than
6acbeth" &e tells 6acduff of his reproachable ,ualities8among them a thirst for personal
power and a iolent temperament, both of which seem to characteri.e 6acbeth perfectl'" :n the
other hand, 6alcolm sa's, CThe king-becoming graces G JareK ?ustice, erit', temp4rance,
stableness, G 7ount', perseerance, merc', JandK lowlinessD /4"1"(%0(12" The model king, then,
offers the kingdom an embodiment of order and ?ustice, but also comfort and affection" Ender
him, sub?ects are rewarded according to their merits, as when =uncan makes 6acbeth thane of
<awdor after 6acbeth4s ictor' oer the inaders" 6ost important, the king must be lo'al to
Scotland aboe his own interests" 6acbeth, b' contrast, brings onl' chaos to Scotland8
s'mboli.ed in the bad weather and bi.arre supernatural eents8and offers no real ?ustice, onl' a
habit of capriciousl' murdering those he sees as a threat" !s the embodiment of t'rann', he must
be oercome b' 6alcolm so that Scotland can hae a true king once more"
Moti#s
Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, and literary devices that can help to develop and
inform the text#s ma$or themes"
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Hallucinations
>isions and hallucinations recur throughout the pla' and sere as reminders of 6acbeth and
*ad' 6acbeth4s ?oint culpabilit' for the growing bod' count" When he is about to kill =uncan,
6acbeth sees a dagger floating in the air" <oered with blood and pointed toward the king4s
chamber, the dagger represents the blood' course on which 6acbeth is about to embark" *ater,
he sees 7an,uo4s ghost sitting in a chair at a feast, pricking his conscience b' mutel' reminding
him that he murdered his former friend" The seemingl' hardheaded *ad' 6acbeth also
eentuall' gies wa' to isions, as she sleepwalks and beliees that her hands are stained with
blood that cannot be washed awa' b' an' amount of water" #n each case, it is ambiguous whether
the ision is real or purel' hallucinator'@ but, in both cases, the 6acbeths read them uniforml' as
supernatural signs of their guilt"
.iolence
Macbeth is a famousl' iolent pla'" #nterestingl', most of the killings take place offstage, but
throughout the pla' the characters proide the audience with gor' descriptions of the carnage,
from the opening scene where the captain describes 6acbeth and 7an,uo wading in blood on the
battlefield, to the endless references to the bloodstained hands of 6acbeth and his wife" The
action is bookended b' a pair of blood' battlesB in the first, 6acbeth defeats the inaders@ in the
second, he is slain and beheaded b' 6acduff" #n between is a series of murdersB =uncan,
=uncan4s chamberlains, 7an,uo, *ad' 6acduff, and 6acduff4s son all come to blood' ends" 7'
the end of the action, blood seems to be eer'where"
Pro+hecy
+rophec' sets Macbeth#s plot in motion8namel', the witches4 prophec' that 6acbeth will
become first thane of <awdor and then king" The weird sisters make a number of other
propheciesB the' tell us that 7an,uo4s heirs will be kings, that 6acbeth should beware 6acduff,
that 6acbeth is safe till 7irnam Wood comes to =unsinane, and that no man born of woman can
harm 6acbeth" Sae for the prophec' about 7an,uo4s heirs, all of these predictions are fulfilled
within the course of the pla'" Still, it is left deliberatel' ambiguous whether some of them are
self-fulfilling8for e;ample, whether 6acbeth wills himself to be king or is fated to be king"
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!dditionall', as the 7irnam Wood and Cborn of womanD prophecies make clear, the prophecies
must be interpreted as riddles, since the' do not alwa's mean what the' seem to mean"
*y$bols
%ymbols are ob$ects, characters, figures, and colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts"
Blood
7lood is eer'where in Macbeth, beginning with the opening battle between the Scots and the
Aorwegian inaders, which is described in harrowing terms b' the wounded captain in !ct 1,
scene %" :nce 6acbeth and *ad' 6acbeth embark upon their murderous ?ourne', blood comes
to s'mboli.e their guilt, and the' begin to feel that their crimes hae stained them in a wa' that
cannot be washed clean" CWill all great Aeptune4s ocean wash this blood G <lean from m' handHD
6acbeth cries after he has killed =uncan, een as his wife scolds him and sa's that a little water
will do the ?ob /%"%"5$05(2" *ater, though, she comes to share his horrified sense of being
stainedB C:ut, damned spot@ out, # sa' " " " who would hae thought the old man to hae had so
much blood in himHD she asks as she wanders through the halls of their castle near the close of
the pla' /5"1"1)0142" 7lood s'mboli.es the guilt that sits like a permanent stain on the
consciences of both 6acbeth and *ad' 6acbeth, one that hounds them to their graes"
The Weather
!s in other Shakespearean tragedies, 6acbeth4s grotes,ue murder spree is accompanied b' a
number of unnatural occurrences in the natural realm" 9rom the thunder and lightning that
accompan' the witches4 appearances to the terrible storms that rage on the night of =uncan4s
murder, these iolations of the natural order reflect corruption in the moral and political orders"
ey %acts
%,LL T/TLE L The Tragedy of Macbeth
A,THO& L William Shakespeare
T0PE O% WO& L +la'
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1E2&E L Traged'
LA21,A1E L English
T/ME A2" PLACE W&/TTE2 L 16)6, England
"ATE O% %/&*T P,BL/CAT/O2 L 9irst 9olio edition, 16%1
P,BL/*HE& L 3ohn &eminges and &enr' <ondell, two senior members of Shakespeare4s
theatrical compan'
TO2E L =ark and ominous, suggestie of a world turned tops'-tur' b' foul and unnatural
crimes
TE2*E L Aot applicable /drama2
*ETT/21 3T/ME4 L The 6iddle !ges, specificall' the eleenth centur'
*ETT/21 3PLACE4 L >arious locations in Scotland@ also England, briefl'
P&OTA1O2/*T L 6acbeth
MA5O& CO2%L/CT* L The struggle within 6acbeth between his ambition and his sense
of right and wrong@ the struggle between the murderous eil represented b' 6acbeth and *ad'
6acbeth and the best interests of the nation, represented b' 6alcolm and 6acduff
&/*/21 ACT/O2 L 6acbeth and 7an,uo4s encounter with the witches initiates both
conflicts@ *ad' 6acbeth4s speeches goad 6acbeth into murdering =uncan and sei.ing the
crown"
CL/MA6 L 6acbeth4s murder of =uncan in !ct % represents the point of no return, after which
6acbeth is forced to continue butchering his sub?ects to aoid the conse,uences of his crime"
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%ALL/21 ACT/O2 L 6acbeth4s increasingl' brutal murders /of =uncan4s serants,
7an,uo, *ad' 6acduff and her son2@ 6acbeth4s second meeting with the witches@ 6acbeth4s
final confrontation with 6acduff and the opposing armies
THEME* L The corrupting nature of unchecked ambition@ the relationship between cruelt'
and masculinit'@ the difference between kingship and t'rann'
MOT/%* L The supernatural, hallucinations, iolence, prophec'
*0MBOL* L 7lood@ the dagger that 6acbeth sees ?ust before he kills =uncan in !ct %@ the
weather
%O&E*HA"OW/21 L The blood' battle in !ct 1 foreshadows the blood' murders later on@
when 6acbeth thinks he hears a oice while killing =uncan, it foreshadows the insomnia that
plagues 6acbeth and his wife@ 6acduff4s suspicions of 6acbeth after =uncan4s murder
foreshadow his later opposition to 6acbeth@ all of the witches4 prophecies foreshadow later
eents"
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