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READ THIS
The lords of Scotland assemble for a feast at Macbeth's castle. During the celebration, Macbeth learns
that his plan to murder Banquo and Fleance has misfired. Fleance has escaped.
Macbeth, clearly shocked, is immediately confronted by the ghost of Banquo, returned from the dead to
haunt him.
BANQUO'S GHOST
Macbeth's mind is certainly troubled. First, the mysterious dagger. Now he sees the ghost of Banquo.
Perhaps it is natural to see ghosts. After all, Macbeth has given orders that Banquo and Fleance must
be killed. He had no real reason to do this.
But there, of course, lies the rub! What man would murder his own best friend?
Macbeth is busy entertaining his guests at a sumptuous feast when the news is brought to him.
He is horrified to find that Fleance -- his real threat -- has survived. Is it the shock of the botched
murder that shakes his mind?
On the other hand, it might be the sum of all that has happened thus far that is troubling him. After all,
even before Duncan's murder he was seeing visions of ghostly daggers.
Killing his king certainly distressed him deeply. Now he has murdered his own dear friend.
If you were a guest at this feast, what would you think?
And note that one very important guest is boycotting the feast: Macduff. What will Macbeth make of this?
If you were Macbeth, what would you do next?
Macbeth decides that he must pay one more visit to the three sisters so as to enquire more fully about
Macduff.
Have you looked at the questions
in the right column?
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TEST YOURSELF!
Read the left column and then answer
the following questions:
"Then comes my fit again: I had else been perfect,
Whole as the marble, founded as the rock,
As broad and general as the casing air:
But now I am cabin'd, cribb'd, confined, bound in
To saucy doubts and fears."
- Why is Macbeth holding a celebration? (2)
[Need help?]
The reasons are not provided in the play but it is probable that this is a celebration of Macbeth's accession
to the throne.
He might have had a general celebration on the day of his coronation, but this seems to be a special feast
for his best friends, i.e. all the noblemen closest to Macbeth.
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- Why is Macbeth so upset when the murderer tells him that Fleance has escaped? (3)
[Need help?]
The purpose of the plot was to kill BOTH Banquo AND Fleance. This would forestall the witches'
prophesy that Banquo would give rise to a line of kings whereas Macbeth would not.
With Fleance still alive, however, it means that the prophesy is still very much in place. Not only that, but
Fleance will now be just one more person seeking revenge.
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"There the grown serpent lies; the worm that's fled
hath nature that in time will venom breed;
no teeth for the present."
- Who is the "grown serpent"? (1)
[Need help?]
The "grown serpent" is Banquo.
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- What does Macbeth mean when he says that the worm "hath nature that in time will venom
breed" but has "no teeth for the present"? (4)
[Need help?]
A worm means a baby snake which has yet to become an adult. As a baby snake, it does not yet have
poison. (Is this true or is it merely a clever piece of poetry?)
For the moment, therefore, Macbeth does not have to worry about Fleance although he knows that, as
soon as he becomes a man, Fleance will seek vengeance for the murder of his father.
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"To feed were best at home;
From thence the sauce to meat is ceremony;
Meeting were bare without it."
- What does Lady Macbeth mean when she says, "To feed were best at
home"? (2)
[Need help?]
"To feed were best at home" means that, if the guests were simply at the Macbeth castle for
nothing other than a meal, they would enjoy it more to be eating in the comfort of their own homes.
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- What advice is Lady Macbeth giving her husband? (4)
[Need help?]
Lady Macbeth is telling her husband that the whole purpose of a public celebration of this nature is for the
host to mingle with the guests, talk to them, etc.
This mingling by the host is like the "sauce to the meat", the thing that makes the celebration
worthwhile.
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"Thou canst not say I did it: never shake
Thy gory locks at me."
- Is there a real ghost? Explain. (5)
[Need help?]
Certainly only Macbeth sees the ghost of Banquo. The other guests see just an empty chair.
Macbeth is clearly suffering from mental trauma. He has murdered his king against his own better
judgement. Now he has murdered his own best friend. Where is it all going to stop?
Such fears play on the mind. We have already seen that Macbeth's mind is causing him to see visions.
Is not Banquo's ghost not simply another vision -- like the dagger he saw while he was on his way to
murder Duncan?
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"I will to-morrow,
And betimes I will, to the weird sisters:
More shall they speak."
- Why does Macbeth decide to visit the witches again? (4)
[Need help?]
Macbeth needs to know two things.
First, is his failure to murder Fleance really all that important -- or does he need to follow this botched
murder attempt and have another go at Fleance's life?
Second, what about Macduff, who is boycotting Macbeth's celebrations? How dangerous is he? Should
Macbeth do something about it -- have Macduff murdered as well?
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