Act 1 Scene 2

Act 1 Scene 2

1. Introduced to Duncan

   • Battle report from wounded Captain
     • Ross and Angus also bring decisive news of victory, reporting Macbeth's persistent courage and the defeat of traitorous Thane of Cawdor.
       • Duncan condemns Thane of Cawdor to death
         • Macbeth is given title as a reward

2. Change into iambic pentameter

   • 10 syllables, 5 pairs
   • contrast to the witches, these are noble, more respected characters
   • However the captain speaks in prose.
     • Disrupted rhythm due to enjambement and caesuras
       • reflects his sense of distress, he is a wounded solider, just from battle
       • Not as controlled

3. Presentation of Macbeth as loyal and noble

   • 'brave Macbeth'
     • 'valiant cousinn'
       • 'worthy gentleman'
   • the use of these adjectives suggest that he is a brave and noble warrior

4. Imagery- brave

   • 'As sparrows, eagles or the hare the lion'
     • Banquo and Macbeth are presented as the eagle and the lion
       • predators
   • as cannons over-charged with double cracks'
     • onomatopoeic sounds
       • harsh, cruel, unrelenting nature
     • powerful weapons
     • persistence

5. Use of contradictions

   • Macbeth is praised for his violent behaviour and in the eyes of Duncan it is the most noble thing that he can do
     • Here we have the use of prelatic language
       • When a character says something that is more significant that it appears at that time
     • Even though soon Duncan will be killed

6. Presentation of Duncan

   • cared for the captain
     • ' Go get him surgeons'
     • He is sincere and concerned
     • Rewards his noble subjects- Macbeth
   • already we get the sense that Duncan is a good king and is undeserving of the murder that is to come

7. Violent imagery- Macbeth

   • Efficient and ruthless in battle
     • 'Like Valour's minion
       • Personification of braveness, Macbeth is bravery's favourite
     • graphic vivid imagery is given
   • verbs
     • 'unseamed him'
       • non-human associated verb- casual, unaffected by the bloody slaughter
       • ripping him open
     • carved out his passage'
       • Emphasises the extent of his violence- usually linked with food but here refers to people
   • ' Memorise another Golgotha'
     • Reference to re-enact a slaughter like Christ's crucifixion
       • utter carnage/ massacre
         • significance
   • 'reeking wounds'
     • sense of the vile smell- blood- unpleasant

8. Echo of the witches' words

   • 'What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won'
     • 'When the battle's lost, and won.'
     • Rhyming couplets
     • Can be seen as the supernatural hold on the Earth- witches presence throughout the scenes
       • But also the ambiguous nature of conflict- depends on the perspective of the individual