Macbeth - Act 3 & 4

Act 3
1. Scene 1 - Macbeth plots Banquo's murder
  1. Scene opens with Banquo's soliloquy - inner thoughts
    1. He's suspicious of Macbeth who he think has "play'dst most foully" for the crown
    2. He thinks about the witches predictions , he is ambitious but unlike Macbeth he will let fate decide
  2. Macbeth hires murderers to kill Banquo - he is a coward
  3. Becomes more like LM
  4. Theme fate & free will
2. Scene 2 - Macbeths feel insecure
  1. Shakespeare uses oxymorons: "doubtful joy", "restless ecstasy" to show guilt but they know they have what they want - mixed emotions
  2. Change in the Macbeths' relationship - M doesn't confide in LM
    1. Either to protect her from more guilt
    2. Or he is so driven by his own ambition that her opinion doesn't matter
  3. Macbeth uses animal imagery - "the bat has flown"
3. Scene 3 - Banquo is murdered
  1. Macbeth sends another murderer because he is so paranoid and doesn't trust anyone
  2. Darkness is coming - symbolises the terror of M reign
    1. Banquo enters carrying a torch - light symbolises his goodness
  3. Fleance escapes - witches predictions could still come true - impossible to cheat fate
4. Scene 4 - Macbeth see's Banquo's ghost
  1. The Macbeths hold a feast and M is "playing the humble host"
    1. The word "play" suggests that his hospitality is fake.
  2. One Murderer tells M Banquo is dead but Fleance escaped, he replies "cabined, cribbed, confined"
    1. Alliteration suggests how trapped he feels and how he is uncertain about his future of being king
  3. Banquos ghost appears -the ghost is a dramatic device:
    1. Only M can see him so the audience are unsure whether its real or a trick of M's guilty conscience
    2. It echoes the ghostly dagger M saw before Duncans murder
  4. M's behaviour is so unusual LM has to pretend he is unwell. She takes control and echoes from Act 1, scene 7 "are you a man?". she thinks fear isn't manly
  5. M says "it will have blood they say - blood will have blood"
    1. Repetition of "blood" shows his fear is starting to show
  6. Theme - supernatural
Scene 5 - Witches meet with Hecate
1. Goddess of witches is annoyed that the other witches have been meddling with Macbeth without involving her
2. witches plan to summon apparitions to trick M into being overconfident - "security is mortals' chiefest enemy"
3. Theme - fate and free will
Scene 6 - Lennox plans an uprising
1. Another bridge scene between 3 & 4, minor characters tell the audience everything that has happened - Macduff has raised an army and Malcolm is at the English court
2. Lennox suspects that Macbeth is responsible for Duncan's and Banquo's deaths, but he is careful not to speak his mind about it because he knows that Macduff "lives in disgrace" for M not being loyal to his king
3. Lennox's true feelings are revealed in his speech:
  1. His tone of monologue is sarcastic e.g. he says Duncans murder "did grieve Macbeth"
  2. He uses rhetorical questions - "to kill their gracious father?" he doesn't believe Malcolm and Donaldbain killed Duncan.
  3. Speech is full of exclamation e.g. "But, peace!" and "Damnèd fact!" shows how angry he is but also how he is trying to hold back this anger and his short, broken sentences suggests he is trying to hold back his emotions.
4. Lennox ends the scene by sending a message to the English court to free them from the "hand accursed"
  1. Builds tension because it becomes a question of how far M will go before he is stopped.
  2. Audience sees that Macbeth's death is the only way to restore peace in Scotland
5. Context - Shakespearean times people thought that god chose the king. The lord says Malcolm will have help from "Him above" - as they believe he is the rightful king of Scotland, so god will help him overcome M.
Act 4
1. Scene 1 - the witches make more predictions
  1. "double double toil and trouble" - reminds audience of evil intentions
  2. Witches know that Macbeths weakness is his ambition so they play on his lust for power
  3. Witches summon apparitions to predict the future
    1. 1 - "An armoured head" - warns M about Macduff
      1. 2 - "A bloody child" - tells M that no one born of woman can harm him
        3 - "A child wearing a crown and carrying a branch" - tells M that he can't be beaten until Birnam Wood moves to Dunsinane Hill
  4. Macbeth is full of confidence he thinks he will never be defeated
    1. Driven solely by his own ambition and doesn't discuss anything with LM
    2. M wants to kill all of Macduffs family to show how evil and paranoid he has become
    3. Theme - reality and appearances
2. Scene 2 - Macbeth had Lady Macduff and her son murdered
  1. Lady Macduff is caring and has a maternal bond with her son which contrasts with LM who would have "dashed the brains out" of her own child
  2. The murderer enters and stabs Lady Macduffs son - who is called "egg" and "fry" highlighting actually how young he is and how Macbeth doesn't care that he is killing defenceless children, but he is also a coward for not doing it himself.
  3. The murder is committed on stage which symbolises the fact that M doesn't care who sees the murders anymore
3. Scene 3 - Malcolm tests Macduff's loyalty
  1. Malcolm doesn't think that Macduff's family have been harmed - creating dramatic irony
    1. Theme - kingship, loyalty and supernatural
  2. Malcolm tests Macduffs loyalty by pretending to be more evil than Macbeth and Macduff passes his test by proving he is loyal to Scotland and won't support another tyrant
  3. Shakespeare contrasts the kind, unselfish kingship of Edward with the cruel, selfish tyranny of Macbeth
  4. Macduff discovers that his family have been murdered
    1. Roses tells him the news and his reluctance to do this creates drama.
    2. Macduff grieves - "All my pretty ones?/Did you say all? O hell-kite! All?" His short sentences, rhetorical questions and repetition of the word "all" shows he can't believe what Rosse has just told him.
    3. The murder of Macduffs family is important to the plot as it motivates Macduff to get revenge of Macbeth to end his cruel reign.

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Macbeth - Act 3 & 4

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	Created by Georgie Liddle about 7 years ago