Macbeth Questions and Answers
Macbeth
What does Lady Macbeth mean by the line "look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it"?
In Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Lady Macbeth advises her husband to "look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it." By this, she means that he should appear to be innocent to belie...
Macbeth
How does Macbeth's character change throughout the course of the play?
Macbeth's character changes drastically throughout the course of the play. In the beginning scenes of the first act, Macbeth is shown as a loyal and ruthless fighter under King Duncan. Yet, once...
Macbeth
False Face Must Hide What The False Heart Doth Know
At the end of act 1, scene 7 of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Macbeth resolves to murder King Duncan and take the throne of Scotland for himself in order to fulfill the prophecy made to him by the...
Macbeth
There's No Art To Find The Mind's Construction In The Face
These lines are spoken by King Duncan in act 1, scene 4 and refer to the duplicity of the former Thane of Cawdor, who has just been executed for treason. Malcolm praises the Thane of Cawdor, saying...
Macbeth
What does the following Shakespeare quote from Macbeth mean? “Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player, / That...
MACBETH. Life's but a walking shadow, a poor playerThat struts and frets his hour upon the stageAnd then is heard no more.(act 5, scene 5, lines 26–28) Macbeth, written about 1605, is the last of...
Macbeth
Why Did Macbeth Kill Macduff's Family
From the moment that Macduff sees King Duncan's bloody body lying dead in Macbeth's castle in act 2, scene 3 of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Macduff suspects that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were...
Macbeth
Macbeth says, "It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." What do you suppose he...
This famous line from Macbeth tells us how the title character has come to see the world. Despite having everything he wants in life, despite being king of Scotland and having the absolute power to...
Macbeth
In Macbeth, for the quote "Let light not see my black deep desires," identify any language devices and analyze the...
Shortly before the passage in which Macbeth says "let not light," Duncan has named his oldest son, Malcolm, as his heir to the Scottish throne. However, Duncan is so overjoyed at his victory over...
Macbeth
What are the reasons Macbeth considers against the murder of King Duncan?
Macbeth considers and reconsiders his reasons for killing King Duncan several times at the beginning of the play, most notably in his soliloquy at the beginning of act I, scene 7. Here, Macbeth...
Macbeth
What is the symbolic significance of the dagger in act 2, scene 1, lines 33–39 of Macbeth? My thought is the...
The dagger that Macbeth hallucinates prior to committing the murder of Duncan—his friend, relative, king, and guest—is symbolic of Macbeth's own conscience. It points toward Duncan's room and is...
Macbeth
In Macbeth, what unnatural event occurs after King Duncan's death, causing the men to be afraid?
In Act 2 Scene 4, Ross converses with an Old Man who shares some news with him. Ross notes that, even though day should have arrived "by th' clock . . . dark night strangles the traveling...
Macbeth
In the play Macbeth, what does Macbeth mean when he says the following? "Stars hide your fires; / Let not light see...
It's notable that Macbeth says these lines to himself. He doesn't want anyone to know about his ambitions, least of all Malcolm, whom Macbeth frankly acknowledges he'll have to step over if he's to...
Macbeth
Explain this quote from Macbeth: "Have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums / and dashed the brains out, had I so...
When Macbeth wants to back out of the plan to kill Duncan and take his throne, his wife resorts to insulting and emasculating him in order to compel him to resubmit to her will. She asks him, Art...
Macbeth
How does the character of Lady Macbeth change throughout the play Macbeth?
At the beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth is depicted as an ambitious, resolute woman, who is willing to doom her soul in order to become queen. When she first hears the news of the witches'...
Macbeth
What is Macbeth's state of mind before and after killing Duncan?
Before killing Duncan, Macbeth experiences conflicting feelings about assassinating the king. Although Macbeth desires to become King of Scotland and entertains the idea of murdering Duncan, he...
Macbeth
What are the three predictions of the witches in Macbeth?
The first three predictions of the witches can be found in act 1, scene 3 of the play when Macbeth and Banquo are traveling across the heath. The three witches suddenly appear and offer Macbeth and...
Macbeth
How does Macbeth change after the murder of Duncan?
After Duncan’s murder, Macbeth becomes a hardened man. He seems to become inured to death and to killing. This is not to say that Macbeth was unaccustomed to death and even to killing before...
Macbeth
What does Lady Macbeth's statement, "My hands are of your color, but I shame to wear a heart so white," mean?
After Macbeth returns from Duncan's chamber covered in blood, he is visibly shaken and emotionally disturbed. Macbeth instantly regrets committing regicide and experiences extreme guilt for his...
Macbeth
Explain this quote from Macbeth, act 3: "Naught's had, all's spent, / Where our desire is got without content. / Tis...
Macbeth and Lady Macbeth thought that killing the king and ascending to the throne of Scotland would make them happy. Macbeth acknowledged his "vaulting ambition" and seemed to think that becoming...
Macbeth
How is Macbeth a tragic hero?
Macbeth is a tragic hero because he started the play as a good man, but the manipulations of the Weird Sisters and his wife brought out his baser qualities. This leads to Macbeth's moral corruption...
Macbeth
What is meant by the quote “Macbeth shall never vanquished be until / Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill...
When Macbeth addresses the Weird Sisters in act 4, scene 1, he hopes to get some answers about the security of his position as King of Scotland. He fears, most especially, that Banquo’s descendants...
Macbeth
Come You Spirits That Tend On Mortal Thoughts
In act 1, scene 5, Lady Macbeth receives news of Macbeth's favorable prophecy and learns that King Duncan is on his way to their castle. Upon reading her husband's letter, Lady Macbeth is consumed...
Macbeth
In act 4, scene 3 of Macbeth, how does Macduff react to the news of his family's death? Did he really love his...
In act 4, scene 3 of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Ross interrupts a conversation between Macduff and Malcolm to tell Macduff, “Your castle is surprised; your wife and babes / Savagely...
Macbeth
How does Lady Macbeth respond to Macbeth's outburst in act 3, scene 4?
You might say that Lady Macbeth’s responds to her husband’s haunted conduct with excuses, male chauvinism, and power. Lady Macbeth excuses her husband’s conspicuous torment by making it seem like...
Macbeth
Describe the four apparitions in Macbeth in act 4, scene 1.
At the end of act 3, scene 4 of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, in which the ghost of the murdered Banquo appears to Macbeth at his coronation banquet, the unnerved Macbeth decides to visit the...
Macbeth
In the play Macbeth, act 1, scene 3, what is Macbeth's first reaction to the three witches through his words and...
We witness Macbeth's first reaction to the witches' prophecy through the words of Banquo, who is with him: Good sir, why do you start and seem to fear things that do sound so fair? Banquo can't...
Macbeth
What does the quote, "To prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself and falls...
Macbeth is admitting to himself that he has no justification for committing the murder of King Duncan. He specifies the reasons he has for not killing him and then candidly acknowledges in an...
Macbeth
What does "I am in blood / Stepped in so far that should I wade no more, / Returning were as tedious as go o'er" in...
Macbeth is saying here that he has walked so far into a river of blood that even if he turned around in an attempt to alter the trajectory of his murderous path, it would be just as difficult to...
Macbeth
In act 1, scene 7, how does Lady Macbeth respond to Macbeth's decision to not murder Duncan, and how does she...
As other Educators have already explained, Lady Macbeth responds to her husband’s choice to not murder Duncan (i.e, “proceed no further in this business”) by questioning his masculinity. She calls...
Macbeth
Comic Relief In Macbeth
A work of theatrical genius it may be, but Macbeth is also a very grim piece of work. With all its bloodshed, witchcraft, and murder, it is not exactly a laugh a minute. And as a great playwright...
Macbeth
What role do the witches play in Macbeth?
When the witches first appear in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, the role they play is to set the scene for the play, introduce some suspense—"When shall we three meet again?" (1.1.1)—draw attention...
Macbeth
How Does Malcolm Test Macduff's Loyalty
Of all the great Shakespearean tragedies, Macbeth is the one most lacking in comedy. Apart from a brief episode involving the porter in act 2, scene 3, there is no low comedy in the play. However,...
Macbeth
What does the quote from Macbeth, "look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under't," mean?
In act 1, scene 5, Lady Macbeth reads a letter from Macbeth which describes his new position as Thane of Cawdor. Filled with conviction that Macbeth is destined to be king, she resolves to help him...
Macbeth
What excuse or explanation did Macbeth give for killing the guards (grooms)? What is his real reason?
In Act II, Scene III, Macbeth claims that he killed the grooms because he suspected them of killing King Duncan. He says that when he found Duncan's body he also found the grooms "steeped in the...
Macbeth
Analyze the significance of the role of the porter in the play Macbeth. Explain in detail using evidence from the...
The porter functions as a bridge between Duncan's murder and its discovery. His dark humor also serves to reinforce the feeling of corruption and foreboding that permeates the play. On the night of...
Macbeth
How was Lady Macbeth acting in act 5, scene 1, and why? How does the gentlewoman feel as she is working for Lady...
In this scene, Lady Macbeth is observed first of all by a doctor and a gentlewoman, one of her ladies in waiting. They notice that she is rubbing her hands and walking around at night, but she...
Macbeth
How does Macbeth react when Duncan declares his son Malcolm heir to the Scottish throne?
It's safe to say that Macbeth's not best pleased when Duncan announces that his son Malcolm will succeed him as king of Scotland. After everything that he's done for Duncan, Macbeth feels betrayed...
Macbeth
We Have Scorched The Snake Not Killed It
Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth that he is worried that there is still a threat to his kingship, so he needs to take further action. This conversation takes place after Macbeth has killed Duncan. He...
Macbeth
What is the importance of Banquo's ghost in Macbeth?
The appearance of Banquo's ghost reminds us that Macbeth, despite his absolute power, isn't enjoying life as king of Scotland. A basically decent man brought low by overweening ambition, Macbeth...
Macbeth
How Does Macbeth Convince The Murderers To Kill Banquo
Macbeth has only recently become King of Scotland after murdering King Duncan, but he decides that in order to keep the throne, and his life, he must murder Banquo and his son, Fleance, to avoid...
Macbeth
In Macbeth, what does "not of woman born" mean?
"Not of woman born" means born by Caesarean section. Hecate, the head of the witches, gets angry at the three witches who prophesied to Macbeth in act 1. She is angry that they acted without...
Macbeth
In act 3, scene 2 of Macbeth, Macbeth says, "O full of scorpions is my mind... thou knowst that Banquo and his...
In Macbeth, Macbeth is deeply influenced by a prophesy the witches make when he and Banquo are returning from battle. In Act I, scene iii, Macbeth comments on the day being "foul and fair" (line...
Macbeth
A Little Water Clears Us Of This Deed
Let us remember that Lady Macbeth says this to her husband in Act II scene 2, after he has just killed Duncan and she has smeared the grooms with Duncan's blood to frame them for the deed. Lady...
Macbeth
How Does Lady Macbeth Convince Macbeth To Kill Duncan
The techniques that Lady Macbeth has used to manipulate her husband have been well identified and explained in the above answers. I believe the question remains of why Shakespeare chose to have her...
Macbeth
What prophecy is given to Banquo in Macbeth?
First Witch Lesser than Macbeth, and greater. Second Witch Not so happy, yet much happier. Third Witch Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none: So all hail, Macbeth and Banquo! First Witch...
Macbeth
Fair Is Foul And Foul Is Fair
In act 1, scene 1, the Three Witches comment on how they will meet again upon the heath, where they shall introduce themselves to Macbeth. Before they exit the scene, the witches recite, "Fair is...
Macbeth
What three messages does Macbeth receive from the three apparitions in Macbeth?
In the "apparition scene," act 4, scene 1, of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Macbeth goes to the witches in the heath—possibly the same heath where the witches appeared to Macbeth and Banquo in act...
Macbeth
What does the quote "there's daggers in men's smiles" mean in Macbeth?
This takes place in act 2, scene 3 of William Shakespeare's Macbeth. Macduff arrives at Macbeth's castle early in the morning to meet with King Duncan but instead discovers that Duncan has been...
Macbeth
Methought I Heard A Voice Cry
Macbeth believes he heard a voice crying: Me thought I heard a voice cry “Sleep no more!Macbeth doth Murder sleep”—the innocent sleep,Sleep that knits up the ravell'd sleave of care,The death of...
Macbeth
Explain this quote from Macbeth: Now o'er the one half-world Nature seems dead, and wicked dreams abuse The...
These lines are spoken by Macbeth in his famous "Is this a dagger which I see before me" soliloquy in act 2, scene 1 of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Macbeth is on his way to murder Duncan when he...
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