macbethanalysisofacts-110301124619-phpapp01

7/30/2019 macbethanalysisofacts-110301124619-phpapp01

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By

William Shakespeare


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ENE 1

Three witches gather and say that theyll meet with

Macbeth before sunset and after a terrible battle

that has been fought nearby.

The three witches are later referred to as the three

weird sisters.

Remember: Fair is foul and foul is fair.


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ACT I, SCENE 2

The scene is set on a

battlefield whereMacbeths army has beenfighting the army of thetraitor Macdonwald.

The King, Duncan, asks abrave soldier to commenton the course of thebattle. This sergeant has

proved his valor byfighting to save theKings son, Malcolm, fromcapture by the rebel

Macdonwalds forces.


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ACT I, SCENE 2, CONT.

The Sergeant says thatThe battle was evenly matchedwith the

whore Fortune smiling temporarily on

Macdonwald

until Macbeth brandished his steel, which

smoked with bloody execution. Macbeth

carved his way through Macdonwalds men

until he came face-to-face with the slave(Macdonwald)...

at which point Macbeth unseamed him

(Macdonwald) from the nave to the chops and

stuck his head upon the battlements.


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Macdonwalds men run trusting their heels.

The King of Norway fights on the side ofMacdonwald. Norway hopes that a successful

uprising by the traitor will allow him to capitalize

on his support and gain political power in Scotland.

At this point, Norway sends his fresh forces onto

the field to fight Macbeth and Banquos tired and

battle-worn men.

Duncan asks: Didnt this dismay Macbeth (andMacbeths co-leader, Banquo)?

The Sergeant replies: Yes. Like the sparrow

dismays the eagle or the rabbit dismays the lion.


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Macbeths men defeat Norways army, and then march

to Fife, where Norwayhere working with the traitorthe Thane of Cawdorhas a second force battling theloyal Scottish thane, Ross and his troops.

Remember: Thane = Lord or Duke

Macbeth wins there, too.

The King orders that the traitor Cawdor be executedand that Macbeth be named the new Thane of Cawdorin gratitude for his awesome performance on thebattlefield.


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ACT I, SCENE 3

Macbeth and Banquo ride from the battlefield. Macbeth observes: So foul and fair a day I have not

seen. Where have we heard this before?

Macbeth and Banquo happen across the three weird

sisters, who greet Macbeth: Hail Thane of Glamis.

Hail Thane of Cawdor.

Hail he that shalt be king hereafter.


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The greeting unnerves Macbeth. He already is Thane ofGlamis (that was his fathers title, he inherited it).

Macbeth knows, though, that he cannot be Thane ofCawdor. The Thane of Cawdor yet lives Macbeth

wonders (he knows; he is responsible for Cawdors arrestas a traitor on the battlefield).

Why do you dress me in borrowed robes? Macbeth asks.

Macbeth is even more flabbergasted at the witches

suggestion that he could ever be king.


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While Macbeth thinks-through the witchesgreeting, Banquo asks them about himself.

About Banquo the witches say

You are lesser than Macbeth, but greater.

You are not so happy as Macbeth, but

happier. You are not a king, but you will be the

father of kings.

Act I, Scene 3, cont.


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Ross and Lennox arrive, and greet Macbeth asThane of Cawdor. They tell him that Duncan haspromoted him in gratitude for his bravery andloyalty, and that Duncan wants to meet withMacbeth and Banquo so he can personally deliverhis thanks.

Can the devil speak true? wonders Macbeth.

Banquo suggests that all of what the witches said

must be true.


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Macbeth ponders this, and wonders whether thewitches are good, or evil.

If their prediction is evil, how could it have been

fulfilled and fulfilled for the good (i.e. with mereplacing the traitorous Cawdor.) BUT, he continues, if what they said was good,

why is the last part of their prediction evil (i.e. thatMacbeth will have to somehow unseat Duncan andMalcolm and Donalbain)?

So: what Macbeth thinks about is whether thewitches are foul creatures making fair predictions orfair creatures making foul ones. Where have weheard this before?


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The King says to Macbeth that there is no way he canfully repay him both for helping to save his eldest sonMalcolm from capture and for driving-off the traitorsMacdonwald and Cawdor.

Duncan then announces that he has an importantannouncement to make regarding an official declarationas to who will inherit his throne.

Could it be?......

Yes! Malcolm has been named Prince of Cumberlandand next in line to the throne! Why would Macbeth haveany hopes that he would be elevated even ahead of theKings own son? What is Macbeths reaction to this

announcement?

Act I, Scene 4


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Important: In this scene, Duncan says

There is no art to find the minds construction in the

face. He (the executed Thane of Cawdor) was a

gentleman on whom I built an absolute trust.In other words?


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Freytags Triangle

In Technique of the Drama(1863), Gustav Freytag outlined what he

considered to be the most successful structure for a play, based on the

writings of Aristotle, Shakespeare, and other he considered to be

outstanding playwrights. Briefly, Freytag believed the action of the play

could be organized in the shape of a triangle, stressing that there should

be five distinct parts: http://www.english.uiuc.edu/lit_resources/english%20102/miscellaneous/freytag.htm

3. Climax

2. Complication 4. Falling action

5. Conclusion (dnoument)1. Introduction (exposition)


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THEMES ESTABLISHED THUS FAR IN

MACBETH

Fair vs. Foul Borrowed robes

Why do you dress me in borrowed robes; the Thane of Cawdoryet lives.

New honors hang on Macbeth like new clothes; they cleave notto their mold but with aid of use. Banquo says this to Lennoxand Ross while Macbeth is lost in thought.

One cannot read a mans mind in his face. Our outwardappearance does not reveal our inward thoughts/plans.


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ACT I, SCENE 5

Lady Macbeth reads a letter sent by her husbandin which he relates the details of what thewitches have predicted and what Duncan hasdone.

He tells his wife that hes invited Duncan to theircastle as a guest.

She begins to formulate her plan to assassinateDuncan.


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Lady Macbeth asks spirits that tend on mortal thoughtsto unsex her. She continues, saying: Come to my womansbreasts and take my milk for gall.

She reveals her intentions to her husband. Macbethdismisses her immediately.

Lady Macbeth reminds her husband that he is too loyal tothe king and that her plan has obviously upset him. Yourface, my thane, is as a book where men may read strangematters. Where have we heard this before?

Lady Macbeth also urges her husband to consider

treachery as the quick way to become king. Deceit is easy:Look like the innocent flower, she says, But be theserpent under it.

Lady Macbeth knows that her husband is too full of themilk of human kindness to catch the nearest way topower.


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Duncan arrives at Macbeths castle (Inverness) and comments on

its pleasantness and good vibe. Dramatic Irony.

Dramatic Irony happens when the audience knows more about what isgoing on in a drama/comedy than one or more of the charactersknow. Dramatic irony is a staple of horror movies. wetheaudienceknow that the psycho-killer is hiding with his machete inthe basement where the cute girl and her obnoxious boyfriend areabout to go make-out.

Lady Macbeth welcomes him cordially, giving no hint of her realintentions.

Duncan remarks on how happy he is to be with Macbeth and hiswife: I love him greatly, and will continue to show him favor.

Act I, Scene 6


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Macbeths first soliloquy: If it were done when it is done, then it is

better it were done quickly. He is here in double-proof, Macbeth says, reminding us that

Duncan is not just Macbeths sovereign, but his cousin as well.

In the same speech, Macbeth comments that as Duncans host heshould lock the door against any murderer not bear the knifehimself. Macbeth continues to observe that Duncan has been a goodand benevolent king, not worthy of any treachery against him.

Macbeth decides that he and his wife will make no more plotsagainst Duncan: We will proceed no further in this business.

She calls him a wuss. When you dared to do the deed, then youwere a man now that [our opportunity] has presented itself you[are] impotent. [1, 7, 50ff.]

She also reminds Macbeth that had she promised so, she woulddash the brains out of a baby even in the act of nursing the infant.

Act I, Scene 7


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End of Act I

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