Act 2 Scene 3 Flashcards
What is the purpose of the drunken porter at the beginning of the scene?
Comic Relief: Perhaps Shakespeare wishes to lighten the mood, since all events leading to this scene have been relatively dark.
What is significant about the people the porter talks about (farmer and equivocator)?
The farmer committed suicide, which is condemnable to hell, while Henry Garnet tried to equivocate to hide the real truth about the gunpowder plot, also resulting in his public execution, causing him to go to Hell.
What is the significance of the porter talking about the “equivocator”?
This may be a reference to Father Henry Garnet, who attempted to equivocate to prevent himself from being punished for being part of the gunpowder plot, a conspiracy to kill the King.
What is an interesting detail about the language and structure used for Macbeth’s dialogue before the discovery of the King’s body?
Macbeth responds in very short and brief sentences, a contrast from the previous Macbeth we have seen, who speaks in lengthy, developed blank verse with metaphors and symbolism.
Examples of Macbeth’s brief sentences:
“Good morrow, both.”
“Not yet.”
“I’ll bring you to him.”
Why does Shakespeare use such language for Macbeth?
This is to reflect his nervous state of mind; his speech becomes slow, steady, and clearly thought out.
“The repetition in a woman’s ear would murder as it fell”
Macduff tells Lady Macbeth that the news of the King’s death is not for a woman’s ear; this is dramatic irony, since LM herself plans the death of King Duncan.
“There’s daggers in men’s smiles”
Donaldbain references the theme of appearance vs reality; he accentuates the duplicitous nature of some men that appear to smile but in reality, conceal “dark and deep desires”.
