Characters Flashcards
Who is Macbeth?
A major character who is a Scottish general and Thane of Glamis who is a powerful and brave soldier. He is ambitious and easily tempted into murder to fulfill his ambitions.
He kills Duncan and gets later overthrown by Malcolm. He is the protagonist at first, but turns into the antagonist by the end.
Who is Lady Macbeth?
She is the wife and co-conspirator with Macbeth. A deeply ambitious woman who lusts for power and position. She encourages her husband to kill Duncan. Later on, she falls victim to guilt and madness.
She ends up commuting suicide due to her conscious.
Who are the Three Witches?
They are supporting characters who guide Macbeth; we know nothing except they are servants of Hecate. In some ways, they are representations of the mythological fates, depicted to take a perverse desire in using their knowledge to toy and destroy human beings with.
Who is Banquo?
A brave, noble general, whose children will inherit the Scottish throne according to the prophecy. Banquo is ambitious too, but he instead is a rebuke to Macbeth- representing a path in which murder and betrayal were not needed.
He also embodies’ Macbeth’s guilt for Banquo’s murder as a ghost, haunting him.
Who is King Duncan?
He is the good king of Scotland who is the model of a virtuous, benevolent and farsighted ruler. His death symbolises the destruction of an order in Scotland that can only be restored when Duncan’s line- Malcolm- occupies the throne once more.
He is killed during the second act of the play.
Who is Macduff?
A Scottish nobleman hostile to Macbeth’s kingship from the start. He becomes a leader of the crusade to unseat Macbeth and put Malcolm on the throne. He also desires revenge for the murder of his wife and son.
Who is Malcolm?
The son of Duncan, whose restoration to the throne signals Scotland’s return to order following Macbeth’s reign of terror. Malcolm becomes a challenge to Macbeth with Macduff’s aid+the support of England.
Earlier on, he and Donalbain flee Scotland after their fathers murder- appearing weak.
Who is Hecate?
The goddess of witchcraft, who helps the three witches work their mischief of Macbeth.
Who is Fleance?
Banquo’s son, who survives Macbeth’s attempt to murder him. His whereabouts are unknown, but he may presumably come to rule Scotland as the Witches’ prophecy said that he would take the Scottish throne.
Who is Donalbain?
The first King Duncan’s son and Malcolm’s younger brother.
Who are Lennox Ross, Menteth, Angus and Caithness?
They are thanes who eventually turn against Macbeth.
