MACBETH

Question 1

MICRO QUOTATIONS - 4

Act 1 Scene 2:
Macbeth is described as a
courageous warrior in battle.

Answer 1

A1S2:
* ‘brave Macbeth’,
* ‘valiant cousin’,
* ‘worthy gentleman’
* ‘unseamed him from the nave to the chops’

Question 2

• ‘brave Macbeth’,
• ‘valiant cousin’,
• ‘worthy gentleman’
• ‘unseamed him from the nave to the chops’

Analysis - Early in the play

Answer 2

• semantic field of honour implies Macbeth’s trustworthiness as a defender of the king.
• brutal, ruthless connotations of ‘unseamed’ highlight Macbeth’s skill as a fighter.
• hyperbole of ‘from the nave to the chops’ demonstrates Macbeth’s willingness to act supremely violently to achieve his goals, foreshadows Macbeth’s act of regicide later.

Question 3

QUOTATION

Act 1 Scene 7: Macbeth describes
the tension he feels between loyalty to
his King and his ambitions.

Answer 3

‘Vaulting ambition, which overleaps itself / And falls on the other [side]’

Question 4

‘Vaulting ambition, which overleaps itself / And falls on the other [side]’

Analysis - Early in the play

Answer 4

• The metaphor of ‘vaulting ambition’ compares ambition to a horse, implying it can rise high, but also hints at the tragic downfall which could follow.
• Macbeth equivocates through ‘overleaps itself’, illustrating his doubt about murdering Duncan, to whom he is loyal.
• Macbeth speaks this in a soliloquy, implying his internal conflict and how his ambition for power ultimately triumphs.

Question 5

QUOTATION

Act 2 Scene 1: Immediately before the murder, Macbeth thinks he sees a floating dagger.

Answer 5

A2S1: ‘Is this a dagger which I see before me, / The handle toward my hand?’

Question 6

A2S1: ‘Is this a dagger which I see before me, / The handle toward my hand?’

Analysis - Early in the play

Answer 6

• The ‘dagger’ symbolises the brutal regicide, but also the psychological harm this causes to Macbeth as a result.
• The rhetorical question exposes Macbeth’s uncertainty, but he is tempted by ‘the handle toward my hand.’
• this soliloquy includes a vision, and a director may choose to show the dagger onstage to reinforce Macbeth’s desire, or leave it invisible to highlight his growing madness caused by ambition.

Question 7

Macbeth - early in the play
Line of arguement

Answer 7

At the beginning of the play, Macbeth accepts his place as a loyal servant of the king, Duncan, but quickly starts to believe hisambition could lead him to total power and control.

Question 8

Macbeth - later in the play
Line of argument

Answer 8

Following the regicide, Macbeth feels increasingly vulnerable and paranoid about his kingship, which increases his cruelty and isolation, leading to his downfall.

Question 9

Quotation

Act 3 Scene 1:
Despite being King, Macbeth still feels insecure about his position. If anything, his restless
ambition has caused him nothing but paranoia.

Answer 9

A3S1: ‘Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown.’

Question 10

A3S1: ‘Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown.’

Analysis - Later in the play

Answer 10

• connotations of ‘fruitless’ as something worthless and meaningless, hinting at how Macbeth’s ambition has become all-consuming even though he is now king
• ‘fruitless’ denotes a lack of children, contrasting to Banquo’s prophecy which makes Macbeth envious and increasingly paranoid, leading him to order his friend’s murder
• the ‘crown’ symbolises authority and blessing by God, which is subverted by being ‘fruitless’, making it an ironic motif.
• Biblical allusion to Jesus’s crown of thorns despite Macbeth commiting countless sins like regicide. Subverting a Jacobean audience.

Question 11

QUOTATION - 2

Act 5 Scene 5: Macbeth considers how his ambitious
desire is pointless, because his wife’s
dead and Malcolm will be king.

Answer 11

A5S5: ‘Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player’, ‘a tale told by an idiot’

Question 12

A5S5: ‘Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player’, ‘a tale told by an idiot’

Analysis - Later in the play

Answer 12

• The metaphor ‘walking shadow’ implies Macbeth feels life is empty, insubstantial and hopeless.
• the dark connotations of ‘shadow’ expose how Macbeth has become nihilistic, losing faith in his ambition and others.
• ‘poor player’ uses dramatic irony to remind the audience that Macbeth’s consequences could parallel their own.
• ‘tale told by an idiot’ emphasises that Macbeth feels he has lost control of his life; it’s no longer purposeful without power.