What Impression of Macbeth Do We Gain From The First Two Acts?
What Impression of Macbeth Do We Gain From
The First Two Acts?
The first two acts of the play Macbeth are probably the most crucial; they set the scene, introduce the characters and, with the bloody murder of Duncan, give us a taste of the horror to come. For the person Macbeth, the first two acts are equally as important and significant. We, as the audience, gain many insights into his thoughts and feelings through his powerful soliloquies; we see his fear, excitement and temptation when the witches inform him of their prophecy, we see this initial reaction buckle under the strains of his anxiety. We see him bullied and eventually dominated by his manipulating wife, and then we witness him succumb to his all-consuming greed and ambition that will eventually lead to his ruin and death. Within the first two acts we see many different dimensions to Macbeth's character, and then we see these dimensions begin to alter and change. We gain three main impressions of Macbeth from the first two acts. The first is that he is portrayed as the ultimate fighting machine: noble, valiant, brave and worthy. He is almost a god- like hero, and it is impressed upon us the love, respect and admiration he consequently gains from his fellow soldiers, noblemen, and even the King. The second impression of him that we gain is of his greed, ambition and pride. These character traits are awakened when the witches herald their prophecy. At first he is prepared to do anything to get the crown, and he has dark thoughts about killing Duncan. But his resolve soon gives way to his inner fears, and this brings in the third impression we get of Macbeth. He is weak, which is ironic because his physical strength as a warrior is much celebrated. He is first weak when he gives in to his temptation and decides to murder the good King Duncan to further himself. Later we see this decision broken because he is afraid. Then he proves to be even weaker by allowing Lady Macbeth to bully and manipulate him into murdering Duncan, she using any means possible. His weakness is played on throughout the play, but it takes many forms as his character develops.
The play opens on a ghostly, supernatural note with the three witches brewing a spell amidst thunder and lightning. During this short scene, we hear Macbeth's name for the first time, and it's spoken by one of the witches. This indicates that they will play a momentous part in the life of Macbeth throughout the play. And they do, as Macbeth's heralds of all things good and bad, fair and foul.
Scene Two opens on King Duncan and his son Malcolm talking with a wounded, bleeding Captain about the latest news of the battle. Throughout this scene it is impressed upon us how valiant, brave and noble Macbeth is, and how popular and well loved he is amongst the Scots. During the Captain's description of the battle we hear of Macbeth for the second time. The Captain refers to Macbeth as 'Brave Macbeth' and adds 'well he deserves that name.' This tells us of Macbeth's prowess on the battlefield and the respect he has subsequently earned from his fellow soldiers. The Captain gives a detailed description of Macbeth's actions, saying he 'disdain(ed) fortune,' and then describes him as 'valour's minion.' He is saying that Macbeth is valour's favourite, so therefore Macbeth must be valiant. The Captain relates how Macbeth kills his foes- 'unseam(ing) them from the nave to th' chops.' The method Macbeth employs of killing his enemies highlights how merciless and even slightly warped he is during battle, which is fitting as throughout the first two acts and the rest of the play we see how this aspect of him is conveyed from the battlefield into the rest of his life, and this, along with his boundless ambition is what makes him so deadly. After killing his enemies, the Captain says, Macbeth displays their heads on his battlements, thus intimating that Macbeth is proud of his conquests and his success, and again maybe displaying that bit of him that likes blood and gore: 'fixed his head upon our battlement.' At this point Duncan exclaims, 'valiant cousin, worthy gentleman!' This has been put in to illustrate the ironic love and respect Duncan has for Macbeth, the man who will come to rob him of his life and his crown. It is again impressed upon us how popular Macbeth is, and that maybe before his meeting with the witches he really was good, valiant and worthy. After this exclamation the Captain continues with his tale and explains how the Norwegian King restocks his weapons, brings in new supplies of men and begins a fresh assault. At this Duncan expects to hear that Macbeth and Banquo fled, but the Captain tells how they were dismayed as ' sparrows eagles, or the hare the lion.' Here they are likened to eagles- celebrated for their majesty, their dignity and their stateliness as the king of birds- and a lion- notorious for his courage, nobility and sometimes his brutality as the king of beasts. Macbeth and Banquo 'redoubled strokes against the foe,' proving that even in the face of a great onslaught they could remain composed and simply fight back. The Thane of Ross enters, bearing more news of the battle. He goes on to describe Macbeth as 'Bellona's bridegroom,' Bellona being the goddess of war in Roman myth. By describing Macbeth as her bridegroom, Ross is indicating his respect and admiration for Macbeth's skill as a warrior.
Scene three begins with the three witches casting an evil spell. Within a short time Macbeth and Banquo enter. During this scene we have our first glimpse of Macbeth's ambition, when we hear the witches proclaim him as Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor and King. We then see his reaction when he is informed that the King has given him the title of Thane of Cawdor, and the seed that this information plants in Macbeth's brain. The first thing we hear Macbeth say is, 'so fair and foul a day I have not seen.' He is thereby ...
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Scene three begins with the three witches casting an evil spell. Within a short time Macbeth and Banquo enter. During this scene we have our first glimpse of Macbeth's ambition, when we hear the witches proclaim him as Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor and King. We then see his reaction when he is informed that the King has given him the title of Thane of Cawdor, and the seed that this information plants in Macbeth's brain. The first thing we hear Macbeth say is, 'so fair and foul a day I have not seen.' He is thereby unconsciously echoing what the witches said in the first scene; 'fair is foul, and foul is fair.' It is significant that this is the first thing he says, because it shows that even before he meets the witches he is under their influence. After the witches have spoken to Macbeth, we understand through Banquo's words that Macbeth is afraid and unnerved. Banquo says, '...why do you start and seem to fear...' Macbeth could react in this manner simply because he is shocked, or maybe the witches have hit on Macbeth's secret longings, and he is afraid that these longings will be revealed, or he could be afraid of the unnatural, sinister evil he senses. Banquo goes on to describe Macbeth as 'rapt,' so the information from the witches has sent him into a reverie. Maybe his mind is already construing a plan, or maybe he is just daydreaming about these prophecies coming true. Macbeth commands the witches to 'stay...and tell (him) more.' This would suggest that he likes what he hears and wants to know more about the fair things that shall befall him, but this reaction is a natural one, and he is bound to want more intelligence than the ambiguous witches are prepared to give. The witches vanish and Macbeth regrets their departure, which is strange because you would expect him to be glad to see the back of these evil creatures. Ross and Angus enter and greet Macbeth. They inform him of the King's pleasure at his success and also of the King's wish that they call him Thane of Cawdor. At this point Banquo recognises the truth from the witches' prophecy, but Macbeth disregards it somewhat uncomfortably. Angus describes how the previous Thane is a traitor and has been condemned to death. Macbeth acknowledges to himself the truth and says 'Glamis, and Thane of Cawdor. The greatest is behind.' This shows that he has excepted that the witches are speaking the truth, and that he is expecting to be king. Next follows a powerful soliloquy, in which Macbeth reveals to the audience his thoughts about what the witches have said. He cannot decide whether it is good or bad. He says, 'this supernatural soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good.' This shows that he knows really that the witches are evil, but he doesn't want to condemn them completely because of the fair things they have promised, one of which has already come true. His ambition is here introduced, because he likes the sound of what he's heard and wants the prophecies to be realised but the thought of really murdering someone, especially the King, terrifies him. Here also is a glimmer of his weakness that Lady Macbeth later plays on. He is terrified of the temptation he feels to murder Duncan, and the very thought of committing so unnatural and vile an act makes him afraid too. He describes himself as 'yield(ing) to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair, and make my seated heart knock at my ribs.' He also says 'my thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical.' This informs us that he has considered murder but only in his imagination, and he has not previously thought seriously of killing Duncan. Macbeth goes on to say 'If chance will have me King, why chance may crown me without my stir.' Here Macbeth seems to be saying that if chance, or fate, makes him King, then it will happen without him doing anything. This thought may comfort him, as he would still get the crown but without having to do that thing which terrifies him so much- killing Duncan. After that, Macbeth says 'Come what come may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day.' This is Macbeth saying he is just going to let things take their natural course, and it gives the impression that however much Macbeth wants the crown, the thought of killing Duncan is too much for him. What he says could be taken as wise, but we know that his decision is borne out of fear, not intelligence. Shakespeare has used a rhyming couplet, which has the air of summing it up, so we get the impression that this is the decision Macbeth's made, and that is that. At this point Banquo interrupts Macbeth's soliloquy, and Macbeth lies about what he was thinking, saying, 'My dull brain was wrought with things forgotten.' He then adds to Banquo that at a later date they should 'speak (their) free hearts each to other' concerning what has passed. This is strange because the impression we got earlier was that Macbeth was going to let it lie, but this is another example of his weakness; he cannot put the witches' prophecy out of his head, and his own ambition and greed will not let him forget it. Banquo acquiesces and they all leave to see the King.
At the beginning of scene four, Duncan is talking to Malcolm about the treacherous Thane of Cawdor, and is enquiring whether he has been executed yet. Duncan says, 'There's no art to find the mind's construction in the face. He was a gentleman on whom I built an absolute trust.' Duncan is saying this in reference to the previous Thane of Cawdor, but it is ironic how fitting this is for the new Thane of Cawdor too, especially as directly following this Macbeth, accompanied by Banquo, Ross and Angus, enters. Duncan begins a speech of gratitude and humility to Macbeth. He says, 'More is thy due than more than all can pay.' This emphasises once more the very great and ironic love Duncan has for Macbeth. Macbeth replies that serving and being loyal to the King is payment itself. Macbeth says 'our duties are to your throne and state, children and servants.' This is again ironic as Macbeth is saying it is his duty to protect the King. From this speech we get the impression that Macbeth is over-compensating for his plans to kill Duncan by being overly humble, dutiful and good. Later Duncan reveals he has made his son Malcolm his heir to the throne and has given him the title Prince of Cumberland. Then he says that they should all go to Macbeth's castle at Inverness. The naming of Malcolm as heir is another obstacle for Macbeth in the way of the crown, as Macbeth himself owns during another soliloquy. Macbeth says to himself, 'The Prince of Cumberland- that is a step, on which I must fall down, or else o'erleap, for in my way it lies.' From this we understand that Macbeth has determined to try to get the crown and from what he says next, it is obvious that the apparent hindrance of Malcolm has awakened in Macbeth his evil longings, ambition and greed; 'Stars hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires.' This also shows that while he knows that the deed is evil and while he is ashamed of doing it, he will not be diverted from his purpose by anything. This shows a determination and strength of mind that we have not seen before and may not see again.
At the beginning of scene five, Lady Macbeth is reading a letter sent to her by her husband. It is informing her of the prophecy of the witches, and how one element of it has come true. The fact that Macbeth has written his wife a letter informing her of these happenings shows how much he loves and respects her, and sees her as his equal. This is very unusual, because at this time the wife was greatly inferior to her husband and didn't have any power at all. Her husband was her lord and master. This unnatural equality has probably derived from Macbeth's mental weakness and his wife's dominating strength. In his letter, Macbeth addressed his wife as 'my dearest partner of greatness'. This again indicates how much he esteems her, and this is a powerful weapon for Lady Macbeth to use against him. Macbeth also says, '...what greatness is promised thee.' This shows that he is not only doing it for himself, but for her, and this again intimates his love, which is what makes him weak. Lady Macbeth says, 'Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be what thou art promised.' This shows she has complete faith in him becoming king, but then she goes on to say, 'Yet I do fear thy nature, it is too full o' th' milk of human kindness...' This shows that she does not totally trust that Macbeth will be able to do the deed because he is too nice. It is as though his goodness is his weakness in a world where you need to be ruthless, cunning and merciless to get anywhere, and Lady Macbeth realises this. This also gives us the impression that before Macbeth became overpowered and wholly governed by ambition , he was a good and kind man. When Macbeth arrives at the castle ahead of Duncan and everybody else, Lady Macbeth greets him very excitedly, and Macbeth meets her with the news that Duncan comes there that evening and leaves the following day. Lady Macbeth implies that Duncan won't see the next morning, and goes on to give Macbeth advice about how to look and refers to the murder as 'this night's great business'. Up to the murder of Duncan, Lady Macbeth never actually uses the word 'murder' to Macbeth; she constantly uses euphemisms to disguise the truth. This must be because she though Macbeth wouldn't be able handle it, so she needs to protect him. Again, we get the impression he is weak. Lady Macbeth says he should put the murder 'into (her) dispatch'. Lady Macbeth finishes the scene with 'Leave all the rest to me.' These two lines clearly show us how she dominates Macbeth and is the one in control. She is managing the murder because she thinks he is too weak. Here is more irony, because in the end she is the one who goes mad while Macbeth becomes more and more bloodthirsty.
Macbeth opens scene seven with a meaningful and powerful soliloquy wherein he weighs up the reasons for murdering Duncan and finds he has six reasons against doing it and one reason, namely his 'vaulting ambition,' for. Macbeth says, 'If it were done, when 'tis done, then 'twere well it were done quickly.' This is Macbeth saying that if it were all over when Duncan had been murdered, then it would be best to murder Duncan quickly. This give us the impression that Macbeth hasn't quite got over his fear, so wants the deed to be over with quickly. He then says that if the murder of Duncan was to have no repercussions in his mortal life, then he could risk damaging his eternal life. This shows that Macbeth values his life on Earth more highly than the life he would spend in heaven or hell for eternity. This shows that maybe he doesn't believe in God, or maybe he is more bothered about material things than about getting into heaven; 'but this blow might be the be-all and the end-all...we'd jump the life to come.' Macbeth says, 'Bloody instructions, which being taught return to plague th' inventor.' This shows an unusual wisdom in Macbeth, and gives the impression hat he is afraid of the consequences, which brings him back to his abiding weakness. Macbeth's next point is one of guilt. He says, 'He's here in double trust: first, as I am his kinsman and his subject, strong both against the deed; then, as his host, who should against his murderer shut the door, not bear the knife myself.' Macbeth is clearly feeling guilty because he, as Duncan's relative and subject, has a profound duty to protect him, and then as his host, he should be the one putting that duty into effect. This gives us the impression that Macbeth has a strong sense of what he should and shouldn't do, but sometimes other elements of his character; greed, ambition and selfishness, overcome this. Macbeth's final point against murdering Duncan is probably the most weighty. He says, '...this Duncan hath borne his faculties so meek, hath been so clear in his great office, that his virtues will plead like angels, trumpet-tongued against the deep damnation of his taking off.' On the face of it, you think from this point that Macbeth is not thinking of himself, but is being compassionate and selfless, unwilling to murder such a good and noble king. But maybe Macbeth is referring to two of his earlier points. He probably thinks the consequences and his comeuppance will be greater because of the fact that Duncan was so good. Maybe he's also worried because the people of Scotland will be appalled by the death of such a great king, and will therefore not take to Macbeth as the new bearer of the crown, very nicely. Macbeth might also be feeling guilty because of the kindness Duncan treated him with. Macbeth makes only one point in defence of killing the king, he says. 'I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself, and falls on th' other-' At this point Lady Macbeth enters and Macbeth stops. From the whole of this soliloquy we get the impression of Macbeth that he is selfish, ambitious and unfeeling, and he will never fail to protect his own interests. He is also weak, for his fear plays a constant part.
After Lady Macbeth enters, Macbeth fires two short questions at her in immediate succession; 'How now? What news?' This suggests that Macbeth is uneasy with Duncan in the castle. Macbeth goes on to say in a brusque, forthright manner, 'We will proceed no further in this business.' Macbeth's acknowledged reason is that Duncan 'hath honoured (him) of late' and that he 'ha(s) bought golden opinions from all sorts of people , which would be worn now in their newest gloss, not cast aside so soon.' In this short speech we see two new dimensions to Macbeth's character. The first is that he is attempting to control Lady Macbeth, something we haven't seen him do before. The second new point is that he is concealing something from her. Before, he has always acknowledged everything to her openly, but now heis hiding from her all the reasons he thought of only moments ago. This shows how he is trying to make himself transcendent and superior to Lady Macbeth, by not allowing her to know his mind, but she thwarts him by simply sneering at him. She replies in a contemptuous manner, and starts to employ many methods to manipulate him. To start with, Macbeth stands firm against her entreaties saying, 'I dare do all that may become a man; who dares do more is none.' Lady Macbeth tries to make him feel guilty and then questions his manhood. Macbeth starts to be swayed, and he asks, 'If we should fail?' He is thus indicating that that is what he is afraid of: not killing a good and noble king, but of being caught, or of killing Duncan but still not managing to get the crown. This is another form of his weakness. Macbeth is swayed, and we are left in no doubt who the stronger partner is; in three speeches we have seen Lady Macbeth bring her husband full circle to do the deed he was adamant he would not. The scene ends with a couplet from Macbeth, 'Away, and mock the time with fairest show: False face must hide what the false heart doth know.' Again this has the air of summing up the scene, with Macbeth sounding resigned to his fate.
In Act two Scene one, Banquo and his son Fleance, are up and bump into Macbeth. They chat for a minute, and then Banquo tells Macbeth that he has dreamt of the three witches and adds, 'to you they have shown some truth.' Macbeth answers abruptly, 'I think not of them.' Macbeth is definitely jumpy and probably wants Banquo and Fleance to go to bed. But on further consideration Macbeth asks Banquo to talk with him about that business when they have an hour, and he says he 'shall make honour for (him),' that is, Macbeth will give him titles and honour, 'if (he) shall cleave to (Macbeth's) consent, when 'tis.' Here Macbeth might be trying to blackmail Banquo to support him when the time comes, and if he is, surely this is an unwise move as it is bound to make Banquo suspicious. Maybe Macbeth is being more clever than we think by gauging how much he can depend on Banquo for support. Then Banquo and Fleance leave, and Macbeth orders the servant to go to bed, but to tell Lady Macbeth to ring the bell when his drink is ready. When Macbeth is alone, the horrible vision of the dagger appears, which Macbeth thinks is real but yet he cannot touch it. Macbeth might be going mad from the strain of it all, and from this point forward we are given reason to question his sanity. He raves about the dagger for a while and then he hears the bell and sets off to murder Duncan.
In scene two we see Lady Macbeth not her usual calm, mighty self, but weak and scared, until she has to manage a gibbering Macbeth. Lady Macbeth is frightened and unnerved, and then Macbeth returns from 'do(ing) the deed.' Macbeth reveals how he heard voices, one laughing, and one crying, 'Murder!' Like the dagger, we don't know whether these are real or a figment of Macbeth's warped imagination. He goes on and on about the voices he has heard and all the blood on his hands, with Lady Macbeth attempting to shut him up. Macbeth thinks he heard a voice shouting, 'Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefore Cawdor shall sleep no more, Macbeth shall sleep no more.' This is significant because Macbeth does not sleep throughout the rest of the play. Then Lady Macbeth realises that Macbeth has bought the daggers with him when he was meant to leave them with the drugged guards. This gives us the impression that Macbeth is stupid as well as weak, and through him the plan might fail. Lady Macbeth orders him to take the daggers back, but Macbeth refuses. She scorns him and goes herself. After she leaves, the knocking continues, and Macbeth continues about the blood on his hands. The impression we get from all Macbeth's talking is that he is weak and dense, nearly costing them the plan by removing the daggers, and then refusing to take them back again: 'I'll go no more.I am afraid to think what I have done. Look on't again I dare not.'
In scene three, Lennox and Macduff arrive to wake the king, but obviously find him dead. The over-the-top speeches that Macbeth comes out with indicate his poor acting skills, his inability to handle the stress of and behave appropriately during a difficult and awkward time, and his emotional and mental immaturity and ineptness, as well as his lack of fortitude. Lady Macbeth is forced to faint to draw the attention away from Macbeth, who is threatening to give it away. The whole of Macbeth's behaviour since he murdered Duncan seemed to be contrived to make people suspicious and Lady Macbeth furious. Macbeth is feeble and stupid, almost to the extent that his inappropriate ramblings are made comical.
The impressions we get of Macbeth from the first two acts of the play are clear. As a soldier he is bold, brave, noble and heroic, and much loved and esteemed as a consequence. As a man who has been promised the crown, he is ambitious, greedy, insincere and insatiable, and as a husband and murderer, he is weak, feeble, and easily manipulated and influenced. You cannot fail to get these impressions of Macbeth, but through the succeeding three acts we see how this portrayal develops and eventually leads to his downfall.
Chloe Rogers L5P 23/04/07