What Impression of Macbeth Do We Gain From The First Two Acts?

Authors Avatar
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.
Join now!


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 ...

This is a preview of the whole essay