Choose three minor characters from the list below and discuss their dramatic functions in the play. Ross, Old Man, Malcolm, Lady Macduff, Porter. There are numbers of minor characters in William Shakespeare's "Macbeth".

    The Porter is the keeper of Macbeth’s castle. In Act 2 scene II, the Porter is drunken and speaking nonsense. However, the Porter contributes to the play quite importantly with his dramatic functions. First of all, the Porter, acting in a funny manner and speaking nonsense, is there to provide comic relief before the discovery of the murder of Duncan. At the same time the delay of the discovery of Duncan’s dead body by the Porter’s speech heightens the tension and sense of anticipation. On the other hand, the speech of the Porter can also reveals ironic truths. In II iii 1, “If a man were porter of hell-gate, he should have old turning the key.” Here the Porter imagines himself to be the gatekeeper of the hell, it is ironically true, as the Porter is the gatekeeper of Macbeth’s castle, where the bloody murder of Duncan took place. The castle is like hell also in the sense that the evil ones—Macbeth and Lady Macbeth live there, in another words, Macbeth who had and will be doing the bloody deeds, deserves to go to hell. Also in II iii 3-10, “ Here’s a farmer that hanged himself on the expectation of plenty…who committed treason enough for God’s sake” here the Porter describes three figures who wait to be admitted into hell. They are: the greedy farmer who hoards grain for profit; the tailor who steals cloth; the treacherous equivocator who tries to lie his way into heaven. All of them had overreached themselves like Macbeth. Ironically, the Porter makes surreptitious comment on Macbeth's character. The Porter’s speech in II iii24-30, his descriptions of lust provoked by alcohol, “…it provokes and unprovokes: it provokes the desire, but it takes away the performance.” Although in this line, the Porter is referring to sexual desire, this can be view as a caricature of Macbeth’s moral confusion and lust for power, at the same time echoes Lady Macbeth’s idea of alcohol in II i 1-2, which she suggested taking right amount of alcohol encourage bravery, but excess amount can make one lose his control. Therefore, the dramatic function of Porter in the play is to provide a comic relief before the discovery of the murder of Duncan, at the same time, reveals ironic truth on Macbeth.

     Lady Macduff and her son are murdered in Act 4 scene II. The dramatic function of Lady Macduff is that she symbolizes the innocent people killed by Macbeth in his quest for power. The murder of Lady Macduff and her son is the result due to the suspicion of Macbeth towards Macduff; this shows the waste of lives of innocent people as a result of ambition in a tragedy. Before the murder, Lady Macduff has a conversation with her son. The conversation has various dramatic functions. Firstly, this domestic conversation relate to the tragic ending of Lady Macduff and her son, yet it is touching, in another words, it gives a bittersweet feeling and at the same time reveals tension underneath the sweetness, which further heightened the tragedy. In the conversation, Lady Macduff and her son also bring out irony. In IV ii 50-55 where they talk about honest man and traitors is ironically related to the situation of the play where traitors like Macbeth destroy honest men like Duncan and Banquo. The last speech of Lady Macduff before she is killed in IV ii 70-75, “…where to do harm is often laudable, to do good sometime accounted dangerous folly…” reveals the situation in Scotland. There is nothing but disorder in Scotland under the rule of Macbeth, like according to Lady Macduff, good is not rewarded but is punished. Thus, the dramatic function of Lady Macduff is to show innocence in Scotland is being destroyed under the rule of Macbeth.

    Malcolm, the Porter and Lady Macduff are the minor characters in the play “Macbeth”. Each of them carries different dramatic function, however, there is one thing that all minor characters in the play does, that is, they all have an important role in the contribution to the development of the play.