Director’s Notes For Act Three, Scene Four Of Macbeth
Director's Notes For Act Three, Scene Four Of Macbeth
By Owain Bristow, 10E3
The play 'Macbeth' is about murder, betrayal, the supernatural and the psychological and real struggle between good and evil elements. Macbeth has murdered King Duncan and gained the crown for himself, but he is still fearful of enemies and trusts no one. In the preceding scene he has just had Banquo murdered because of his suspicions and he still has lingering guilt for murdering the King. This scene, scene four, act three, is important because it exposes Macbeth's weaknesses and also shows that he can experience the human qualities of fear, and remorse more so than before in the play. The events of the scene cause Macbeth to realise that this is only the beginning, there is no going back and that he must face the consequences of his actions. In the scene a banquet is being held, hosted by Macbeth, who informed by a murderer at the beginning of Banquo's murder and Fleance's escape. A ghost then appears, Banquo's ghost, which can only be seen by Macbeth. This causes him to act oddly, which makes his guests feel uncomfortable and angers his wife. In the end the feast is ended, the guests leave and Macbeth informs his wife of his fears and suspicions. The main characters involved in this scene are Macbeth and Lady Macbeth and to a lesser extent Ross, Lennox and the first Murderer, with the other guests, ten to twenty, in the background.
I would like to portray Macbeth as a wild person, possessed by fear and weighed down by guilt and regret, his wife a contrast being a picture of calm and apparent contentment. The time of day will be night and this will be shown by the use of hanging torches and a large fire, the wind and rain will occasionally be heard outside. The guests will be arranged in a semi-circle facing the audience with Macbeth being centred and his wife on the side. During the scene his position will change as he becomes more frightened, as will his wife's as she tries to assist him. This scene represents a change in Macbeth's mind and it is therefore important that I portray it correctly to the greatest effect.
At the start of the scene there is an atmosphere of festivity and celebration, a jester or minstrels are seen leaving before Macbeth announces the banquets beginning. However while speaking, Macbeth appears ill at ease, shown by quick glances towards the door and lots of hand movement, as if he is expecting something to happen. Lady Macbeth is seated on her thrown and appears happy and preoccupied with the feast. When Macbeth, who is still standing gets to line eleven a door opens at the side and the music stops, for the first time heavy rain and thunder are heard. The guests are rather alarmed by this and several get up. Macbeth says, "Be large in mirth;" to comfort his guests, then pauses and looks anxiously at the murderer. After finishing the rest of his speech hurriedly he motions for the music to continue, then, appearing to regain himself he quickly moves towards the door, wanting to know the outcome of the murder. The murderer is also nervous, because of the bungled murderer, and his clothes are dirty and ripped to reflect the chaos of it, there are also blood marks on his face and hands. They speak together quietly and Macbeth is noticeably happy when he is told,
"My lord, throat is cut; that I did for him." (Line sixteen).
However his face falls when the murderer responds to his next question by saying,
"Most royal sir,
Fleance is `scap'd." (Line twenty).
Macbeth turns away from the murderer shaking his head, because without Fleance's murder the whole thing has been pointless and his fears and worries are still there. He speaks to himself until seeking reassurance once more from the murderer, of Banquo's slaying, before dismissing him,
"To saucy doubts and fears. But Banquo's safe?" (Line twenty-five).
Lady Macbeth has ...
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"My lord, throat is cut; that I did for him." (Line sixteen).
However his face falls when the murderer responds to his next question by saying,
"Most royal sir,
Fleance is `scap'd." (Line twenty).
Macbeth turns away from the murderer shaking his head, because without Fleance's murder the whole thing has been pointless and his fears and worries are still there. He speaks to himself until seeking reassurance once more from the murderer, of Banquo's slaying, before dismissing him,
"To saucy doubts and fears. But Banquo's safe?" (Line twenty-five).
Lady Macbeth has been watching this meeting from a distance and is becoming concerned and agitated by it, shown by quick glances in that direction and a scowl, as are some of the guests who are now talking less and watching Macbeth more. She feels Macbeth is ignoring his guests and so ruining the banquet and approaches her husband, speaking to him in low angry tones. Hearing his wife's voice, Macbeth changes his frown to a happy expression and makes an exclamation in a joyful manner, picking up on her food imagery,
"Sweet remembrance!
Now good digestion wait on appetite,
And health on both!" (lines thirty-eight and thirty-nine).
Macbeth then follows Lady Macbeth back to the table; Lennox gets up and gestures with an arm to a side of the table that is apparently free. However, Macbeth does not look and is interested in showing his guests that he is okay and that everything is perfectly fine. He comments on Banquo's absence, only really to reassure himself that he is indeed gone and to appear innocent of any connection with his disappearance.
At the point when he utters Banquo's name, at the end of line forty-one, a crack of lightning is heard causing him to pause, the hall door, at the rear of the stage rattles as if someone is trying to enter and the music stops. Ross then approaches Macbeth, but when he looks at the table it seems full and he is very puzzled and confused. Lennox motions to a place that looks empty to the audience, but when Macbeth looks in the direction of his hand he sees Banquo's ghost, wearing torn robes smeared with blood, and staring right at him. At first he thinks it's a trick, exclaiming,
"Which of you have done this?" (Line forty-nine).
When Macbeth realises he is the only one who can see the ghost, an image created by his mind, his initial anger turns to fear, the lights dim around him as he backs away from the table now shouting directly at the ghost, denying his guilt as it seems to drift towards him shaking its head,
"Thou canst not say I did it: never shake
Thy gory locks at me." (Line fifty).
The focus now shifts back to the table and the guests who our alarmed by Macbeth's meaningless behaviour and murmur amongst themselves with words such as crazy, ill and possessed being heard. They begin to rise in response to Ross concern, but then are commanded to sit by Lady Macbeth. She rises and moves swiftly towards Macbeth, trying to shield his figure from the guests. She then speaks to them in concerned tones that are shown by long, concentrated looks at her husband and hand gestures towards him. She is anxious for the feast to go as planned and does not want the spectacle of her husband to ruin this and arouse suspicions. At the same time as she is speaking she is trying to nudge Macbeth with her foot to bring him back to his senses.
At this point the audience will be sharing some of Macbeth's confusion but as the scene continues to unfold they will soon realise what is happening and feel slightly sympathetic towards him. They will also be surprised that a man such as Macbeth is showing such great fear for the first time. The ghost of Banquo that Macbeth sees cannot be seen by anyone else, including the audience. This is to make Macbeth appear like a madman and to illustrate the fact that he is isolated, living in a different world from anybody else, seeing different images and hearing different voices. The ghost is something created by Macbeth's mind because of worry and fear, not a real supernatural apparition. Lady Macbeth's words: "are you a man?" line fifty eight, echo around Macbeth repeatedly, the other goings on seem to freeze except for the spot lit area containing himself and his wife, that represents their mutual isolation. All Lady Macbeth's lines are spoken slowly and cruelly, starting as a whisper and building up to a loud croak as she tries to stifle her emotion, emphasis is placed on the beginning of each line,
"O proper stuff!
This is the very painting of your fear;" (Line sixty-one-quieter),
"You look but on a stool." (Line sixty-eight-loud croak).
Lady Macbeth is very cross with her husband for on the inside, for interrupting their feast, and mystified as to why he is behaving so oddly, she can't understand the feelings on his mind. Macbeth shouts his next line,
" Prithee see there! behold! look! lo! how say you?", (line sixty-nine).
He continues in more subdued tones, gesturing with his hands to something he can see in front of him. As the guests and the background gradually come back into view Lady Macbeth angrily exclaims,
"Fie, for shame!" (line seventy-four).
Macbeth's next lines are spoken slowly with him turned away from his wife and guests; they are reflections, as he seems to lose his grasp on reality. He expresses his fears, commenting on the murder and how punishment is now inevitable. Lady Macbeth guesses that her husband's actions have some connection with Duncan's murder from his use of words such as blood and murder and his talk of retribution. She becomes afraid that, because he has forgotten where he is and apparently lost his mind, he will let something slip about it. She shudders and glances at the crown on Macbeth's head then looks at the palms of her hands showing a brief moment of nervousness as Macbeth finishes speaking, saying,
"And push us from our stools: this is more strange
Than such a murder is." (Line eighty-two).
However this passes very quickly and she speaks loudly with false confidence and enthusiasm, encouraging Macbeth to return to his feast and the real world,
"My worthy lord,
Your noble friends do lack you." (Line eighty-three).
Macbeth then turns back to the table and appears to regain his composure, smoothing down his hair, shaking his head and adjusting his robes. He speaks as if he has just been silly and seems to revert to being happy, exclaiming loudly that he wants wine and proposing a toast, all this enthusiasm is false though. As he sits down he begins to say something then stops and stares forward, backing away from the table again. In his own mind he sees Banquo's ghost coming at him with a bloody dagger and he raises his hands over his face to protect himself. However the guests and the audience cannot see anything so are puzzled as to why Macbeth appears to be trying to shield himself from attack. Macbeth's initial exclamations are loud and come quickly and as he speaks his eyes stay locked on the same spot in the room. Lady Macbeth is shocked by this display and immediately stands up and tries to draw attention away from her husband by explaining his behaviour as a regular occurrence that is quickly over. She is of course very worried that Macbeth, in his state of fear and confusion, will give away some detail about their guilt over Duncan's murder. Macbeth then addresses something unseen again, ignoring everything else; he particularly emphasizes the alliteration in his words,
"rugged Russian bear," (Line one hundred).
After line one hundred and four he speaks more quickly and with more despair, culminating in him throwing his arms in the air, falling to his knees and screaming to the thing he sees,
"Hence, horrible shadow!
Unreal mockery, hence!" (Line one hundred and six).
A long silence follows after this, broken only by the murmurings of the guests and the sound of steady rain. Macbeth then stands up, calming down, and turns to the table looking around as if he has only just realised where he is. Lady Macbeth's fear has turned into anger and she furiously scolds her husband, forgetting all of the previous formality, with emphasis on every third word. We, the audience, are not sure whether Macbeth's response is spoken to his wife or merely a reflection to himself. He is still visibly shocked, with his hands shaking and a very pale complexion. By now the guests are beginning to become noticeably edgy and are aware that their presence is being ignored and that something is very wrong. They are making quick glances around and whispering to each other. Some of them are beginning to stand and put on their overcoats. Ross tries to break the tension between the guests and hosts with a lighthearted comment,
"What sights, my lord?" (line one hundred and seventeen).
Lady Macbeth picks up on her guests' feelings and quickly exclaims to them that may go, advising them to leave her husband alone. All the formality that was present at the beginning of the scene, that has deteriorated throughout it, end completely with the guests hastily making their way off the stage, leaving half-eaten food and overturned chairs. Lennox's final words are heard echoing around the hall as Lady Macbeth, in her role of hostess bids him goodnight,
"Good-night; and may better health
Attend his majesty!" (line one hundred and twenty-one).
The stage is now empty apart from Macbeth and his wife as he begins to pace about muttering his feelings. He expresses all his worries that were in him all the time, that murder cannot be kept a secret and that he cannot escape punishment for his actions. As he walks around he is so preoccupied that he repeatedly trips over his feet and blunders into the table and chairs. A flash of lightning in the middle of line one hundred and twenty-six reawakens him to the present situation and he inquires what the time is, wondering how long has elapsed since he became lost in his mind. Lady Macbeth is standing to the side of the stage and is becoming tired, indicated by long yawns and her shifting from one leg to the other then leaning against the wall. She decides that Macbeth is also in need of rest and doesn't fully understand what he is saying, letting him go on about his fears and suspicions. From his recent experience Macbeth has realised that he is not untouchable or immune to punishment, even as king. He is unable to handle all his problems rationally so he makes the decision to visit the witches, falling back to superstition and evil magic,
"I keep a servant fee'd. I will to-morrow-
And betimes I will-to the weird sisters:" (Lines one hundred and thirty-two and thirty-three).
Macbeth speaks with continuing concern, but his voice gradually becomes weaker and his speech slower, as his wife prompts him to retire his last two lines are spoken with resignation, with a long yawn in between them, but still retain their rhyme,
"Strange things I have in head that will to hand,
Which must be acted ere they may be scann'd." (Lines one hundred and thirty nine and forty).
They leave the stage on opposite sides emphasizing the gulf between them, as the lights dim Macbeth makes his final statement that echoes around the empty hall,
"We are yet but young in the deed." (line one hundred and forty-four).
The audience has seen many contrasts during this scene, order to chaos, wildness and calmness and confidence and fear. They have seen Macbeth deteriorate from a happy host to a creature possessed with mistrust and fear. They will realise that he is too far into his crime to go back and too full of suspicion to admit his guilt to anyone willingly. Lady Macbeth has not really changed in the audiences' minds, still being careful, cunning and using false charm. However, towards the end of the scene she got angrier than she had been since before Duncan's murder, so the audience will have realised that she too has weaknesses that could be further exposed. They will also be left wondering about certain things like, will Macbeth's actions raise a large amount of suspicion among the lords or will they believe his wife's story? how many more people will Macbeth have to murder to satisfy his mind?, what will the witches reveal to Macbeth?, and finally, is this the beginning of the end?, how much further will Lord and Lady Macbeth's relationship go until it breaks down completely? And, will Macbeth be overthrown?
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