Macbeth thinks he hears something and cries out. This should be behind the curtains, backstage because at this point we don’t see him. But Lady Macbeth believes these words are from a guard who has seen or heard Macbeth and she is now alert and worried.
She is now scared and sorry when she says “Alack…”, unhappy but worried of what has happened to her husband. Then she snaps out of her ‘sorry’ state and rebounds angrily at Macbeth (though he is not there), with how she “lay the daggers ready” for him and had everything prepared. She may gesture with her hands by holding them in front of her, implying how obvious it was what he should do. Now she has a sadder face and frowns, as she says the lines of how she would have done it, but the king resembled her father too much. The frowning and sadness is a sign of weakness, and these are the lines in which she shows she is actually weak.
Now Macbeth enters, staggering, and his wife cries out, “My husband!” in relief. This should be said in a long-drawn out way, almost a loud whisper, with a devious-looking face, as she is relieved the murder has been completed. When Macbeth asks if she heard a noise it now gets very quick, with short questions and answers darted at each other. After Lady Macbeth replies in a sinister way Macbeth replies quickly, and the rapid exchange of words continues.
But then Macbeth cuts it off when he says “this is a sorry sight”. In this he looks at the blood on his hands and shakes his head. This is not always interpreted this way but is the most common.
Now Macbeth is actually not paying attention to what his wife says, which can be shown by him not making eye contact with her and probably staring at his hands. He talks of sleep very much so will need to say the word a bit louder than others. He ignores her next line and continues his speech, permanently fixed on his hands. The idea and talk of sleep occurs a number of times throughout the play. For example Act 5 Scene 1, when the doctor is talking about Lady Macbeth’s sleepwalking: “A great perturbation in nature, to receive at once the benefit of sleep and do the effects of watching”, and, “…infected minds To their deep pillows will discharge their secrets.” Also, Macbeth speaks of sleep Act 3 Scene 2: “Duncan is in his grave, After life’s fitful fever, he sleeps well.” Sleep in Macbeth is used to describe the time when you are not conscious of what you are doing, whether one is dead or alive.
She then tries twice to calm him without success. She should be acting as if she’s defenceless against his one-mindedness, putting on a perhaps sentimental face, almost feeling sorry for him, and holding him. But she then decides to stop and put her foot down. To show her ‘anger’ she takes a step back, letting go of his arms and standing rigid with a sterner face. Here she tries to be in control again, realising she has been ‘on the defence’ previously and backing down, but she is unsuccessful, as she asks Macbeth to take back the daggers.
As she says, “Wash this filthy witness from your hands”, she is looking at his hands and pointing. But this is because she has seen the daggers and how stupid Macbeth is to bring them out. Macbeth refuses to do what she says, now shaking his head and dropping it, because he feels he can’t go through with it. These words are spoken softly and slowly, showing how weak he is at this point. This seems to be a turning point in the play in Macbeth and his wife’s relationship, as she seems to lose her stubbornness, and can’t exert her control over him any more. This change in personality evolves into much more, and may be involved with her going mad towards Act 5.
