Macbeth Key Quotes

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power which gives the Witches legitimacy. ● 'All hail Macbeth that shalt be King thereafter'- The witches predict the future for Macbeth, bring the theme of Fate and Free Will to the audience for the first time. ● 'He seems Rapt withal'- Banquo is joking about the shocked state which Macbeth finds himself in, which shows the difference in the two characters views on power and the witches. 'Lesser than Macbeth and Greater'- Banquo is more shrouded in secrecy when it comes to his predictions by the witches, this suggests that he may have more free will or control over his future within the story. 'Or have we eaten the insane root [?]'- Banquo questions the power of the witches, suggesting that he is rejecting the supernatural power from the start of the play, opposing Macbeth's Rapt response, Shakespeare is using the characters as foils. • 'Why do you dress me in borrowed robes?'- Macbeth is confused at first when he is presented with his first success (thane of Cawdor), which shows that he did not blindly accept the witches' predictions from the start, and from here the slow descent into reliance on the supernatural begins. 'The instruments of darkness tells us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray in deepest consequence'- Banquo sees that the witches are evil and attempt to corrupt the noble men into being evil, by telling them truths that lead to betrayal. • 'Why do I yield to that suggestion, which horrid image doth unfix my hair'- Macbeth is already facing the effect of the witches' prediction, he is desiring power, even through 'horrid' means, suggesting that he is not a pure man from the start of the play. Scene Four: Duncan thanks Macbeth for his efforts, and makes Malcom the heir to the throne, however Macbeth begins to consider killing Duncan for power. "There's no art to find the mind's construction in the face'- Duncan is talking about how it is difficult to tell a person's true intention (referring to the traitorous Thane Cawdor in Scene Two), foreshadowing that Macbeth is going to have hidden desires which remain hidden at first. ● 'Stars, hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires'- Macbeth is revealing in his true desires in his aside, this is showing the idea of nature (through light and darkness) controlling the intentions of people. 'Dark and Deep' shows that Macbeth is aware that his desires are corrupt, but it also shows that he is supressing his desires. Scene Five: Lady Macbeth is introduced as a manipulative character, who shares more desire for strength than her husband, she reads a letter from Macbeth about the Witches and decides they should kill Duncan to gain power. ● ● ● 'I have begun to plant thee and will labour to make thee full of growing' - Duncan is displaying his appreciation for his allies, this is the first major use of natural imagery, this suggests that the true powers are in sync with nature. 'Look like the flower but be the serpent under it'- LM is using nature imagery to express her desire to be able to achieve her goals, even if it means pretending to be pure, despite the fact that she is the most corrupt of the characters in the play this far. Scene Six: ● ● Duncan arrives at the Macbeths' castle, where the couple pretend to be polite towards the king, despite their plan to kill him. Scene Seven: ● 'I do fear that your nature is too full of the milk of human kindness'- LM's desire for power and evil shows that she sees her husband as weak or unwilling to act upon their shared desire for power. Nature theme is also present in the idea of the 'milk of human kindness'. 'I may pour my spirits in thine ear'- LM believes that she has more power over Macbeth and is able to control him through her own strength and manipulation. Macbeth decides against the plot to kill the king at first, however he is manipulated by LM to kill the king and to frame the murder on the guards. ● 'Come you spirits... unsex me here and fill me from crown to toe topfull of direst cruelty' - LM is shown to reject the gender roles of the society, wanting to become sexless for the power she will gain from it, early in the play LM is shown to be a manipulative rewriting of societal expectations. ● 'Come thick night, pall thee in dunnest smoke of hell'- LM is aware of the darkness in her desires, wanting to be cloaked in the darkness of evil, but not wanting to supress the evil shows that she is worse than Macbeth. 'Return to plague the inventor'- Macbeth is against the murder, as he is aware of the consequences for killing the beloved king, showing that he still has some sense and is in control over his actions. 'I have no spur to prick on the side of my intent'- Macbeth is not enthusiastic for the murder plot, as he fears the repercussions, however he also claims to not desire the power in the same way as LM does. 'Such I account thy love'- LM compares Macbeth's masculinity to a weakened being, which results in Macbeth becoming more accepting of the plot as he is fearful for the way his masculinity is seen within the noble society. 'Like the poor cat in the adage'- LM shows the lacking power of Macbeth by saying that he lacks the enthusiasm to fight, he wants the crown but will not act out in a damaging way- out fear, this further manipulates Macbeth. 'Plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out, had I so sworn'- LM explains to her husband that she is stronger than him, she is willing to act on any promise she makes which makes Macbeth more willing to commit regicide. 'False face must hide what the false heart doth know'- Macbeth explains that the couple must maintain a pure image if they are to achieve what they are aiming for, this is because of the societal expectations for the upper class. Act Two- Scene One- Banquo and his son Fleance are walking when they meet Macbeth, the two soldiers talk about the witches' and their predictions, which leads to Macbeth hallucinating and leaving to kill Duncan. ● 'Mine eyes are made the fools of my other senses'- Macbeth sees a 'dagger of the mind', this suggests a deep sense of aggression within Macbeth, this is the theme of Appearance and Reality as the dagger may be from the Witches or from the Macbeth's subconscious. 'That summons thee to heaven or hell'- Upon hearing a bell in the distance, Macbeth is talking about Duncan (a character who is seen as good by all, even Macbeth), by suggesting that he may be sent to hell Macbeth is seen as more delusion as he deals with his actions. Scene Two- Macbeth kills Duncan, and begins to be overcome by guilt, LM takes over and helps to frame the guards for the murder, both characters end up with blood on their hands. Duncan's murder is not shown on stage, this is because of the difficultly in portraying it, and the fact that the imagination is more gruesome than the portrayal on stage would be. 'What made them drunk has made me bold ... given me fire'- LM is drunk, but rather than being weakened by it, she claims to be more powerful than before, this may be the first sign that LM is not as powerful as presented, relying on alcohol to get through with the murder. 'There's husbandry in heaven'- Banquo becomes aware of the lacking light in the area, which shows the views on nature among different people. Banquo sees the nature as a negative thing, while the corrupt characters are more inviting of the darkness, showing the differences in the characters personalities. 'I think not of them'- Macbeth claims that he is unaffected by the Witches, this use of dramatic irony helps to strengthen the idea that Macbeth is seen as a powerful and morally by the people around him. ● 'Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done it'- LM is again shown as weaker than her own self-image, her relentless ideals have been removed, signalling a possible down fall. 'Sleep no more. Macbeth doth murder sleep'- the idea of guilt has begun to manifest through the reaction of the characters through the murder, Lady Macbeth is quickly restored to her former ruthlessness, while Macbeth is more effected by the murder, leading to the inability to sleep. 'Will all great Neptune's Ocean wash the blood from my hands? No'- Macbeth becomes more unhinged, talking to himself about his own guilty conscious, ideas of nature are presented again through the Ocean. Macbeth's fall from grace is also presented in the form of deities, rather than being worthy of a war goddess, he needs help from the Sea God to wash his hands. 'A little water clears us of this deed'- In response to Macbeths reaction, LM is critical, claiming that there is no guilt to bear for the regicide, and that it was a worthwhile act. Scene Three- The scene begins with the porter, a use of comedy which helps to build up tension among the audience as they are aware of the murder, but the other characters are not. Duncan's body is found, which leads to his sons fleeing out of fear for the accusations they will face, Macbeth begins to act suspiciously and has to be saved by Lady Macbeth. 'The earth was feverous and did shake ... Twas a rough night'- Natural imagery is used to show Scotland's reaction to the murder, before it is even known that the murder has occurred, again suggesting a link among nature and the characters. ● 'O horror! Horror! Horror! ... Most sacrilegious Murder'- Macduff is the true foil to Macbeth, having a brutally emotional reaction to the loss of a true king. This means that Duncan is a true and noble king, and that Macduff is a truly loyal ally to the crown. 'O yet I do repent me of my fury, that I did kill them'- Macbeth claims that he was enraged by the loss of the king and that is why he killed the guards, however the other thanes see through this and begin to see that Macbeth is talking falsely. Leading to LM's pretending to faint 'There's daggers in men's smiles; nearer in blood, nearer the bloody'- Donalbain talks to his brother about the fact they will need to escape Scotland out of fear for their own lives. This shows the way that those of true nobility are persecuted, while corruption succeeds. Scene Four- Rosse and the Old Man discuss the events in Scotland, which reveals that characters are suspicious of Macbeth. 'this sore night hath trifled former knowings'- Despite the Old Man's age the death of Duncan has led to the worst weather in the country, suggesting natures response to the death. 'A falcon, towering in her pride of place, was by a mousing owl hawked at and killed'- An unexpected killing of the falcon by something weaker than it is a metaphor for the murder of Duncan. This makes the death feel more power in the context of the audience, as it shows the unnatural way in which the murder occurred. • 'No, Cousin, I'll to Fife'- Macduff rejects the legitimacy of Macbeth's leadership by refusing to see his crowning, suggesting that the new king is ill fit for the role. Act Three- Scene One: Banquo is suspicious of Macbeth, making Macbeth insecure and he leading to the plot Banquo's murder. • 'King, Cawdor, Glamis, all, as the weird women predicted'- Banquo talks to himself about the situation regarding Macbeth's rise to power and begins to see the way in which the witches may be manipulating the occurrences in the play. 'May they not be my oracles as well and set me up in hope? But hush! No more'- Banquo begins to question whether the witches are powerful enough to predict his own future, regarding that he will 'lesser than Macbeth and greater', however unlike Macbeth he is not accepting of these. He rejects the supernatural and stops thinking about the influence of the witches. ● "To be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus'- Macbeth claims that there is no point in being the king if he is not safe as the king, however this is undersold by the way in which Macbeth frequently acts dangerously and risks himself for his own power. • 'Champion me to the utterance'- Macbeth challenges the idea of fate, by challenging it to a fight, this shows his physical manner wanting to fight a concept of reality 'Who wear our health but sickly in his life, which in his death were perfect'- Macbeth talks of how Banquo makes the king feel ill, in a way to suggest to the murders that the murder of Banquo will restore peace and is a good thing for the country. • 'Banquo, thy souls flight. If it find heaven, must it find it out tonight'- Macbeth again questions the worthiness of characters who are known to be good, as he did with Duncan. Scene Two: LM and Macbeth are insecure in their power and Macbeth talks guilt and his murder plot. 'Duncan is in his grave; after life's fitful fever he sleeps well'- Macbeth talks about how Duncan is better off now he is dead, suggesting a further disconnect between his understanding of right and wrong. It also suggests that Macbeth is jealous of Duncan's death, wanting to go back on his actions. 'Make our faces vizards to our hearts'- LM wants the couple to carry on their facades of truth, making them seem like they are better people than what they truthfully are. Scene Three: Macbeth sends a third murder after Banquo, and then Banquo is killed. The third murderer suggests that Macbeth is insecure in his power and needs more 'allies' even if they are evil. Fleance manages to escape from the Murderers. 'The west yet glimmers with some streaks of day'- The setting shows the remaining light is leaving, metaphorically representing the power which is being replaced by corruption. 'O treachery! Fly; good Fleance, fly, fly, fly! Thou mayst revenge'- Banquo is killed and immediately wants his son to escape, rather than caring for himself, suggesting that he is stronger morally than the self-centered characters. Scene Four: Macbeth is holding a feast at his castle; he receives the news about Banquo's murder and that Fleance escapes. Later Macbeth is terrified of visions of Banquo's ghost. ● 'Are you a man? ... Ay and a bold one'- LM tries to manipulate Macbeth into acting more manly by questioning his gender again, however this time Macbeth acts against this showing that he is gaining more power against this wife. 'Take any shape but that'- Upon being faced with the ghost of Banquo, Macbeth declares that he is able to fight anything physical but cannot deal with the manifestation of his guilt (Banquo's ghost). 'We are yet but young in deed'- LM states that the couple are not done committing sins, which shows her guiltless nature yet again, while Macbeth becomes more obsessed with maintaining his power (by visiting the witches again). Scene Five: Hecate is annoyed that the witches are talking to Macbeth without telling her, as she is the leader of the witches, she then says she is going to make an evil spell to destroy Macbeth. Some people believe that this scene is not written by Shakespeare but was added to make the play seem more elaborate on stage. ● 'He shall spurn fate, scorn death, and bear that he hopes 'bove wisdom, grace and fear'- Macbeth is described as a powerful character, but he is more ambitious than he will be able to achieve, his hopes for power are greater than is attainable. Scene Six: Lennox is suspicious of the power which Macbeth has gained, which has shown the way that even the minor characters are not able to understand the way in which he achieved power. 'Things have been strangely borne'- Lennox who does not hold major influence in the play has no shame in suggesting that the power gained by Macbeth is illegitimate, showing the way in which Scotland is beginning to question his righteousness. 'Macduff is gone to pray to the holy king'- Macbeth is facing direct opposition to his power, through people who doubt his strength enough to go and gain power for a rebellion, by going to a holy king Macduff believes in true nobility, and that Macbeth is not it. 'a Swift blessing ... to this our suffering country under a hand accursed'- Macbeth's unfairly gained power is seen as a negative thing, even to the point of it being ungodly and that he is a curse on the country. Act Four- Scene One: Macbeth visits the witches again, where he receives three more predictions for his future, each making him more secure in his power. ● 'Something wicked this way comes'- Macbeth is no longer the hero he used to be, even the witches see him as evil. ● 'never be vanquished until great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill'- The final predication calls for Macbeth power to become even more cemented, this shows that the character is not going to be defeated as the moving forest would be impossible. 'from this moment on the very firstling of my heart shall be the firstlings of my hand'- Macbeth declares that he will no longer live in fear of others, but rather will act upon all of his actions which he desires, this makes Macbeth seem even more unhinged. Scene Two: As he decided at the end of the previous scene, Macbeth has Macduff's family killed, showing his descent into further ambition fuelled sins. ● ● 'Beware the thane of Fife'- Macduff is the first warning, suggesting that he is the largest threat to the new king, this confirms the fear for Macduff which Macbeth already had. 'None born of women shall harm Macbeth'- Macbeth's fear is alleviated very fast, as he is told that he was told about the way in which no one can challenge him, to Macbeth this makes him seem indestructible. 'Wither should I fly? I have done no harm'- Lady Macduff is refusing to run away, claiming that because she is a good person she will not be attacked, she is then killed by the murderer along with her sons. Scene Three: Macduff is in England, attempting to gain the favour of Malcom and the King of England, however Malcom doubts his loyalty and chooses to Test him by pretending that he will be a bad king. Rosse also shows up with the knowledge that Macduff's family is killed. ● 'Wisdom! To leave his wife, to leave his babes'- Macduff's wife is angry with her husband for abandoning her, this shows how the good characters are being forced into bad actions for the sake of the country. ● 'You have loved him well; he hath not touched you yet'- Malcom states that Macduff has not faced any damage from Macbeth which therefore makes his desire for rebellion unlikely. This is dramatic irony as the audience is aware of the murder in the previous scene. 'Angels are bright still, though the brightest fell'- Duncan is still being referenced to as a good character, this helps to suggest that the long-lasting effects of the murder are still being felt, as the time scale for the play is ambiguous. 'I grant him bloody, luxurious, avaricious, false, deceitful, sudden, malicious, smacking of every sin that has a name'- Macbeth's evil is being described in a long list which showcases the amount of evil which the character has. 'Fit to govern! No, not fit to live'- Despite his desperation for a new king, Macduff rejects Malcom due to his (pretend) bad flaws, this shows that Macduff wants a worthy king and not someone who claims it for evil. In saying this Macduff passes Malcom's test. 'good men's lives expire before the flowers in their caps'- Rosse states that the situation in Scotland is as bad as it was before Macduff left, this makes the audience apprehensive as they know Rosse purpose for being there. This is also the motif of nature for good morals. 'Your wife and babes savagely slaughtered'- Rosse struggles at first to even speak of the evil act, this further shows how lost in sin Macbeth is, and the emotional reaction of Macduff contrasts the Heartlessness of LM. • 'Be this the whetstone of your sword'- Malcom tells Macduff to use his family's death as fuel for rebellion, and to allow his anger to grow and for him to kill Macbeth. Act Five- Scene One: A woman and a doctor are watching Lady Macbeth sleepwalk, showing her return to childlike femineity due to her guilt. 'A great perturbation in nature'- LM's sleep walking is due to her going against what is right in the world, this is consistent with the motif of nature throughout the play. more ● 'She has light by her continually, tis her command'- LM is shown to be afraid of the dark, this makes the claims she made wanting darkness ironic as she now regrets this decision. 'What will these hands never be clean?'- LM acts more like Macbeth during this scene, showing that she is feeling the same guilt but at a later time, this is because she tried to supress her guilt. • 'All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand'- LM is not attempting to improve her morals, but rather to be able to conceal her actions. 'I think, but dare not speak'- The people who are supposed to be loyal to the King are seeing that the royals gained their power through sins, however they are also too afraid to act against them due to the fear of death. Scene Two: Scottish thanes are talking about the English army, and plan to meet them near Birnam wood. 'Some say he is mad; others that lesser hate him do call it valiant fury'- Even those who are still supportive of Macbeth are desperate to make him more justified in his action, however it appears most people are not on his side. • 'meet we the medicine of the sickly weal'- Macbeth is seen as the illness in Scotland and Malcom is the cure, this is consistent with the idea of good and evil Scene Three: Macbeth hears of the English army, which is approaching, however he does not fear this due to the witches' predictions. 'Till Birnam Wood to Dunsinane I cannot taint with fear'- Macbeth is overconfident and now reliant on the Witches' prophecies, showing that he is not able to properly decide on how to act. 'I have lived long enough'- Macbeth is no longer seen as powerful and even he has had enough of the role in which he fought desperately to have. Scene Four: The English army arrives at Birnam Wood, and rumours of deserters are spread to the nobles. The English army cut down a branch from the trees and used them to conceal their true numbers on their approach to the Castle. 'The Confident tyrant keeps still in Dunsinane'- Macbeth is describe as Confident despite the fact the knowledge of the Birnam Wood disguise would make him nervous. Scene Five: Macbeth waits for the army to arrive, and then decides to go out and fight the intruders. Lady Macbeth kills herself. 'It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing'- Even through his murderous sins, Macbeth has been desperate for life and safety, however this suddenly changes when he becomes indifferent to survival. 'I begin to be weary of the sun'- Idea of the natural repercussions of the actions which Macbeth has taken, this makes the idea of the natural motif which expresses good and evil. Scene Six: Malcom has the soldiers drop their branches and then they attack Macbeth's castle. ● 'Those clamorous harbingers of blood and death'- Macduff is not fearful of the warfare, showing that he is in his rightful place. Scene Seven: Macbeth fights and kills Young Siward, then Macduff enters wanting his revenge. ● 'The devil himself could not pronounce a title more hateful to mine ear'- Macbeth's cemented as a figure of hatred in the play, showing his downfall. Scene Eight: Macduff reveals he was born of c-section, but Macbeth fights him anyway. 'I bear a charmed life which must not yield to one of woman born'- Macbeth is still confident in his supernatural strength, however Macduff's birth is revealed, leading to Macbeth's fear of Macduff. ● • 'I will not yield to kiss the ground before Young Malcom's feet'- Macbeth is too far into his bid for power, despite the fact he is 'weary of the sun' he still refuses to give up. Scene Nine: Siward finds out about his son's death and Macduff enters with Macbeth's head, then the thanes celebrate the freedom Scotland has gained now that Malcom is the rightful King. 'The usurper's cursed head. The time is free'- Macduff is the one who announces Macbeth's death, which proves his role as the foil to Macbeth. Now Scotland is free, which proves the importance of rightful Kings. 'By the grace of God we will perform in the measure, time and place'- Malcom talks of how the new Scotland will be righteous by God, this helps the idea of Divine Right.