A Strange
Exhilaration
Feraco
Search for Human Potential
28 November 2011
Stars and Sons
 Macbeth’s first act ends on a note of moral darkness.
 Its second act begins in literal darkness, as Fleance
(Banquo’s son) and his father briefly note that the
stars and moon seem to have gone out.
 Fleance’s perfunctory appearances – he shows up
here, then during the attack in Act III – seem
irrelevant, but they gain meaning through their
brevity.
 We barely know him.
 We don’t understand what he wants or needs.
 But neither does Macbeth.
 The Weïrd Sisters’ words to Banquo only establish
Fleance as a threat, and because Macbeth doesn’t
know when his counterpart will take power, how he
will take it, or why he will take it, that threat is
amplified by its ambiguity.
 By keeping Fleance on the play’s margins,
Shakespeare not only ensures that he’ll be just as
enigmatic to us, but that we’ll understand Macbeth’s
decisions regarding him, even if we don’t agree with
them.
The Shadow at Night
 If Fleance is, by design, not the first
sequence’s focus, Banquo surely is.
 It is his curse to be the Govinda of this
play, not in function but in relation:
every decision he makes and every
word he speaks carries with it an
extra dimension of meaning, for we
cannot help seeing him as he relates to
Macbeth.
 But while Govinda was content to be
the shadow of greater men, Banquo’s
relationship with Macbeth – “Lesser
than Macbeth and greater; not so
happy, yet much happier; thou shalt
get kings, though thou be none” – is
much more complicated.
Separated Self
 First, it must be noted that Banquo
represents the man Macbeth was
before he heard the witches’ words.
 Before they meet the Sisters, the men
are much the same – two nobles of
roughly equivalent stature, two close
friends and brothers in arms who
defend the same cause, etc.
 When the Sisters speak, both men
demand that they say more than their
original greeting to Macbeth.
 The Sisters oblige their requests –
after attempting to refuse – by giving
Banquo three sentences of his own
(equal to Macbeth’s “prophecy”).
Shut Your Eyes
 But the two diverge once they process
what the witches said.
 For while Macbeth loses himself in
ambitious fantasy, Banquo actively
resists the words’ effects on his
psyche.
 He, like Macbeth, is ambitious – he
agrees to speak with Macbeth about
the prophecies later here, just as he
does at the end of Act I’s third scene –
but he’s so troubled by the places
ambitious thoughts lead him that he
refuses to follow them.
Singing a Sad Song
 When we meet him in Act II’s first
scene, Banquo is refusing to sleep –
shades of the curse Macbeth will soon
bring upon himself.
 Where sleep represents salvation and
serenity for Macbeth, for Banquo it
only means a dark place where he
cannot control his urges.
 Banquo’s dreams, in short, frighten
him.
 So he refuses to dream, just as his
friend will once he’s killed his way to
the throne, and prays for “merciful
powers” to take away those evil
impulses just as Lady Macbeth prayed
for the ability to unleash hers.
Every Man Has His Price
 Even this early in the play,
Shakespeare has provided his
audience with nuanced, literarily rich
characters. They have layers.
 Lady Macbeth is a character in her
own right, but so much more as well:
the representation and voice of every
dark impulse her husband possesses,
as well as a sly vehicle for
commentary on women’s roles and
conventional morality.
 Through her, Shakespeare can ask
difficult questions about whether
one’s personal loyalties should
outweigh one another, or whether said
loyalties should outweigh one’s larger
duties and responsibilities.
The Heir of Empty Breath
 If Lady Macbeth would argue in favor
of personal loyalties and personal
desires, Banquo would argue that
one’s pre-established duties matter
more, and that the greater good
should always outweigh one’s own
desires.
 As Macbeth’s best friend, he
represents Macbeth’s connection to
humanity (as his connection to Lady
Macbeth is something else entirely).
 But he also comes to embody
everything about Macbeth that we
would have once respected.
The Loosing of the Shadow
 When Macbeth meets him in darkness –
identifying himself as a friend – it’s really the
last chance the former has to see his better
nature and break away from his plan.
 But he doesn’t: he schemes in plain sight of his
best friend, and Banquo – his better nature – is
so troubled by the witches’ words that he
doesn’t recognize how far Macbeth’s willing to
go until it’s too late.
 Just as he did during the Sisters’ appearance,
Banquo sounds a note of caution: he pledges
here that he’ll serve Macbeth loyally, but that
he won’t betray his king.
 These two pledges are, of course, incompatible.
 And when Macbeth murders him after taking
the throne, Banquo’s ghost haunts the hall; the
king is haunted by nothing less than the
virtues he’s forsaken, embodied by the
connection to humanity he’s figuratively and
literally severed.
What’s Left Unsaid
 One quickly senses while reading
Macbeth that a great deal of staging
and blocking (the pre-arranged
positions, poses, and movements for
the actors) never made it into print.
 The play derives a great deal of
meaning through body language and
tone of voice, but what’s obvious on
stage doesn’t always come across well
in print, especially if one struggles to
understand Shakespeare’s dialogue.
 As the play progresses, these things
become more important, and a careful
consideration of stage direction is
necessary in order to “get” some of
the play’s biggest moments.
Follow Your Instincts
 The opening conversation between Macbeth
and Banquo is much nervier than the words
imply; Banquo’s so jumpy that, upon hearing
Macbeth approach, he grabs his sword back
from Fleance and holds it at the ready.
 Contemporary readers may think this a
perfectly normal response to the approach of
an unknown figure under cover of total
darkness.
 Remember, however, that this takes place in
Macbeth’s castle.
 It’s supposed to be safe there (per the “birds’
nests” conversation in Act I’s sixth scene); why
is Banquo so terrified?
 It’s not due to the traumatic after-effects of the
battles he fought earlier in the play; over a day
has passed since
 Banquo’s wound himself up, and fear dulls his
“wise” instincts while heightening the others;
he doesn’t see “the serpent under the flower”
until it’s too late.
Red Pill, Blue Pill
 Distorted perceptions played a role in
Siddhartha (maya/satyam), and with
Macbeth’s impending descent into
hallucination-fueled paranoia, we know
they’ll be important here too.
 But it’s important to note that nobody sees
Macbeth “as he truly is” – not Duncan, not
Banquo, not even Lady Macbeth.
 Macduff, who we meet shortly, quickly sheds
his preconceptions regarding the new king,
but even he sees Macbeth as nothing but a
simple villain – a monster, a creature of pure
evil.
 Macbeth is seen differently by everyone who
sees him, and the only times we really get a
sense of his true self are when Shakespeare
allows him to lapse into soliloquy.
What You’ll Never See
 One of his most famous soliloquies
happens immediately after that tense,
charged conversation with Banquo – in
plain view of his son – comes to a close.
 Macbeth sees a dagger, weeping blood,
floating towards him in the otherwise
empty air.
 There’s a lot of business about
masculinity as it relates to strength,
and the phallic undertones of the
dagger grow more overt as Macbeth
contemplates both the vision-weapon
and his own.
 Does Macbeth take control, as his wife
insists a man must, and wield the
blade?
No World for Tomorrow
 What, indeed, defines a man?
 Macbeth says he won’t do more than one
should, for one whose ambitions outweigh
what’s expected of him as a man relinquishes
all claims of being one.
 But is this a situation where those ambitions
are the only means he has of “being a man”?
 Does he even have a choice?
 Can he choose not to kill when the witches
tell him he will be king, when his wife
demands that he must be king, when even
the air sprouts blades and drips blood before
his very eyes while he’s alone?
 What’s the alternative?
 Where can he escape?
Summoning
 Macbeth’s alone in the room, yet Shakespeare’s
staging and dialogue pace gives the audience an
overwhelming impression of a trapped man,
hemmed in on all sides but one, and with only
one path to take.
 Macbeth frantically tries to summon his resolve
as the bell tolls outside (the sign for him to
commit the crime), and he leaves the stage.
 The bell tolls even as the scene ends; Macbeth
says that it’s to herald Duncan’s departure,
either his ascent to heaven or descent to hell, but
we know it really signals Macbeth’s descent.
 Dante may be able to venture into the depths of
hell and come out on the other side stronger for
it; divine love sent him, and divine love guides
him.
 Macbeth’s acting according to the words of
witches and the demands of his wife, who nobody
would mistake for representing divinity; he, too,
will stare into the abyss, but he’s never coming
back.
Paint the Shadows Red and Black
 The second scene, too, is a masterpiece of
staging.
 It takes place in the Macbeths’ bedroom,
normally a place of intimacy and love.
 Where better to set a furious argument over
murder and betrayal, complete with both
principals covered in their victim’s blood?
 Lady Macbeth tells the audience that she’s
done her job – drugging the guards,
unlocking Duncan’s doors for her husband,
lovingly arranging the daggers for him to
use, and ringing the bell to tell him that the
coast is clear.
 With particular relish, she says she would
have simply stabbed him herself if he hadn’t
reminded her so strongly of her father.
Never Feel Forgiven
 But this isn’t meant to simply make us
shiver, or to underscore Lady Macbeth’s
vileness.
 In an instant, Macbeth appears in panic
mode, covered with blood, clutching both
daggers, the very picture of obvious guilt – a
complete contrast to the cool, collected
plotting of his wife.
 For someone who’s just murdered his king
and guest in his sleep, Macbeth somehow
seems blameless; we watch him rant and
rave, clearly not reveling in his triumph, and
extend our sympathy.
 He’ll lose that sympathy quickly enough, but
here, for the last time in the entire play,
Macbeth strikes us as a human being, fragile
and frightened and filled with regret for his
crime.
Decide Your Side
 Without that initial impression of
Lady Macbeth to provide us with a
direct contrast, an audience won’t
react that way.
 But Shakespeare shows us a figure
who speaks pure evil, lets us reject
her, and then compares his tragic
protagonist with her in an amazingly
deft bit of narrative manipulation.
 Conventional definitions of evil fall
apart here; if asked whether Lady
Macbeth or Macbeth is more “evil,”
which do you choose?
 Are we defined by who we are, or what
we do?
The Seas Incarnadine
 Lady Macbeth’s willingness to take control of
the situation by taking the daggers, stabbing
Duncan again (she needs more blood),
smearing the blood on the guards, and
planting the daggers on their sleeping forms
only reinforces the contrast with her
husband.
 Macbeth bemoans that all the waters of the
world could not clean his hands of their
crimes – that if he were to dip them in the
ocean, the ocean would turn red, and his
hands would remain unclean.
 This image will prove important in Act V;
Lady Macbeth may scorn Macbeth’s “white
heart,” but her line about a little water
“clearing [them] of this deed” is more
fateful than she can imagine.
Sleep No More
 Shakespeare continues playing with the
control concept later in the scene, during a
small speech by Macbeth about sleep (which
we know will take on greater importance in
retrospect).
 By “murdering sleep,” Macbeth has denied
himself the “balm of hurt minds,” leaving
himself without the “chief nourisher in life’s
feast.”
 He is doomed to walk without rest, work
without peace, live without any sense of
security.
 This is, of course, the logical consequence of
his actions.
 Yet it’s one he doesn’t see coming; he pays no
attention to what will happen beyond the
immediate result of his choice because
there’s no thought behind what he does.
Puppet
 By essentially submitting to the
demands of others – making a puppet
of himself – Macbeth puts himself in a
position where he must constantly
react to surprising circumstances.
 He’ll try to take back control, to get
out in front of fate, later, but those
attempts will prove disastrous.
 Essentially, Macbeth’s damned if he
does, and damned if he doesn’t; once
you relinquish control, it’s pretty hard
to get it back.
Stumbling Drunk
 When we begin Scene III, we meet a figure
who’s out of control for a different reason
 Like Hesse, Shakespeare uses inebriation for effect
here.
 We’re introduced to the Porter, a doorkeeper
of sorts, who’s had far too much to drink and
behaves in a deeply inappropriate fashion
towards Macbeth’s guests.
 At first, this seems to be a “pacing
sequence” – something to break up the
unrelenting doom and gloom of the tragedy,
and one could be excused for seeing it as
such considering its specific place in the
play’s structure.
 But the Porter isn’t just there for comedy’s
sake, and Macduff’s introduction here isn’t
randomly placed.
Fate Inebriates
 Instead, we should notice two things about
the exchange.
 Firstly, we have the “fair is foul” motif once
more, when the Porter talks about what
excessive drink brings and what it removes.
 The overriding message is that drink brings
fleeting joy – that the removal of control
allows us to fantasize more wildly and take
more chances – but that the drinker
ultimately suffers.
 It’s impossible to hear the Porter talk about
drink and not think about how Macbeth’s
behavior has changed following his
encounter with the Weïrd Sisters.
 By getting drunk on fate and relinquishing
control, Macbeth has allowed himself to be
“given the lie” by his dreams – which
inevitably “leave him.”
The Primrose Way
 At the scene’s outset, the Porter
pretends to be the gatekeeper for Hell
itself.
 Obviously, he’s closer to correct than
even he suspects.
 In a truly chilling line, he says that he
intended to let in those “who [went]
the primrose way to th’ everlasting
bonfire” – those whose choices take
them to Hell – just before he lets in
Macduff.
 Considering what happens as a result
of Macduff’s choices later in the play,
it would seem that the Porter has
done what he set out to do.
Disorder, Disorder
 But Macduff, unlike the Sisters, has no
sense of what his future holds.
 He has a brief, friendly conversation
with Macbeth (the friendliness is onesided; Macbeth is still agitated
following the murder) and goes into
the castle, where he’ll discover the
king’s corpse almost immediately
 We only have enough time to learn
that earthquakes have hit Scotland
and that the night has been filled with
endless screaming before he storms
back out.
It Only Gets Worse
 The next sequence is just about the
only time where Macbeth reacts
effectively and immediately to
shifting circumstances.
 As soon as Macduff returns, Macbeth
grabs the former’s servant (he needs
a witness) and charges off.
 Lady Macbeth appears, hears the
news, and (buying her husband time)
swoons dramatically.
 While the men are distracted by the
damsel in distress, Macbeth pretends
to be overcome with rage (for
Lennox’s benefit) and kills the guards
as they’re waking up.
Holding One’s Tongue
 When Macbeth comes back, he’s the
one to inform Malcolm and Donalbain
that their father’s been murdered; to
everyone but Macduff, he looks
genuinely aggrieved.
 Macduff is suspicious of his guardslaughter – even the Thane of Cawdor,
caught in the act of his crime, had to
testify before his execution.
 Why kill the guards before they can
explain why “they” did what they’d done?
 But those suspicions are nebulous,
based more on guts than analysis, and
Macduff is intelligent enough not to
voice them in Macbeth’s stronghold.
Things Fall Apart
 Thus the crime is perfectly set up, carried
out, and sealed off: no witnesses but the
criminals themselves, and (thanks to the
previously-discussed departures of Malcolm
and Donalbain, fleeing the “daggers in men’s
smiles”) no one left to keep Macbeth from
the throne.
 When Act II closes on a short scene of
disorder – men talking of owls killing falcons,
horses eating each other, and the choking,
endless night, shortly before Macduff
returns home to Fife, the scene of the
Norwegian invasion – it appears that Macbeth
has followed Fate’s dictates and won a
treasure outstripping his wildest dreams.
 But three acts remain, and it never gets
better for Macbeth than it does here.