Macbeth
Act I
Act I Synopsis
Macbeth and Banquo
 The warriors, ___________________________
have been victorious in
battle against the traitors Macdonald and the Thane (Lord) of
Cawdor in 11th century Scotland.
 King Duncan hears of their courage before their return home
and in gratitude bestows the title of Cawdor
from the battlefield ________________
on the absent Macbeth.
________________________________________________
 While they are returning from battle, Macbeth and Banquo
encounter three witches on a desolate heath who greet
as Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and “King
Macbeth ____________
hereafter.”
________________________________________________
Act I Synopsis continued …
will beget kings though he will
 They prophesy that Banquo____________________
not himself be one.
_______________________________________________
 Macbeth, who is already Thane of Glamis, is startled when two
messengers from the king greet him as the new Thane of
Cawdor, thus fulfilling the witches’ prophecy in part. (Duncan
has condemned the disloyal Cawdor to death.)
 When Macbeth learns that Duncan’s son Malcolm has been
appointed Prince of Cumberland, automatic successor to the
throne, he momentarily entertains the idea of killing the king, and
so begins the ultimate prediction of the witches on the heath.
Act I Synopsis continued …
 Lady Macbeth falls in with Macbeth’s plot with greater energy
than Macbeth himself, and when Duncan and his retinue pay a
visit to Macbeth’s castle, Lady Macbeth vows ominously that the
king “must be provided for.”
ACT I QUOTES
Macbeth Act I Quotes
 “So foul and fair a day I have not seen.”
Macbeth
 Speaker ___________________________
It is a foul day because of the fighting and blood shed,
 Explanation ____________________________________
but it is a fair day because of their victory.
________________________________________________________.
 “The Thane of Cawdor lives. Why do you dress me in borrowed
robes?”
Macbeth
 Speaker ________________________________________
The Thane of Cawdor is alive, why are you calling by his
 Explanation _____________________________________
name.
________________________________________________.
Macbeth Quotes continued …
 “If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me,
without my stir.”
Macbeth
 Speaker _______________________________________
Fate will make me king. If it’s meant for Macbeth to be
 Explanation _______________________________________
king it will happen without him doing anything.
___________________________________________________
 “…nothing in his life became him like the leaving it.”
Malcolm
 Speaker ______________________________________
Because Cawdor confessed his treasons and was
 Explanation _______________________________________
courage upon his death;, so the only thing he did right or honorable
___________________________________________________
was to die for his acts.
Macbeth Quotes continued …
 “Prince of Cumberland! That is a step on which I must fall down,
or else o’erleap, for in my way it lies.”
 Speaker _______________________________________
Macbeth
 Explanation _____________________________________
The king has made Malcolm the Prince of
Cumberland. This poses a problem for Macbeth because now
Malcolm stands between him and the throne.
 “Yet do I fear thy nature; it is too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness
to catch the nearest way.”
Macbeth
 Speaker Lady
________________________________________
she fears Macbeth is too soft to
 Explanation Because
_____________________________________
_ commit
murder in order to get what he “deserves.”
Macbeth Quotes continued …
 “Come you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,
and fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full of direst cruelty.”
 Speaker Lady
___________________________________
Macbeth
Lady Macbeth is calling upon the spirits to give
 Explanation______________________________________
her the strength of a man or make her less of a woman or
_________________________________________________
non-human so she can participate in the murder of Duncan.
 “Your hand, your tongue. Look like th’ innocent flower, but be
the serpent under’t.”
Lady Macbeth
 Speaker _______________________________________
She is telling Macbeth to be welcoming, but kill
 Explanation_______________________________________
Duncan when he has the chance.
___________________________________________________
Macbeth Quotes continued …
 “I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which
o’erleaps itself and falls on th’ other.”
 Speaker_________________________________
Macbeth
He doesn’t have the desire to commit
 Explanation______________________________________
________
murder, but he feels
he must if he is to become king. So he has this internal struggle
between good and evil.
 “Away, and mock the time with fairest show: False face must hide what the
false heart doth know.”
 Speaker_______________________________________
Macbeth
Macbeth is going against the good
 Explanation______________________________________
.
within him. He must
smile while entertaining Duncan; knowing he plans to kill the king
as soon as Duncan sleeps.
STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS
Study Guide Questions 1-2
 In Scene 1, where do the witches plan to meet again, and WHY?
the hurly-burly's done, when the battle’s lost and won. Upon
 When
_________________________________________________
the heath to meet with Macbeth. (3-8)
 What news about Macbeth does the blood-stained Captain
bring to the king in Scene 2?
brave Macbeth – well he deserves that name – disdaining
 For
_________________________________________________
Fortune, with his brandished steel, which smoked with bloody
execution, Like valor’s minion carved out his passage till he faced
the slave; which nev’r shook hands, nor bade farewell to him, tell he
unseamed him from the nave to th’ chops, and fixed his head upon
our battlements. (16-24).
Study Guide Questions 3-4
 What news does Ross bring about the Thane of Cawdor?
tells Duncan that the Thane of Cawdor was a traitor.
 Ross
_________________________________________________
 What does the king determine to do for Macbeth?
king is bestowing the title of the Thane of Cawdor upon Macbeth.
 The
__________________________________________________
Study Guide Questions 5-6
 What do the witches tell Macbeth and Banquo in Scene 3?
the heath, the witches hail Macbeth as Thane of Glamis, Thane of
 At
__________________________________________________
Cawdor, and that he shall be king hereafter.
witches tell Banquo that he will be lesser than Macbeth yet
 The
___________________________________________________
greater, happier than Macbeth because will no be happy and
that he shall sire kings, though he won’t be one.
 In Scene 5, what is Lady Macbeth’s response to her husband’s
letter with the news about his title and the witches’ prophecy?
do I fear they nature; It is too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness
 “Yet
__________________________________________________
to catch the nearest way.
Study Guide Questions 7-9
 What speech tells you what Lady Macbeth plans to do to
Duncan when he visits the castle?
“…Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,
 __________________________________________________
and fill me, from the crown to the tow, top-full of direst cruelty!
 What are Macbeth’s misgiving’s in Scene 7?
is kin to the king. Macbeth is the king’s subject and host.
 Macbeth
__________________________________________________
Duncan is a good King and his people will mourn greatly and/or
rebel. Everything goes against killing the king
 What is Lady Macbeth’s response to Macbeth’s misgivings?
She accuses him of being a coward, questions his manhood,
 __________________________________________________
and tells Macbeth she will think less of him.
Study Guide Questions 10-11
 How does the weather reflect the human passions revealed in
Act I.
weather is foreshadowing the evil actions which will soon
 The
_________________________________________________
take place. The weather also reflects the inner turmoil with
Macbeth.
 The witches apparently recognize Macbeth as a man marked
for success. Explain why their prophecy of Macbeth’s coming
greatness is actually a temptation to him.
prophecy has planted the seed of discontent in Macbeth’s
 The
__________________________________________________
heart. Instead of being grateful for the title and rewards of the Thane
of Cawdor, he covets the kingship and is unwilling to wait for it to
come to him in a natural way. Macbeth would never have
entertained to though of being king had it not been for the witches.
Study Guide Questions 12-13
 Explain the seeming contradiction in the witches’ greeting to
Banquo in Scene 3: “Lesser than Macbeth, and greater.” How is
this true?
 _________________________________________________
Banquo’s position will be lesser than Macbeth, but Banquo’s
character is greater than Macbeth.
 How do Banquo’s reactions to the witches differ from
Macbeth’s? What does Macbeth’s reaction suggest at once
about his character?
Macbeth believes the prophesy where Banquo listens and
 ________________________________________________
laughs at the prophesy.
Study Guide Questions 14-15
 One critic has said that the witches are “in some sense
representative of potentialities with” Macbeth. Explain this
statement. Is there any evidence that Macbeth has wanted to be
king before?
 __________________________________________________
The witches trick him by planting the seed of discontent for his
position. He has never thought of being king.
 The most interesting part of any serious play is what goes on inside
the characters’ minds. What conflict rages in Macbeth after he
hears the witches’ prophecy? What effect do the events of Scene
4 have on the conflict?
Macbeth wants to be king, but when Malcolm is anointed as the Prince
 _____________________________________________________
of Cumberland, Macbeth becomes angry and this is where he makes
the decision to kill Duncan. He continues to struggle within himself.
Study Guide Questions 16-17
 We see Lady Macbeth alone for most of Scene 5, then with
King Duncan and his party in Scene 6. What impressions do
you have of her character by the end of Scene 6?
Lady Macbeth is showing the evil side of her ambition. She is willing
 __________________________________________________
to help Macbeth kill Duncan. Lady Macbeth is the one to initiate the
killing plan. Macbeth is more passive and Lady Macbeth is more
aggressive.
 Describe the temperamental differences between Macbeth
and his wife. Who is more single-minded and logical? Who
is more imaginative and sensitive? Which one wins the
argument?
Lady Macbeth is single-minded and imaginative/not sensitive.
 ___________________________________________________
Macbeth is more logical and sensitive. Lady Macbeth wins the
argument and the continue in their plan to kill Duncan.
Study Guide Questions 18
 What irony would the audience feel as they watch Duncan
enter the castle and hear him praise its peacefulness?
Duncan is going to die there.
 __________________________________________________
Act I
 Name 2 animals associated with the witches?
Cat /Graymalkin is the witches cat.
 _______________________________________
Toad / Paddock
 _______________________________________
 Who invaded Scotland?
The Norweyan (Norwegian) invaded Scotland.
 __________________________________________
 In Scene 2, why does King Duncan give Macbeth a new title?
he showed bravery in battle and defeated the kerns and
 Because
__________________________________________
the gallowglasses from the Western Isles.
 What is Duncan’s flaw?
 __________________________________________
Duncan’s flaw is that he sees the best in people.
Act I continued …
 Who praises Macbeth and expresses a desire to visit Inverness?
king want to go to Macbeth’s castle, Inverness.
 The
________________________________________________
 When we first meet Lady Macbeth, what is she doing?
Macbeth is reading Macbeth’s letter informing her of all that
 Lady
________________________________________________
has happened.
 What does Lady Macbeth complain that Macbeth lacks?
Macbeth lacks the courage to go through with the plan to kill in
 ________________________________________________
order to get what he wants.
Act I continued …
 Who worries about the consequences of his actions?
Macbeth worries about the consequences of his actions. He is
 _____________________________________________
worried they may fail.
 Who doubts Macbeth’s determination to kill the king?
Macbeth doubts Macbeth’s determination to kill the king.
 Lady
______________________________________________
Act I continued …
 Who accompanies Macbeth in his encounter with the Witches?
is with Macbeth.
 Banquo
_______________________________________________
 When she hears that Duncan plans to visit, what does Lady
Macbeth resolve?
Lady Macbeth resolves that they will kill the king.
 _________________________________________________
Act I continued …
 In the final scene, what conflict do Lady Macbeth and Macbeth
have?
Lady Macbeth and Macbeth argue over his desire to not kill the king
 ________________________________________________
and enjoy the gifts and praise being bestowed upon him now.
 Who seems more forceful and ambitious – Macbeth or his wife?
At this time, Lady Macbeth seems to be the most forceful and
 ________________________________________________
ambitious in her pursuit of Macbeth’s position as king.
 What is Macbeth’s tragic flaw?
Macbeth’s tragic flaw is his lust for power.
 ______________________________________________