MACBETH
SCENE SUMMARIES
Act II Cian Hogan English Notes 2013
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© C. HOGAN NOTES Commentary
Act II
Commentary
❝ Fair is foul, and
foul is fair: Hover
through the fog and
filthy air. ❞
Act II Commentary
A c t I I i s f u l l o f s u s p e n s e a n d h e h a s b e e n h av i n g a g r e a t d e a l o f
dr am a. As Ban qu o prepares for bed, i t is t r o u bl e s l e e p i n g . I t wo u l d s e e m t h a t
ver y obviou s th at h e is ill at ease an d Ban qu o h as been af fected by th e evi l
a p p r e h e n s i v e . We
are
reminded
o f th at th e Wi tch es represen t an d th at h e is
Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s disturbing n o w
struggling
to
resist
i nvoc atio n s to th e n i gh t, wh en h e looks I n t e r e s t i n g l y , d u r i n g
that
their
evil.
first
wor r yi n gly to th e n i gh t sky an d obser ves appear an ce , S h akespeare emph asi ses th e
that the candles of heaven, or the star s, Witches’ ability to interfere with sleep.
“a re a l l o u t ”. Ou r t h o u g h t s a r e th en I n
this
p l a y, s l e e p
is
symbolic
of
i m m ed ia te ly dr awn to t h e W it c h es wh en i n n o c e n c e a n d M a c b e t h ' s i n a b i l i t y t o
Banquo admits to his son, Fleance that s l e e p b e c o m e s s y n o n y m o u s w i t h h i s
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© C. HOGAN NOTES commentary
descent into evil. However, it is impor tant to emphasise that for the moment,
Ban qu o r es i s ts th e e vil th at, we mu st assu me , fin ds its or igin in h i s meeti n g w ith th e
Weird Sister s. He pr ays to the order of angels, whose task it is to defend mankind
f r o m e v i l t o r e s t r a i n i n h i m t h e "cur sed thoughts that nature Gives way to in repose !"
H er e , we se e th at Ban qu o actively tr i es to resi st evi l . Wh en Macbeth ar r i ves, h e
s tar tl e s Ban qu o wh o, reach in g for h is sword, remi n ds u s of th e ten se an d u n easy
atm o sph e r e th at s til l per vades followi n g th e Norwegian i nvasi on an d Caw do r' s
tr each e r y. Af te r s o me discu ssion abou t th e n igh t' s festi vities, Ban qu o open ly adm i ts
to h i s f r i en d th at h e h as been dreamin g of th e Witch es. Macbeth l i es wh en h e
de n ie s h avin g th o u gh t abou t th em. H e th en makes a ver y obviou s attem pt to
c o r r u p t B a nqu o:
If y ou s ha ll c l e a v e to my co n se nt, wh e n 'tis ,
It s h al l ma ke h on ou r fo r yo u .
Banquo's reply leaves Macbeth in no doubt about where his fr iend's loyalties lie:
So I l os e n on e
In s ee kin g to au gmen t it, b ut still ke e p
My b os om fra nc h is ed a nd a l l e gia nce c lea r,
I s h al l b e coun s e l l e d .
A l t h ou gh B a nqu o res is t s Ma c be t h' s i nvitation to become i nvolved in anyt hi n g
u n der h an de d; h i s re f u sal also amou n ts to a clear ackn owl edgmen t th at Macbeth is
attem ptin g to c o r r u pt h im. L ater, wh en we come to assess Ban qu o' s reacti o n to
D u n c a n ' s mu r d e r, t h i s w i l l b e c o m e ve r y s i g n i fi c a n t . O nce he i s a lone , Ma c bet h sets about i mplementing the plan to kill D u nc a n .
T h e c r i ti c , H aro l d Bloom, h as descr ibed Macbeth as bein g domi n ated by h i s
i m agi n ati o n . A s h e s ees a dagger f loatin g in th e air before h im, we h ave to
acknowledge that this may be a super natur al event provoked by those agents of
e vi l, th e Wi tc h e s . Impor tan tly th ou gh , Macbeth h i msel f di smi sses th is n otio n . H e
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© C. HOGAN NOTES commentary
Act II
Commentary
c l a i m s th at wh at h e s e e s is a "d a g ge r o f t h e m i n d", " a fa ls e c re a tio n p ro c e e d i ng
fro m t h e h e at op pres sed brain ." The tension of the night’s events and the immor ality of
the “ b l o o d y b u s i n e s s”, create a distu r bin g visu al h al l u cin ati on th at h alts Macbe th in h i s
tr ac ks . As h e c o n s i de r s th is appar i tion , Macbeth admits th at wh atever i ts or i gin s m ay
be , this dagger is merely pointing him in a direction he was already taking:
Thou mar shall'st me the way that I was going;
T h i s i s a h i gh ly s i gn i fican t admiss ion th at is vi tal to ou r u n der stan di n g of Macbeth ' s
dow n f al l . T h e tr age dy of Macbeth ' s li fe can n ot be appreciated u n l ess we accept th at h e
i s r e spon s i bl e fo r h is own action s. H i s w ife an d th e Wi tch es pl ay a rol e in h is down f all
b u t t h e y a r e c a t a l y s t s t h a t , m u c h l i k e t h e d a g g e r, m e r e l y m a r s h a l l h i m i n
a direction that he was already taking. As confir mation that he intends to proceed with
the
plan, the
dagger
suddenly
starts
to
drip
blood. Once
he
admits that this appar ition is pointing towards a future of his own making, Macbeth
e n t e r s in to a ki nd o f ima g in a t ive r en der in g of the evi l at wor k i n the w i der wor l d , an
e v i l he h a s wil li ng ly e mbr a c e d. H e pe r sonifi es mur der and i magi nes "w i t c h c ra f t"
c e le br at in g "Pa l e H e c a t e ' s o f fe r i n g" w h i l e "w ith er ' d mu rd er, Al a ru m 'd by h is sen tin el , th e
w o l f , s t a l k s t h e l a n d." The r inging of the bell which is Lady Macbeth's signal that
e ver yt hi ng is rea dy, in te r r u pt s h is re ver ie :
I go, a nd it i s do ne ; the be l l invi te s me .
He a r i t n ot, Du nca n; fo r i t is a k n e l l
Tha t s u m mons t he e to hea ven o r to h e l l .
S c e n e ii o pe n s as L ady Macbeth an xiou sly awaits h er h u sban d' s retu r n . S h e adm its
t h a t s h e h a s b e e n d r i n k i n g i n o r d e r t o e m b o l d e n h e r a c t i o n s a n d , m o s t
s i g n i fic a n t ly, t ha t s he wo u ld h ave kill ed Duncan her self had he not " rese m b le d [h er ]
father as he slept ". E i t h e r o f t h e s e f a c t s in dic a te s th at Lady Macbeth may not be as mon str o us a s
h e r e a r ly s o l i l o q u i e s a n d e x h o r t a t i o n s t o h e r h u s b a n d wo u l d h ave u s b e l i e ve . Ta ke n
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© C. HOGAN NOTES commentary
Act II
Commentary
together, they indicate an undeniable vulner ability belying her cold exter ior. When
Macbeth retur ns, Duncan is dead an d n oth i n g wil l ever be th e same agai n . O ver th e
c o u r s e of th e n e x t two scen es, D u n can ' s bed ch amber takes on th e aspect of an in n er
s a n c tu m f r o m whi ch ch a r a c t e r s e m er ge power fully changed. Macbeth is visibly sha ken
by w h at h e h as do n e . H e explai n s th at h e h eard a voice war n h im th at h e h as
"mu rd e re d s l e e p" an d h is gu ilt is i n stan tly r ecogn i sabl e in h i s accou n t of bein g u n able
to j oi n two o f th e gu ests, wh o woke su dden ly, in pr ayer. In terestin gly, th e voi c e h e
h e a r s s p e a k s o f G l a m i s h av i n g "mu rd e r ' d s l e e p". As a result, Cawdor will sleep no more .
If th is i s th e vo ic e of h is trou bled con scien ce , i t con tai n s an admissi on th at th e
process that has brought him to commit murder began long before he was named
T h a n e o f C aw d o r.
Lady Mac be t h howe ver d o es not shar e he r hus band' s exci ted imagina ti o n . H er
m i nd i s l i t er al , an d he r v ie w o f th e wor ld is l acking in the i magi native dep th t ha t
we w i tn e s s i n Mac be th . To h er, th e screech of an owl is preci sely th at, an d D u n c an ’s
blood on h er h u sban d is simply a " fi l thy witn e s s" that can that can be easi ly wa shed
from his hands.
Wh en sh e not ices the d a g g er s, s he is appalled at this de par tur e fr om t he p l an .
She urges him to return to the room and place the dagger s next to the sleeping
c h a m b er l a i n s. Wh en he re f u s e s , s he is for ced to take matter s i nto her ow n h an ds.
O n ce agai n , we gli mpse someth in g of h er n aivety wh en sh e su ggests th at i f D u n can h as
bled, th at sh e will " gild the faces of the grooms witha l ." S h e h as li ttle u n der stan din g of wh at it mean s to ki l l , an d th e bloody r eal i ty o f
s e ei n g D u n c an mu rde red, is someth in g sh e wil l n ever for get. T h e blood, th at s h e cl aim s
c an eas ily be was h e d away, will in f act leave an i n deli ble stain th at wi l l h au n t h er fo r
th e r es t of h e r li fe . O n ce sh e leaves Macbeth on h i s own , we gl i mpse th e degree to
w h ic h h e i s i ns ta nt ly s h a me d by wh at he has done . As Macduff knocks at t he do or,
Macbe th i s te r r i fie d by th e sou n d, an d lookin g at h is h an ds, h e provides on e o f th e
m os t m e m o r a bl e me t aph o r s in a ll of S hake spear e for hi s over w helming sense o f gu i l t.
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© C. HOGAN NOTES commentary
Act II
Commentary
Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood
Cl ean f rom my h an d? No , thi s my h and wi l l ra the r
The mu lti tu di n ou s s ea s in inca r nadi ne ,
Ma ki n g th e g re e n on e re d .
By n o t s h owi n g u s th e mu rder an d con cen tr ati n g i n stead on th e ef fects of th is ter r i ble
c r i m e on th e pe r pe tr ator, S h akespeare reser ves sympathy for Macbeth . T h es e scen es
nu m be r am o n gs t th e most ten se in th e pl ay an d, in order to reser ve ten si o n fo r th e
discover y of the body, Shakespeare provides an element of comic relief in the for m of
the por ter, whose jokes and quips also comment obliquely on the play's main themes.
Wh en Mac be th jo i n s L en n ox an d Macdu f f , we h old ou r breath in an ti cipatio n o f th e
di scover y of th e bo dy. E ver yth in g r ides on Macbeth su ccessf u l ly convi n cin g th em of h i s
i n n o ce n c e . L e n n ox gi ves u s th e fir st in a ser i es of all u si on s to th e vast di stu rban c e
that Macbeth's cr ime has visited on the kingdom:
The n ig h t ha s b ee n un ru ly: wh e re we la y,
O ur c h imn eys w e re b lown down ; and, as th e y say,
La m enti n gs he a rd i' th e a ir ; strange scre ams o f d e ath,
A nd prop h es y i n g wi th accen ts terr ib l e
O f di re com b us t ion a nd co nfu se d even ts
New h atc h 'd t o th e wo efu l ti me: th e o b scu re b i rd
Cl a mou r' d t he l i ve l ong n igh t: so me say, th e ea r th
Was feve rous an d d id sh ake .
It f a l ls to M a cdu ff t o c o nve y t o us th e ful l hor r or of w hat Macbeth h as do ne .
D e s c r i b i n g t h e mu r d e r i n p u r e ly r e l i g i o u s t e r m s , h e fo r c e s u s t o c o n s i d e r t h e e x t e n t o f
th e vi ol ati on th at h as been per petr ated on th e peopl e of S cotl an d. Macbeth ' s cr im e is
a " m a s t e r p i e c e" o f "confusion " and disorder, a " sacr i l e gio us murde r " th at wi l l pl u n ge th e
c o un tr y i nt o a s ta te of s h o c k a n d te r r or. Rushing w i th Lennox to view Dunca n' s b od y,
the limitations of the plan to blame the grooms are revealed when Macbeth is forced
to gu ar an te e th e ir s i len ce by kill in g th em. T h e assembled T h an es, wh o n ow in c lu de
D u n can ' s so n s , Malc olm an d D on albain , are in credu lou s at Macbeth ' s de ci si o n to
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© C. HOGAN NOTES commentary
Act I scenes i to vii
Commentary
mu r de r th e o n ly po ten tial mater ial wi tn esses to th e cr i me . Wh at foll ows i s a ver y
o bv i ou s a n d po o r ly e xe c u t e d pla n by Macbeth to di sgui se hi s guilt w ith a p r ep ar ed
s pe e ch . Al t h o u gh Sha ke s pe a re is n ot ex plicitly clear about w hy Lady Macbeth f ai n ts, i t
i s te m pti n g to re gard th is as an attempt to dr aw atten tion f rom h er h u sban d' s over ly
dr amatic account of having murdered the chamber lains out of love for Duncan. If you
fo cu s for a mo me n t on Ban qu o’s reaction to th e mu rder, you sh ou l d n otic e h ow
quickly he assumes a leader ship position by calling for an investigation. He states that
h e s t a n d s "I n t h e g re a t h a n d o f G o d” and he vows to fight to reveal the undivulged
pr eten c e be h i n d th i s mu rder. H is lan gu age i s most i n terestin g. In h is movemen t f ro m
an inclusive “ u s ” to the individual “I ”, Banquo betr ays his i nner bel i ef that he ho l ds a
u n iqu e per s pe c tive o n th e mu rder. T h e en cou n ter wi th th e Witch es an d Macbeth ’s
s u b seq u e nt a tt empt s t o c o r r u pt hi m, have pr ovided Banquo w i th thi s per sp ect i ve .
Im po r t an tly, it i s o n e wh ic h h e fails to shar e w ith the assembled T hanes. Lat er, i n
s o li l oqu y, Ban qu o gives voice to h is fear s th at Macbeth may h ave been beh in d th e
mu r de r. T h e s e pr ivate misgivin gs speak ver y badly for h i s f ail u re to reveal pu bl i c ly h is
s u spi c io n s c o n c e r n i n g th e mu rder of h is ki n g. S cen e i v, takes u s ou tsi de th e c astl e as
Macdu f f an d R o s s dis cu ss th e even ts of th e past few days wi th an old man . S o m e ti m e
h as el apse d s i n c e th e mu rder an d n ow th at Malcol m an d D on albai n h ave dec i ded to
f l ee to E n glan d an d Irelan d respe cti vely, th ey are th e ch ief su spects i n th ei r f ath er’s
assassination. We lear n that Macbeth has been named Duncan’s successor and that
Kingship
The theme of
kingship is central to
any reading of
Macbeth.You should
play close attention
to the manner in
which Shakespeare
develops this theme.
7
© C. HOGAN NOTES commentary
the countr y’s nobility is on
❝ Here lay
its w ay to S c o n e to s e e h is
investiture
as
king.
Duncan, His silver
skin laced with his
golden blood; And
his gash'd stabs
look'd like a breach
in nature For ruin's
wasteful entrance:
N o t a bl y, M a c d u f f i n f o r m s
Ross that he does not
in t en d o n be in g pre se n t a t
th e c o r o n atio n . T h is is th e
first
subtle
sign
of
o p p o s i t i o n t o M a c b e t h ’s
r u l e . Ve r y impo r tan tly, we
❞
le ar n f r o m R o s s an d th e
o l d m a n ab o ut a s e r i e s o f
dis tu r ban ce s to th e n atu r al
wor ld that have , we can
o n ly as s ume , b e e n c a u s e d
by Macbeth ’s cr ime .
The
old
man
A fa l co n , tow e r in g in h er
pride of place,
by
a
mousing
owl
hawk'd at and kill'd.
This
is
an
Duncan’s
broke
free
horses
from
their
and “Contending
'ga in st o b ed ie n ce , a s th e y
would
m a ke Wa r
with
m a n k i n d”, we nt on to eat
on e an oth er. T h ese even ts
both
foreshadow
Macbeth’s
crime
and
h i g h l i g h t fo r u s t h e e x t e n t
of the vast disturbance
obvious
foreshadowing
how
stables
descr ibes how last Tuesday:
Wa s
An d th en , R os s recou n ts
of
th at h e h as vis ited on th e
wor ld.
Macbeth’s cr ime .
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KEY QUOTES Act II
1. M AC BETH: Away, an d mock th e time with th e f airest sh ow, f alse f ace mu st h ide
w h a t t he f als e h e a r do t h k n ow.
2. B ANQUO: Mercif u l power s, restr ain in me th e cu r sed th ou gh ts, th at n atu re gives
w ay t o i n re po se .
3. M AC BETH: Is th is a dagger, wh ich I see before me , H an del toward my h an d?
Come let me clutch thee: I have thee not, and yet I see thee still, Ar t thou not,
f a t a l v i s i o n , s e n s i bl e t o fe e l i n g a s t o s i g h t ? O r a r t t h o u bu t a d a g g e r o f t h e m i n d ,
a false creation, proceeding from the heat oppressed br ain?
4. M AC BETH: T h ou gh mar sh all’st me in th e way th at I was goin g.
5. M AC BETH: Natu re seems dead, an d wicked dreams abu se th e cu r tain ’d sleep:
w i t c h cr a ft c e le br a t e s Pa le He cats of fe r i ngs.
6. M AC BETH: I go an d it is don e: th e bell invite me . H ear it n ot D u n can for it is a
knell, that summons thee to heaven or to hell.
7. L A DY M ACBETH: T h ’attempt an d n ot th e deed con fou n ds u s.
8. M AC BETH: T h is is a sor r y sigh t.
9. M AC BETH: Bu t wh erefore cou ld I n ot pron ou n ce Amen ?
10. L A DY M ACBETH: T h ese deeds mu st n ot be th ou gh t af ter th ese ways: so it will
m a ke us mad .
9
11. M ACB E TH: S leep n o more: Macbeth does mu r th er sleep, th e in n ocen t sleep.
12. M ACB E TH: H ow is’t with me wh en ever y n oise appals me?
© C. HOGAN NOTES commentary
13. M ACB E TH: Will all great Neptu n es O cean wash th is blood clean f rom my h an d?
14. LA DY MACBETH: My h an ds are of you r colou r : bu t I sh ame to wear a h ear t so
white.
15. LA DY MACBETH: A little water clear s u s of th is deed.
16. M ACB E TH: To kn ow my deed, ‘twere best n ot kn ow myself .
17. P O RT E R: T h is place is too cold for h ell.
18. P O RT E R: Mar r y, sir, n ose-pain tin g, sleep, an d u r in e . L ech er y, sir, it provokes an d
u n p r ovo ke s : i t p r ovo ke s t h e d e s i r e , bu t i t t a ke s aw ay t h e p e r fo r m a n c e .
19. LE N N OX: lamen tin gs h eard I’ th ’ air ; str an ge screams of death
20. LE N N OX: dire combu stion , an d con f u s’d even ts
21. LE N N OX: th e ear th was feverou s, an d did sh ake .
22. M ACD U F F: Con f u sion n ow h ath made h is master piece .
23. M ACB E TH: T h e spr in g, th e h ead, th e fou n tain of you r blood is stopp’d
24. B ANQUO: In th e great h an d of G od I stan d, an d th en ce , again st th e in divu lg’d
pretence , I fight of treasonous malice .
25. M ACD U F F: L est ou r old robes sit easier th an ou r n ew,
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