Macbeth Act 3

“I fear thou play'dst most foully for't.“

• The word foully echoes the witches earlier paradox

• Banquo avoids saying the words murder or treason. He uses the word played framing Macbeth’s regicide as a game → a ruthless match played by breaking the rules or cheating

• Shows the corruption of loyalty. The fracture of what once was an honourable brotherhood

"To be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus"

• Macbeth laments that he has ruined his soul and committed murder only to hand a secure legacy over to Banquo’s children

• wearing the crown brings him no joy or peace because he lives in constant fear of losing it

"Our fears in Banquo stick deep"

• The phrase ‘stick deep’ portrays Macbeth’s fear as something that is rooted, painful and permanent

• Macbeth is reflecting on his insecurity of being king

"Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown, / And put a barren sceptre in my grip"

• The crown and the sceptre are traditional symbols of divine right. By pairing them with words of infertility, Shakespeare strips them of their glory, turning them into badges of meaningless power

• Demonstrates the futility of unchecked ambition. Macbeth achieves his only goal, only to discover it doesn’t bring peace or joy

• Macbeth attempts to shift the blame

"Rather than so, come fate into the list, / And champion me to the utterance!"

• “Rather than so” shows Macbeth’s frantic refusal to accept reality

• ‘The list’ refers to the enclosed area used for medieval jousting. Here Macbeth sees fate as a physical opponent he can challenge to combat

• Macbeth is challenging a fight to the end, demonstrating his hubris. He believe he can wrestle destiny itself and rewrite the supernatural that demands his power.

"Both of you know Banquo was your enemy"

• Macbeth uses psychological manipulation since Banquo was never actually the murderes’ enemy. Macbeth fabricates this grievance to shift the blame

• By not killing Banquo himself, he can distance himself from the murder

"Nought's had, all's spent, / Where our desire is got without content"

• The phrase exposes total bankruptcy of the spirit. They spent their peace, morality and safety only to find the reward empty

• Highlights the hollow nature of ambition. Getting what you want doesn’t mean enjoying it

“’Tis safer to be that which we destroy / Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy"

• “Tis safer to be that which we destroy” shows that LM envies Duncan. In his death, he has escaped turmoil, backstabbing and torture that the Macbeths now face

• “By destruction” highlights that their power is built on murder and corruption

• “Doubtful joy” is an oxymoron, showing that their happiness is not true joy; it is tainted, insecure, fragile and plagued with paranoia

"O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife!"

• Shakespeare uses the metaphor scorpions to compare his chaotic, stinging thoughts to a nest of scorpions. This implies that his guilt is actively torturing him from within

• Calling her ‘dear wife’ highlights a mix of intimacy and emotional reliance, yet Macbeth doesn’t tell her about the plot to kill Banquo

"Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck”

• Shift in power dynamics. Earlier in the play, LM was the “dearest partner of greatness”, but here Macbeth takes full control, sidelining her

• In the 17th century, “chuck” meant chick/chicken. This term is diminutive and patronising

• Macbeth may view LM as an potential obstacle who would try and stop him or he regards her as unnecessary for his new ambition

“O, treachery! Fly, good Fleance, fly, fly, fly!”

• Shows parental love vs self preservation. As the assassins strike, Banquo’s immediate instinct s not to save himself but his son

• “Pathetic adjective “Good” highlights their close, affectionate bond contrasting sharply with the cold, bloodthirsty environment that Macbeth has created

• The frantic repetition of “fly” conveys extreme urgency, panic and the realisation that Macbeth has become a murderer

“A light, a light” , “(enter Banquo and fleance with a torch”, “who did strike out the light?”

• Banquo carries a torch, symbolising his truth, goodness and life

• As the 3rd murdered

• R asks “who did strike out the light?”, the physical loss of the flame mirrors the violent snuffing out of Banquo’s life

"Thou canst not say I did it: never shake / Thy gory locks at me"