Macbeth Final

Major Characters

• Macbeth: Brave warrior → Ambitious murderer → Paranoid tyrant → Defeated villain.

• Lady Macbeth: Ambitious and manipulative → Guilt-ridden and broken → Dies.

• Banquo: Noble and cautious → Murdered → Legacy lives on.

• Macduff: Loyal and moral → Grief-stricken avenger → Hero.

• The Witches: Ambiguous, manipulative, symbolic of fate and chaos.

Theme

Ambition and Power – Macbeth’s desire to rise at any cost leads to his ruin.

Guilt and Conscience – Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are psychologically destroyed by guilt.

Fate vs. Free Will – Do the witches control Macbeth, or does he choose his own downfall?

The Supernatural – Witches, ghosts, and visions drive much of the action.

Appearance vs. Reality – Deception is key: “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.”

ACT 1

Macbeth, a respected Scottish general, encounters three witches after a victorious battle. They prophesy he will become Thane of Cawdor and then King of Scotland, while his friend Banquo will father a line of kings.

The first prophecy comes true immediately when Macbeth is made Thane of Cawdor.

Lady Macbeth, upon hearing the prophecy, pushes Macbeth to murder King Duncan to seize the throne.

Theme Introduced: Ambition vs. morality, supernatural influence, gender and power.

ACT 2

Macbeth murders Duncan in his sleep, but is immediately filled with guilt and paranoia.

Lady Macbeth smears blood on the guards and frames them for the murder.

Duncan’s sons, Malcolm and Donalbain, flee, fearing for their lives—making them seem guilty.

Macbeth is crowned king.

Theme Deepens: Guilt as a destabilizing force, deceit and appearances.

ACT 3

Macbeth, now king, feels insecure because the witches said Banquo’s descendants would be kings.

He hires murderers to kill Banquo and Banquo’s son, Fleance. Banquo is killed; Fleance escapes.

At a banquet, Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost, shocking the guests and revealing his mental instability.

Theme Evolves: Tyranny and insecurity, descent into madness.

ACT 4

Macbeth returns to the witches. They give him new, misleading prophecies:

“Beware Macduff”

“None of woman born shall harm Macbeth”

“Macbeth shall never be vanquished until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane”

Macbeth becomes overconfident.

He orders the massacre of Macduff’s family.

Macduff flees to England and joins Malcolm to raise an army.

Theme Highlighted: False security from prophecy, evil escalating.

ACT 5

Lady Macbeth, tormented by guilt, begins sleepwalking and obsessively trying to wash imagined blood from her hands. She eventually dies (likely by suicide).

Malcolm’s army disguises themselves with branches from Birnam Wood, fulfilling the prophecy.

Macduff confronts Macbeth and reveals he was born via Caesarean section, so not technically “of woman born.”

Macbeth is killed. Malcolm becomes king and restores order.

Final Themes: Justice, downfall of the tyrant, restoration of order.