Act 2, Scene 3

Drunken porter opens the gate for Macduff and Lennox
Duncan’s murder is announced
Macbeth reveals he has killed the servants but said he did it out of anger
Malcolm and Donaldbain plan to flee - Malcolm to England and Donaldbain to Ireland

‘Here’s a farmer that hanged himself on th’ expectation of plenty.’ - Porter

Represents the fact that Macbeth overreaches himself trying to be clever but instead, loses everything.
Emphasises the idea of tragedy
Could foreshadow Lady Macbeth’s suicide (as the farmer committed suicide himself)

‘committed treason enough for God’s sake yet could not equivocate to heaven.’ - Porter

In reference to the equivocator
Saying that he could lie about his crimes but wasn’t skillful enough to lie his way into heaven
Represents the fact that Macbeth lied about not killing Duncan but God will catch him out in the end
‘God’s sake’ - theme of religion: refers to the fact that Macbeth is scared of God/thinks of God but still committed crimes
‘heaven’ - idea is repeated throughout the play - shocks the audience as they were all deeply religious in the Jacobean times

‘What are you?’ - Porter

Breaks the fourth wall - directed at the audience
Shocks the audience as it brings the audience back to the reality
Makes the audience question their own morality - asks which of the sinners they are

‘this place is too cold for hell’ - Porter

Dramatic irony as he doesn’t know about the murder but the audience does
Every single character - even the drunken porter - seems to feel off on the day of the murder

‘I pray you, remember the porter’ - Porter

Audience member may one day be welcomed at the gates of hell
Warning to the audience not to follow Macbeth’s traitorous example - telling us to have good morals

‘the night has been unruly’ - Lennox

Macbeth is so terrible that it has affected everything - e.g nature
The Great Chain of Being - if you hurt a royal chosen by God, you have betrayed God

‘some say the earth was feverous and did shake’ - Lennox

‘ ‘Twas a rough night’ - Macbeth

Comedy - downplays the night Macbeth has had
Possibly amused by what he has done - emphasises bloodlust and psychotic tendencies
Mocks the Great Chain of Being

‘Mean you his majesty?’ - Lennox

Macduff has announced the murder without referencing Duncan - maybe disregarding him as King and possibly thinks that the murder was a good thing - the speech sounds rehearsed
Or Macduff is distraught at the idea of Duncan being murder - therefore he speaks in metaphors

‘What, in our house? - Lady Macbeth

Comedic - Lady Macbeth is unhappy that it was done in her house rather than at the fact that someone was murdered

‘I did kill them’ - Macbeth

‘did’ - distances himself from the act, makes it seem like it was long ago, emphasis due to iambic pentameter
Admits he killed them - comedic
Macbeth rejoins conversation here after killing servants - comes with no blood on him - doesn’t satisfy his bloodlust (hence ‘did’)
Has killed them professionally due to the fact he has no blood on him
Wasn’t a part of Lady Macbeth’s plan

‘Help me hence, ho’ - Lady Macbeth

Emphasises show she could be putting on a performance (iambic pentameter) - therefore trying to regain control over the situation
Makes her look like a helpless female - incapable of murder
Links to patriarchy

‘the near in blood, the nearer the bloody’ - Donalbain

In Jacobean times, kingship was not inherited
The current King looked for the best contender to be the next in line
Macbeth was most likely to become king after Duncan rather than Malcolm due to his bravery in battles which was emphasised in Act 1, Scene 2

Imagines 3 people approaching the gates of hell:

==A farmer== who has stored up grain in hopes of making a profit, but kills himself when a good harvest lowers the price
==An equivocator== (skillful liar) who covers up his crimes with the skill of his tongue
==A tailor== who is discovered cheating his customers by cutting cloth out of the garments he sells

Each character represents a sin of Macbeth’s

Equivocator - lies to hide his crimes and could link to the betrayal of Duncan

Tailor - the clothes he sells are not what they seem - Macbeth clothes himself in a lie