William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” is a tragedy about ambition, guilt, and moral corruption. Written around 1606, the play follows Macbeth, a Scottish general who receives a prophecy that he will become king. This prediction sets him on a path of murder and tyranny. What begins as a moment of temptation transforms into a nightmare of bloodshed and paranoia. Shakespeare explores how unchecked ambition destroys both individuals and nations. The play remains one of his darkest and most powerful works, examining the psychological cost of choosing evil.
Table of Contents
Plot Summary
Act 1
The play opens with three witches planning to meet Macbeth. King Duncan’s army fights rebels in Scotland. Macbeth and Banquo, both generals, defeat the traitors. On their way back, they encounter the witches. The witches prophesy that Macbeth will become Thane of Cawdor and then king. They tell Banquo his descendants will be kings.
Soon after, messengers arrive. Duncan has made Macbeth Thane of Cawdor. The first prophecy comes true. Macbeth writes to his wife about the witches. Lady Macbeth immediately plans Duncan’s murder. Duncan arrives at Macbeth’s castle. Macbeth hesitates to kill him, but Lady Macbeth convinces him to proceed.
Act 2
Macbeth murders Duncan while he sleeps. He returns covered in blood, shaken by what he’s done. Lady Macbeth takes the daggers and places them with the guards. Macduff discovers Duncan’s body. Macbeth kills the guards, claiming he acted in rage. Duncan’s sons, Malcolm and Donalbain, flee. People suspect them of murder. Macbeth becomes king.
Act 3
Macbeth fears Banquo knows too much. He also remembers the prophecy about Banquo’s descendants. He hires murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance. They kill Banquo but Fleance escapes. At a banquet, Banquo’s ghost appears to Macbeth. Only Macbeth can see it. He reacts with terror. Lady Macbeth tries to calm the guests. The banquet ends in chaos.
Act 4
Macbeth visits the witches again. They show him three apparitions. The first warns him to beware Macduff. The second says no man born of woman can harm him. The third says he’s safe until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane. Macbeth feels secure. But he orders Macduff’s family murdered. Macduff is in England, convincing Malcolm to return and fight.
Act 5
Lady Macbeth has gone mad. She sleepwalks and tries to wash imaginary blood from her hands. She kills herself. Malcolm’s army marches toward Dunsinane. They cut branches from Birnam Wood as camouflage. The prophecy begins coming true. Macbeth learns his wife is dead. He feels empty and lost. In battle, Macbeth meets Macduff. Macduff reveals he was born by cesarean section, not naturally. Macduff kills Macbeth. Malcolm becomes king.
Character Analysis
Macbeth
Macbeth begins as a brave soldier. Duncan calls him “valiant cousin” and “worthy gentleman.” He has a conscience. When he considers killing Duncan, he lists all the reasons not to: “He’s here in double trust. First, as I am his kinsman and his subject. Strong both against the deed. Then, as his host, who should against his murderer shut the door, not bear the knife myself.”
But ambition overpowers his morality. Lady Macbeth’s persuasion pushes him forward. After murdering Duncan, guilt consumes him. “Methought I heard a voice cry, ‘Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep.'” He cannot wash the blood from his hands literally or figuratively.
As king, he becomes paranoid and tyrannical. He orders more murders. Each crime makes the next easier. By the end, he’s numb. When Lady Macbeth dies, he responds with emptiness: “She should have died hereafter.” He recognizes life’s meaninglessness: “It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
His transformation is complete. The brave soldier becomes a monster. The man with a conscience becomes numb to evil.
Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth appears stronger than her husband initially. When she reads his letter, she immediately plans murder. She fears he’s “too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness.” She calls on dark spirits: “Unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty.”
She manipulates Macbeth by questioning his manhood. “When you durst do it, then you were a man.” She provides practical guidance for the murder. She seems fearless and ruthless.
But guilt destroys her. She sleepwalks, trying to wash blood from her hands. “Out, damned spot! Out, I say!” She cannot forget what they’ve done. “All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.” Her earlier strength was performance. Inside, conscience was working. She takes her own life, unable to bear the weight of guilt.
Banquo
Banquo serves as Macbeth’s foil. He also hears the witches’ prophecy. He also feels tempted. But he resists. He tells Macbeth: “But ’tis strange, and oftentimes, to win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths.” He warns that evil often uses partial truths as bait.
Banquo suspects Macbeth murdered Duncan. “Thou hast it now: King, Cawdor, Glamis, all, as the weird women promised, and I fear thou played’st most foully for’t.” But he says nothing publicly. This silence makes him complicit to some degree.
His ghost represents Macbeth’s guilty conscience. It appears at the moment when Macbeth should feel triumphant. The ghost reminds him of the price of his crown.
Macduff
Macduff represents loyalty and justice. He discovers Duncan’s murder. He suspects Macbeth immediately. He refuses to attend Macbeth’s coronation. He goes to England to help Malcolm.
When he learns Macbeth murdered his family, his grief is intense. “All my pretty ones? Did you say all?” Malcolm tells him to “dispute it like a man.” Macduff responds: “I shall do so, but I must also feel it as a man.” He combines strength with human emotion.
He fulfills the prophecy by killing Macbeth. His victory restores justice. He represents the moral order that Macbeth violated.
Malcolm
Malcolm is Duncan’s son and rightful heir. He flees after his father’s death, which makes people suspect him. In England, he tests Macduff’s loyalty by pretending to be even worse than Macbeth. This shows political wisdom beyond his years.
He leads the army that defeats Macbeth. At the end, he promises to restore order. “What’s more to do, which would be planted newly with the time, as calling home our exiled friends abroad that fled the snares of watchful tyranny.” He represents legitimate authority and the return of moral governance.
The Witches
The three witches are ambiguous figures. They predict the future but also seem to influence it. Their prophecies tempt Macbeth. But do they cause his actions or merely reveal his character?
They speak in riddles and paradoxes. “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.” They represent the supernatural forces that blur moral boundaries. They show that evil often comes disguised as opportunity.
Major Themes
Ambition and Its Consequences
Unchecked ambition drives the tragedy. Macbeth’s desire for power leads him to murder. Each crime requires another to cover it up. The pattern escalates. Shakespeare shows how ambition, once unleashed, cannot be controlled. “I am in blood stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er.”
The play asks whether Macbeth was destined to become evil or chose it. The witches’ prophecy acts as temptation, not fate. Macbeth makes the crucial decisions himself.
Guilt and Conscience
Guilt haunts both Macbeths. Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost. Lady Macbeth cannot wash away imaginary blood. Shakespeare shows that conscience cannot be silenced. Even when they try to harden themselves, guilt finds a way through.
The play suggests that humans need moral boundaries. Without them, psychological destruction follows. Guilt is the price of violating natural law.
Appearance vs. Reality
Things are not what they seem. “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.” Macbeth appears loyal but murders his king. Lady Macbeth appears strong but breaks down. The witches’ prophecies seem clear but contain hidden meanings.
Duncan trusts appearances and dies for it. “There’s no art to find the mind’s construction in the face,” he says about the previous Thane of Cawdor. He makes the same mistake with Macbeth. The play warns against trusting surfaces.
The Nature of Manhood
Characters debate what makes a man. Lady Macbeth defines manhood as ruthless action. She tells Macbeth to “screw your courage to the sticking place.” Macduff defines manhood as including emotional depth. “I must also feel it as a man.”
Shakespeare questions whether true strength means suppressing all gentle feelings. The play suggests that real courage includes moral awareness and emotional honesty.
Order and Chaos
Duncan’s murder disrupts natural order. Strange events follow. Horses eat each other. Owls kill falcons. Darkness covers day. Shakespeare uses these supernatural signs to show that regicide violates cosmic harmony.
The play reflects the “Great Chain of Being” concept. Everything has its proper place. A king’s murder breaks the chain. Only restoring legitimate authority can repair the damage.
Fate vs. Free Will
The prophecies raise questions about destiny. Are Macbeth’s actions predetermined? Or does he choose his path? The play suggests both operate. The prophecy reveals possibility, but Macbeth chooses to pursue it through evil means.
Banquo hears the same prophecy but doesn’t murder for power. This shows free will exists. The witches predict but don’t control.
Dramatic Structure and Tragic Elements
Aristotelian Tragedy
Macbeth follows classical tragic structure. The protagonist has high status. His hamartia (tragic flaw) is ambition. He experiences peripeteia (reversal of fortune) when Malcolm’s army approaches. He has anagnorisis (recognition) when he realizes the prophecies’ true meaning. His fall evokes catharsis in the audience.
Five-Act Structure
Act 1 establishes the situation and temptation. Act 2 contains the murder and its immediate aftermath. Act 3 shows Macbeth consolidating power through more violence. Act 4 marks the turning point when opposition organizes. Act 5 brings resolution through Macbeth’s defeat and death.
Soliloquies
Shakespeare uses soliloquies to reveal internal conflict. Macbeth’s “If it were done when ’tis done” shows his moral struggle. “Is this a dagger which I see before me” reveals his psychological state before murder. “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” expresses his final despair.
These soliloquies make the audience understand Macbeth even while condemning his actions. We see his humanity alongside his monstrosity.
Dramatic Irony
The audience knows more than the characters. We know Macbeth murdered Duncan. We watch him lie. We see Lady Macbeth’s guilt build. We know the prophecies’ double meanings before Macbeth does. This creates tension and emotional involvement.
Key Scenes Analysis
The Witches’ Prophecy (Act 1, Scene 3)
The witches meet Macbeth and Banquo. “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” This moment changes everything. Macbeth’s reaction shows the prophecy awakens existing ambition rather than creating it.
Banquo’s response contrasts with Macbeth’s. He remains skeptical and cautious. This scene establishes the play’s central tension between prophecy and choice.
Lady Macbeth’s Persuasion (Act 1, Scene 7)
Macbeth decides not to murder Duncan. Lady Macbeth attacks his resolution. She questions his manhood. She describes how she would kill her own baby if she had promised to. The language is violent and shocking. “I would, while it was smiling in my face, have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this.”
This scene shows the psychological dynamics of their relationship. Lady Macbeth understands exactly how to manipulate him.
The Murder (Act 2, Scene 2)
Macbeth kills Duncan offstage. He returns terrified. “I have done the deed. Didst thou not hear a noise?” He brings the bloody daggers. Lady Macbeth must return them. Knocking at the gate interrupts. The murder scene is short but intense. Shakespeare focuses on psychological aftermath rather than physical violence.
The knocking represents the outside world and moral judgment breaking in. It shows that evil deeds cannot remain hidden forever.
Banquo’s Ghost (Act 3, Scene 4)
At the banquet, Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost. Only he can see it. He speaks to it while guests watch. “Thou canst not say I did it. Never shake thy gory locks at me!” Lady Macbeth tries to cover his behavior. The scene shows Macbeth’s guilt manifesting as hallucination.
The ghost appears when Macbeth should feel secure. He’s king. His rival is dead. But he cannot enjoy his position. Guilt ruins everything.
The Sleepwalking Scene (Act 5, Scene 1)
Lady Macbeth walks in her sleep. She rubs her hands. “Out, damned spot!” She relives the murders. “Yet who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?” The doctor and gentlewoman witness her confession. This scene shows the complete breakdown of her earlier strength.
The scene is tragic and pitiful. The woman who seemed so hard has been destroyed from within.
The Tomorrow Speech (Act 5, Scene 5)
Macbeth learns his wife is dead. His response is famous: “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day to all the last syllable of recorded time. And all our yesterdays have lighted fools the way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more. It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
This soliloquy expresses complete nihilism. Macbeth has lost everything, including meaning itself. His ambition has led to absolute emptiness.
The Final Battle (Act 5, Scene 8)
Macbeth fights despite knowing he will lose. He refuses to surrender. “I will not yield to kiss the ground before young Malcolm’s foot.” He tells Macduff about the prophecy: no man born of woman can kill him. Macduff reveals: “Macduff was from his mother’s womb untimely ripped.”
Macbeth realizes the prophecy’s trick. But he fights anyway. “Yet I will try the last.” This shows courage even in evil. He dies as a warrior, though he lived as a tyrant.
Historical and Political Context
James I and the Gunpowder Plot
Shakespeare wrote “Macbeth” around 1606, shortly after the Gunpowder Plot. Catholic conspirators tried to blow up Parliament and kill King James I. The plot failed. The nation was obsessed with treason and loyalty.
“Macbeth” explores themes relevant to this context. It shows the horror of murdering a king. It depicts the consequences of treason. James I claimed descent from Banquo, so the play flatters him by showing Banquo’s nobility.
Divine Right of Kings
The period believed in the divine right of kings. Kings ruled by God’s authority. Killing a king was both treason and sacrilege. It violated both earthly and cosmic order.
The play’s supernatural elements support this worldview. Duncan’s murder brings chaos to nature. Only restoring legitimate authority can fix things. Shakespeare reflects his era’s political theology.
Scottish History
Shakespeare based the play loosely on Holinshed’s Chronicles. The real Macbeth ruled Scotland in the 11th century. He killed Duncan but was a relatively effective king. Shakespeare changed history for dramatic effect.
He made Duncan older and more virtuous. He compressed the timeline. He added Lady Macbeth’s prominent role. These changes served the play’s moral and dramatic purposes.
Witchcraft Beliefs
James I wrote “Daemonologie,” a book about witchcraft. He believed witches posed real danger. Witch trials were common. The play’s witches reflect these contemporary beliefs.
But Shakespeare makes them ambiguous. Are they supernatural beings or psychological projections? This ambiguity makes them more dramatically interesting than simple villains.
Symbolism and Motifs
Blood
Blood appears constantly. Macbeth sees blood on the dagger. Duncan’s blood covers the daggers. Macbeth’s hands are bloody. Lady Macbeth sees blood she cannot wash away. Blood symbolizes guilt that cannot be erased. “Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?”
Sleep
Sleep represents peace and innocence. Macbeth murders sleep along with Duncan. “Macbeth does murder sleep.” He suffers insomnia. Lady Macbeth sleepwalks. The loss of sleep symbolizes the loss of peace. Guilty minds cannot rest.
Darkness and Light
Most evil happens at night. Macbeth asks stars to hide their light. Lady Macbeth calls on night to cover her deeds. Darkness symbolizes evil and concealment. Light represents truth and moral clarity. The darkness imagery creates atmosphere and meaning.
Clothing
References to clothing suggest Macbeth wears titles that don’t fit him. “Now does he feel his title hang loose about him, like a giant’s robe upon a dwarfish thief.” He’s wearing Duncan’s crown unlawfully. The metaphor suggests usurped power never fits properly.
Nature
Unnatural events follow Duncan’s murder. Horses eat each other. An owl kills a falcon. Darkness covers daytime. These events show that regicide violates natural law. Nature itself rebels against the disorder.
Children
Children and descendants appear repeatedly. The witches predict Banquo’s descendants will be kings. Macbeth has no children. He murders Macduff’s children. Children represent the future and natural succession. Macbeth’s childlessness means his crimes have no lasting purpose.
Language and Literary Devices
Paradox
The play opens with paradox. “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.” This establishes the theme of deceptive appearances. Other paradoxes include “Lesser than Macbeth, and greater” (about Banquo). Paradoxes express the play’s moral confusion.
Metaphor
Shakespeare uses rich metaphors. Life is “a walking shadow.” Ambition is compared to a horse that jumps too high. Sleep is “the death of each day’s life.” These metaphors create vivid imagery and deeper meaning.
Equivocation
The witches’ prophecies use equivocation. They’re technically true but misleading. “No man of woman born” seems to mean no man at all. But it actually means men born naturally, excluding cesarean births. This device shows how language can deceive.
Soliloquy
Macbeth’s soliloquies reveal his thoughts. They create sympathy despite his evil actions. We understand his internal conflict. The soliloquies make him human rather than simply monstrous.
Dramatic Irony
Duncan praises Macbeth’s castle: “This castle hath a pleasant seat.” He will be murdered there that night. The audience knows what Duncan doesn’t. This creates tension and tragic emotion.
Imagery
Animal imagery appears throughout. Macbeth is compared to a bear. Macduff is a bird protecting his nest. The horses that eat each other symbolize unnatural disorder. This imagery reinforces themes and creates atmosphere.
Comparison Table: Macbeth’s Transformation
| Stage | Character Traits | Actions | Internal State | Key Quotes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beginning (Act 1) | Brave, loyal, moral, hesitant | Defeats rebels, receives prophecy, considers but questions murder | Conflicted between ambition and conscience | “If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me without my stir” |
| After Duncan’s Murder (Act 2) | Guilty, fearful, unstable | Kills Duncan, frames guards, lies to subjects | Tormented by guilt, losing sleep | “Methought I heard a voice cry, ‘Sleep no more!'” |
| As King (Act 3) | Paranoid, tyrannical, hardening | Orders Banquo’s murder, sees ghost, loses control | Growing numb, guilt manifesting as hallucination | “I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er” |
| Deep in Tyranny (Act 4) | Ruthless, desperate, reckless | Murders Macduff’s family, seeks witches again | False confidence from prophecies, moral numbness complete | “From this moment the very firstlings of my heart shall be the firstlings of my hand” |
| Final Stage (Act 5) | Empty, nihilistic, defiant | Fights despite knowing he’ll lose, refuses surrender | Complete despair, life has no meaning | “Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more” |
Reading Recommendations
- “Hamlet” by William Shakespeare – Another tragedy exploring guilt, indecision, and moral corruption. The contrast between Hamlet’s hesitation and Macbeth’s action illuminates both plays.
- “King Lear” by William Shakespeare – Examines power, ambition, and the consequences of disrupting natural order. Lear’s madness parallels Lady Macbeth’s breakdown.
- “Richard III” by William Shakespeare – Features another ambitious murderer who seizes the throne. Richard’s self-awareness contrasts with Macbeth’s self-deception.
- “Doctor Faustus” by Christopher Marlowe – Explores a man who sells his soul for power and knowledge. The theme of damnation through choice connects to Macbeth’s story.
- “The Duchess of Malfi” by John Webster – A Jacobean tragedy featuring murder, guilt, and moral decay. Shows the dramatic conventions Shakespeare worked within.
Key Takeaways
- Unchecked ambition leads to moral corruption and psychological destruction
- Guilt cannot be escaped or suppressed; it manifests in psychological and physical ways
- The play questions whether evil is chosen or destined, ultimately suggesting free will exists
- Appearances deceive; true character reveals itself through actions and consequences
- Legitimate authority and natural order must be restored after disruption
- Shakespeare uses supernatural elements to explore psychological states and moral themes
- The tragedy works through character development rather than just plot events
- Language and imagery create meaning beyond the literal story
FAQ Section
Q: Are the witches real or symbolic?
A: Shakespeare leaves this ambiguous. To Jacobean audiences, witches were real threats. In the play, they seem to have supernatural powers. But they might represent Macbeth’s own dark thoughts. The ambiguity serves the play’s themes. Whether external or internal, they symbolize temptation and moral confusion.
Q: Is Macbeth evil from the start?
A: No. He begins as a loyal soldier with a conscience. His lengthy deliberation before killing Duncan shows moral awareness. Lady Macbeth must push him hard to act. But ambition exists in him already. The witches and Lady Macbeth awaken it rather than create it. He chooses evil, but the choice comes from internal weakness meeting external temptation.
Q: Why does Lady Macbeth go mad?
A: Guilt destroys her. She appeared strong initially, but that was performance. Her “unsex me” speech shows she had to suppress her natural feelings. Once the suppression fails, guilt overwhelms her. She cannot reconcile her actions with her conscience. The bloodstain she cannot wash away represents guilt she cannot escape.
Q: What do the prophecies mean?
A: The prophecies are deliberately ambiguous. “No man of woman born” excludes men born by cesarean section. “Birnam Wood to Dunsinane” happens when soldiers carry branches. The prophecies are technically true but misleadingly phrased. They show how desire for certainty can blind people to reality. Macbeth hears what he wants to hear.
Q: Is Macbeth sympathetic?
A: This is debated. He commits terrible crimes. But Shakespeare shows his suffering and humanity. We see his conscience before it dies. We watch guilt torture him. His final despair is genuinely tragic. The play doesn’t excuse his actions but shows how a person with potential for good can choose evil. This complexity makes the tragedy powerful.
Conclusion
“Macbeth” remains powerful because it explores timeless human experiences. Ambition, guilt, and the temptation to do wrong for personal gain are universal. Shakespeare shows how one bad choice leads to another. How suppressing conscience doesn’t eliminate it. How power gained through evil cannot bring satisfaction.
The play works as psychological drama. Macbeth’s internal journey is as important as external events. We watch his conscience die and his humanity disappear. We see how evil transforms people. This psychological realism makes the supernatural elements metaphorically true even for modern audiences who don’t believe in witches.
Shakespeare also explores political themes. What makes a legitimate ruler? How does tyranny affect a nation? What responsibility do subjects have? These questions remain relevant. The play shows that disrupting social order has consequences beyond individual lives.
The tragedy’s power comes from showing how ordinary human weaknesses lead to extraordinary evil. Macbeth isn’t a monster. He’s a man who makes terrible choices. This makes the play both warning and mirror. We see what we could become if we let ambition override morality.
