Z NOTES
Ma cb et h
2014
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Contents
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M a c b e t h Re v i s o n
The ch a ra c t e r a n d re s p o n s e o f reader an d sympath y
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M acb et h’s ac t i o ns /c ri me s – h or r ific an d h or r ifyin g
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O u r res po n s e
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O ur Re s po ns e 1: I nt eres t an d sympath y
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O ur Re s po ns e 2: A f re e man / h is decision /respon sibility
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O ur Re s po ns e 3: M ac be t h is n ot a completely evil man
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O ur Re s po ns e 4: M ac be t h ’s u n der stan din g of w h at h e h as don e
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O ur Re s po ns e 5: M ac be t h ’s h eroism
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Macbeth Revison
The character and response of reader and sympathy
Macbeth’s actions/crimes – horrific and horrifying
M a c b e t h ’s crimes are great: he murders Duncan, his king, kinsman a n d
g u e s t , a n ageing king who has lavished praise and honours upon h i m .
H e i s m o t ivated by his own ambition. He murders the two sleep i n g
g ro o m s , i nnocent men on duty, to protect himself. He hires killer s t o
m u rd e r h i s close friend, Banquo; again to protect his security. H e
ar ra n g e s f or the murder of Lady Macduff and her children, all innoc e n t
vi c t i ms . Th e se a ctio ns result in a re ign of t e rror in S cot lan d.
Our response
And yet somehow our sympathy for Macbeth is sustained
t h ro u g h ou t.
Our reaction/response goes beyond good and evil, beyond
c o n v e n t i o nal morality and moves in the deeper realm of hum a n
i n s t i n c t . We can feel pity for the latent nobility of Macbeth at t h e
en d a n d at the same time recognise with horror the evil he w a s
re s p o n s i b le for. In the play we watch the growth of evil in a no b l e
so u l .
( Fir s t imp re s s i ons ; Macb e th at top of socia l/politica l hiera rchy )
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Sh a ke s p eare endowed Macbeth with all the qualities we expect o f a
he ro.
H e i s u n q uestionably a brave soldier. When we first hear of him in t h e
p l a y h e i s lauded as “brave Macbeth”, “Bellona’s bridegroom”, “valo u r ’s
m i n i o n ”, “ noble cousin”, “worthy gentleman”. He possesses outstand i n g
l ea d e r s h i p qualities and has been an inspiration to his fellow soldi e r s .
H e i s t h u s introduced to us a s a general of extraordinary prowess w h o
h a s q u e l l e d a rebellion within Scotland and repelled the invasion o f a
f o re i g n a r my. “Everyone did bear his praises in his kingdom’s g reat
d efe n c e ”.
M a c b e t h i s not only a fine soldier; his wife tells us he is a lov i n g
h u s b a n d “ full of the milk of human kindness” and what “he woul d ’s t
h i g h l y, w o uld’st ho lily ”.
I t i s t h e t e nsion between this potential for greatness that we witn e s s
at t h e o u t set of the play and Shakespeare’s depiction of Macbe t h ’s
hor r if y in g cri m e s that m ake s this pla y so fa scinating.
Our Response 1: Interest and sympathy
W h at i s e mphasised most of all throughout Act 1 is how difficult i t i s
f o r M a c b e th to come to terms with the evil he is contemplating. H e
hesitates; he agonises; he considers the moral and political
con s e q u e nce s of k i l l i ng Du n ca n.
A ft e r t h e meeting with the witches he confronts “black and d e e p
desires” which had lain dormant within him. He believes their
“ s u p e r n at u ral soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good”. He tells us t h e
t h o u g h t o f murder “shakes so my single state” and that to contemp l at e
y i e l d i n g t o his desires gives rise to “a horrid image doth unfix my h a i r
an d m a ke my seated heart knock at my ribs against the use of natu re ”.
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M a c b e t h h as a finely honed sense of morality and in the early acts of t h e
p l a y h e i s far from an amoral monster. He knows that killing the king i s a
v i o l at i o n of God’s natural order and yet his ambition is such that h e
d e c i d e s t o proceed. (This is what makes this play such a compel l i n g
p i e c e o f d ra ma .) Both before and after Duncan’s murder we a re
s h o w n M a cbeth’s agonised conscience through his soliloquies wh i c h
are ex p re s s e d i n a p oe ti c and emotiv e la ngua ge. His description o f
D u n c a n ’s virtues is lyrical when he claims the king “hath borne h i s
f a c u l t i e s s o meek… that his virt u e s will plead like an ge ls , t ru m p et t o n g u e d a gainst the deep damnation of his taking off ”. He describes p i t y
f o r Du n c a n a s a na ked new born babe s t ridin g t h e win ds of h eave n . N o
s o o n e r h a s he committed the deed than he reaches the anguis h e d
rea l i s at i o n that he has murdered his own peace of mind. “Methoug h t I
h ea rd a v oice cry sleep no more, Macbeth does murder sleep”. H e i s
q u i c k t o realise that his actions have resulted in his “eternal jewel g i v e n
to t h e c o mmo n enemy o f ma n”. What makes Macbeth so interesting f o r
t h e a u d ie nce is that he, the experienced soldier who “carved out h i s
p a s s a g e w ith bloody execution” does not foresee the disastrous eff e c t
o n h i s o w n character of murdering his way to the throne. He is igno ra n t
t o t h e i m p a c t o f c i v i l v i o l e n c e o n h i s c o n s c i e n c e . ( 2 ) M a c b e t h ’s
p o w e r f u l ambition to be king is balanced throughout by his powe r f u l
imagination and conscience. His sensitivity and sense of loss
ex p re s s e d so movingly in poetic and lyrical language reveals h i s
su ff e r in g an d arou s e s ou r s ympathy.
Our Response 2: A free man/ his decision/responsibility
I n re s p o n d ing to Ma cbeth a n d h is act ion s we mu s t be clear t h at L a d y
M a c b e t h can in no way be blamed for the murder of Duncan. While s h e
i s a c at a l yst and supporter she does not make the grim decision t o
ki l l D u n c a n and Macbeth never tries to lay blame on her. He deci d e s
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to do so in the full knowledge of
the political and moral
con s e q u e nce s of the d e e d . To portray Macbeth as a man guided by h i s
w i f e o r c o ntrolled by the witches would rob him of his freedom of cho i c e
an d d e n y him any status or st anding in audience’s mind. These exte r n a l
in fl u en c e s a re no t respo nsible for h is dreadfu l crime s .)
Our Response 3: Macbeth is not a completely evil man
D e s p i t e h i s crimes we remain aware that Macbeth is not a comple t e l y
ev i l m a n a nd that his goodness and his nobility have been corrupt e d .
Thus our conflicting emotions of
horror and sympathy are
m a in t a in e d . After the murder instead of hearing the cries of an o l d
k i n g , w e hear Macbeth’s heartfelt lament for what he has done: “I a m
af ra i d t o t hink what I have done!” We are more aware of the conscie n c e
o f t h e c r i minal than the crime itself or the sufferings of the vic t i m ;
D u n c a n ’s m u rd e r i s n o t s h o w n o n s t a g e . H a d M a c b e t h f ro m t h e
b e g i n n i n g been a hardened criminal, had he undertaken the d e e d
w i t h o u t a ny conflict of mind or soul he would have lost the sympat h y
o f t h e a u d i e n ce . However it is his conscience which now forces him t o
m u rd e r m any others. Its agony drives him on to eliminate all threats a n d
d a n g e r, i n nocence and remorse. He thus hires murderers to kill Ban q u o
w h o m h e sees as a living rebuke to his actions. Banquo’s valour a n d
w i s d o m s e rve only to remind Macbeth of everything that he has lost a n d
s o B a n q u o’s death is arranged. Banquo’s killing is shown on stage b u t
b e c a u s e w e see hirelings it does not destroy our sympathy for Macb e t h .
I m m e d i at e ly after this murde r we watch Macbeth’s tortured mind a n d
c o n s c i e n c e i n h i s v i s i o n o f B a n q u o ’s g h o s t a t t h e b a n q u e t , a
m a n i f e s t at ion of his guilt and fear. With the murder of the Mac d u ff
h o u s e h o l d we almost lose sympathy but then Shakespeare present s u s
w i t h t h e m a d n e s s o f L a d y M a c b e t h . Th e e s s e n t i a l p o i n t i s t h a t
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S h a ke s p ea re p re s e n t s t h e p e r p e t rat o r ’s s u ff e r i n g s a l m o s t
p ro p o rt i o nate to his crimes and much more vividly than the crim e s .
E a c h mu rd e r i s f ol l owe d b y a scene of M a cbeth’s suffering.
Our Response 4: Macbeth’s understanding of what he has done
I t i s n o t o n l y M a c b e t h ’s s u ff e r i n g b u t h i s u n d e r s t a n d i n g a n d
recognition
of
what
he
has
done
that
invokes
further
s y m p at h y (interest/fascination/admiration) for the protagonist. Th e
vi l l a i n o u s aspects of his behaviour are not stressed by lessening h i s
n o b i l i t y. As Macbeth brings terror to Scotland and “each new d a y
w i d o w s h owl” and “sighs and groans and shrieks” rend the air, h e
b e c o m e s incapable of feeling. He is intelligent enough though t o
u n d e r s t a n d that a l i f e wi th out feeling is simply not worth liv ing: “ M y
w a y o f l i f e has fallen into the sear, the yellow leaf, and that which sho u l d
ac c o m p a n y old age as honour, love, obedience, troops of friends, I m u s t
n o t l o o k t o have”. The greatest evidence of this is when on hearing of h i s
w i f e ’s d eat h he proclaims: “She should have died hereafter ”. Despite t h e
ap p a re n t l ack of feeling in his words he understands the utter futilit y o f
al l h i s a c tions. This is expressed in one of his greatest speech e s :
“ To m o r ro w, and tomorrow, and tomorrow, creeps in this petty pace f ro m
d a y t o d a y to the last syllable of recorded time and all our yesterd a y s
h a v e l i g h t ed fools the way to dusty death.” In this dark and strang e l y
b ea u t i f u l speech Macbeth sums up the emptiness underlying hum a n
ex i s t e n c e and at the same time captures the awful waste of hum a n
p o t en t i a l in his o wn lif e. This speech is central to sustaining o u r
sy m p at h y f or Macb e th.
Our Response 5: Macbeth’s heroism
M a c b e t h ’s heroism is distinguished by his determination to fight “ t i l l
f ro m m y bones my flesh be hacked”. In the dying moments of t h e
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p l a y w e s e e g l i m p s e s o f t h e g re a t w a r r i o r t h a t d e s e r v e d o u r
ad m irat ion earl y i n act one. He faces Macduff fully aware the t h e
w i t c h e s a re “juggling fiends” who have “paltered with him in a dou b l e
s e n s e ”. Ye t despite this knowledge he chooses to face Macduff in o p e n
c o m b at . H is conscience is not entirely dead as he claims his “soul is t o o
m u c h c h a rg’d with blood” of
re c a l l s o u r first
Macduff. Our last picture of Macb e t h
image of Bellona’s bridegroom, proud and fear l e s s
“ befo re my bo dy I thro w my war- like s h ie ld”. It is the clear-e y e d
aw a re n e s s of the futility of his life coupled with his grim accepta n c e
o f h i s f at e that goes a great way to restoring Macbeth in our ey e s .
We re f ra in from judg ing.
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