Macbeth Act 1 notes

ENG 3U1/E DRAMA UNIT: MACBETH

ACT I, scene i

- the opening scene begins on a heath (a desert-like place)

- this introductory scene serves many purposes:

 establishes setting as a dark, lifeless place; it is night time and cold on the heath
 establishes atmosphere as suspenseful and mysterious (since it begins with the
appearance of the witches)
 it introduces the element of the supernatural in the form of witches (evil agents)
 it advances the plot by having the witches announce that they are planning a
meeting with Macbeth, even though we do not meet this character in this scene
 foreshadows conflict in the play
 foreshadows the theme of good vs evil

- the rhyming couplet at the end of the scene:
 “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.
Hover through the fog and filthy air.”

 this couplet states that what seems to be fair (good ) in this play will really
be foul (evil), and what appears to be foul (evil) may really be fair (good)
 this couplet introduces two main themes: GOOD vs EVIL
APPEARANCE vs REALITY




ACT I, scene ii

- the setting of this scene is a battlefield
- the human action of the play begins with the reference to blood which is a very important
motif (symbol) in the play
 “What bloody man is this?

- at this point, the audience has still not met the tragic hero (Macbeth)
- Shakespeare withholds introduction of the protagonist in order to create suspense
- however, the audience does hear references about Macbeth from the other characters:
 “brave Macbeth”
 “noble Macbeth”
 “valiant cousin”
 “worthy gentleman”
 “Bellona’s bridegroom”


- at the beginning of the play, Macbeth is a general in the Scottish army

, - his title is Thane of Glamis
- the title of thane is equivalent to a lord or earl in England
- Scotland has been at war with Norway (external conflict)

- the plot of the play is advanced because we hear that Macbeth has won the battle against

Norway
- Macbeth has even defeated the traitor to Scotland, the thane of Cawdor, since he had
been working with the King of Norway
- when Macbeth is referred to as “Bellona’s bridegroom”, it is a classical allusion to
Greek mythology because Bellona was the goddess of war, so her bridegroom was the
god of war
- by referring to him using this allusion, they are elevating Macbeth to the status of a Greek
god – that is how respected he is as a warrior
- the irony in this scene is that Macbeth defeats the traitor to Scotland
- Shakespeare is using the technique of foreshadowing to indicate future action to the
audience
- in this scene, the King of Scotland (Duncan) decides that Macbeth will inherit the title of
thane of Cawdor as a reward for his bravery and loyalty to Scotland
- Macbeth does not yet know he has gained this new title


ACT I, scene iii

- this scene begins at the heath with the witches
- the witches announce the arrival of Macbeth
- Macbeth is returning home from battle with his best friend and fellow warrior, Banquo,
and he has to cross the heath to do so
- Macbeth’s first words in the play are: “So foul and fair a day I have not seen.”
- Macbeth means that the day has been foul because of the bad weather, but it has been fair
because of their military victories

- the first witch greets Macbeth by saying:
 “All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis!” (which is his title)
- the second witch greets Macbeth by saying:
 “All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Cawdor!”
- the third witch greets Macbeth by saying:
 “All hail, Macbeth! thou shalt be king hereafter!”

- Macbeth’s reaction to the witches is one of shock, confusion and surprise
- he is confused because he does not know the witches and he wonders how they know
who he is
- he is surprised because they refer to him with a title that he doesn’t even know he has yet
- he is shocked because they state that he will be king and Macbeth understands the Great
Chain of Being, and knows that this would not be possible for him