Act begins with Macbeth and Banquo sometime after midnight. Fleace and servant are present but don't contribute much to the scene.

Banquo says, '...the three weird sisters. To you they shave showed some truth' meaning some of the prophecies have already come true for Macbeth . In response Macbeth cryptically says, 'If you shall cleave to my consent when 'tis, It shall make honour for you' which means that if Banquo supports Macbeth when the time comes there will be a reward in it for him. Banquo commits nothing and politely heads to bed. With Fleace and Banquo gone Macbeth orders his servant to bed.

When Macbeth is left along, he begins to hallucinate, he sees a dagger floating infront of him with the handle towards him and the blade towards Duncan's room. He questions whether this is a supernatural sight, 'Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible to feeling as to sight?' or merely a figment of his own stressed imagination, 'A dagger of the mind, a false creation proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?'

The dagger suddenly appears to be stained with blood and shortly afterwards a bell rings. This is the bell rung by Lady Macbeth which summons his to commit the murder. As he says, 'Hear it not Duncan, for it is a knell that summon thee to heaven or to hell'

In the next scene we're left with Lady Macbeth as she waits for Macbeth to finish the murderous plan. She tells us that she has drugged the guards so that they won't wake up to protect their king and prevent the murder, 'I have drugged their possets'

Macbeth yells out suddenly causing Lady Macbeth to panic, 'Who's there? What ho?' and think that her poison was not enough to subdue the guards. When Macbeth appears he tells Lady Macbeth that he has done the deed, 'I have done the deed'. However he seems traumatised by the murder. He hears voices that aren't there crying out, 'Macbeth does murder sleep' and 'sleep no more' and says more potently, 'Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefore Cawdor shall sleep no more, Macbeth shall sleep no more' this could be a supernatural occurance or an expression of his own guilt. The voices saying as he murdered someone in their sleep he should be punished by never being able to sleep soundly.

In his stress Macbeth has brought back the daggers he used to murder Duncan, this was not part of the plan. Lady Macbeth tells him to wash his hands and plant the daggers on the guards, '...Go, carry them, and smear the sleepy grooms with blood.' but Macbeth is too terrified to return. Lady Macbeth berates him for this fear and goes to plant the daggers on the guards herself. She instructs Macbeth to dress for bed so that if they are disturbed it will not seem suspicious that they are both up, 'Get on your nightgown'.

A loud knocking starts the next scene and a drunken porter finally lets in Macduff and some other nobles. Macduff goes to wake the king only to find him murdered. Macduff raises the alarm and the whole castle wakes to bad news, 'Ring the alarum bell. Murder and treason!' Macbeth rushes into Duncan's chambers and quickly slays the confused guards who had been framed for Duncan's murder. Macduff questions why Macbeth would kill the men so quickly, 'Wherefore did you so?' Macbeth simply replies, 'Th'expedition of my violent love Outran the pauser, reason'. This means that his grief and rage got the better of him and he was unable to stop himself from killing the men before they could be questioned. As an audience we would know this to be a lie. He actually killed them to prevent them from explaining their version of events and to keep the focus from himself.

Malcolm and Donalbain because suspicious of all the men around him, which Donalbain saying, 'There's daggers in men's smiles'. The agree to flee with Donalbain heading to Ireland and Malcolm heading to England, this will make it harder for them to be caught or killed by whoever murdered their father.

The next scene opens with Ross and an old man. We learn that many strange supernatural events have been unfolding, 'Hours dreadful and things strange'. This is a sign the the heavens condemn Macbeth's murder of Duncan. Macduff enters and informs the group that the guards that Macbeth has killed, 'Those that Macbeth hath slain', have been officially names as Duncan's killers. He says that the offical motived was that they were bribed to do the murder by Malcolm and Donalbain, 'They were suborned. Malcolm and Donalbain...' This strips them of their right to assend the throne. Instead the sovereingty of Scotland will fall upon Macbeth.

Macduff tells us that Macbeth has gone to scone where Scottish kings are crowned, 'He is already named and gone to Scone'. Ross will head there dutifully but Macduff informs us that he will go to Fife, this is the first hint that Macduff doesn't trust the new King

The play opens with three witches who are sometimes known as the weird sisters. They're meeting somewhere in the Scottish countryside. They plot to meet Macbeth, 'There to meet with Macbeth' then quickly disappear.

The scene quickly switches to king Duncan. He is told by a wounded army captain that the war is over between Scotland and Norway and the Scots have one. He makes reference to particularly brave captain, 'For brave Macbeth-well he deserves that name...' Macbeth, who has fought well being victorious despite the odds stacked against him

MacDonald the trecherous Thane of Cawdor, who has betrayed his own people. He has been defeated, but is still alive. Duncan orders that MacDonald is stripped of his title and he passes it to Macbeth stating that, 'What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won'

The witches enter again introduced with the sound of thunder. The scene takes place on a misty heath. They recognise that Macbeth is about to appear, 'A drum, a drum-Macbeth doth come'

Macbeth and Banquo enter the scene are are horrified by the witches. Banquo wonders, 'What are these, So withered, and so wild in their attire that look not like th'inhabitants o'th' earth are yet are on 't?'

The witches greet the two generals by praising Macbeth, 'All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis!' They chant this three times but change the title each time, '...Thane of Cawdor!' and '...that shalt be king hereafter!'

Banquo clearly feels left out, 'To me you speak not', and asks the witches if they have anything to tell him. They say that he will be, 'Lesser than Macbeth, and greater' and 'Not so happy, yet much happier' and finally they tell him, 'Though shalt get kings, though thou be none'

Macbeth demands more information, 'Stay, you imperfect speakers, tell me more...'. He is the Thane of Glamis but he does not yet know that he is Thane of Cawdor. But when he asks them they promptly disappear leaving the pair bewildered. At this moment, two Thanes, Ross and Angus enter the scene. They inform Macbeth that the king is pleased with his role in the war and has decided to appoint him, Thane of Cawdor, 'He bade me from him call thee Thane of Cawdor...' The first of the witches revelations has come true. He secretly begins to suspect that there is truth to the witches' words and that he may be the king hereafter.

In the subsequent scene, Macbeth and Banquo reunite with the king Duncan and his court. Macbeth is heaped with praise from the king, 'O worthiest cousin...' Duncan then proclaims that Malcolm, his eldest son, is Prince of Cumberland, the official heir to the throne. Quietly, Macbeth now realises that Malcolm is a stumbling block to any ambitions he has for the crown. He seems reluctant to admit this last desire saying as an aside, 'Starts, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires'

At Macbeth castle, Lady Macbeth receives a letter sent from her husband which tells her about the strange encounters with he witches and their prophecies . It also says how the first revelation of their prophecies has come true. Lady Macbeth begins to plot by herself to ensure that Macbeth becomes king. She calls out to demons to, 'fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty...' in order to accomplish what she plans, the kings murder. She worries Macbeth may not have it in him to do this, 'Yet do I fear they nature. It is too full o'th' milk of human kindness...'

When Macbeth arrives, he tells Lady Macbeth that, 'Duncan comes here tonight' and Lady Macbeth decides that they will kill him that night.

In scene 6, King Duncan arrives in high spritis surrounded by his entrage. they are met by Lady Macbeth who welcomes them. She then escorts the royal party to meet their host, Macbeth, 'Give my your hand. Conduct me to mine host', and to celebrate their arrival with a feast.

In the final scene of the first act, Macbeth is plagued with doubts. When his wife arrives he tells her he has changed his mind and that they will not murder the king, 'We will proceed no further in this business'. Lady Macbeth verbally assaults him, 'When you durst do it, then you were a man'

This scene opens with Lady macbeth's servantss having a hushed conversation with a doctor. it is revealed that lady macbeth has begun talking in her sleep. she is revealing potential incriminating things such as, 'who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?' she continually washes her hands, even uttering the famous line, 'what, will these hands ne'er be clean?

the doctor and servant are concerned by this, and the doctor suspects this is the working of an 'unnatural deed'. as he puts it'more needs she the divine than the physician'

in the next scene scottish nobles meet. they tell of how malcolm is marching at the head of an enlgish army upon dunsinane castle, where macbeth prepares to repel them. they say that macbeth is hated and feared by his subjects now, who act out of terror rather than love. they agree to take their own forces and join malcolms armmy near birnham wood.

in scene 3, macbeth learns of the thanes that have deserted him. however, he is boisterously overconfident. he repeats the prophecy he learnt, that 'till birnham wood remove to dunsinane i cannot taint with fear' and 'no man that's born of woman shall e'er have power upon thee'.

the doctor reappears to tell macbeth that his wife is not physically sick but seems to be suffering from recurring fantasies. macbeth demands that she be cured, but the doctor says there is little he can do. irritated macbeth returns to focus upon the battle.

the minor thanes from the earlier scene finally meet with malcolm at dunsinane. they have reached birnham wood. malcolm orders that every soldier cut down a branch from the forest and hold it in front of them, so that it will hide their true number and prevent macbeth's scouts from giving an accruate report.

siward tells them that macbeth will make his stand at dunsinane castle. malcolm beliebes that macbeth's army will not fight passionately for him as he is a cruel leader

Macbeth prepares for batle. the sound of women screaming is heard. seton appears, and, when asked tells him that lady macbeth has died either by her own hands or through sickness. macbeth takes on a sombre tone, saying 'she should have died hereafeter. there would have been time for such a word'. this means that she should have died at a later date, when there was time to grieve properly.

A messenger enters and tells him that as he looked out at birnham 'the wood began to move'. macbeth is incensed by this. he knows he will die when birnham wood comes to the hill, however he takes comfort in the fact that he will die in battle.

in the next scene, malcolm orders that every man throw down his branch and to let the trumpets sound. siward and his son, yong siward, valiantly lead the charge into battle. young siward meets macbeth and throws himself into the fight, calling him an 'abhorred tyrant'. sadley, macbeth makes quick work of him and he dies.

in another part of battle, macduff says 'if thou beest slain and with no stroke of mine, my wife and children's ghosts will haunt me still'. this means that he feels he will be haunted by the ghosts of his family if he does not kill macbeth himself. he runs off in search of his enemy. siward enters and informs malcolm that there is little resisatnace to their amry and they can enter the castle.

macbeth and macduff finally meet in battle. macbeth remains confident, telling macduff that he lives 'a charmed life, which must not yield to one of woman born'. at this point, macduff tells him that he was 'from his mother's womb untimely ripped'. this is to say that macduff was delieverd by caesarean section and was not technically 'born'. macbeth curses the witches and their misleading prophecies; macbeth to fight to the last breath.

tthey fight once more.this time, macduff emerges as the victor and macbeth is slain.