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Plot Summary (Source: Seneca) - Coggle Diagram
Plot Summary (Source: Seneca)
Act 1
Scenes 1 and 2
Summary of what happened in Act 1 Scene 1
Thunder and lightning:
The first thing that the audience see and hear is thunder and lightning.
This immediately shows that conflict is coming and sets the frightening, negative tone of the play.
Three witches on a battlefield:
The play opens with the three witches meeting. They are planning to meet with Macbeth when the fighting is finished.
Shakespeare begins with the witches to show the audience that the play has supernatural themes from the start.
"Fair is foul and foul is fair":
The witches talk about the changes happening in nature: ‘Fair is foul and foul is fair’.
This shows that turmoil (disruption) has already started in the natural world.
Analysis - 'Fair is foul and foul is fair':
The theme of evil-doing and deception recurs in the story. This is the first indication that things may not always be as they appear.
Macbeth appears to be a good friend and a heroic character. But when he is tempted by power, he becomes a villainous, selfish character who murders numerous people, including his own friends.
This is an oxymoron (words which mean opposite things) and suggests to the audience that things are not always as they appear.
Summary of what happened in Act 1 Scene 2
Macdonald's death:
There is a meeting at King Duncan’s headquarters. A bleeding captain has brought the king news of the battle.
Macbeth has fought well and killed Macdonald (sometimes spelt Macdonwald), who had betrayed King Duncan: ‘unseam’d him from nave to th’ chops / And fix’d his head upon our battlements’.
King Duncan calls Macbeth ‘O valiant cousin, worthy gentleman’.
Macbeth becomes Thane of Cawdor:
Ross, another Thane, arrives with news of Macbeth’s fight against Norway and another traitor, the Thane of Cawdor. He fought like the husband of the Roman goddess of war and won.
King Duncan sentences the Thane of Cawdor to death for his betrayal. He rewards Macbeth with his title: ‘with his former title greet Macbeth’; ‘What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won’.
King Duncan sends Ross to tell Macbeth about his new title, Thane of Cawdor.
Scene 3
Summary of Act 1 Scene 3
Witches reappear:
This scene begins with thunder again as the witches return to the stage.
The first witch tells a story about how a sailor's wife refused to give her chestnuts. She plans to torture her husband. This shows the powers that the witches have and how wicked they are.
They cast a charm when they hear Macbeth and Banquo coming.
The witches' three prophecies:
The witches greet Macbeth
The first witch calls him ‘Thane of Glamis’, which he is
The second calls him ‘Thane of Cawdor’, which the audience knows is true, but which hasn't been revealed to Macbeth (first prophecy).
The third says he will be king (second prophecy): ‘All hail Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter.’
Banquo is told that even though he is ‘lesser’ – lower in status than Macbeth – he will be ‘greater’, because he ‘shalt get kings’ (third prophecy). This means that his children will be kings.
Macbeth learns he is Thane of Cawdor:
Macbeth orders the witches to explain, but they vanish. This shows the audience that Macbeth cannot control them.
Does this moment represent that Macbeth also has no power and control over his own fate?
Ross and Angus arrive. Ross tells Macbeth that he has been given the title, Thane of Cawdor.
Macbeth's aside:
Macbeth has a private debate with himself
He is torn. On the one hand, what the witches have said is good because he is now Thane of Cawdor. But he is afraid that something would have to happen to King Duncan for him to become king.
Macbeth's decision:
He decides that, if fate has decided he will be king, he can become king without doing anything: ‘If chance will have me king, why chance may crown me / Without my stir.’
Macbeth decides he will ride to see the king.
Key quotes in Act 1 Scene 3
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Scenes 4 - 5
Summary of Act 1 Scene 4
Malcolm declared heir:
The scene begins with King Duncan and his son, Malcolm, talking about the previous Thane of Cawdor’s execution.
Macbeth arrives. King Duncan praises him and Macbeth says it was his duty to kill the traitor.
King Duncan announces that his eldest son, Malcolm, is the heir (next in line) to the throne. This means that he will be king when King Duncan dies.
Macbeth's aside:
In an aside, Macbeth says that Malcolm is now an obstacle for him.
He admits that he wants the crown, even though it is disloyal to want it: ‘Stars, hide your fires, / Let not light see my black and deep desires’.
Summary of Act 1 Scene 5
Macbeth's letter:
The scene begins with Lady Macbeth reading a letter aloud from her husband. The letter tells her what the witches said to him.
Lady Macbeth is worried that Macbeth is too good and soft-hearted to take action to get the crown. She wants to manipulate (influence someone to do something) him into taking action and getting the crown.
Lady Macbeth's masculine request:
An attendant comes in. The attendant tells Lady Macbeth that the king is coming to stay with them that night.
After the servant leaves, Lady Macbeth talks to the spirits. She asks them to make her less womanly so that she can be cruel and do what she needs to do for Macbeth to become king.
Intentions clear:
Macbeth arrives.
Lady Macbeth makes her intentions clear to Macbeth.
Key Quotes from Act 1 Scene 5
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Summary of Act 1 Scene 6
King Duncan arrives:
King Duncan arrives and Lady Macbeth comes out to greet him.
King Duncan uses praising language to address her: ‘honour’d hostess’; ‘fair and noble hostess’; 'by your leave, hostess'.
This creates dramatic irony (when the audience knows something the characters don’t) for the audience because they know that Lady Macbeth is pretending and that she plans for him to die in her home.
Context:
This is also important in the context of the time. If someone was a guest in your home, it was your duty to protect them.
By calling her ‘hostess’ three times in this short scene, Shakespeare reminds the audience that she's being doubly evil. Not only is she plotting to kill the king, but she's also breaking the trust put in her as a hostess.
Significance of 'Hostess':
Repeated three times: ‘Honour’d hostess’, ‘Fair and noble hostess’, 'By your leave, hostess'
Dramatic irony: We know that Lady Macbeth plans for him to die in her home.
Reminds audience that she is being doubly evil: Plotting to kill the king, Breaking the trust put in her as a hostess
Summary of Act 1 Scene 7
Macbeth's soliloquy:
Macbeth has a soliloquy (speech to himself) at the start of this scene where he thinks through what would happen if he murdered King Duncan.
He thinks that if he could kill King Duncan and that could be the end of the matter, it would be fine. But he knows that there will be consequences if he does kill the king.
He is struggling to take action. He realises the only thing making him want to kill King Duncan is ambition.
Macbeth's decision:
Lady Macbeth comes onto the stage and Macbeth tells her that they will not go further with their plans: ‘We will proceed no further in this business’.
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Acts 2 - 4
Act 5