starts the play as Thane of Glamis, but is told by the witches that he will soon be declared Thane of Cawdor and later King.

Immediately after killing Duncan, he seems terrified that he cannot be forgiven for his actions.

However, he becomes more and more willing to do anything to achieve his ambitions, even having his former friend Banquo killed

He becomes more arrogant and tyrannical after being told by the witches that he cannot be killed by anyone “of woman born”.

His arrogance proves to be his downfall, and he is finally killed by Macduff.

Shakespeare establishes him as the epitome (best example) of a courageous, honourable man.

​cowardly​, indecisive​, ​paranoid​. Most significantly, he is ​consumed by guilt​.

suggests to Macbeth that they should kill Duncan in order to make the witches’ prophecy come true

Seemingly more strong willed than Macbeth, she helps her husband recover from his fear after he kills Duncan, and helps the cover up.

she wants to be like a man because does not think women are strong enough to do what she wants to do.

"When you durst do it, then you were a man" act 1, scene 7; manipulating macbeth into killing duncan- saying he's not a real man if he doesn't do it.

compulsively washes her hands because she thinks duncan's blood is still on them

appear before Macbeth and Banquo whilst they are out walking and tell them prophecies of what both of their futures hold.

They predict that Macbeth will become Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland, while Banquo’s sons will be heirs to the throne although he shall never be king himself.

Their predictions begin the train of events that lead to many murders, the downfall of Scotland, and ultimately Macbeth’s death.

"Double, double, toil and trouble / Fire burn, and cauldron" bubble act 4, scene 1

He is equal in rank to Macbeth at the beginning of the play, and although Macbeth is told he will be King, Banquo is told that his children will be kings.

After Macbeth kills Duncan and becomes King, Banquo grows suspicious of his former friend and considers him to be a tyrant. However, Macbeth has him murdered before he can act.

He later appears as a ghost and frightens Macbeth at his banquet. Banquo finally appears in the play as an apparition with eight of his descendents, showing Macbeth that they will be kings. By frightening him into becoming more of a tyrant, Banquo pushes Macbeth towards his fate.

Banquo senses that Macbeth engaged in foul play in order to make the Witches’ prophecy come true.

the thought also gives Banquo hope that what the Witches predicted for him will come true.

synonymous with the Macbeth drama. It sets the scene and tone for everything that follows in the play.

means that appearances can be deceiving and it foreshadows what will happen in the course of the play.

What seems good will be evil, and what appears evil will be good.

The words “fair” and “foul” are each a metaphor for the other. The “fog and filthy air” bad weather that accompanies the Witches suggests the moral uncertainty in Scotland and how characters are unable to distinguish between what is “fair” and “foul.”

lady macbeth + macbeth0 tempted by the idea that Macbeth will become king – Macbeth is not sure what to do but his wife is ruthless in getting what she wants – she views her husband as a coward and appears ready to do anything.

Ambition leads to evil - it makes Macbeth stronger and more determined, but then destroys his wife - she goes mad.

Ambition eventually kills Macbeth as well, because he becomes a tyrant and so loses the support of his friends.

Macbeth himself is not a totally evil man. There is much about him that is somewhat good and he experiences an on-going struggle with his conscience

Heroism - Duncan and his men represent right and order. They are trying to restore peace to Scotland.

Bravery - Macbeth is described as being a brave man, brave Macbeth, well he deserves that name; act 1, scene 2

Symbols of good - Malcolm and Macduff are built up as figures of goodness and provide a contrast to the evil of Macbeth.

The supernatural - the witches and their spells are linked with the devil.

The evil thoughts some characters have - Lady Macbeth imagines the knocking out of her child's brains and Macbeth imagines the dagger, and tries to prepare himself for the evil deed of murder.

The evil deeds - the murder of Duncan and the murder of Macduff's family

In Shakespeare's time belief in witchcraft was very strong and many so-called witches were burnt at the stake. It is not surprising his audience would have taken these ideas seriously and felt Macbeth was somehow possessed.

There are lots of references to this - he is unable to say Amen; act 2, scene 2; he has visions, he is disturbed and even thinks no one can kill him.

The final battle scene also contains many elements of the supernatural. Macbeth believes he is invincible because many of the witches' prophecies appear impossible to fulfil – and yet just as the witches predicted Birnam Wood does indeed move to Dunsinane, and Macbeth is killed by Macduff because he is not of woman born; act 5, scene 8

supernatural - the idea there are mysterious forces controlling what is happening in our lives.

The very first characters we meet are the three witches, and their prophecies drive the story forward.

The classic dagger scene, when Macbeth is not sure if he can trust his eyes, is only one of many references to this theme. For instance, he sees Banquo's ghost at the banquet and Lady Macbeth imagines blood on her hands.

What characters wear and how they appear to others is also an important aspect of this theme. There are several references to clothing and appearance in the play such as when Macbeth asks Ross and Angus, Why do you dress me in borrow’d robes? (Act one, Scene three, Line 109). There is always the sense that what appears fair is not so, and vice versa.

The contrast between reality and appearance is also shown by references to thoughts, dreams and actions. Banquo talks about the cursed thoughts (Act two, Scene one, Line 8) he has had and his dreams of the witches.

Macbeth talks of the world of thought and dreams and sometimes is stuck there. For instance, Lady Macbeth is critical of Macbeth's foolish thought (Act two, Scene two, Line 19) and talks of him being lost (Act two, Scene two, Line 68) because of this.

Sleep is another theme associated with reality, because characters view it as vital to life, but also like death or being in another world. Macbeth is told he has murdered sleep and will sleep no more (Act two, Scene two, Line 32) while Lady Macbeth thinks of sleep as death, calling it the sternest good-night (Act two, Scene two, Line four).

Loyalty and guilt are also strong themes in Macbeth. Duncan clearly values loyalty – he has the first Thane of Cawdor executed and rewards Macbeth by making him the new Thane.

Shakespeare cleverly uses loyalty as a dramatic device as well – Duncan is in the middle of talking about absolute trust (Act one, Scene four, Line 14) when Macbeth walks in.

We know he's already thought about killing Duncan, but for the moment he talks about the loyalty I owe (Act one, Scene four, Line 14) and his duties (Act one, Scene four, Line 24) to Duncan.

Loyalty is also very important to Banquo – he will not desert Duncan. Macbeth, however, has an odd idea of loyalty – he knows he is doing the wrong thing, but he still goes ahead.

Macbeth also shows his guilt – he is unsure before the murder and regrets it immediately after. Lady Macbeth is the opposite – she seems to show no guilt at the time and even talks about how a little water (Act two, Scene two, Line 64) cleans away the blood.

Her increasing madness later on is a sign of her guilt and she imagines her hands to be stained with blood.