2.1.4
Scenes 6-7
Act 1, Scene 6
Act 1, Scene 6
Here's a summary of what happens in Act 1, Scene 6:
King Duncan arrives
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
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.
Act 1, Scene 7
Act 1, Scene 7
Here's a summary of what happens in Act 1, Scene 7:
Macbeth's soliloquy
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
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’.
Lady Macbeth's persuasion
Lady Macbeth's persuasion
- This scene shows Lady Macbeth really manipulating Macbeth into murdering King Duncan. She uses several techniques to persuade Macbeth:
- She becomes aggressive in her language.
- She tells him he's a coward for not doing what he needs to do.
- She tries to show him the positive outcomes if he does it (he'll be more than just a man).
- She makes him feel guilty for breaking a promise to his wife.
Macbeth agrees
Macbeth agrees
- Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth that she plans to get King Duncan’s men drunk. She wants to do this so that they can do whatever they like to the unprotected king and then blame the servants.
- Macbeth agrees to go through with the plan and they return to the celebrations.
Key Quotes - act 1, Scene 7
Key Quotes - act 1, Scene 7
Here are key quotes from Lady Macbeth and Macbeth in Act 1, Scene 7:
Macbeth
Macbeth
- ‘I have no spur / to prick the sides of my intent, but only / Vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itself / And falls on th’other’.
- Macbeth says this in his soliloquy at the start of the scene.
- Macbeth is struggling to take action. He realises the only thing making him want to kill King Duncan is ambition. He says ambition makes people do stupid things and leads to disaster.
Macbeth
Macbeth
- ‘We will proceed no further in this business’.
- Lady Macbeth comes onto the stage and Macbeth tells her that they will not go further with their plans. He is enjoying the honour that King Duncan has given him. He doesn’t want to cast it aside.
- He has not been corrupted by his ambition just yet.
Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth
- ‘Live a coward in thine own esteem, / Letting ‘I dare not’ wait upon ‘I would’'.
- This scene shows Lady Macbeth really manipulating Macbeth into murdering King Duncan.
- She hints that he is a coward for not going after what he wants. She asks him if he wants to live his life never daring to take anything he wants.
Macbeth
Macbeth
- ‘Bring forth men-children only’.
- Macbeth praises Lady Macbeth’s strength.
- This means that she should only give birth to male children because she is so strong and fierce.
- Men were seen to be much stronger than women.
- Male children were preferred because they could carry on the family name, and could also provide well for their family.
Macbeth
Macbeth
- ‘False face must hide what the false heart doth know.’
- At the end of the scene, Macbeth decides to go through with the plan (after much pressure from his wife).
- He tells Lady Macbeth that they should go back to the celebrations, but hide their true intentions.
1Literary & Cultural Context
2Plot Summary
3Characters
3.1Macbeth
3.2Lady Macbeth
3.3Other Characters
3.4Grade 9 - Key Characters
4Themes
4.1Themes
4.2Grade 9 - Themes
5Writer's Techniques
5.1Structure, Meter & Other Literary Techniques
Jump to other topics
1Literary & Cultural Context
2Plot Summary
3Characters
3.1Macbeth
3.2Lady Macbeth
3.3Other Characters
3.4Grade 9 - Key Characters
4Themes
4.1Themes
4.2Grade 9 - Themes
5Writer's Techniques
5.1Structure, Meter & Other Literary Techniques
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