The play so far:

1. We meet the witches
2. In Scene 2 we meet Duncan the king and others who talked positively about Macbeth who has been fighting and won the war against Norway. The Thane of Cawdor was found to be a traitor helping the Norwegians and so he was executed. Macbeth becomes the Thane of Cawdor. The Thane of Cawdor is associated with being a traitor (foreshadows Macbeth’s deeds).
3. We finally meet Macbeth (and MacDuff) as he meets the Witches, thus associating Macbeth with the supernatural and evil.  We know the witches are evil as they have described what they did to other victims.
4. Macbeth kills the king because lady Macbeth told him to and because they both want to become king and queen. Macbeth kills him in his home but if someone is coming into your home you are meant to welcome them instead Macbeth kills his cousin King Duncan in his own home and puts the blame on his soldiers. This shows Macbeth to be heartless, savage and cruel. He assumed the ‘role’ of Thane of Cawdor really quickly. Macbeth has been manipulated by Lady Macbeth as initially he warned “that we but teach bloody instructions…returned to plague the inventor”
5.  Macbeth and Macduff have a battle because Macduff has found out that Macbeth has gone a murderous rampage.
6.  Lady Mabeth is presented as evil. We see this when she is associated with the “ravens”. In contrast to Duncan who was associated the “martlet”

 

Act 2 Scene 3

• The alarm is raised that the King has been murdered.
• The porter begins the scene and makes reference to the Devil – this sets the atmosphere and confirms that evil has been committed. Perhaps this highlights that we have entered ‘hell’.
• Macbeth etc. discuss the murder of the King, and Macbeth divulges that he has killed (however the audience is aware that Macbeth has committed murder) the King’s two guards for the supposed regicide.
• The King’s sons (Malcolm etc.) flee to England for fear that they will be killed next.  This paves the way for Macbeth to succeed and be crowned King.
• Macbeth: “his gash’d stabs look’d like a breach in nature” – The vivid description provided by Macbeth shows, through his method of killing Duncan, his intent to kill Duncan and his savage nature. Firstly the word choice of “gash’d” highlights the serious nature of Duncan’s injuries, and their depth and grotesqueness. It also suggests the pain caused to Duncan in his murder. This shows the severe nature of Macbeth’s attack on Duncan – he did not simply murder him clinically, instead he use great, brute force and aggression when committing regicide. Furthermore the imagery created by the phrase: “breach in nature” further highlights the barbarity involved in Duncan’s murder. It shows the real intent by Macbeth to kill the King, and we are left to question Macbeth’s supposed initial unwillingness to kill the king, once we hear of the great effort and savagery he used when he did commit the act.
   
  Act 2 Scene 4
   
• Again the word “bloody” is mentioned, this time by Ross.  The word “bloody” seeps through the text, constantly reminding the reader of the “bloody” and murderous acts that pervade the texts and its characters.
• Old Man: “A falcon, towering in her place of pride, was by a mousing owl hawk’d at and kill’d” – Duncan is compared to a falcon, and Macbeth a “mousing owl”.
  Just as a falcon is…. So Duncan is described as…
  Just as a mousing owl…so Macbeth is portrayed as…
• The supernatural element continues when we the death is described as “unnatural” and we are told of Duncan’s horses bolting. These references help the audience understand the incredible severity of the actions undertaken by Macbeth and LM