How Shakespeare Makes the Banquet Scene Dramatic for the Audience

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How Shakespeare Makes the Banquet Scene Dramatic for the Audience The banquet scene takes place near the middle of Shakespeare's world-famous play. All the action and drama happens in the hall, soon after the murder of king Duncan and Banquo. We find out at the beginning of the scene about Banquo's murder with the arrival of the 'murderer', whom Macbeth has paid to eliminate Banquo. The 'murderer' tells Macbeth that he slit Banquo's throat. As the scene progresses we see Macbeth's character develop and what seemed to have been a great occasion, turns into one of havoc and confusion. This all adds up to create an intensely dramatic scene. The Banquet is of great importance to Macbeth as it signifies his coming to power and represents his knighthood as king, even though Macbeth knows he is not the rightful king and has not been placed there by God (the Divine Right of Kings), but by evil means with help from the witches. This makes the scene more dramatic as the audience would be wondering if Macbeth could play the role of the King and not be discovered by the guests. In attendance would be some of the wealthiest and wisest Lords like Lennox and Ross, as well as his wife, who assisted in the destruction of the former king. Macbeth, despite all his worries, tells his wife "he will play the humble host" so that the other banquet-attendees will not grow suspicious, this increases the dramatic suspension as Macbeth has admitted to try and masquerade as the king. It is almost as though he is acting rather than being his natural self. Macbeth is maybe taking the advice that his wife gave him earlier on in the play about how he must not let ... ... middle of paper ... ...he fact that the scene is set in the night is also significant as the murder scene was also set in darkness. The dark is often associated with evil, witchcraft and general spookiness. It all adds to the drama. With all the hallucinations and dialogue, the scene is very dramatic. At any one time you do not know what will happen next. It continually seems as if Macbeth, who is at his wits end, is going to admit to everything, but Lady Macbeth steps in with an excuse at the crucial moment but it seems only a matter of time until the truth is exposed. Some of the most dramatic points of the scene include the entrance of the murderer, the entrance of Banquo's ghost, the questioning of Macbeth's masculinity and the final line. Shakespeare has definitely been successful in creating a dramatic scene in this part of the play.

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