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.
Macbeth still has some good in him before he commits his first murder. His constant struggle to decide if he will kill the king shows he still has a conscious. He feels Duncan is a good leader, and as his kings men he is supposed to protect Duncan. Macbeth at this part of the play is too virtuous to betray him in such a manner. He also fears the...
There were many problems faced by Shakespeare when he wrote this scene 400 years ago, there were no lighting so he would have to do his shows when the sun is at its highest point, there were no microphones at that time so his actors would have to shout over the audience so that everyone could here and there was no security for the actors or so of the audience.One of the main problems faced by Shakespeare was the audience. This was because they were rowdy, restless, and very loud, compared to a modern time theater where the audience is quiet and well presented. Then there was the issue of special effects and sound. Another problem he faced was introducing the characters, scenes. He therefore had to find a way of grabbing their attention straight away and getting them interested in the play. The way he did this was by getting the first two characters (which are two servant Capulets) involved in a sort of mocking conversation about the Montagues. He used two servants because they were of a lower status and that it would not be as peculiar for lords and ladies to be involved in a conversation of that sort. As quoted by Sampson “a dog of the house Montague moves me” the use of the word dog emphasizes the hatred and the little respect they have for the Montague’s, so straight away the audience can already feel the hatred between them. Also the use of “I will be cruel with their maids, and cut off their heads.” This means I will take their women and rape them. This automatically gets their attention because of the foul language. The moment it is mentioned people turn around and listen, they also learn about the two characters personalities, that they are disrespectful and do not care about what they are saying. Also to show that there i...
Macbeth’s blind ambition leads him to surrender to his dark desires that taunt him throughout the play. Macbeth is frequently tempted to result to the wrongful methods that seem to roam inside of him. In the beginning however Macbeth tends to ignore these desires and depends on chance. He declares “if chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, without my stir” (Shakespeare, act 1, scene 3, 143-144). This declaration by Macbeth shows his initial stand, which is reliant on fate and sin free. Yet as Macbeth’s character develops throughout the play, he moves farther from his dependence on chance and closer to his darker desires. Eventually his blind ambition to become king overp...
Macbeth is very much a coward lying to his wife and acting like he has
...ing himself up honorably. Through these statements and Macbeth?s fight until his death, he has demonstrated a lack of regret for the things he has done and the inability to repent for his actions.
After a long and hard battle, the Sergeant says to King Duncan, “For brave Macbeth,-well he deserves that name,- disdaining fortune, with his brandish’d steel, which smok’d with bloody execution , like valour’s minion carv’d out his passage till he fac’d the slave;” (1.2.16) . This quote shows that Macbeth is viewed as a valiant soldier and a capable leader. However, it does not take long for the real Macbeth to be revealed- a blindly ambitious man, easily manipulated by the prospect of a higher status. His quest for power is what drives his insanity, and after having been deemed the Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth’s ambition can immediately be seen. In a soliloquy, Macbeth says, “Present fears are less than horrible imaginings; my thought, whose murder yet is but fantastica, shakes so my single state of man that function is smother’d in surmise, and nothing is but what is not” (1.3.140). Macbeth has just gained more power, and his immediate thought is of how to gain an even higher status as king. He imagines how to kill Duncan, and then is troubled by his thoughts, telling himself it is wrong. This inner struggle between Macbeth’s ambition and his hesitation to kill Duncan is the first sure sign of his mental deterioration. Although Macbeth does kill Duncan, he questions whether or not he should to do so, which is far different from how Macbeth feels about murder later in the play. Macbeth becomes king, and this power leads
When we as people hit rock bottom, there areis two options - pull up your pants, accept the choices you’ve made, and turn your life around, or blame others for everything and continue down the path of self-destruction. In Macbeth’s case, he simply crossed the line of no return and continued to dig himself into a deeper hole, and the only one to blame for his demise is him. There are many influences ledt to his decisions, but his decisions were his own.
By the end of the play, Macbeth has nothing to live for. He has hardly
Macbeth realises at this point that he has committed so much murder and unnatural acts for nothing, and this whole thing never benefited him, snapped out of his delusions, his thoughts ending with his
Macbeth and his wife realise their actions have built up momentum and they are repeatedly committing criminal acts to keep up. To start, Lady Macbeth first suffers from trauma and dies. Going in depth, Lady Macbeth reveals prior to killing Duncan that “which hath made them drunk that / make me bold” (2.2.1-2). Lady Macbeth reveals that despite being the one to organise the murder and is drunk, she understands and feels the burden of killing Duncan. Next, Macbeth states, “I have almost forgot the taste of fears” (5.5.10), claiming that he is now tolerant to most fears after being surrounded by it as a consequence of his actions. However, upon the attack of the English soldiers and death of Lady Macbeth, Macbeth learns that reflecting his evil
Macbeth’s ambition will lead him to doing things he will regret. In the play the witches give Macbeth a prophecy by referring to him as “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!” (1.3.50) After Macbeth realizes he could be king, he decides to take it into his own hands. Macbeth invites Duncan to come over for dinner and stay the night. Lady Macbeth sees this as the perfect chance to kill
Macbeth grapples with multitudinous complications after his serendipity is revealed to him. However, the most taunting obstacles that he encounters are not entities; they are cognitive and psychological. After the witches divulge Macbeth’s providence to him, he is instantly engrossed between two conflicting mentalities - staying loyal towards King Duncan and craving potency and supremacy. These two opposing forces wrestle within Macbeth for control of his actions.
Is he really thinking of killing the King. Nooo he wouldn’t Macbeth is ambition but he is not a traitor. But Macbeth is not acting like himself the weird sister got to him. The heavens look over my friend Macbeth as shall he not himself. As I look as I see the moon and the clock about to strike twelve. I realize what Macbeth said he was planning to kill the King tonight. I got to go check on him before it's to late. As I run down to Macbeth room he was not there. He wouldn’t he couldn’t as I started to freak out I heard the bells ring. And something in my heart tells me the King Duncan is dead. I as a walk to his room and see Macbeth holding a bloody dagger with a blank stare like I was staring at evil
Macbeth begins hearing things as soon as the murder is completed. Lady Macbeth faints at the news that Duncan is dead. Whether it is a trick on her part to throw the others off the trail, or if she has finally seen the weight of the crime that she and her husband have committed is not mentioned in the text. Either way, this action is either a realization of guilt or a disguise of it. Lady Macbeth feels that her husband is thinking too much of his guilt and not enjoying his newfound royalty as he should be. Macbeth sees Banquo's ghost at the banquet table and he has an episode of madness in front of his guests. His guilty conscience is projecting visions of Banquo because he is responsible for the man's murder. Outbursts like these hint at his guilt and make the thanes suspicious of the new king. After Macbeth's breakdown in front of the thanes, Lady Macbeth tells him to get some rest. Macbeth hasn't been sleeping well because he feels so guilty. Lady Macbeth's guilt is finally getting to her, too. She sleepwalks and tries to wash the blood from her hands. This routine and her sleep talking are signs and proof of her guilt. Malcolm and the thanes who have sided with him have heard that Macbeth is going mad, and they assume that his madness is a result of the guilt for his crimes. Lady Macbeth has commited suicide and her guilt is believed to be the cause of her death. Her conscience got the better of her in the end. Macbeth feels that if he continues to kill, he will eventually become