MACBETH

From The Penguin Shakespeare Dictionary, ed. Sandra Clark.

Macbeth [Full title, The Tragedy of Macbeth]  A tragedy by Shakespeare, probably written in 1605 or 1606. It was seen by Simon *Forman at the *Globe theatre on 20 April 1611, but is almost certain to have been first produced several years earlier. It was printed in the 1623 first folio, but there is some probability that cuts were made from the stage manuscript. The Hecate scenes, including the Witches' songs, are probably *Middleton's. In the Restoration period *Davenant made it into an opera. The play followed in the wake of the Gunpowder Plot, and there are various topical references especially in the Porter scene (II.iii). Shakespeare's main source was Holinshed's Chronicles, probably in the 1587 edition that he used elsewhere, although he may also have seen illustrations from the 1577 edition. He used Holinshed not only for the account of Macbeth's life but also for the story of the murder of King Duff by Donwald, and for the description of ancient Scottish life and customs. Shakespeare altered Holinshed's account of Macbeth's life in a number of ways; the involvement of Banquo, supposedly King James's ancestor, was omitted and Banquo's character generally whitewashed, while Macbeth was made more villainous. Holinshed's Duncan was a weak and unsatisfactory monarch whom Macbeth assassinated with the help of friends, and after the murder Macbeth ruled in a just and beneficient way for ten years before he was overcome by guilt and proceeded to further crimes. Holinshed's account of the murder of King Duff in fact bears more resemblance to the murder of Duncan in Shakespeare's play, although the subsequent career of Duff's murderer, Donwald, does not parallel Macbeth's. Holinshed describes Duff as a good king and Donwald as a kinsman whom he especially trusted; Donwald, urged on by his wife, secretly murdered Duff by cutting his throat while Duff was a guest in his home. After Duff's murder monstrous events took place in the kingdom. There were a number of other chronicles of Scottish history available to Shakespeare. He probably did not use William Stewart's The Buik of the Chronicles of Scotland  which was available in manuscript in King James's private library, although this has been disputed, but he may well have seen the Rerum Scoticarum Historia (1582) by George Buchanan, which contains a Macbeth very similar in character to Shakespeare's and also describes the remorse felt by a royal murderer, King Kenneth, in much fuller terms than Holinshed. John Leslie's De Origine Scotorum (1578) supplied a Macbeth who killed Duncan without any assistance from Banquo, and Shakespeare may have seen this, although this, like Buchanan's work, was only available in Latin. James's interests were a significant consideration in the composition of Macbeth, and Shakespeare's may well have read some of James's own work for it, especially the Daemonologie (1597), which could have provided him for the treatment of the Witches. The chronicle sources for Macbeth provided Shakespeare with very little dialogue and few detailed encounters; htese he may have derived from some of *Seneca's tragedies. Medea or Agamemnon may have suggested ideas for the characterization of Lady Macbeth, and both of these had been traslated by John Studley. The atmosphere of concentrated evil is particularly Senecan and recalls Shakespeare's own earlier works, the poem The Rape of Lucrece, and Richard III. Finally, as might seem appropriate in a tragedy of damnation, Shakespeare draws heavily on the Bible.

Dramatis Personae

Duncan, King of Scotland

Malcolm, son of Duncan

Donaldbain, son of Duncan

Macbeth, general of the army

Banquo, general of the army

Macduff, Scottish nobleman

Lennox, Scottish nobleman

Ross, Scottish nobleman

Menteith, Scottish nobleman

Angus, Scottish nobleman

Caithness, Scottish nobleman

Fleance, son of Banquo

Siward, Earl of Northumberland, general of the English forces

Young Siward, his son

Seyton, officer to Macbeth

Boy, son to Macduff

An English Doctor

A Scottish Doctor

A Sergeant

A Porter

An Old Man

Lady Macbeth

Lady Macduff

Gentlewoman to Lady Macbeth

Hecate, and Three Witches

Lords, Gentlemen, Officers, Soldiers, Murderers, Attendantes, and Messengers

The Ghost of Banquo, and other Apparitions

The Story. Macbeth and Banquo, Scottish generals, are returning from a victorious campaign when they meet upon the heath three Witches who hail them, prophesying that Macbeth will be Thane of Cawdor and King hereafter, and that Banquo will beget kings. Part of the prophecy is immediately fufilled when a messenger announces that Duncan, King of Scotland, has promoted Macbeth to Thane of Cawdor. Lady Macbeth, having learned of the Witches, plays upon her husband, already tempted by dreams of royal power, to kill the King, who falls into their hands when he arrives for a visit at the castle of Macbeth. But when the murder is done, Macbeth is completely unnerved. Lady Macbeth returns to Duncan's room with the daggers that Macbeth has neglected to leave behind. Into the scene of horror comes the sound of knocking at the gate. The murder is discovered, and Macbeth puts the grooms to death to conceal his action. Duncan's sons, Malcolm and Donaldbain, flee from Scotland, and Macbeth is crowned. He then hires murderers to kill Banquo and his son, Fleance, but the latter escapes. At a banquet given by Macbeth, the ghost of Banquo appears to him. Macbeth returns to consult with the Witches, who show him apparitions that tell him to beware Macduff, that "none of woman born / Shall harm Macbeth," and that he shall be safe until "Birnam Wood to hight Dunsinane Hill / Shall come" (IVi). However, he is then also shown a procession of future kings, all descendants of Banquo. Macduff, meanwhile, has goen to England to raise an army with Malcolm to defeat Macbeth and there learns that his wife and children have been killed at the order of Macbeth. Macbeth, preparing to meet the invading army, learns of lady Macbeth's death. His response is that "She should have died hereafter" (V.v). The army advances, bearing branches cut from Birnam Wood for concealment, and Macduff who was "from his mother's womb / Untimely ripped (V.vii) kills Macbeth. malcolm is crowned King of Scotland.