Class U K^ Ronlc .l \^ an COF^OU&KT DEPOSm i .?> WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE. After the original Chandos portrait. lEngltslj Classics — Star Serirs -MACBETH BY / WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE EDITED FOR SCHOOL USE BY WILBUR LUCIUS CROSS ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH IN THE SHEFFIELD SCIENTIFIC SCHOOL OF YALE UNIVERSITY GLOBE SCHOOL BOOK COMPANY NEW YORK AND CHICAGO Library of COBgr0t% Offlce cf tbt MAY 1 8 1900 Boglittr of Copyrl(litft •ECOND CQPj/.C^t>y 61695 Copyright, 1900, by Globe School Book Company. MANHATTAN PRESS 474 W. BROADWAY NEW YORK PREFACE This edition of Macbeth has been made for use in the hi^ii or the preparatory school, though it contains — so far as I am aware — nothing disrespectful to the intelligence of the ordinary college student. The play has been so well edited by others, that one new in the field finds the harvest already reaped and but little left to the gleaner. Indeed, I lay claim to only a few broken ears. On the other hand, the book aims to present old matter in a new manner. If we are to have Macbeth in the schools, why not edit it with some regard to pedagogic principles ? Why, for example, should an introduction open with the conventional discussion of the date of composition? For determining this date there is really nothing that goes far, except certain allusions in the play itself. And surely no student is able to understand them while Macbeth is to him merely a name. Again, why should remarks on the versifi- cation come after the text of the play ? If any remarks are advisable, they should be of aid to the student from the beginning. I have, therefore, placed the section on blank- verse in the introduction, and that on the date of the first performance near the end of the volume. So throughout, I think, the topics are in logical order. The editor of Shakespeare is in danger of doing too much. The work of the dramatist is of infinitely more importance than anything that can be said about it. For this reason I have kept the text free from the entanglements of foot- notes recording the various emendations of critics. In making the text, I have followed in the main the Globe iv PREFACE edition, into which are incor^^orated, for the most part, the best readings. And yet, wherever it seemed to me that the Globe could be improved, I have ventured, within narrow limits, to make changes, occasionally in a word or in the arrangement of the lines, and especially in the punctuation. After the student has finished the introduction, which may help him in a small way to make real to his imagination the Elizabethan age, its superstitions, its playhouses, and the central figure in its literature, he should read carefully the part of the tragedy assigned to him, paying no attention whatever to the editor. To the notes he may afterward turn for help on obsolete words and allusions. And by the questions following the notes to each scene he may test for himself the thoroughness of his reading. These questions, or similar ones, should also, in my opinion, be made the basis of written exercises. Notes can never do what we might wish. In writing them, I have invariably shunned parallel passages and usually etymology, on the ground that digressions of this kind take the young student too far from the text in hand. I have rather sought to convey Shake- speare's meaning by paraphrasing difficult passages and by suggesting synonyms for obsolete and uncommon words and expressions; well knowing, however, that these substitu- tions have little of the suggestiveness of the author's own diction. They will have served their jxirpose if they indi- cate the purport of a sentence now become obscure. In selecting topics for discussion after the notes and questions, I have been influenced by the prevailing tendency to studies in structure and style which is so apparent in recent manuals and in the examination papers set for the student entering college. Certain other discussions which have become a part of many recent editions of Macbeth are disregarded. This plan has been followed on purpose. It is generally agreed, for example, that some passages of the play were not PREFACE V written by Shakespeare. But just what these passages are the critics ^ have not yet determined. For myself, I have no doubt that the speeches of Hecate and a few lines connected with them (III. v. ; IV. i. 39-43 and 125-132) are by another hand, probably Middleton's. But textual criti- cism, it has seemed to me, should have little space in a book of this kind. Accordingly, only in the most trouble- some passages has attention been called to proposed emen- dations. For them the instructor may go to Furness's New Variorum Edition. After some consideration, the i3ublishers have decided to insert a map of Scotland, on which are marked the places mentioned in the play. It is very nearly historical ; but it could not be made quite so, for the reason that the Scot- land of Shakespeare's Macbeth is not precisely the Scotland of the eleventh century. Surely the study of literature is not the study of geography. The two studies, however, touch at points. The student is more interested in a story than he otherwise would be, if he can fix in his imagina- tion its setting not only in time, but also in place. And the nearer the teacher can bring him, by whatever aid, to a complete realization of a piece of literature, the more abiding is the possession. The young student who is accustomed to regard every letter in his own name as eternally fixed for him by his parents, may be disturbed by the apparent liberties that the critics quoted in this book have taken with the word '• Shakespeare." The surname has been found capable of four thousand variations.^ As applied to the dramatist's father, it was spelled by the officials of Stratford, who were not over-nice in their orthography, in sixteen different ways ; and the dramatist himself, in his signature to legal documents, vacillated between " Shakspere," " Shakspeare," 1 See "Shakespeare Manual," F. G. Fleay, Part IT, Ch. X. 2 "A Life of William Shakespeare," Sidney Lee, Ch. XVIIL vi PREFACE and " Shakespeare." The latter, however, is the form adopted by the poet in his dedications to Venus and Adonis and The Eajye of Lucrece^ — the only works that were surely published with his sanction. The best authorized literary spelling is consequently Shakespeare. CONTENTS Introduction : I. Shakespeare's Life and Work II. The Drama and the Theater III. The Witches IV. The Verse . IX xiv xvii XX Bibliography . . . . . MACBETH Notes and Questions Topics for Study : I. The Plot . . . . II. The Characters . III. Shakespeare and Holinshed IV. Date of Composition . Test Questions . . . • - XXVI 1 83 128 132 132 140 143 vu . INTRODUCTION I. SHAKESPEARE'S LIFE AND WORK Because so little is known about Shakespeare, people often think that he was not much esteemed by his contempo- raries; they even maintain that he could not have written the great plays ascribed to him. Lord Bacon, they say, was the author. It should be remembered that the curi- osity to know all about literary men dates only from the time of Dr. Samuel Johnson and Boswell's life of him (1791). Certainly before Addison, a man of letters, how- ever distinguished he might be, was not likely to interest the public, unless he were connected with Church or State. Our first biographer is really Izaak Walton, who came a generation later than Shakespeare. We may lament that he did not give us a life of the great dramatist; but natu- rally enough he was more attracted to men like Dr. John Donne and Sir Henry Wotton. In the absence, then, of any contemporary life of Shakespeare, our only recourse is to a few old records, and to the anecdotes which came down to the wits of the Restoration (1660), and were passed along by them to the critics of the eighteenth century. William Shakespeare was born at Stratford-on-Avon, in April, 1564. He was baptized, as any one may still see in the parish register of Stratford, on the 26th; and it is a tradition that he was born three days before. His exact birthplace is thought to have been a house in Henley Street. Some fifty years ago the house was restored and converted into a public museum. A sketch of it, as it now appears, is shown on the opposite page. The poet's father, John X INTRODUCTION Shakespeare, evidently started out in life with the sole aim of amassing a fortune and winning the honors that wealth brings. He engaged in trade and in many other ventures, and rose rapidly, becoming chief alderman and high bailiff, or mayor, of Stratford. But in course of time he was in- volved in debts and lost all his positions of trust. About the dramatist's mother, Mary Arden, whom John Shake- speare married in 1557, the records are scant. She was, however, of a good family, and she inherited considerable property, — a house and forty-odd acres of land, besides an interest in two other dwellings and their appurtenances. These estates soon dwindled away, probably because of John Shakespeare's bad management in trade. There were born to John and Mary Shakespeare eight children, of whom only five reached maturity, — William, Gilbert, Eichard, Edmund, and Joan. William, with his brothers, was undoubtedly educated at the Stratford Grammar School. Just what he studied there is uncertain; but judging from what was taught in other schools of the same type, it is safe to say that he read in several Latin authors, — Ovid, Terence, Plautus, Seneca, and Vergil. He may, too, have learned a little Greek. Somewhere and somehow he also acquired, then or at a later period, a very good knowledge of French and a smattering of Italian. In his early plays he was fond of displaying the schoolboy's knowledge of Latin; for Henry the Fifth, he wrote a brilliant scene throughout in French, an exercise that would perplex many a college student ; and the plots of some of his plays (for example, a part of The Merchant of Venice) seem to have been taken directly from the Italian. Shakespeare was not learned, but his education in the schools was respectable. Beyond this, he was a boy who kept his eyes open to all about him, — to men, sport, and nature. Of this his plays are the proof. How clearly he saw through Shallow and Dogberry — the justice and the con- SHAKESPEARE'S LIFE AND WORK xi stable of Stratford! And the same penetration he carried with him to the more varied life of London, and then on into history and romance. His language is rich in similes and metaphors taken from coursing, angling, and falconry, from the habits of horses, dogs, and birds; and tlian his there are in our literature no lovelier descriptions of quiet scenery. Nature spoke to him as she rarely speaks to her children. When in his nineteenth year, he did a very thoughtless thing: he married a woman who was eight years older than himself, and likely without the knowledge of his parents. Her name was, with little doubt, Anne Hathaway. She lived in a thatched cottage at Shottery, a hamlet distant from Stratford about a mile as you go through the fields. Though considerably altered, the dwelling still stands as a type of the Elizabethan farmhouse occupied by the humbler folk. It has long been a place of pilgrimage for tourists, to whom is shown the old chimney-seat where, it is said, William and Anne were wont to sit and gossip. Whether it be true or not, there is no harm in imagining such a scene. Becoming by 1585 the father of three children, the young Shakespeare probably saw the seriousness of his marriage. Soon after this, perhaps in 1586, he went to London. At any rate, there is an allusion to him, in 1592, as actor and playwright. The London theaters were then outside the city, and people rode to them on horseback. According to a tradition, which is likely true, Shakespeare's first occu- pation was to hold the horses of these visitors. He would next gain entrance to the theater, as prompter or actor in some subordinate role, and then he would push his way upward till he became an actor of repute, author, and manager. Shakespeare's career, which thus began sometime before 1592, extended to about 1611; and, except for occasional xii INTRODUCTION visits to Stratford, he seems to have remained in London during all this time. As shareholder in the Globe Theater, as actor and playwright, he gained what was then held to be a fortune; he bought property in London and Stratford, placed his father in good circumstances, and purchased the largest house in his native place, to which, by 1611 or 1612, he apparently returned for good. He died at Stratford on April 23, 1616, and was buried in the Church of the Holy Trinity, an interior view of which fronts this page. His contemporaries spoke of him not only as an excellent actor and the greatest of English dramatists, but also as upright in all his dealings and "of an open and free nature." His industry was prodigious. He composed "sugred" sonnets, and two poems of exquisite beauty, — Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece; and he either wrote throughout, or remodeled, or refurbished, thirty-seven plays, — thirty-eight, if we count The Tivo Noble Kinsmen, which he apparently touched up in places. Criticism has employed itself in trying to discover just when each of these plays was written, so as to form some notion of the stages whereby Shakespeare's genius unfolded. The details of these inves- tigations need not concern us here. We may say, however, in passing, that, beginning with gayety and ridicule, Shake- speare soon reached the dark and sinister in human life ; and then, near the close of .his career, he returned for a brief period to the lighter themes of his young manhood. We shall, I think, get the best view of his work by treating it according to subject. This was the method of his first editors. They divided the plays into comedies, histories, and tragedies. A comedy, as Shakespeare regarded it, is a play in which, after many perplexities, all comes out well at the end, with the marriage of the hero and the heroine. A history is founded on striking historical events. A tragedy ends in blood. The comedies, a-sparkle with wit, humor, and fantastic phrases, frank and generous in tone, i s 1 ^ . ■'■3 ^ j j . ^ M i ,1 ! ^ ■' I- •?^„*^>» ,M;,^, - ,-,>vf- Shakespeare's tomb in the church at Stratford-on-Avon. " Good frend for lesvs sake forbeare To digg the dvst encloased heare Bleste be y« man yt spares thes stones And cvrst be he yt moves my bones." SHAKESPEARE'S LIFE AND WORK xili are the most delightful pieces Shakespeare wrote, and every- body should read them all. Some of the best are Much Ado About Nothing, As You Like It, Twelfth Night, The Winter's Tale, and The Tempest. Eight of the histories deal with well-nigh continuous reigns of the English kings, beginning with Richard the Second and coming down through the Fourth, the Fifth, and the Sixth Henry to Richard the Third. Besides this group, there are King John and Henry the Eighth, in which Shakespeare, as it were, takes a look backward and a look forward. After all these histories, except the last, Shakespeare wrote three great Roman pieces, — Julius Ccesar, Coriolanus, and Antony and Cleo- patra. While the histories are frequently tragic in their conclusions, Shakespeare sought to relieve most of them by comic scenes, with the result that the history is sometimes overshadowed by the comedy. This is particularly true of the two plays on Henry the Fourth, in which appears Jack Falstaff, Shakespeare's supreme achievement in humor. But the Shakespeare who awakens our pity and dread for the weaknesses of our common nature, is most completely revealed in four of his tragedies, — Hamlet, Othello, Lear, and Macbeth. They were written between the ages of thirty-eight and forty-two, when his genius was in full maturity. No other man has ever probed our life, and the motives that sway us to action, quite so deeply as Shake- speare in these plays. And when we consider together all that he left behind him, we are most impressed by the ease with which he turned from theme to theme. Others have written tragedies or comedies which the world will never let die. But Shakespeare excels in both kinds. He is, perhaps we speak vaguely, at once Sophocles and Aris- tophanes, or Racine and Moliere. Certainly no one else has ever taken up in his work so much of life. XIV INTRODUCTION II. THE DRAMA AND THE THEATER All these plays were produced for the London theaters. Many of them no doubt were turned off hurriedly, much as the editor of to-day writes sheet after sheet, without thought of their literary value. To the theater people went to get the news, to hear comments on current events, and to be amused, just as we now pick up the newspaper for similar purposes. For a long time the drama had been a national passion. Indeed, plays in England date from the Norman Conquest. They were at that remote period liturgical ; that is, they were a part of the liturgy, or service, of the Church. Every- body knows how dramatic the ritual of the Church of Rome is still. Back in the twelfth century it was made particu- larly so at Christmas and at Easter. Then the clergy repre- sented as actually taking place before the congregation the incidents connected with the birth of Christ and His resur- rection as they are related in the New Testament. During the next two centuries these little dramas were detached from the liturgy, passing from the church to the church- yard, and then to the street and the public square, where they were performed upon movable stages, called pageants. Under these new conditions, monks and clerks could no longer be the actors, and their places were taken by the members of the guilds and by strolling players. The sub- ject-matter was also much enlarged. Long series of plays, appropriately called mysteries or miracles, were written, covering the most salient incidents in Scripture, from the creation to the day of doom. These old plays, though now rather dull reading, contain, nevertheless, a good deal that is tragic. And when you read an entire group of them you are impressed by their wide scope, by a magnitude well- nigh epic. They were, too, sometimes comic, as in the thp: drama and the theater xv^ conversations between Noah and his wife. And besides this, the common people seem to have been much amused by the devil, who appeared on the stage in person ; though he is to us a. rather sorry and coarse figure. Erom this kind of drama, popular attention was largely drawn to the morality and the interlude, which had a wide vogue in the sixteenth century. In these new plays the characters were groups of virtues and vices striving to win Mankind to good and to evil. At first, the interest was divided between the moral and the comic element in this combat; but, in course of time, the comic came to predomi- nate. Indeed, the typical vice, with his dagger of lath and ludicrous dress and manners, is the harbinger of the Shakespearean fool. This native course of the drama, which was moving on through tragedy and comedy, from the characters of Scrip- ture, through the virtues and the vices, to real men, was arrested and turned into a new channel just after the middle of the sixteenth century. At that time began to appear translations and adaptations of Latin comedy and tragedy. And in the decade between 1580 and 1590 there came to the front several notable playwrights, brilliant and daring young men, who, educated at the universities, were able to trans- form the English drama. Among them were George Peele, Robert Greene, and Christopher Marlowe. Their work was further developed and completed by Shakespeare. The drama, after breaking away from the Church and the guilds, had, by the sixteenth century, fallen for the most part into the hands of strolling players, who went about from place to place performing where they could, — in halls, open squares, and inn-yards. But when Shakespeare arrived in London, he found two theaters, which were situated in the parish of Shoreditch, in the fields : one was called The Theatre, and the other The Curtain. During the next few years others rapidly sprang up, among which were The Rose, XVI INTRODUCTION The Sican, Blackfriars, and The Globe. In the last-named theater — which was built on the right bank of the Thames, and could be reached from the city either by crossing London bridge or by water — Shakespeare was, as we have before observed, a shareholder, drawing from it perhaps four hun- dred pounds a year. Of these theaters considerable is known ; for in some cases there still exist notes about them made by visitors, and even the details of the contracts for their building. The main part was open to the sky, only the boxes, or the " rooms," being invariably covered. There was, however, for the stage a roof, called "the heavens," which seems to have been movable. One of the most curious features of the London theater was the stage, which projected into the pit, or " the yard," as it was still called. The stage was nearly bare of scenery, a change of place being indicated by a sign hung out, or by some slight modification of the furniture. The Elizabethan audience was made up of all sorts and conditions. People of the lower class from the streets of London stood in the pit, which was without seats. Men of higher rank would occupy the boxes, which were reached by stairways from the pit. In the boxes, too, might be women in mask; but women of respectability, unless disguised, would keep away. In the rear of the stage there was a gallery over the dress- ing room of the actors. This was for persons of distinction who visited the theater, or it might serve for an upper stage where one was required, as in Romeo and Juliet. Even upon the stage spectators were permitted to sit and remark about the play as it was progressing. Here, at the sides, were placed stools for young gentlemen who wished to display their fine clothing and their wit and to see the ghost of Banquo near at hand. This strange license is partly accounted for from the fact that the roles of women were taken by men. Lady Macbeth, for example, would be a man in woman's dress. All the stage arrangements were The Globe Theatre, London. THE WITCHES xyii primitive. We may infer, for instance, from a contempo- rary account of a performance of Macbeth, that the borders of the heath in the third scene were represented by a few small trees brought upon the stage. Through this impro- vised wood, Banquo and Macbeth entered on horses, which were probably hobby-horses,^ made of pasteboard and bound about their bodies. And yet for aU this crudeness, there was, I think, full compensation. The Elizabethan dramatist addressed the imagination and kept it awake. Painted scenery and foot- lights have since invaded the theater, and literature has made her exit. III. THE WITCHES From the Middle Ages onward, all classes -believed that there were two powerful hierarchies of spirits contending for supremacy in the world. On the one hand were God and the hosts of Heaven, whose earthly counterpart was the Church, with her long line of ministers from the pope and cardinals down to the humblest parish priest. On the other hand were Satan and innumerable demons, Avhose instru- ments were magicians, warlocks, and witches. These demons of the higher rank were the old divinities of Greek and Teutonic mythology, whom the saints of the new religion had driven from Olympus and Asgard. By Shakespeare's time this mediseval conception of the way in which good and evil work in men's minds had lost much of its dignity. The learned magicians had degenerated into quack doctors; and superstition had come to regard witches as the most mischievous of Satan's agents. A contemporary writer thus described them : — " [They] are women which be commonly old, lame, 1 For the hobby-horse, see Illustrations of Shakspeare, by F. Douce, p. 598. ^, xviii INTRODUCTION bleare-eied, pale, fowle, and full of wrinkles, ... in whose drousie minds the divell hath goten a fine seat. . . . They are leane and deformed, shewing melancholic in their faces, to the horror of all that see them." Of the power imputed to them, the same writer added : — "These be they that raise haile, tempests, and hurtful weather; as lightening, thunder, etc. . . . These can throwe children into waters, as they walke with their mothers, and not be scene. These can make horsses kicke, till they cast the riders. These can passe from place to place in the aire invisible. . . . These can bring trembling to the hands, and strike terror into the minds of them that apprehend them. These can manifest unto others, things hidden and lost, and foreshew things to come; and see them as though they were present. These can alter men's minds to inordinate love or hate. These can kill whom they list with lightening and thunder." The witch, it was held, entered into some sort of compact with Satan. Appearing to her in person, dressed all in black, he would promise her something on which she had set her heart, as revenge against her neighbor, on condition that she should abjure Christianity and swear allegiance to himself. But the gifts of Satan were unsatisfying and illu- sory; for there was always some defect in them, as the Macbeths discovered when they had gained the throne of Scotland. Just as the Church had its masses and festivals, cele- brated by day in magnificent cathedrals, so at midnight, in distant fields or on remote heaths, the servants of Satan met their lord and worshiped him in wild carnival. The spot, however fair it might have been, never bloomed again ; for, like the heath in Macbeth, it was blasted by the feet of demons. This feast was called the witches' sabbath, for it often took place just after midnight of Friday, that is, in the first hours of the Jewish Sabbath. Here congregated THE WITCHES xix witches by thousands, riding through the air on broom- sticks, or borne on the backs of demons who, for the occa- sion, had transformed themselves into animals. After prostrating themselves before Satan seated on his throne, and after relating the evil deeds they had committed since the last Sabbath, they chose, or had assigned to them, their attending spirits, called "familiars," and departed at the crowing of the cock to work more mischief throughout the world. The first scene in Macbeth is the conclusion of such a Sabbath ; and the mad rites about the cauldron in the first scene of the fourth act is an incident — and not the most loathsome — of the witches' nocturnal orgies. That there were witches who thus assembled at dead of night to plan evil was implicitly believed, not only by the common folk, but, for the most part, by men of learning. The superstition was questioned by no English writer (so far as I know) before 1584. In that year a Kentish gen- tleman, named Reginald Scot, published a remarkable book — from the third and fourth chapters of which we quoted above — entitled The Discoverie of Witchcraft. Though he cast no doubt on the hierarchies of good and bad spirits, he maintained that the so-called witches were poor deluded old women wholly innocent of any dealing with Satan. This was the beginning of a lively controversy over witchcraft. A few years later, James the Sixth of Scotland, while returning from Denmark with his bride, was nearly wrecked by storms, which, it was gravely related, were caused by witches, who followed his ship in sieves, making merry and drinking wine on the way. Having this personal grudge against witches, and being steeped in superstition from childhood, James now wrote, as a counterblast to Scot's book, a pamphlet on demonology (1597), which is a monu- ment in the history of intolerance. In 1603 this James became king of England. Shakespeare, like other men of the time, could not fail to take interest in the controversy XX IXTKODUCTION going on about him. At least, he saw how witchcraft could be effectively treated as a motive in the drama; and he certainly managed to convey his own views of the superstition. Test Shakespeare's knowledge at any point, and he will be found master of his subject. Every detail of Macbeth is in exact accord with the current beliefs. But for his pur- poses, Shakespeare selected his incidents and elevated them to the realm of poetry. The relation between the Avitches and their familiars and Satan he does not elaborate, for that was all supplied by his audience. It is, perhaps, noticeable that there is no open compact between Macbeth and the powers of evil. Instead of this, Shakespeare represents Macbeth as in moral harmony with them. The witches know that he is in a mood favorable to evil solicitations, and they set about their work that they may have some notable deed to relate at the next Sabbath. By prophecies and equivocations they lead him on and on in the way he has chosen, to the throne and to ruin. The witches, which were in popular superstition uncanny old women, Shake- speare so heightens and spiritualizes that they come to stand for that power in the world working man's moral destruction. And finally, he so subtilizes his material, that the air-drawn dagger, the ghost, and the witches' cauldron become but the hallucination of a guilty conscience. Such was the psychological insight with which Shakespeare wrote a play that loses none of its truth to liuman nature from the fact that it is embellished by superstitions long since of the past. IV. THE VERSE Macbeth, like all of Shakespeare's later plays, is written mostly in blank verse, that is, in verse without rhyme. The typical line consists of five measures, each measure THE VERSE XXI having two syllables. A stress of the voice — which may be strong or weak, as sense and music require — comes regularly on the second syllable in each measure. The following is the typical line : — Whose lior | rid im | age doth | unfix | my hair (I, iii, 135). No real poet would ever write continuously in this way, for the monotony would be intolerable. To the poet, language is, as it were, an instrument on which he plays for many effects. In the drama especially, he seeks to approach, within certain limits, the naturalness of the best speech as he feels it should be uttered by his characters in a great variety of situations. In rhetorical passages, the meter will be fairly uniform ; in quiet narrative and description, it will be graceful; in passionate scenes, it will be broken by emotion. Thus Shakespeare always suits the action to the word and the word to the action. To this end he often shifts the stress from the second to the first syllable. This shifting may occur anywhere. It is, however, most common in the first measure or after a pause. The following are examples : — This cas | tie hath | a plea j sant seat ; | the air Nimbly \ and sweet ] ly re | commends | itself (I, vi, 1-2). What is I amiss ? | You are | and do | not know 't (II, iii, 78). The clou I dy mes | senger | turns me | his back (III, vi, 41), And yet | I would | not sleep: | merci \ ful powers (II, i, 7). Still greater ease of movement is attained by an extra SYLLABLE at the end of a line or before a pause at the close of the second or the third measure. The line last quoted comes near to having such a syllable. Better examples are : — xxii INTRODUCTION yf ^ ^ ^ ^ Give me | the dag | gtrs : \ the sleep | ing and | the dead (II, ii, 53). Unto I our gen | tie sens | es. \ This guest | of sum | mer (I, vi, 3). Moreover, a line may contain six measures, thus becom- ing what is technically called an Alexandrine. This is rather common when the line is divided between two characters. For example : — Put on I their in ] struments. | Receive | what cheer | you may (IV, iii, 239). y' j' ^ I take I my leave | at once. | Sirrah, | your fa | ther's dead (IV, ii, 30). On the other hand, a line sometimes has only four MEASURES, especially if it is broken : — To th' 1 self I same tune | and words. | Who's here ? (I, iii, 88). As thou I didst leave | it. \ Doubtful I it stood (I, ii, 7). Still shorter lines are also employed by Shakespeare, especially in rapid dialogue and at the beginning and at the end of speeches. For example : — This is I a sor | ry sight (II, ii, 20). Shall harm | Macbeth (IV, i, 81). Any measure may contain three syllables. But it will be observed that the extra syllable is exceedingly light. See I, ii, 46; I, vii, 22; II, iii, 98; and the famous line : — The mul | titu | dinous seas \ incar | nadine (II, ii, 62). On the other hand, measures of one syllable are not uncommon. In these instances there is usually a pause at 1 All contractions in this discussion of Shakespeare's verse appear in the First Folio. THE VERSE xxiii the end of the measure, or a monosyllable is so prolonged as to become a dissyllable. See here, I, vi, 6; Come, 1, v, 38 ; Fare, IV, iii, 111; and 'Gainst my | captiv | ity. [ Hail^ \ brave friend (I, ii, 5). In Shakespeare's time many words which we now usually pronounce in full were contracted. Most of these con- tractions are shown in the text of this edition. Several, however, are not indicated. For example, the vowel of the was often elided or slurred when the article immediately follows or immediately precedes a vowel with which it may be united in pronunciation. We have the authority of the First Folio for scores of contractions like these : — ■ And wish | tli' estate | o' th' world | were now | undone (V, v, 50). The vowels marked as contracted may be lightly TOUCHED. The measure is then to be regarded as trisyl- labic. So one may sometimes choose betweeen I am and Vm and between / have and I^ve. See, for example, I, iii, 133; and I, iv, 20. Moreover, many words in Shakespeare's day were indif- ferently PRONOUNCED in either of two ways. Among them are entrance or enterance, o'emembrance or rememherance, conference or confrence, children or childeren, murdering or murdring, slaughterous or slaughtrous, monstrous or monster- ous, enemy or eyimy, misery or misry, spirits or sprites, whether or wher. Devil and evils were also apparently mono- syllabic, as in IV, iii, 56-57. Observe : — That croaks | the fa | tal en | t[e]rance | of Dun | can (I, v, 37). Final ion may be dissyllabic, especially at the end of a line : — Which smoked | with blood | y ex | ecu | tion (I, ii, 18). The same word, however, is monosyllabic in xxiv INTRODUCTION Whose ex | ecu | tion takes 1 your en | emj off (III, i, 104). Final eel, where not marked in the text as contracted, is sometimes pronounced : — Their drench | ed na | tures lie | as in | a death (I, vii, 68). The NORMAL ACCENT of scvcral words found in Macbeth as shifted since Shakespeare's time. Observe chdstise, I, V, 25; bdboon's, IV, i, 37; cdnjure, IV, i, 50; dbscure, II, iii, 40; and the following: — Stop up th' access and passage to remorse (I, v, 42). Authdriz'd by her grandam. Shame itself! (Ill, iv, 66). Bounty, perseverance, mercy, lowliness (IV, iii, 93). To be his purveyor: but he rides well (I, vi, 22). The accented syllable of proper names is easily deter- mined from the requirements of the verse. Hecate, written Hecat, by Shakespeare's first editors, is always dissyllabic. Dunsindne is thus accented on the first and the last syllable, except in IV, i, 93, where it is Dunsin'ane. Gldmis is usu- ally dissyllabic, and in every instance it may be so regarded. The witch scenes are written in short lines, each line having, for the most part, four stressed syllables. The meter is mainly trochaic, usually truncated, that is, lacking a final unstressed syllable. But interspersed with trochaic lines are pure iambics ; and the speeches of Hecate, in III, V, and in IV, i, are iambic throughout. The first two lines of the play run thus : — When shall | we three | meet a | gain (trochaic). In thun 1 der, light | ning, or | in rain? (iambic). E.HYME. The speeches of the witches are almost inva- riably in rhyming couplets. In other parts of the play there occur in all about a hundred rhymes. Note the use THE VERSE XXV of them, especially at the close of the various scenes, and in moralizing passages. Any analysis of Shakespeare's verse is necessarily inade- quate; for there are so many subtle variations which can only be felt. The student will notice that the stress varies much in degree. In some measures it is exceedingly light, and in others the voice dwells upon both syllables. Kead aloud the lines I have quoted with this statement in mind. For the light stress observe the first and third measures in this line : — He hath | a wis | dom that | doth guide | his valour (III, i, 52). Now observe the stress on both syllables in the second, fourth, and fifth measures in this line : — What hath | quench'd them | hath given | me fire. | Hark ! Peace! (II, ii, 2). As an exercise, make a study of the meter in one or two passages: for example, Act I, sc. v, lines 37-55, and Act I, sc. vi, lines 1-10. BIBLIOGRAPHY I APPEND FOR STUDENTS AND TEACHERS A PAR- TIAL LIST OF THE BOOKS USED IN PREPARING THIS VOLUME For the Text The works of Shakespeare (Globe edition), W. G. Clark and W. A. Wright. Reprint of the First Folio, Lionel Booth. Reproduction of the First Folio, Howard Staunton. For the Notes Macbeth : the editions by H. H. Furness, Clark and Wright, Charles Knight, W. J. Rolfe, K. Deighton, E. K. Chambers, J. M. Manly, and L. A. Sherman. Nares' Glossary, ed. Halliwell and Wright. Shakespeare Lexicon, Alexander Schmidt. • Transactions of the New Shakspere Society. Cruces Shakespearianae, B. G. Kinnear. The Diary of Master William Silence (a study of Shakespeare and of Elizabethan sport), the Rt. Hon. D. H. Madden. The Witch, Thomas Middle ton. For the Verse Chapters on English Metre, J. B. Mayor. A Shakespearian Grammar, E. A. Abbott. Early English Pronunciation, Part III, A. J. Ellis. Englische Metrik, Vol. II, J. Schipper. For Shakespeare's Life A Life of Shakespeare, Sidney Lee. Shakspere, a Study in Elizabethan Literature, Barrett Wendell. Shakspere (a primer), Edward Dowden. BIBLIOGRAPHY xxvii For the Drama and the Theater A History of English Dramatic Literature (revised edition, 1899), A. W. Ward. Specimens of the Pre-Shaksperean Drama, J. M. Manly. Shakespeare Manual, F. G. Fleay. Annals of the Stage, J. Payne Collier. Early London Theatres, T. F. Ordish. For the Structure and the Characters The Drama, its Law and its Technique, Elisabeth Woodbridge. Shakespeare as a Dramatic Artist, R. G. Moulton. Notes and Lectures upon Shakspeare, S. T. Coleridge. For the Sources Holinshed's Chronicles, the reprint of 1807-1808. Shakspere's Holinshed, W. G. Boswell-Stone. For Witchcraft The Discoverie of Witchcraft, Reginald Scott ; reprint edited by Brinsley Nicholson, London, 1886. Elizabethan Demonology, T. A. Spalding. Essay on Witchcraft, J. R. Lowell. Witch, Warlock, and Magician, W. H. Davenport Adams. R.D.SERVOSS, N.r. MACBETH ^ noblemen of Scotland. DRAMATIS PERSONS Duncan, king of Scotland. MALCOLM, I ^.^ ^^^^^ DONALBAIN, ) Macbeth, j ^^g^^ls of the king's army. Banquo, ) Macduff, ^ Lennox, Ross, Menteith, Angus, Caithness, J Fleance, son to Banquo. SiWARD, Earl of Northumberland, general of the English forces. Young SnvARD, his son. Seyton, an officer attending on Macbeth. Boy, son to Macduff. An English Doctor. A Scotch Doctor. A Sergeant. A Porter. An Old Man. Lady Macbeth. Lady IVLvcduff. Gentlewoman attending on Lady Macbeth. Hecate. Three Witches. Apparitions. Lords, Gentlemen, Officers, Soldiers, Murderers, Attendants, and Messengers. Scene — Scotla7id: England. MACBETH ACT I Scene I. A dese^'t place Thunder and lightning. Enter three Witches. First Witch. When shall we three meet again In thunder, lightning, or in rain ? Sec. Witch. When the hurlyburly's done, AVhen the battle's lost and won. 5 Third Witch. That will be ere the set of sun. First Witch. Where the place ? Sec. Witch. Upon the heath. Tliird Witch. There to meet with Macbeth. First Witch. I come, Graymalkin. Sec. Witch. Paddock calls. Third Witch. Anon ! 10 All. Fair is foul, and foul is fair : Hover through the fog and filthy air. [^Exeunt. ScEXE 11. A camp near Forres 1 Alarum ivithin. Enter Duncan, Malcolm, Donalbain, Lennox, ivith Attendants, meeting a bleeding Sergeant. Dun. What bloody man is that ? He can report. As seemeth by his plight, of the revolt The newest state. 3fcd. This is the sergeant Who like a good and hariiy soldier fought B ' 3 4 MACBETH 5 'Gainst my captivity. Hail, brave friend I Say to the king the knowledge of the broil As thou didst leave it. Ser. Doubtful it stood; As two spent swimmers, that do cling together And choke their art. The merciless Macdonwald — 10 AVorthy to be a rebel, for to that The multiplying villanies of nature Do swarm upon him — from the western isles Of kerns and gallowglasses is supplied ; And fortune, on his damned quarrel smiling, 15 Show'd like a rebel's whore : but all's too weak : For brave Macbeth — w^ell he deserves that name — Disdaining fortune, with his brandish'd steel. Which smoked with bloody execution. Like valour's minion carved out his passage 20 Till he faced the slave ; Which ne'er shook hands, nor bade farewell to him, Till he unseam 'd him from the nave to the chaps. And fix'd his head upon our battlements. Ditn. valiant cousin ! worthy gentleman I 25 Ser. As whence the sun 'gins his reflection Shipwrecking storms and direful thunders break. So from that spring whence comfort seem'd to come Discomfort swells. Mark, king of Scotland, mark : No sooner justice had with valour arni'd 30 Compell'd these skipping kerns to trust their heels. But the Norweyan lord surveying vantage, AVith furbish'd arms and new supplies of men Began a fresh assault. Dun. Dismay 'd not this Our ca]3tains, Macbeth and Banquo ? Ser. Yes ; 35 As sparrows eagles, or the hare the lion. If I say sooth, I must report they were ACT I. SCENE II -^ 5 As cannons overcharged with double cracks, so they Doubly redoubled strokes upon the foe : Except they meant to bathe in reeking wounds, 40 Or memorize another Golgotha, I cannot tell — But I am faint, my gashes cry for help. Dun. So well thy words become thee as thy wounds ; They smack of honour both. Go get him surgeons. [Exit Sergeant, attended. Who comes here ? Enter Ross. 45 Mai The worthy thane of Ross. Len. What a haste looks through his eyes ! So should he look That seems to speak things strange. Moss. God save the king ! Dun. Whence camest thou, worthy thane ? Boss. From Eife, great king; Where the Norweyan banners flout the sky 50 And fan our people cold. Norway himself, With terrible numbers, Assisted by that most disloyal traitor The thane of Cawdor, began a dismal conflict; Till that Bellona's bridegroom, lapp'd in proof, 55 Confronted him with self-comparisons. Point against point rebellious, arm 'gainst arm. Curbing his lavish spirit : and, to conclude. The victory fell on us. Du7i. Great happiness ! Boss. That now GO Sweno, the Norways' king, craves composition ; Nor would we deign him burial of his men Till he disbursed at Saint Colme's inch ji. C^4u.^^^Ji^^ Ten thousand dollars t^Tour general use. -^ ') '>»'*'*'^ 6 MACBETH Dun. No more that thane of Cawdor shall deceive 65 Our bosom interest : go pronounce his present death, And with his former title greet Macbeth. Ross. I'll see it done. Dun. AVhat he hath lost noble Macbeth hath won. \_Exeuai. ScEXE III. A heath near Forres Thunder. Enter the three Witches. First Witch. Where hast thou been, sister ? Sec. Witch. Killing swine. TJiird Witch, Sister, where thou ? First Witch. A sailor's wife had chestnuts in her lap, And munch'd, and munch'd, and munch'd: — "Give me 5 quoth I : " Aroint thee, witch ! " the rump-fed ronyon cries. Her husband's to Aleppo gone, master o' the Tiger : But in a sieve I'll thither sail. And, like a rat without a tail, 10 I'll do, I'll do, and I'll do. Sec. Witch. I'll give thee a wind. First Witch. Thou'rt kind. Third Witch. And I another. First Witch. I myself have all the other, 15 And the very ports they blow. All the quarters that they know I' the shipman's card. I will drain him dry as hay : Sleep shall neither night nor day 20 Hang upon his pent-house lid ; He shall live a man forbid : Weary se'nnights nine times nine Shall he dwindle, peak and pine: Though his bark cannot be lost, ACT I. SCENE III 7 25 Yet it shall be tempest-tost. Look what I have. Sec. Witch. Show me, show me. First Witch. Here I have a pilot's thumb, Wreck'd as homeward he did come. \_Drum within. 30 Third Witch. A drum, a drum ! Macbeth doth come. All. The weird sisters, hand in hand, Posters of the sea and land, Thus do go about, about : 35 Thrice to thine, and thrice to mine And thrice again, to make up nine. Peace ! the charm's wound up. Enter Macbeth and Baxquo. Mach. So foul and fair a day 1 have not seen. Ban. How far is't call'd to Forres ? What are these 40 So wither'd and so wild in their attire. That look not like the inhabitants o' the earth, And yet are on't ? Live you ? or are you aught That man may question? You seem to understand me, By each at once her choppy finger laying 45 Upon her skinny lips : you should be women. And yet your beards forbid me to interpret That you are so. Macb. Speak, if you can : what are you ? First Witch. All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis ! Sec. Witch. All hail, Macbeth ! hail to thee, thane of Cawdor ! Third Witch. All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king here- 50 after ! Ban. Good sir, why do you start, and seem to fear Things that do sound so fair ? I' the name of truth. 8 MACBETH Are ye fantastical, or that indeed Which outwardly ye show ? My noble partner 55 You greet wdth present grace and great prediction Of noble having and of royal hope, That he seems rapt withal : to me you speak not. If you can look into the seeds of time, And say which grain will grow and which will not, 60 Speak then to me, who neither beg nor fear Your favours nor your hate. First Witch. Hail! Sec. Witch. Hail! Third Witch. Hail! 65 First Witch. Lesser than Macbeth, and greater. Sec. Witch. Not so happy, yet much happier. Third Witch. Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none: So all hail, Macbeth and Ban quo ! First Witch. Banquo and Macbeth, all hail ! 70 Macb. Stay, you imperfect speakers, tell me more : By Sinel's death I know I am thane of Glamis ; But how of Cawdor ? the thane of Cawdor lives, A prosperous gentleman ; and to be king Stands not within the prospect of belief, 75 No more than to be Cawdor. Say from whence You owe this strange intelligence ? or why Upon this blasted heath you stop our way With such prophetic greeting ? Speak, I charge you. [Witches vcinish. Bcin. The earth hath bubbles, as the water has, 80 And these are of them. AVhither are they vanish'd ? Macb. Into the air ; and what seem'd corporal melted As breath into the wind. AVould they had stay'd ! Ban. Were such things here as we do speak about ? Or have we eaten on the insane root 85 That takes the reason prisoner ? Mach. Your children shall be kings. ACT I. SCENE III 9 Ban. You shall be king Mach. And thane of Cawdor too : went it not so ? Ban. To the selfsame tune and words. Who's here ? Enter Ross and Angus. Ross. The king hath happily received, Macbeth, 90 The news of thy success ; and when he reads Thy personal venture in the rebels' light, His wonders and his praises do contend . Which should be thine or his : silenced with that, In viewing o'er the rest o' the selfsame day, 95 He finds thee in the stout Norweyan ranks, Nothing afeard of what thyself didst make, Strange images of death. As thick as hail Came post with post ; and every one did bear Thy praises in his kingdom's great defence, And pour'd them down before him. 100 Ang. We are sent To give thee from our royal master thanks ; Only to herald thee into his sight. Not pay thee. Ross. And, for an earnest of a greater honour, 105 He bade me, from him, call thee thane of Cawdor : In which addition, hail, most worthy thane ! For it is thine. Ban, What, can the devil speak true ? Mach. The thane of Cawdor lives: why do you dress me In borrow'd robes ? Ang. Who was the thane lives yet ; no But under heavy judgement bears that life Which he deserves to lose. Whether he was combined With those of Norway, or did line the rebel With hidden help and vantage, or that with both He labour'd in his country's wreck, I know not; 10 MACBETH 115 But treasons capital, confess'd and proved, Have overthrown him. Mach. \_Askle~\ Glamis, and thane of Cawdor ! The greatest is behind. \_To Ross and Angus] Thanks for your pains. \_To Ban.'] Do you not hope your chiklren shall be kings, When those that gave the thane of Cawdor to me Promised no less to them ? 120 Ban. That, trusted home, Might yet enkindle you unto the crown. Besides the thane of Cawdor. But 'tis strange : And oftentimes, to win us to our harm. The instruments of darkness tell us truths, 125 Win us ^vith honest trifles, to betray's In deepest consequence. Cousins, a word, I pray you. Mach. [Afiide] Two truths are told. As hapx^y prologues to the swelling act / Of the imperial theme. — I thank you, gentlemen. — 130 \Aside'] This supernatural soliciting Cannot be ill, cannot be good : if ill. Why hath it given me earnest of success, Commencing in a truth ? I am thane of Caw^dor : If good, why do I yield to that suggestion 135 Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair And make my seated heart knock at my ribs, Against the use of nature ? Present fears Are less than horrible imaginings : My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical, 140 Shakes so my single state of man that function Is smother'd in surmise, and nothing is But what is not. Ban. Look, how^ our partner's rapt. Mach. \_Aside] If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, Without my stir. ACT I. SCENE IV 11 Ban. New honours come upon him, 145 Like our strange garments, cleave not to their moukl But with the aid of use. Macb. \_Aside] Come Avhat come may, Time and the hour runs through the roughest day. Ban. Worthy Macbeth, we stay upon your leisure. Macb. Give me your favour : my dull brain was wrought 150 With things forgotten. Kind gentlemen, your pains Are register'd where every day I turn The leaf to read them. Let us toward thh king'. Think upon what hath chanced, and at more time, The interim having weigh'd it, let us speak Our free hearts each to other. 155 Ban. Very gladly. Macb. Till then, enough. Come, friends. \_Exeunt. ScEXE IV. Forres. The palace Flourish. Enter Duncan, Malcolm, Dona$bain, Lennox, and Attendants. Dun. Is execution done on Cawdor ? Are not Those in commission yet return'd? Mai. My liege. They are not yet come back. But I have spoke With one that saw him die : who did report 5 That very frankly he confess'd his treasons. Implored your highness' pardon and set forth A deep repentance : nothing in his- life Became him like the leaving it ; he died As one that had been studied in his death 10 To throw away the dearest thing he owed, As 'twere a careless trifle. Dun. There's no art To find the mind's construction in the face : 12 MACBETH He was a gentleman on whom I built An absolute trust. — Enter Macbeth, Baxquo, Ross, and Angus. worthiest cousin ! 15 The sin of my ingratitude even now Was heavy on me : thou art so far before, That swiftest wing of recompense is slow To overtake" thee. Would thou hadst less deserved. That the proportion both of thanks and payment 20 Might have been mine ! only I have left to say. More is thy due than more than all can pay. Macb. The service and the loyalty I owe. In doing it, pays itself. Your highness' part Is to receive our duties ; and our duties 25 Are to your throne and state children and servants, Which do but what they should, by doing every thing Safe toward your love and honour. Dun. Welcome hither : I have begun to plant thee, and will labour To make thee full of growing. Noble Banquo, SO That hast no less deserved, nor must be known No less to have done so, let me infold thee And hold thee to my heart. Ban. There if I grow, The harvest is your own. Dun. My plenteous joys. Wanton in fulness, seek to hide themselves 35 In drops of sorrow. Sons, kinsmen, thanes. And you whose places are the nearest, know We will establish our estate upon " Our eldest, Malcolm, whom we name hereafter The Prince of Cumberland ; which honour must 40 Kot unaccompanied invest him only, ACT I. SCENE V l3 But signs of nobleness, like stars, shall shine On all deservers. From hence to Inverness, And bind us further to you. Mach. The rest is labour, which is not used for you : 45 I'll be myself the harbinger, and make joyful The hearing of my wife with your approach ; So humbly take my leave. Dun. My worthy Cawdor ! Macb. \_Aside~\ The Prince of Cumberland! that is a step On which I must fall down, or else o'erleap, 50 For in my way it lies. Stars, hide your fires ; Let not light see my black and deep desires : The eye wink at the hand ; yet let that be, Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see. \_Ed:it. Dun. True, w^orthy Banquo; he is full so valiant, 55 And in his commendations I am fed ; It is a banquet to me. Let's after him, Whose care is gone before to bid us welcome : It is a peerless kinsman. \_Flourish. Exeunt. Scene V. Inverness. Macbeth's castle Enter Lady Macbeth, reading a letter. Lady M. " They met me in the day of success : and I have learned by the perfectest report, they have more in them than mortal knowledge. When I burned in desire to question them further, they made themselves air, into which 5 they vanished. Whiles I stood rapt in the wonder of it, came missives from the king, who all-hailed me ' Thane of Cawdor ; ' by which title, before, these weird sisters saluted me, and referred me to the coming on of time, with ' Hail, king that shalt be ! ' This have I thought good to deliver 10 thee, my dearest partner of greatness, that thou mightst not 14 MACBETH lose the dues of rejoicing, by being ignorant of what great- ness is promised thee. Lay it to thy heart, and farewell." Glamis thou art, and Cawdor ; and shalt be What thou art promised : yet do I fear thy nature ; 15 It is too full o' the milk of human kindness To catch the nearest way : thou wouldst be great ; " ^ Art not without ambition, but without -4 ■ The illness should attend it : what thou wouldst highly, That wouldst thou holily ; wouldst not play false, 20 And yet wouldst wrongly win : thou'ldst have, great Glamis, That which cries " Thus thou must do, if thou have it " ; And that which rather thou dost fear to do Than wishest should be undone. Hie thee hither, That I may pour my spirits in thine ear ; 25 And chastise with the valour of my tongue All that impedes thee from the golden round. Which fate and meta^^hysical aid doth seem To have thee crown'd withal. Enter a Messenger. What is your tidings ? Mess. The king comes here to-night. Lady M. Thou'rt mad to say it : 30 Is not thy master with him ? who, were't so. Would have inform'd for preparation. Mess. So please you, it is true : our thane is coming : One of my fellows had the speed of him. Who, almost dead for breath, had scarcely more Than would make up his message. 35 Lady M. Give him tending ; He brings great news. \_Exit Messenger. The raven himself is hoarse That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan Look like the innocent flower, But be the serpent under 't. He that 's coming Must be provided for." ACT I. SCENE V 15 Under my battlements. Come, you spirits That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, 40 And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full Of direst cruelty ! make thick my blood ; Stop up the access and passage to remorse. That no compunctious visitings of nature Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between 45 The effect and it ! Come to my woman's breasts, And take my milk for gall, you murdering ministers, Wherever in your sightless substances You wait on nature's mischief ! Come, thick night, - And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell, 50 That my keen knife see not the wound it makes, Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark, To cry " Hold, hold ! " Enter Macbeth. Great Glamis ! worthy CaAvdor ! Greater than both, by the all-hail hereafter ! Thy letters have transported me beyond 55 This ignorant present, and I feel now The future in the instant. Macb. My dearest love, Duncan comes here to-night. Lady M. And when goes hence ? Macb. To-morrow, as he purposes. Lady M. 0, never Shall sun that morrow see ! 60 Your face, my thane, is as a book where men May read strange matters. To beguile the time, Look like the time ; bear welcome in your eye, Your hand, your tongue : look like the innocent flower, But be the serpent under't. He that's coming 65 Must be provided for : and you shall ^Dut 16 MACBETH This night's great business into my dispatch ; Which shall to all our nights and days to come Give solely sovereign sway and masterdom. Macb. We will speak further. Lady M. Only look up clear ; 70 To alter favour ever is to fear : Leave all the rest to me. [Exeiuit. Scene VI. Before Macbeth's castle Hautboys and torches. Enter Duncan, Malcolm, Donal- BAiN, Banquo, Lennox, Macduff, Ross, Angus, and Attendants. Dun. This castle hath a pleasant seat ; the air Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself Unto our gentle senses. Ban. This guest of summer. The temple-haunting martlet, does approve, 5 By his loved mansionry, that the heaven's breath Smells wooingly here : no jutty, frieze. Buttress, nor coign of vantage, but this bird Hath made his pendent bed and procreant cradle : Where they most breed and haunt, I have observed, The air is delicate. Enter Lady Macbeth. 10 Dun. See, see, our honour'd hostess ! r The love that follows us sometime is our trouble, \ Which still ^ve thank as love. Herein I teach you ) How you shall bid God 'ild us for your pains, / And thank us for your trouble. Lady M. All our service, 15 Li every point twice done and then done double, Were poor and single business to contend ACT I. SCENE VII 17 Against those honours deep and broad wherewith Your majesty loads our house : for those of old, And the late dignities heap'd up to them, We rest your hermits. 20 Dan. Where's the thane of Cawdor ? We coursed him at the heels, and had a purpose To be his purveyor : but he rides well ; And his great love, sharp as his spur, hath holp him To his home before us. Fair and noble hostess, We are your guests to-night. 25 Lady M. Your servants ever Have theirs, themselves and what is theirs, in compt, To make their audit at your highness' pleasure. Still to return your own. Duyi. Give me your hand ; Conduct me to mine host : we love him highly, 30 And shall continue our graces towards him. By your leave, hostess. [Exeunt. Scp:ne VII. Macbeth's castle Hautboys and torches. Enter a Sewer, and divers Servants with dishes and service, and 'pass over the stage. Thoi enter Macbeth. Macb. If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well It were done quickly : if the assassination Could trammel up the consequence, and catch With his surcease success ; that but this blow 5 Might be the be-all and the end-all here, But here, upon this bank and shoal of time, We'ld jump the life to come. But in these cases We still have judgement here ; that we but teach Bloody instructions, which, being taught, return 10 To plague the inventor : this even-handed justice 18 MACBETH Commends the ingredients of our poison'd chalice To our own lips. He's here in double trust ; First, as I am his kinsman and his subject, Strong both against the deed ; then, as his host, 15 Who should against his murderer shut the door, Not bear the knife myself. Besides, this Duncan Hath borne his faculties so meek, hath been So clear in his great office, that his virtues Will plead like angels, trumpet-ton gued, against 20 The deep damnation of his taking-off ; And pity, like a naked new-born babe. Striding the blast, or heaven's cherubim, horsed Upon the sightless couriers of the air. Shall blow the horrid deed in every eye, 25 That tears shall drown the wind. I have no spur r^ ^-^ ! To prick the sides of my intent, but only .-J Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself 0 And to our dear friend Banquo, whom we miss ; Would he were here! to all and him, we thirst, And all to all. Lords. Our duties, and the pledge. Re-enter Ghost. Mach. Avaunt! and quit my sight! let the earth hide thee ! Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold ; 95 Thou hast no speculation in those eyes AVhich thou dost glare with ! Lady M. Think of this, good peers. But as a thing of custom : 'tis no other ; Only it spoils the pleasure of the time. Mach. What man dare, I dare : 100 Approach thou like the rugged Russian bear. The arm'd rhinoceros, or the Hyrcan tiger ; Take any shape but that, and my firm nerves Shall never tremble : or be alive again. L 46 MACBETH And dare me to the desert with thy sword ; 105 If trembling I inhabit then, protest me The baby of a girL Hence, horrible shadow ! Unreal mockery, hence ! \^Exit Ghost. Why, so : being gone, I am a man again. Pray yon, sit still. Ladfj M. You have displaced the mirth, broke the good meeting. With most admired disorder. 110 Macb. Can such things be, And overcome us like a summer's cloud, Without our special wonder ? You make me strange Even to the disposition that I owe. When now I think you can behold such sights, 115 And keep the natural ruby of your cheeks. When mine is blanch'd with fear. Ross. AVhat sights, my lord? :'Mdy J\[. I pray you, speak not ; he grows worse and worse ; Q' ;tion enrages him. At once, good night : lid not upon the order of your going. But go at once. 120 Len. Good night ; and better health Attend his majesty ! Lady M. A kind good night to all ! [Exeunt all but Macbeth andljABY M. Macb. It will have blood ; they say, blood will have blood : Stones have been knowu to move and trees to speak ; Augures and nnderstood relations have 125 By magot-pies and choughs and rooks brought forth The secret'st man of blood. What is the night ? Lady M. Almost at odds with morning, which is which. Macb. How say'st thou, that Macduff denies his person At our great bidding ? ACT III. SCENE V 47 Lady M. TMd you send to him, sir ? 130 Mach. I hear it by the way 5 but I will send : There's not a one of them but in his house I keep a servant fee'd. I will to-morrow, And betimes I will, to the weird sisters : More shall they speak ; for now I am bent to know^ 135 By the worst means, the worst. For mine own good. All causes shall give way : I am in blood Stepp'd in so far that, should I w^ade no more. Returning were as tedious as go o'er : Strange things I have in head, that will to hand ; 140 Which must be acted ere they may be scann'd. Lady M. You lack the season of all natures, sleep. Mach. Come, we'll to sleep. My strange and self-abuse Is the initiate fear that wants hard use : We are yet but young in deed. \_Exeiint. Scene V. A Heath Thunder. Enter the three Witches, meeting HECATE.^"^'y % 10 First Witch. Why, how now, Hecate ! you look angerly. Hec. Have I not reason, beldams as you are. Saucy and overbold ? How did you dare To trade and traffic with Macbeth In riddles and affairs of death ; And I, the mistress of your charms, The close contriver of all harms. Was never call'd to bear my part. Or show the glory of our art ? And, which is worse, all you have done Hath been but for a wayward son. Spiteful and wrathful, who, as others do. Loves for his own ends, not for you. But make amends now: get you gone, 4:8 macbp:th 15 And at the pit of Acheron Meet me i' the morning : thither he Will come to know his destiny : Yonr vessels and your spells provide, Your charms and every thing beside. '20 I am for the air ; this night I'll spend Unto a dismal and a fatal end : Great business must be wrought ere noon: Upon the corner of the moon There hangs a vaporous drop profound ; 25 I'll catch it ere it come to ground : And that distill'd by magic sleights Shall raise such artificial sprites As by the strength of their illusion Shall draw him on to his confusion : 30 He shall spurn fate, scorn death, and bear His hopes 'bove wisdom, grace and fear : And you all know, security Is mortals' chiefest enemy. [Music and a song icithin: "Come away, come away," &c.] Hark! I am call'd; my little spirit, see, 35 Sits in a foggy cloud, and stays for me. [Exit. First Witch. Come, let's make haste ; she'll soon be back again. [Exeunt. Scene VI. Forres. The ixdace Enter Lennox and another Lord. Len. My former speeches have but hit your thoughts, Which can interpret further : onl}^, I say, Things have been strangely borne. The gracious Duncan Was pitied of INIacbeth : marry, he was dead : 5 A-nd the right- valiant Banquo walk'd too late ; I ACT III. SCENE VI 49 Whom, you may say, if t please you, Pleance kill'd, For Fleance fied : men must not walk too late. Who cannot want the thought how monstrous It was for Malcolm and for Donalbain 10 To kill their gracious father ? damned fact ! How it did grieve Macbeth ! did he not straight In pious rage the two delinquents tear, That were the slaves of drink and thralls of sleep V Was not that nobly done ? Ay, and wisely too ; 15 For 'twould have anger'd any heart alive To hear the men deny't. So that, I say, He has borne all things well : and I do think That had he Duncan's sons under his key — As, an't please heaven, he shall not — they should find 20 What 'twere to kill a father ; so should Fleance. But, peace ! for from broad words and 'cause he fail'd His presence at the tyrant's feast, I hear Macduff lives in disgrace : sir, can you tell Where he bestows himself ? Lord. The son of Duncan, 25 From whom this tyrant holds the due of birth, Lives in the English court, and is received Of the most pious Edward with such grace That the malevolence of fortune nothing Takes from his high respect : thither Macduff 30 Is gone to pray the holy king, upon his aid To wake Northumberland and warlike Siward : That, by the help of these — with Him above To ratify the work — we may again Give to our tables meat, sleep to our nights, 35 Free from our feasts and banquets bloody knives, Do faithful homage and receive free honours : _ All which Ave pine for now : and this report Hath so exasperate the king that he Prepares for some attempt of war. 50 MACBETH Len. Sent he to Macduff ? 40 Lonl. He did : and with an absohite " Sir, not I," The cloudy messenger turns me his back, And hums, as who should say " You'll rue the time That clogs me with this answer." Len. And that well might Advise him to a caution, to hold what distance 45 His wisdom can provide. Some holy angel Fly to the court of England and unfold His message ere he come, that a swift blessing May soon return to this our suffering country Under a hand accursed ! Lord. I'll send my prayers with him. [Exeunt. ACT IV. SCENE I 51 ACT IV Scene I. A cavern. In the middle, a boiling cauldron TJmnder. Enter the three Witches. First Witch. Thrice the brinded cat hath mew'd. Sec. Witch. Thrice and once the hedge-pig whined. Third Witch. Harpier cries ; 'tis time, 'tis time. First Witch. Round about the cauldron go ; 5 In the poisoned entrails throw. Toad, that under cold stone Days and nights has thirty -one Swelter'd venom sleeping got. Boil thou first i' the charmed pot. 10 All. Double, double, toil and trouble ; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble. Sec. Witch. Fillet of a fenny snake. In the cauldron boil and bake ; Eye of newt and toe of frog, 15 ' Wool of bat and tongue of dog, Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting, Lizard's leg and howlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and bubble. 20 All. Double, double, toil and trouble ; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble. Third Witch. Scale of dragon, tooth of wolf. Witches' mummy, maw and gulf Of the ravin'd salt-sea shark, 25 Root of hemlock digg'd i' the dark. Liver of blaspheming Jew, 02 MACBETH Gall of goat, and slips of yew Sliver'd in the moon's eclipse, Nose of Turk and Tartar's lips, 30 Finger of birth-strangled babe Ditch-deliver'd by a drab. Make the gruel thick and slab : Add thereto a tiger's chaudron, For the ingredients of our cauldron. 35 ^1//. Double, double, toil and trouble ; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble. Sec Witch, Cool it with a baboon's blood ; Then the charm is firm and good. Enter Hecate to the other three Witches. Hec. 0, well done ! I commend your pains ; 40 And every one shall share i' the gains : And now about the cauldron sing, Like elves and fairies in a ring. Enchanting all that you put in. l^Music and a song : " Black Spirits," &c. [Hecate retires. Sec. Witch. By the pricking of my thumbs, 45 Something wicked this way comes. Open, locks. Whoever knocks ! Enter Macbeth. Macb. How now, you secret, black, and midnight hags ! What is't you do ? All. A deed without a name. 50 Macb. I conjure you, by that which you profess, Howe'er you come to know it, answer me : Though you untie the winds and let them fight Against the churches ; though the yesty waves ACT IV. SCENE I 53 Confound and swallow navigation np ; 55 Though bladed corn be lodged and trees blown down ; Though castles topple on their warders' heads ; Though palaces and pyramids do slope Their heads to their foundations ; though the treasure Of nature's germens tumble all together, (50 Even till des uction sicken ; answer me To what I as I you. First Witch. Speak. Sec. Witch. Demand. Third Witch. We'll answer. First Witch. Say, if thou'dst rather hear it from our mouths, Or from our masters ? Much. Call 'em ; let me see 'em. First Witch. Pour in sow's blood, that hath eaten 65 Her nine farrow ; grease that's sweaten From the murderer's gibbet throw Into the flame. All. Come, high or low ; Thyself and office deftly show ! Thunder. First Apparition : an armed Head. Macb. Tell me, thou unknown power, — First Witch. He knows thy thought : 70 Hear his speech, but say thou nought. First App. Macbeth ! Macbeth ! Macbeth ! beware Mac- duff; Beware the thane of Fife. Dismiss me. Enough. \_Descends. Macb. Whate'er thou art, for thy good caution, thanks ; Thou hast harp'd my fear aright : but one word more, — 75 First Witch. He w411 not be commanded : here's another, More potent than the first. 54 MACBETH Thunder. Second Apparition : a bloody Child. Sec. App. Macbeth ! Macbeth ! Macbeth ! Mach. Had I three ears, I'kl hear thee. Sec. App. Be bloody, bold, and resolute ; laugh to scorn 80 The power of man, for none of woman born Shall harm Macbeth. \_Descends. Macb. Then live, Macduff : what need I fear of thee ? But yet I'll make assurance double sure, And take a bond of fate : thou shalt not live ; 85 That I may tell pale-hearted fear it lies. And sleep in spite of thunder. Thunder. Third Apparition : a Child croivned, ivith a tree in his hand. What is this That rises like the issue of a king, And wears upon his baby-brow the round And top of sovereignty ? All. Listen, but speak not to't. 90 Third App. Be lion-mettled, proud ; and take no care Who chafes, who frets, or where conspirers are : Macbeth shall never vanquish'd be until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill Shall come against him. \_Descends. Macb. That will never be : 95 Who can impress the forest, bid the tree Unfix his earth-bound root ? Sweet bodements ! good ! Eebellion's head, rise never till the wood Of Birnam rise, and our high-placed Macbeth Shall live the lease of nature, pay his breath 100 To time and mortal custom. Yet my heart Throbs to know one thing : tell me, if your art Can tell so much : shall Banquo's issue ever E-eign in this kingdom ? ACT IV. SCENE I 55 All. Seek to know no more. 3facb. I will be satisfied : deny me this, 105 And an eternal curse fall on you ! Let me know. Why sinks that cauldron ? and what noise is this ? \_Hauthoys. First Witch. Show! Sec. Witch. Show! Tliird Witch. Show! 110 All. Show his eyes, and grieve his heart ; Gome like shadows, so depart! A show of Eight Kings, the last ivith a glass in his hand ; Banquo's Ghost folloidng. Macl). Thou art too like the spirit of Banquo ; down ! Thy crown does sear mine eye-balls. And thy hair, Thou other gold-bound brow, is like the first. 115 A third is like the former. Filthy hags ! Why do you show me this ? A fourth ! Start, eyes ! What, will the line stretch out to the crack of doom ? Another yet ! A seventh ! I'll see no more : And yet the eighth appears, who bears a glass 120 Which shows me many more ; and some I see That two-fold balls and treble sceptres carry : Horrible sight ! Now, I see, 'tis true ; For the blood-bolter'd Banquo smiles upon me. And points at them for his. \_Apparitions vanish.'] What, is this so ? 125 First Witch. Ay, sir, all this is so : but why Stands Macbeth thus amazedly ? Come, sisters, cheer we up his sprites. And show the best of our delights : I'll charm the air to give a sound, 130 While you perform your antic round ; That this great king may kindly say. Our duties did his Avelcome pay. \_3Iusic. TJie Witches dance, and then vanish, ivith Hecate. 56 macbp:th Mach. Where are they ? Gone ? Let this pernicious hour Stand aye accursed in the calendar Come in, without there ! Enter Lexxox. 135 Len. What's your grace's will? 3Iacb. Saw you the weird sisters ? Len. No, my lord. 3Iacb. Came they not by you ? Le)i. No, indeed, my lord. Macb. Infected be the air whereon they ride ; And damned all those that trust them I I did hear 140 The galloping of horse : who was't came by ? Len. 'Tis two or three, my lord, that bring you word Macduff is fled to England. Macb. Fled to England ! Len. Ay, my good lord. 3Iacb. Time, thou anticipatest my dread exploits : Uo The flighty purpose never is o'ertook Unless the deed go with it : from this moment The very firstlings of my heart shall be The firstlings of my hand. And even now, To crown my thoughts with acts, be it thought and done : 150 The castle of Macduff I will surprise ; Seize upon Eife ; give to the edge o' the sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls That trace him in his line. No boasting like a fool : This deed I'll do before this purpose cool. 155 But no more sights ! — Where are these gentlemen ? Come, bring me where they are. [Exeunt. ACT IV. SCENE II 57 Scene II. Fife. Macduff's cadle Enter Lady Macduff, her Son, and Ross. L. Macd. What had he done, to make him fly the land ? Ross. You must have patience, madam. L. Macd. He had none : His flight was madness : when our actions do not. Our fears do make us traitors. Ross. You know not 5 Whether it was his wisdom or his fear. L. Macd. Wisdom ! to leave his wife, to leave his babes. His mansion and his titles in a place From whence himself does fly ? He loves us not; He wants the natural touch : for the poor wren, 10 The most diminutive of birds, will fight. Her young ones in her nest, against the owl. All is the fear and nothing is the love ; As little is the wisdom, where the flight So runs against all reason. Ross. My dearest coz, 15 I pray you, school yourself : but for your husband. He is noble, wise, judicious, and best knows The fits o' the season. I dare not speak much further ; But cruel are the times, when we are traitors And do not know ourselves ; when we hold rumour 20 From what we fear, yet know not what we fear. But float upon a wild and violent sea Each way and move. I take my leave of you : Shall not be long but I'll be here again : Things at the worst will cease, or else climb upward 25 To what they were before. My pretty cousin. Blessing upon you ! L. Macd. Father'd he is, and yet he's fatherless. Ross. I am so much a fool, should I stay longer. 58 MACBETH It would be my disgrace and your discomfort : I take my leave at once. [Exit. 30 L, 3Iacd. Sirrah, your father's dead : And what will you do now ? How will you live ? Son. As birds do, mother. L. Maccl. What, with worms and llies ? Son. With what I get, I mean ; and so do they. L. Maccl. Poor bird ! thou'ldst never fear the net nor lime, 35 The pitfall nor the gin. Son. Why should I, mother? Poor birds they are not set for. My father is not dead, for all your saying. L. Maccl. Yes, he is dead : how wilt thou do for a father ? Son. Nay, how will you do for a husband ? 40 L. Maccl. Why, I can buy me twenty at any market. Son. Then you'll buy 'em to sell again. L. Maccl. Thou speak'st with all thy wit ; and yet, i' faith. With wit enough for thee. Son. AVas my father a traitor, mother ? 45 L. Maccl. Ay, that he was. Son. What is a traitor ? L. Maccl. Why, one that swears and lies. Son. And be all traitors that do so ? L. Maccl. Every one that does so is a traitor, and must be 50 hanged. Son. And must they all be hanged that swear and lie ? L. Maccl. Every one. Son. Who must hang them ? L. Maccl. Why, the honest men. 55 Son. Then the liars and swearers are fools, for there are liars and swearers enov^^ to beat the honest men and hang- up them. //. Maccl. Now, God help thee, poor monkey ! But how wilt thou do for a father ? 60 Son. If he were dead, you'ld weep for him : if you would ACT IV. SCENE II 59 not, it were a good sign that I should quickly have a new father. L. Macd. Poor prattler, how thou talk'st ! Enter a Messenger. Mess. Bless you, fair dame ! I am not to you known, 65 Though in your state of honour I am perfect. I doubt some danger does approach you nearly : If you will take a homely man's advice. Be not found here ; hence, with your little ones. To fright you thns, methinks, I am too savage ; 70 To do worse to you were fell cruelty. Which is too nigh your person. Heaven preserve you ! I dare abide no longer. \_Exit. L. Macd. Whither should I fly ? I have done no harm. But I remember now I am in this earthly world ; where to do harm 75 Is often laudable, to do good sometime Accounted dangerous folly : why then, alas, Do I put up that womanly defence. To say I have done no harm ? Enter Murderers. What are these faces ? First Mur. Where is your husband ? 80 L- Macd. I hope, in no place so un sanctified Where such as thou may'st find him. First Mur. He's a traitor. jSoji. Thou liest, thou shag-hair'd villain ! First Mur. What, you egg! \_Stahhing him. Young fry of treachery ! Son. He has kill'd me, mother : Run away, I pray you ! \_Dies. [_Exit Lady Macduff, crying " Murder ! " Exeunt Murderers, following her. 60 MACBETH Scene III. England. Before the King's palace Enter Malcolm and Macduff. MaJ. Let us seek out some desolate shade, and there Weep our sad bosoms empty. Macd. , Let us rather Hold fast the mortal sword, and like good men Bestride our down-fall'n birthdom : each new morn 5 New widows howl, new orphans cry, new sorrows Strike heaven on the face, that it resounds As if it felt with Scotland and yell'd out Like syllable of dolour. Mai. What I believe, I'll Avail ; What know, believe ; and what I can redress, 10 As I shall find the time to friend, I will. What you have spoke, it may be so perchance. This tyrant, whose sole name blisters our tongues. Was once thought honest : you have loved him well ; He hath not touch'd you yet. I am young ; but something 15 You may deserve of him through me, and wisdom To offer up a weak, poor, innocent lamb To appease an angry god. Macd. I am not treacherous. Mai. But Macbeth is. A good and virtuous nature may recoil 20 In an imperial charge. But I shall crave your pardon ; That which you are my thoughts cannot transpose : Angels are bright still, though the brightest fell : Though all things foul would wear the brows of grace. Yet grace must still look so. Macd. I have lost my hopes. 25 Mai. Perchance even there where I did find my doubts. Why in that rawness left you wife and child. Those precious motives, those strong knots of love. ACT IV. SCENE III 61 Without leave-taking ? I pray you, Let not my jealousies be your dishonours, 30 But mine own safeties. You may be rightly just, Whatever I shall think. Macd. Bleed, bleed, poor country ! Great tyranny ! lay thou thy basis sure, For goodness dare not check thee : wear thou thy wrongs ; The title is affeer'd ! Fare thee well, lord : 35 I would not be the villain that thou think'st For the whole space that's in the tyrant's grasp, And the rich East to boot. Mai. Be not offended : I speak not as in absolute fear of you. I think our country sinks beneath the yoke ; 40 It weeps, it bleeds ; and each new day a gash Is added to her wounds : I think withal There would be hands uplifted in my right ; And here from gracious England have I offer Of goodly thousands : but, for all this, 45 When I shall tread upon the tyrant's head. Or wear it on my sword, yet my poor country Shall have more vices than it had before. More suffer and more sundry ways than ever, By him that shall succeed. Macd. What should he be ? 50 Mai. It is myself I mean : in whom I know All the particulars of vice so grafted That, when they shall be open'd, black Macbeth Will seem as pure as snow, and the poor state Esteem him as a lamb, being compared With my confineless harms. 55 3facd. Not in the legions Of horrid hell can come a devil more damn'd In evils to top Macbeth. Mai. I grant him bloody, 62 MACBETH Luxurious, avaricious, false, deceitful, Sudden, malicious, smacking of every sin 60 That has a name : but there's no bottom, none, In my voluptuousness : your wives, your daughters. Your matrons and j^our maids, could not fill up The cistern of my lust, and my desire All continent impediments would o'erbear 65 That did oppose my will : better Macbeth Than such an one to reign. Macd. Boundless intemperance In nature is a tyranny ; it hath been The untimely emptying of the happy throne And fall of many kings. But fear not yet 70 To take upon you what is joins : you may Conve}' your pleasures in a spacious plenty, And yet seem cold, the time you may so hoodwink. We have willing dames enough ; there cannot be That vulture in you, to devour so many 75 As will to greatness dedicate themselves, Finding it so inclined. Mai. With this there grows In my most ill-composed aff^TTtion such A stanchless avarice that, were I king, I should cut off the nobles for their lands, 80 Desire his jewels and this other's house : And my more-having would be as a sauce To make me hunger more ; that I should forge Quarrels unjust against the good and loyal, Destroying them for wealth. Macd. This avarice 85 Sticks deeper, grows with more pernicious root Than summer-seeming lust, and it hath been The sword of our slain kings : yet do not fear ; Scotland hath foisons to fill up your will, Of your mere own : all these are portable, 90 With other graces weigh'd. ACT IV. SCENE III 63 JIal. But I have none : tlie king-becoming graces, As justice, verity, temperance, stableness, Bounty, perseverance, mercy, lowliness, Devotion, patience, courage, fortitude, 95 I have no relish of them, but abound In the division of each several crime. Acting it many ways. Nay, had I power, I should Pour the sweet milk of concord into hell, Uproar the universal peace, confound All unity on earth. 100 Macd. Scotland, Scotland ! 3IaL If such a one be fit to govern, speak : I am as I have spoken. ^ Afacd. Fit to govern ! M No, not to live. nation miserable, P" With an untitled tyrant bloody-scepter'd ! 105 When shalt thou see thy wholesome days again. Since that the truest issue of thy throne || By his own interdiction stands accursed. And does blaspheme his breed ? Thy royal father Was a most sainted king : the queen that bore thee, 110 Oftener upon her knees than on her feet, Died every day she lived. Fare thee well ! These evils thou repeat'st upon thyself Have banish'd me from Scotland. my breast. Thy hope ends here ! McU. Macduff, this noble passion, 115 Child of integrity, hath from my soul Wiped the black scruples, reconciled my thoughts To thy good truth and honour. Devilish Macbeth By many of these trains hath sought to win me Into his power, and modest wisdom plucks me 120 From over-credulous haste : but God above Deal between thee and me ! for even now I put myself to thy direction, and 64 MACBETH [Jnspeak mine own detraction ; here abjure The taints and blames I laid upon myself, 125 For strangers to my nature. I am yet Unknown to woman, never was forsworn, Scarcely have coveted what was mine own. At no time broke my faith, would not betray The devil to his fellow, and delight 130 Ko less in truth than life : my first false speaking Was this upon myself : what I am truly. Is thine and my poor country's to command : Whither indeed, before thy here-approach, Old Si ward, with ten thousand warlike men, 135 Already at a point, was setting forth. Now we'll together; and the chance of goodness Be like our warranted quarrel ! Why are you silent ? Macd. Such welcome and unwelcome things at once 'Tis hard to reconcile. Ente}' a Doctor. 3fal. Well ; more anon. — Comes the king forth, I pray 140 you ? Doct. Ay, sir ; there are a crew of wretched souls That stay his cure : their malady convinces The great assay of art ; but at his touch — Such sanctity hath heaven given his hand — They presently amend. 145 3IaL I thank you, doctor. [Exit Doctor. 3Iacd. What's the disease he means ? Mai 'Tis call'd the evil : A most miraculous work in this good king ; Which often, since my here-remain in England, I have seen him do. How he solicits heaven, 150 Himself best knows : but strangely-visited people, All swoln and ulcerous, pitiful to the eye. The mere despair of surge r}^, he cures, ACT IV. SCENE III 65 Hanging a golden stamp about their necks, Put on with holy prayers : and 'tis spoken, 155 To the succeeding royalty he leaves The healing benediction. With this strange virtue, He hath a heavenly gift of prophecy, And sundry blessings hang about his throne. That speak him full of grace. Enter Eoss. Macd. ' See, who comes here ? IGO ^fal. My countryman ; but yet I know him not. Macd. My ever-gentle cousin, welcome hither. 3Ial. I know him now. Good God, betimes remove The means that makes us strangers ! Ross. Sir, amen. Macd. Stands Scotland where it did ? Ross. Alas, poor country J 105 Almost afraid to know itself ! It cannot Be call'd our mother, but our grave ; where nothing, But who knows nothing, is once seen to smile ; Where sighs and groans and shrieks that rend the air Are made, not mark'd ; where violent sorrow seems 170 A modern ecstasy : the dead man's knell Is there scarce ask'd for who; and good men's lives Expire before the flowers in their caps, Dying or ere they sicken. Macd. 0, relation Too nice, and yet too true ! Mai. What's the newest grief ? 375 Ross. That of an hour's age doth hiss the speaker : Each minute teems a new oue. Macd. How does my wife ? Ross. Why, well. Macd. And all my children ? Ross. Well too. 66 MACBETH Macd. The tyrant has not batter'd at their peace ? Ross. No ; they were well at peace when I did leave 'em. 180 Macd. Be not a niggard of j^our speech : how goes't ? Ross. When I came hither to transport the tidings, Which I have heavily borne, there ran a rumour ^ Of many worthy fellows that were out ; Which was to my belief witness'd the rather, 185 For that I saw the tyrant's power a-foot : Now is the time of help; your eye in Scotland Would create soldiers, make our women fight, To doff their dire distresses. Mai. Be't their comfort We are coming thither : gracious England hath liK) Lent us good Si ward and ten thousand men; An older and a better soldier none That Christendom gives out. Ross. AVouhl I could answer This comfort with the like ! But I have words That would be howl'd out in the desert air, Where hearing should not latch them. 195 Macd. AYhat concern they ? The general cause ? or is it a fee-grief Due to some single breast ? Ross. No mind that's honest But in it shares some woe ; though the main part Pertains to you alone. Macd. If it be mine, 200 Keep it not from me, quickly let me have it. Ross. Let not your ears despise my tongue for ever, Which shall possess them with the heaviest sound That ever yet they heard. Macd. Hum ! I guess at it. Ross. Your castle is surprised ; your wife and babes 205 Savagely slaughter'd : to relate the manner. Were, on the quarry of these murder'd deer. To add the death of you. ACT IV. SCENE III 67 Mai. Merciful heaven ! What, man ! ne'er pull your hat upon your brows ; Give sorrow words : the grief that does not speak 210 Whispers the o'er-fraught heart and bids it break. Macd. My children too ? Ross. Wife, children, servants, all That could be found. Macd. And I must be from thence ! My wife -kill'd too? Ross. I have said. Mai. Be comforted : Let's make us medicines of our great revenge, 215 To cure this deadly grief. Macd. He has no children. All my pretty ones ? Did you say all ? hell-kite ! All ? What, all my pretty chickens and their dam At one fell swoop ? Mai. Dispute it like a man. 220 Macd. I shall do so ; But I must also feel it as a man : I cannot but remember such things were, That were most precious to me. Did heaven look on. And would not take their part ? Sinful Macduff, 225 They were all struck for thee ! naught that I am. Not for their own demerits, but for mine, Fell slaughter on their souls. Heaven rest them now ! Mai. Be this the whetstone of your sword : let grief Convert to anger ; blunt not the heart, enrage it. 230 Macd. 0, I could play the woman with mine eyes And braggart with my tongue ! But, gentle heavens, Cut short all intermission ; front to front Bring" thou this fiend of Scotland and myself; AVithin my sword's length set him ; if he 'scape, Heaven forgive him too ! 235 Mai. This tune goes manly. i 68 MACBETH Come, go we to the king ; our power is ready ; Our lack is nothiug but our leave : Macbeth Is ripe for shaking, and the powers above Put on their instruments. Receive what cheer you may ; 240 The night is long that never finds the day. [Exeunt. I ACT V. SCENE I 69 ACT V Scene I. Dunsinane. Ante-room in the castle Enter a Doctor of Physic and a Waiting-Gentlewoman. Doct. I have two nights watched with you, but can per- ceive no truth in your report. When was it she last walked ? Gent. Since his majesty went into the field, I have seen her rise from her bed, throw her nightgown upon her, unlock 5 her closet, take forth paper, fold it, write upon't, read it, afterwards seal it, and again return to bed ; yet all this while in a most fast sleep. Doct. A great perturbation in nature, to receive at once the benefit of sleep, and do the effects of watching! In 10 this slumbery agitation, besides her walking and other actual performances, what, at any time, have you heard her say? Gent. That, sir, which I will not report after her. Doct. You may to me : and 'tis most meet you should. 15 Gent. Neither to you nor any one ; having no witness to confirm my speech. Enter Lady Macbeth, with a taper. Lo you, here she comes ! This is her very guise ; and, upon my life, fast asleep. Observe her ; stand close. Doct. How came she by that light ? 20 Gent. Why, it stood by her: she has light by her con- tinually ; 'tis her command. Doct. You see, her eyes are open. Gent. Ay, but their sense is shut. Doct. What is it she does now ? Look, how she rubs her 25 hands. 70 MACBETH Gent. It is an accustomed action with her, to seem thus washing her hands : I have known lier continue in this a quarter of an hour. Lady M. Yet here's a spot. 30 Doct. Hark ! she speaks : I will set down what comes from her, to satisfy my remembrance the more strongly. Lady 3L Out, damned spot ! out, I say ! — One : two : why, then, 'tis time to do't. — Hell is murky ! — Fie, my lord, fie ! a soldier, and afeard ? What need we fear who 35 knows it, when none can call our power to account ? — Yet who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him. Doct. Do you mark that ? Lady M. The thane of Fife had a wife : where is she now ? 40 — What, will these hands ne'er be clean ? — No more o' that my lord, no more o' that : you mar all with this starting. Doct. Go to, go to; you have known what you should not. Gent. She has spoke what she should not, I am sure of 45 that : heaven knows what she has known. Lady M. Here's the smell of the blood still : all the per- fumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. Oh, oh, oh! Doct. AYhat a sigh is there ! The heart is sorely charged. 50 Gent. I would not have such a heart in my bosom for the dignity of the whole bodj^ Doct. Well, well, well, — Gent. Pray God it be, sir. Doct. This disease is beyond my practice : yet I have 55 known those which have walked in their sleep who have died holily in their beds. Lady M. Wash your hands, put on your nightgown ; look not so pale. — I tell you yet again, Banquo's buried; he cannot come out on's grave. 60 Doct. Even so ? What, will these hands ne'er be clean ? ' ACT V. SCENE II 71 Lady M. To bed, to bed ! there's knocking at the gate : come, come, come, come, give me your hand. What's done cannot be undone. — To bed, to bed, to bed ! [Exit. Doct. Will she go now to bed ? 65 Gent. Directly. Doct. Foul whisperings are abroad : unnatural deeds Do breed unnatural troubles : infected minds To their deaf pillows will discharge their secrets : More needs she the divine than the physician. 70 God, God forgive us all ! Look after her ; Remove from her the means of all annoyance, And still keep eyes upon her. So, good night : My mind she has mated, and amazed my sight. I think, but dare not speak. Gent. Good night, good doctor. [Exeunt. Scene II. The country near Dunsinane Drum and coloiirs. Enter Menteith, Caithness, Angus, Lennox, and Soldiers. Ment. The English power is near, led on by Malcolm, His uncle Siward and the good Macduff : Revenges burn in them ; for their dear causes Would to the bleeding and the grim alarm Excite the mortified man. 5 ^ng. Near Birnam wood Shall we well meet them ; that way are they coming. Caith. Who knows if Donalbain be with his brother ? Len. For certain, sir, he is not : I have a file Of all the gentry : there is Siward's son, 10 And many unrough youths, that even now Protest their first of manhood. Ment. What does the tyrant ? 72 MACBETH Caith. Great Dunsinane lie strongly fortifies ; Some say he's mad ; others that lesser hate him Do call it valiant fury : but, for certain, 15 He cannot buckle his distemper'd cause - Within the belt of rule. Ang. Now does he feel His secret murders sticking on his hands ; Now minutely revolts upbraid his faith-breach; Those he commands move only in command, 20 Nothing in love : now does he feel his title Hang loose about him, like a giant's robe Upon a dwarfish thief. 3Ient. Who then shall blame His pester'd senses to recoil and start, AVhen all that is within him does condemn Itself for being there ? 25 Caith. Well, march we on. To give obedience where 'tis truly owed : Meet we the medicine of the sickly weal, And with him pour we in our country's purge Each drop of us. Leu. Or so much as it needs, 30 To dew the sovereign flower and drown the weeds. Make we our march towards Birnam. \_Exeunt, marching. Scene III. Dunsinane. A room in the castle Enter Macbeth, Doctor, and Attendants. Macb. Bring me no more reports ; let them fly all : Till Birnam wood remove to Dunsinane, I cannot taint Avith fear. What's the boy Malcolm ? Was he not born of woman ? The spirits that know 5 All mortal consequences have pronounced me thus : " Eear not, Macbeth ; no man that's born of woman ACT V. SCENE III 73 Shall e'er have power upon thee." Then fly, false thanes, t And mingle with the English epicures: The mind I sway by and the heart I bear 10 Shall never sag with doubt nor shake with fear. Enter a Servant. The devil damn thee black, thou cream-faced Iooe ! Where got'st thou that goose look ? Serv. There is ten thousand — Macb. Geese, villain ? Serv. Soldiers, sir. Mach. Go prick thy face, and^ over-red thy fear, 15 Thou lily-liver'd boy. AVhat soldiers, patch ? Death of thy soul ! those linen cheeks of thine Are counsellors to fear. What soldiers, Avhey-face ? Serv. The English force, so please you. Macb. Take thy face hence. \_Exit Servant. Sey ton ! — I am sick at heart, 20 When I behold — Seyton, I say ! — This push Will cheer me ever, or disseat me now. I have lived long enough : my way of life Is fall'n into the sear, the yellow leaf ; And that which should accompany old age, 25 As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends, I must not look to have ; but, in their stead. Curses, not loud but deep, mouth-honour, breath. Which the poor heart would fain deny, and dare not. Seyton ! Enter Seyton. Sey. What is your gracious pleasure ? 30 Mach. What news more ? Sey. All is confirm'd, my lord, which was reported. Mach, I'll fight till from my bones my flesh be hack'd. Give me my armour. 74 MACBETH Sey. 'Tis not needed yet. Macb. I'll put it on. 35 Send out moe horses ; skirr the country round ; J Hang those that talk of fear, ^'ve me mine armour. 1 How does your patient, doctor ? Doct. Not so sick, my lord, As she is troubled with thick-coming fancies. That keep her from her rest. Macb. Cure her of that. 40 Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased. Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow, Raze out the written troubles of the brain And with some sweet oblivious antidote Cleanse the stuff'd bosom of that perilous stuff Which weighs upon the heart ? 45 Doct. Therein the patient Must minister to himself. Macb. Throw physic to the dogs ; I'll none of it. Come, put mine armour on 5 give me my staff. Seyton, send out. Doctor, the thanes fly from me. 50 Come, sir, dispatch. If thou couldst, doctor, cast The water of my land, find her disease. And purge it to a sound and pristine health, I would applaud thee to the very echo, That should applaud again. — Pull't off, I say. — 55 What rhubarb, senna, or what purgative drug. Would scour these English hence ? Hear'st thou of them ? Doct. Ay, my good lord ; your royal preparation Makes us hear something. Macb. Bring it after me. I will not be afraid of death and bane, 60 Till Birnani forest come to Dunsinane. Doct. \_Aside.'] Were I from Dunsinane away and clear. Profit again should hardly draw me here. \_Exeunt. Throw physic to the dogs ; I '11 none of it. Come, put mine armour on ; give me my staff." ACT V. SCENE IV 75 Scene IV. Country near Birnam tvood Drum and colours. Enter Malcolm, old Siward and his Sou, Macduff, Menteith, Caithness, Angus, Lennox, Eoss, and Soldiers, inarching. Mai. Cousins, I hope the days are near at hand That chambers will be safe. Me7it. We doubt it nothing. Siic. What wood is this before us ? Me7it. The wood of Birnam. 3Ial. Let every soldier hew him down a bough .5 And bear't before him : thereby shall we shadow The numbers of our host and make discovery Err in report of us. /Soldiers. It shall be done. Siiv. We learn no other but the confident tyrant Keeps still in Dunsinane, and will endure Our setting down before't. 10 Mai. 'Tis his main hope : For where there is advantage to be given, Both more and less have given him the revolt, And none serve with him but constrained things Whose hearts are absent too. Macd. Let our just censures 15 Attend the true event, and put we on Industrious soldiership. Siiv. The time approaches That will with due decision make us know What we shall say we have and what we owe. Thoughts speculative their unsure hopes relate, 20 But certain issue strokes must arbitrate : Towards which advance the war. [^Exeuyit, marching. 76 MACBETH Scene Y. Dunsinane. Within the castle Enter Macbeth, Seytox, and Soldiers, icith drum, and colours. Mach. Hang out our banners on the outward walls j The cry is still " They come : " our castle's strength Will laugh a siege to scorn : here let them lie Till famine and the ague eat them up : 5 Were they not forced with those that should be ours, We might have met them dareful, beard to beard. And beat them backward home. \_A cry of women ivithin. What is that noise ? Sey. It is the cry of women, my good lord. [Exit. Macb. I have almost forgot the taste of fears : 10 The time has been, my senses would have cool'd To hear a night-shriek ; and my fell of hair Would at a dismal treatise rouse and stir As life were in't : 1 have supp'd full with horrors ; Direness, familiar to my slaughterous thoughts, Cannot once start me. Re-enter Seyton. 15 Wherefore was that cry ? Sey. The queen, my lord, is dead. Mach. She should have died hereafter ; There would have been a time for such a word. To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow, 20 Creeps in this petty pace from day to day To the last syllable of recorded time. And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle ! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player 25 Tha,t struts and frets his hour upon the stage 1 r ACT V. SCENE V 77 And then is heard no more : it is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing. Eiiter a Messenger. Thou comest to use thy tongue ; thy story quickly. 30 3fess. Gracious my lord, I should report that which I say I saw, But know not how to do it. Macb. Well, say, sir. Mess. As I did stand my watch upon the hill, I look'd toward Birnam, and anon, methought, The wood began to move. 35 Macb. Liar and slave ! Mess. Let me endure your wrath, if 't be not so : Within this three mile may you see it coming ; I say, a moving grove. Macb. If thou speak'st false, Upon the next tree shalt thou hang alive, 40 Till famine cling thee : if thy speech be sooth, I care not if thou dost for me as much. I pull in resolution, and begin To doubt the equivocation of the fiend That lies like truth : " Fear not, till Birnam wood 45 Do come to Dunsinane : " and now a wood Comes toward Dunsinane. Arm, arm, and out ! If this which he avouches does appear. There is nor flying hence nor tarrying here. I 'gin to be aweary of the sun, 50 And wish the estate o' the world were now undone. Eing the alarum-bell ! Blow, wind ! come, wrack ! At least we'll die with harness on our back. [_Exeiint. 78 MACBETH Scene VI. Dunsinane. Before the castle Drum and colours. Enter Malcolm, old Siward, Macduff, and their Army, icith boughs. Mai. Now near enough : your leavy screens throw down, And show like those you are. You, worthy uncle. Shall, with my cousin, your right noble son, Lead our first battle : worthy Macduff and we 5 Shall take upon's what else remains to do, According to our order. Siiv. Fare you well. Do we but find the tyrant's power to-night, Let us be beaten, if we cannot fight. 3facd. Make all our trumpets speak ; give them all breath, 10 Those clamorous harbingers of blood and death. [Exeunt. Scene VII. Another part of the field Alarums. Enter Macbeth. Mach. They have tied me to a stake ; I cannot fly, But bear-like, I must fight the course. What's he That was not born of woman ? Such a one Am I to fear, or none. Enter young Siward. Yo. Siw. What is thy name ? 5 Mach. Thou'lt be afraid to hear it. Yo. Shv. No ; though thou call'st thyself a hotter name Than any is in hell. Mach. My name's Macbeth. Yo. Siw. The devil himself could not pronounce a title More hateful to mine ear. ACT V. SCENE VII 79 Macb. No, nor more fearful. 10 Yo. Siw. Thou liest, abhorred tyrant ; with my sword I'll prove the lie thou speak'st. \_They fight, and young Siward is slain. Macb. Thou wast born of woman. But swords I smile at, weapons laugh to scorn, Brandish'd by man that's of a woman born. \_Exit. Alarums. Enter Macduff. Macd. That way the noise is. Tyrant, show thy face ! 15 If thou be'st slain and with no stroke of mine, My wife and children's ghosts will haunt me still. I cannot strike at wretched kerns, whose arms Are hired to bear their staves : either thou, Macbeth, Or else my sword with an unbatter'd edge 20 I sheathe again undeeded. There thou should st be ; By this great clatter, one of greatest note Seems bruited. Let me find him, fortune ! And more I beg not. [Exit. Alarums. Eyiter Malcolm ayid old Siward. SlU). This way, my lord ; the castle's gently render'd : 25 The tyrant's people on both sides do fight ; The noble thanes do bravely in the war ; The day almost itself professes yours, And little is to do. Mai. We have met with foes That strike beside us. Siw. Enter, sir, the castle. \_Exeunt. Alarums. 80 MACBETH Scene VIII. Another part of the field Enter Macbeth. Mach. Why should I play the Roman fool, and die On mine own sword ? whiles I see lives, the gashes Do better upon them. Enter Macduff. Macd. Turn, hell-hound, turn ! Mad). Of all men else I have avoided thee : 5 But get thee back ; my soul is too much charged With blood of thine already. Macd. I have no words : My voice is in my sword : thou bloodier villain Than terms can give thee out ! \_Tliey fight. Mad). Thou losest labour : As easy mayst thou the intrenchant air 10 AVith thy keen sword impress as make me bleed : Let fall thy blade on vulnerable crests ; I bear a charmed life, which must not yield To one of woman born. Macd. Despair thy charm; And let the angel whom thou still hast served 15 Tell thee, Macduff was from his mother's womb Untimely ripp'd. Mach. Accursed be that tongue that tells me so, For it hath cow'd my better part of man ! And be these juggling fiends no more believed, 20 That palter with us in a double sense ; That keep the word of promise to our ear. And break it to our hope. I'll not fight with thee. Macd. Then yield thee, coward. And live to be the show and gaze o' the time : 25 We'll have thee, as our rarer monsters are, ACT V. SCENE VIII 81 Painted upon a pole, and underwrite " Here may you see the tyrant." Macb. I will not yield, To kiss the ground before young Malcolm's feet, And to be baited with the rabble's curse. 30 Though Birnam wood be come to Dunsinane And thou opposed, being of no woman born. Yet I will try the last : before my body 1 throw my warlike shield : Lay on, Macduff, And damn'd be him that first cries "Hold, enough !" \_Exeunt, fighting. Alarums. lietreat. Flourish. Enter, with drum and colours, Mal- colm, old SiWAKD, Ross, the other Thanes, and Soldiers. 35 3Ial. I would the friends we miss were safe arrived. Siiv. Some must go off : and yet, by these I see, So great a day as this is cheaply bought. 3Ial. Macduff is missing, and your noble son. Ross. Your son, my lord, has paid a soldier's debt : 40 He only lived but till he was a man ; The which no sooner had his prowess confirm'd In the unshrinking station where he fought. But like a man he died. Siw. Then he is dead ? Ross. Ay, and brought off the field : your cause of sorrow 45 Must not be measured by his worth, for then It hath no end. Siiv. Had he his hurts before ? Ross. Ay, on the front. Siw. ^Vhy then, God's soldier be he ! Had I as many sons as I have hairs, I would not wish them to a fairer death : And so his knell is knoll'd. 50 Mai He's worth more sorrow, And that I'll spend for him. 82 MACBETH Siw. He's worth no more : The}^ say he parted well, and paid his score : And so God be with him ! Here comes newer comfort. Re-enter Macduff, loitli Macbeth's head. Macd. Hail, king ! for so thou art : behold, where stands 55 The usurper's cursed head : the time is free : I see thee compass'd with thy kingdom's pearl, That speak my salutation in their minds ; Whose voices I desire aloud with mine : Hail, King of Scotland ! All. Hail, King of Scotland ! \_Flourisli. 60 Med. We shall not spend a large expense of time Before we reckon with your several loves. And make us even with you. My thanes and kinsmen, Henceforth be earls, the first that ever Scotland In such an honour named. W^hat's more to do, 65 Which would be planted newly with the time, As calling home our exiled friends abroad That fled the snares of watchful tyranny ; Producing forth the cruel ministers Of this dead butcher and his fiend-like queen, 70 Who, as 'tis thought, by self and violent hands Took off her life ; this, and what needful else That calls upon us, by the grace of Grace, We will perform in measure, time and place : So, thanks to all at once and to each one, 75 Whom we invite to see us crown'd at Scone. [^Flourish. Exeunt. NOTES AND QUESTIONS [Reference to the bibliography on pp. xxvi-xxvii will make plain all abbreviations. The stndent should always have at hand a good dic- tionary,— Skeat, the Century, or Webster.] Act I. Scene I On this scene as the conclusion of the witches' Sabbath, see Introduction, p. xix. 3 hurlyburly, a reduplicated word, meaning uproar or tumult. 8 Graymalkin. Malkin, a diminutive of Mary, was frequently applied to a menial. Here it is the name of a cat. 9 Paddock, diminutive of padde, a toad. Graymalkin and Pad- dock are the familiar spirits of the first two witches ; they are fiends who have taken the forms of the cat and the toad. The attendant of the third witch is Harpier. — See IV, i, 8. 10 Fair is foul, and foul is fair. What is to others fair is to us foul; and what to others is foul is to us fair. The sentence is to be interpreted literally and figuratively. 11 Hover, let us hover. (a) Notice that the mystical character of the witches is de- noted by their number, (b) What powers not belonging to ordinary mortals do they possess ? (c) To whom does the third witch address " anon " ? (d) In the presentation of the scene, should the audience hear any cries through the storm? (e) Observe the dramatic purpose in mentioning Macbeth at once. (/) Why are the witches so anxious to meet him rather than some one else ? Act I. Scene II A camp near Forres. " Probably situated in the moors to the south of the town, so as to intercept the march of the invad- ers from Fife to the royal residences of the north. Wide and almost level tracts of heath extend southwards from 83 84 NOTES AND QUESTIONS Forres, amidst which the march of an army might be dis- cerned from a great distance." — Kxight. For Forres, see map. JNIeaning of alarum ? Look up the characters of this scene in the list of dramatis per- sonce. 5 captivity, i.e. capture by the rebels. 9 choke, figurative for <' render useless." 10 for to that, because to that end. 12 western isles, the islands off the west of Scotland, including perhaps Ireland. 13 kerns and gallowglasses. "Kerns w^ere light-armed troops, having only darts, daggers or knives ; the gallowglasses had helmet, coat of mail, long sword, and axe." — Clark and AVright. Both words were usually applied to Irish troops. 15 Show'd like, had the smile and the false and showy appearance of. 16 name, refers to what? 19 minion, darling, or favorite. 21 Which. The antecedent is Macbeth (1. 16). Read and he for Which, and the meaning becomes clear. 22 nave = navel. 24 cousin, often used by Shakespeare as a courteous and kindly title ; but here it is used in its literal sense. Macbeth and Duncan were grandsons of King Malcolm, Duncan's imme- diate predecessor. 25-28 As whence . . . swells. An allusion here to the equinoc- tial storms of spring. Explain the meaning of the passage, observing the play upon spring. 31 Norweyan lord, Sweno, king of Norway, surveying vantage, meaning ? 37 cracks = reports ; the word is used by metonymy for charges. 38 Doubly redoubled, meaning? 40 memorize, make memorable. Golgotha, see St. Matthew xxvii. 33. 45 thane, a nobleman, among the Anglo-Saxons, inferior to an earl. 47 seems to speak, is about to speak. From one who looks like Ross, you would expect strange tidings. ACT I. SCENE II 85 48 Fife. Look up on the map. 49 flout, mock. 50 fan . . . cold, stiifen with fear. Norway, king of Norway. 53 Look up Cawdor on the map. 54 Bellona, Roman goddess of war. proof, armor that has been proved or tested. 55 self-comparisons, hand-to-hand combat, blow for blow 57 lavish, insolent. 59 That, so that. 60 Notice the plural Norwai/s\ used instead of Norwegians'. composition, terms of peace. 62 Saint Colme's inch. Saint Columba's Island, now called Inch- colm, in the Firth of Forth. See map. Look up Saint Co- lumba in the encyclopedia. Of course the battle was not fought on the island, but on the shore near it. 63 dollars. " The dollar was first coined about 1518, in the Val- ley of. St. Joachim, in Bohemia, whence its name, Joachim's- thaler." — Clark and Wright. Thaler, dollar, from thai, a valley. Note Shakespeare's anachronism. 65 Our bosom interest, our nearest and dearest concerns. present, instant. • (a) Relate in your own language the military events of this scene. (6) What kind of man is Macbeth held to be by the Sergeant, by Ross, and by the King? Note the expressions used to describe him. (c) What other side of Macbeth's character seems to be known to the witches? (d) Note that at this point we know of Macbeth only by hearsay ; we have not yet seen him in action before us. Why does Shakespeare proceed in this way ? Why not introduce Mac- beth on the stage at once? (e) The versification of this scene is very irregular. Observe the accented syllables and their number in lines 3, 5, 7, 19, 20, 25, 34, 37, 40, 41, 51, 67. For execution (18), minmi (19), and reflection (25), see Introduction, p. xxiii. Some would make Hail (5) dissyllabic; and sergeant (3) and captains (34) trisyllabic. 86 NOTES AND QUESTIONS Act I. Scene III A heath. " Common superstition assigns the Harmuir, on the borders of Elgin and Nairn, as the place of the interview between Macbeth and the weird sisters. A more dreary- piece of moorland is not to be found in all Scotland. Its eastern limit is about six miles from Forres, and its western four from Nairn, and the high road from these places inter- sects it. This 'blasted heath' is without tree or shrub. A few patches of oats are visible here and there, and the eye reposes on a fir-plantation at one extremity ; but all around is bleak and brown, made up of peat and bog-water, white stones and bushes of furze. Sand-hills and a line of blue sea, beyond which are the distant hills of Ross and Caith- ness, bound it to the north ; a farmstead or two may be seen afar off; and the ruins of a castle rise from amidst a few trees on the estate of Brodie of Brodie on the north-west. There is something startling to a stranger in seeing the solitary figure of the peat-digger or rush-gatherer moving amidst the w^aste in the sunshine of a calm autumn day; but the desolation of the scene in stormy weather, or when the twilight fogs are trailing over the pathless heath or settling down upon the pools, must be indescribable." — Knight. See map. 2 Killing swine. One of the fifteen crimes wath which witches w^ere charged was that of killing men's cattle. — Scot, II, ix. 6 Aroint thee, begone. rump-fed, fed on rumps, i.e. on " the best joints." ronyon, "scabby or mangy woman." 7 Aleppo, in Asiatic Turkey ; look up. Tiger, name of ship. The sailor would land on the coast of Tripoli (in the Levant), and proceed overland to Aleppo. Write a metrical analysis of this line. 8 in a sieve. Witches w^ere represented as going out to sea in great companies, in sieves, egg-shells, or cockle-shells. See Introduction, p. xix. 9 like a rat without a tail. The transformation of a witch or of an evil spirit into an animal was usually not quite complete. 10 I'll do, etc., gnaw a hole in the Tiger ? ACT I. SCENE III 87 11-14. Witches could loan winds to one another, or sell them to others. 15 blow, blow upon; heuce, control. 17 card, chart ? or compass V 18 I will drain the blood from his body. 20 A i^ent-liouse is a lean-to. See the dictionary. 21 forbid, cursed. 22-23. The witch, it was believed, could make her enemies piue away. She would mold an image of wax, hold it over a fire ; and as the wax melted, the person she hated would likewise waste away. This process she might begin, sus- pend, and resume, over a long period, even over sennights nine times nine. — How long ? 24 Why cannot the bark be lost? Is the sailor protected by a good spirit ? 25 Who raises the tempest? 32 weird (spelled ice }j ward in the First Folio) is the Anglo-Saxon word ivyrd, which means fate or destiny. On the common belief in the prophetic powers of witches, see Introduction, p. xviii. At this point Shakespeare is beginning to spiritual- ize his witches, making them stand for the awakened impulse in man's nature toward evil deeds. A common way of put- ting the ethical formula is to say that one ill deed begets another. You will see how this is illustrated in the career of Macbeth. hand in hand. The witches dance in a ring, how many times ? 33 Posters, swift travelers. 38 See I, i, 10. Do you see any subtle significance in Macbeth's repetition of the w^ords used by the witches in the first scene? Does Shakespeare mean to imply that Macbeth and the witches are in moral harmony? 44 choppy, chappy. 48 Glamis. See map. 49 Cawdor. See I, ii, 53. 51 Why is Macbeth startled? Are w^e to suppose that he had already thought of usurping the throne? 53 fantastical, beings created by the imagination. 54 show, appear to be. 57 withal, with it. 88 NOTES AND QUESTIONS 66 happy, fortunate. 71 Sinel, ]Macbeth's father. 73 A prosperous gentleman. See I, ii, 52. Is there a real incon- sistency here, or is Maclieth playing a part for some purpose ? 76 owe, have. 78 [Witches vanish. They slowly withdraw through the air and seem to vanish like spirits. Here again Shakespeare spiritualizes his witches. 8i the insane root, the roots of hemlock, which, it was believed, made men imagine beings that do not really exist. 91 See L ii, 50-58. 92-93 His wonders ... or his. This is an Elizabethan conceit. The king's impulse to express wonder at the bravery of Macbeth is neutralized by the impulse to praise him. He is therefore silent. 97 hail. The First Folio has tale in the sense of counting, i.e. post came after post as rapidly as one could count. Which reading do you like better? Is there an exaggeration in either case? 10-4 earnest, assurance. 106 addition, title. 107 See line 49 of this scene. The devil spoke through the second witch. 112 line, strengthen. rebel. Who is the rebel ? 116 [Aside.] It is assumed that the aside is inaudible to the other characters on the stage, but distinctly heard by the audience. This is one of the conventions of the drama. 120 home, implicitly. 124 The witches are the instruments of evil spirits, and are to an extent identified with them. 128 Note here the language of the stage. 129 imperial theme, theme of empire. 130 soliciting, inciting. 134 suggestion, temptation. 137-138 The dangers of the present moment do not frighten one so much as the terrors of the future, created by the imagi- nation. For we know precisely what must be faced in the present ; but the future is uncertain. — A general observa- tion. ^ I I ACT r. SCENE IV 89 139-142 The murder, as yet committed only in the imagination, paralyzes all the normal functions of the mind, so that what is seems not to be, and what is not seems real to me. 140 single state means helpless state; perhaps there is here the notion of a state shorn of its allies and thus enfeebled. 144 Without my stir, without my doing anything. Macbeth for the moment is disposed to leave to chance the question of his being king. 147 Time . . . day. The chance of line 144 now becomes fate. Macbeth believes there will come a time favorable to the murder of Duncan. 149 Give me your favour, pardon me. 149-150 my dull brain . . . forgotten. How far is Macbeth play- ing the hypocrite? For what purpose? 149 wrought = perplexed. (a) What is the appearance of the witches? (h) What are they able to do? (c) What expressions in the scene seem to lend to them a supernatural character? (fZ) By what means do they lead ]\Iacbeth to trust them ? (e) How does Banquo regard them ? (/) How do they affect Macbeth ? Act I. Scene IV 2 Those in commission. See I, ii, 65-67. Who executed Cawdor? 9 studied in his death, like an actor, who having to die on the stage, liad studied well his part. 10 dearest thing, his life, owed = owned. 11 As, followed by subjunctive, = as if. careless trifle, a trifle he cared nothing for. 16-18 thou art . . . overtake thee. Explain the metaphor. 19 proportion, due proportion. 27 Safe . . . honour, that will render your love and honor as- sured. 30-31 nor . . . No less. Xote the double negative. The absurd notion that tw^o negatives make an affirmative is derived from the Latin. It is foreign to the genius of the Germanic languages. 33 The harvest is your own. Explain the metaphor. 90 NOTES AND QUESTIONS 34 Wanton, exuberant. 39 Prince of Cumberland. '' Cumberland was at that time held by Scotland of the crown of England as a fief." — Clark and Wkight. The nobleman named Prince of Cumberland woidd become King of Scotland on the death of the reigning monarch. See map for Cumberland. 42 Inverness, look up on map. Macbeth is to receive here Dun- can as his guest. 44 To remain here, and thus to be unemployed in your active service, is tiresome to me. 45 harbinger. See the dictionary. Observe the appropriateness of the word here. 50 Stars, hide your fires. Is Macbeth thinking of the night on which he may assassinate the king? 52 wink at, not see. let that be [done] , i.e. the murder. 54-58 Of whom is Duncan speaking? (o) Remark upon the death of Cawdor, (h) Characterize Duncan, (c) Does Macbeth's conduct and conversation in this scene illustrate the truth of lines 11-12 ? (d) What is the new obstacle in Macbeth's way to the throne? (e) How is Macbeth affected by it ? Act I. Scene V Macbeth's castle. The castle at Inverness, built by Malcolm, Duncan's son, and still standing in Shakespeare's time, was dismantled in 1745. Boswell, who with Dr. Johnson visited it in 1773, thus writes : " It perfectly corresponds with Shakespeare's description. . . . Just as we came out of it a raven perched on one of the chimney-tops and croaked.'' 2 perfectest report, Macbeth's own observation? or had he in- quired of others whether witches prophesy the truth ? 6 missives, messengers. 11 dues, the occasion due you as my wife. 15 the milk of human kindness, the milk of human nature. Mac- beth is not without some of those human instincts that we drink in, as it were, with our mothers' milk. See kind in the dictionary. ACT I. SCENE V 91 17-18 but without The illness should attend it. Thou hast not the wickedness that must attend greatness. Lady Macbeth does not mean that Macbeth's nature is free from evil. She only fears he may shrink from the murder when the occa- sion comes. 20-23 thou'ldst have ... be undone. A. troublesome passage. Thou wouldst have, great Glamis, that [the throne] which cries "Thus thou must do [kill Duncan], if thou have [at- tain] it ; " and that [the murder of Duncan] which, etc. 27 metaphysical, supernatural. Note that both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth believe in the superhuman character of the witches. 29 Thou'rt mad to say it. Why does Lady Macbeth speak thus ? Observe that she recovers herself. 34-35 Who, almost . . . his message : meaning? 36-38 The raven . . . battlements. The croaking of the raven announced the coming of Duncan. There may have been no raven at this time under the battlements ; but in her excitement Lady Macbeth surely imagines one to be there. On the superstition, see Scot, JX, iii : " To prognosticate that ghests approch to your house, upon the chattering of pies or haggisters, whereof there can be yeelded no probable reason, is altogether vanitie and superstition." 39 mortal thoughts, murderous thoughts. 42 remorse, relenting, pity. 43 compunctious visitings of nature, the natural feelings of mercy and guilt. 44 fell, cruel, or deadly. 46 take my milk for gall, change by your demoniacal powers my milk into gall ; stamp out every vestige of humanity in me. murdering ministers, ministers of murder. 47 sightless substances, spiritual essences not visible. 51 Li this sublime imagery, darkness is regarded as a blanket encoiTvpassing the earth. Lady Macbeth would have it so thick 4^^ the light of heaven (the divine eye) may not penetrate it from above. 55 This ignorant present. The present time is called ignorant because ordinarily we cannot look into the future. 56 in the instant, in the present moment. 92 NOTES AND QUESTIONS 61 To beguile the time, to deceive those about you. 65 Must be provided for. Is there a double meaning here ? 66 into my dispatch, into my hands to hasten forward. 69 look up clear, i.e. Avith unclouded face. 70 favour, face. (a) Does Shakespeare give us entire the letter to Lady Mac- beth? (b) Why did Macbeth not ask her to prepare for the reception of Duncan? (c) When, then, was the letter written? (d) Trace the effect upon Lady Macbeth, of the letter, the messenger, and the arrival of her husband, (e) Are the " murdering ministers " (line 46) the same as the witches? (/) What advice does Lady Macbeth give her husband? (g) And what is its purpose? (h) Does Macbeth seem to hesitate? (?) If you have not already done so, notice carefully the versification of lines 36-56. Act I. Scene VI For Hautboys in stage direction, ''see the dictionary. 1 seat, situation. 2 Nimbly, briskly. 3 our gentle senses, our senses soothed by the gentle air. 4 martlet. Why "guest of summer "? approve, prove. 5 loved mansionry, abode of love. 6 Read this line aloud. To get the normal number of accents, some would supply cornice after jutty. What do you think about it? See Introduction, pp. xxiii and xxv. 7 coign of vantage, corner peculiarly suitable for building a nest. 11-14 The love . . . your trouble. This over-refined compliment is thus explained by Deighton : " The love that constantly w^aits upon us sometimes is vexatious in its importunity, and yet, as being love, we give it the thanks due to it. By this example I teach you how you should ask God to reward us for the pains we have put you to, and thank us, rather than blame us, for the trouble we have given you." Duncan vaguely hints at honors to IMacbeth that will result from his visit. Lady Macbeth so understands him. 11 sometime = sometimes. I 4 ACT I. SCENE VII 93 13 God 'ild us, God jdeld [reward] us. 16 single, weak, suggested by double in line 15. 20 hermits, " beadsmen, bound to pray for their benefactors." 21 coursed, followed closely. 22 purveyor, a person sent forward to provide, in advance, food for the king and his retinue. Observe the accent jDwri-e?/or. 23 holp, holpen, helped ; once a strong verb, and sometimes so used even now. 25-28 Your servants . . . your own. This is the extreme lan- guage of compliment. Lady Macbeth included herself among the servants of the king, in compt = accountable. Still = always ; this is its usual meaning in Shakespeare. State the meaning of the passage in your own language. 31 The king here gives his hand to Lady Macbeth. (rt) Memorize lines 1-10. {b) At what time of day do the guests arrive at the castle ? (c) Are Lady Macbeth and Duncan sincere in their compliments? (r/) Where is Mac- beth? (e) Is Duncan surprised at his absence ? (/) After reading the next scene, observe the dramatic purpose of this scene. Act I. Scene VII Sewer, in stage direction, an officer who set and removed dishes, tasted them to prove they contained no poison, and brought water for the guests to wash their hands with. He here leads the servants across the stage to the dining hall, where we may suppose Duncan is supping. 1-2 If it were done . . . quickly. Emphasize the first done, and the meaning is clear. 2-4 if the . . . success. This is an elaboration of the previous sentence. Macbeth fears the consequences of the murder. Could trammel up, could gather and hold securely as in a net ; his surcease, its cessation. His is the old genitive or possessive case of the neuter pronoun, and refers to conse- quence. Its just coming into use was rarely employed by Shakespeare. 4 that but = if only. 6 this bank and shoal of time, this life here on earth. Human 94 NOTES AND QUESTIONS life is compared to a narrow strip of land extending into an ocean. 7 We'ld . . . come, we would risk the future life. 8 that = so that. 10-12 this . . . own lips. What does Macbeth fear here ? 14 Strong . . . deed. Both reasons — his being my kinsman and my being his subject — are strong against the deed. 17 faculties, his powers as king, prerogatives. 18 clear, free from reproach. 20 taking-off = assassination. 23 sightless couriers of the air, tlie winds. 25-28 I have . . . other [side]. Explain the metaphor. 34 would, "require to be," not quite "should" as used to-day. 37 green and pale, pale green, indicative of the wretched appear- ance of a man wakening from intoxication. 38 freely, spontaneously. 42 ornament of life, royalty. 45 the adage : " The cat would eat fish but she will not wet her feet." 47 What beast, etc. Were you then a beast when you suggested the murder? Is Lady Macbeth referring to the letter she received from her husband, or to a scene which Shakespeare leaves to our imagination? 59 We fail ! In what tone does Lady Macbeth speak this? 60 sticking-place, where resolution will stick fast. The metaphor seems to be taken from the screwing up of the chords of stringed instruments to their proper degree of tension at which the pegs keep them fast. 64 wassail, deep drinking. convince, overcome. Observe the derivation of the word. 65-67 the warder . . . limbec only: tvard er = gimrd; receipt, re- ceptacle ; Ihnhec = alembic, cap of a still. The metaphor is taken from the language of alchemy and mediaeval medicine. Tlie wine causes vapors which rise from the stomach to the brain and paralyze it. 68 a death, a sort of death. 71 spongy, imbibing like a sponge. 72 quell, murder, but a softer word. 74 received, generally thought. ACT II. SCENE I 95 77 other, otherwise. 78 As, seeing that. 79-80 I am . . . feat. My determination is fixed, and I bend up my nerves and sinews to the terrible deed. From what is the metaphor taken ? (o) To wliat conckision does Macbeth come in his great soliloquy ? — State the steps by which he arrives at this conclusion, (b) How does Lady Macbeth work upon him ? (c) What definite plan of the murder does she suggest? (d) What is Macbeth's determination after hearing it? (e) From w^hom does the thought of nuirder first proceed? (/) Would Macbeth have evei- come to the sticking-place without his wife's aid ? (^) What motives lead her to urge her husband on ? Act II. Scene I 4-5 There's husbandry . . . out. It is a cloudy night. The metaphor is taken from Shakespeare's own observation. Thrifty folk would put out their candles early in the even- ing to save expense. Hushandry means thrift. 5 thee is a weak nominative here, used apparently for euphony. that, i.e. a sword belt or a dagger.. 8 cursed thoughts : temptings of ambition, thoughts on what the witches prophesied ? or suspicions of Macbeth ? 14 largess, gifts. offices, servants' hall. 15 withal, with. 16 shut up, i.e. is shut up, is wrapped up. Shut up, however, may be regarded as the past indicative, used intransitively, in the sense of concluded. 19 Which, what is the antecedent? free, freely or unhindered. 25 consent, party, when 'tis, when the result is attained. Mac- beth in vague language is promising Banquo honor if he will take his side. 28 franchised, unstained. allegiance clear, loyalty to Duncan unsullied. 31 drink, the night-cup, taken before going to bed. 96 NOTES AND QUESTIONS 36 fatal vision: sent l)y fate? or fate-bringing? 44-45 Mine eyes . . . rest. INIacbeth sees the dagger, but it eludes his grasp. , 46 dudgeon, ^vooden haft, ft^-*^ gouts, drops, from French goutte. 50 abuse, deceive. 51 curtain'd sleep. Why is sleep curtained ? Notice the meter of tliis line. 51-52 witchcraft . . . offerings. Witches are making offerings to Hecate. Hecate, in Greek mythology, was the goddess of the lower world, and also of witchcraft. The latter lank she retained in mediseval demonology. Her the Avitches obey, and from her come to the earth phantoms and demons. See Hecate in a classical dictionary. The word is dissyllabic throughout this play — Hecat(e). 52 wither'd murder, why " wither'd "? 53 alarum'd, awakened. 54 Whose howl's his watch. The periods of the night are an- nounced to the murderer by the howls of the wolf. 55 Tarquin's ravishing stride. For the allusion, see Shake- speare's Rape of Lucrece, or a classical dictionary. 61 gives is the plural once used in the north of England. Shake- speare sometimes employs the plural in 5 in preference to the Midland, which is the form of modern literary English. See T. R. Lounsbury's History of the English Language, Part I, pp. 128-129, and Part II, p. 413. 62 the bell invites me. See line 32. The bell was evidently to announce that Lady Macbeth had everything ready for the murder, (a) What time of day is it? (b) Why is Banquo up so late? (c) Wh}' is he armed? ((/) What does Macbeth hint at in the conversation? (e) Does Banquo understand him? (/) W^hat is Banquo's reply ? (g) Is the dagger sweating drops of blood a creation of Macbeth's imagination ? or is it a phantom created by evil spirits and thus visible to the audience as well as to Macbeth? (h) Was Macbeth re- solved to commit the murder before he saw the dagger? — See line 42. (i) What effect does the apparition have upon his imagination? ACT II. SCENE II 97 Act II. Scene II 3 the fatal bellman, the belltnan that was sent to condemned per- sons the night before execution. The screech of the owl was, among the superstitions, an augury of death. — Scot XI, XV. 5 grooms, in general, servants ; specifically, the otHcers attend- ing Duncan. 6 possets. '^ Posset is hot milk poured on ale or sack, having sugar, grated bisket, eggs, with other ingredients boiled in it, which goes all to a curd." — Clark and AVright. It was so thick that it was really eaten not drunk. 7 That, so that. See I, ii, 59. To this use of that, it will not be necessary to call further attention. nature, the vital forces. 8 Macbeth. [Within.] Here Shakesjoeare evidently makes use of the rear gallery, or second stage. See Introduction, p. xvi. From there Macbeth's exclamation is heard, and perhaps he himself is for a moment visible. 10-11 The attempt ... us. The attempt without the deed would ruin us. 12 'em, the old objective of the personal pronoun, which was hem. It is not a contraction of them. 15 crickets. The cricket, like the owl, foretold death. — Grimm quoted by Furxess. 21: address'd them, prepared themselves. 27 As, as if. See I, iv, 11. It is no longer necessary to remark on this usage. 28 Listening, listening to. 37 ravelPd, tangled, sleave, sleave-silk, or floss-silk. 39 second course, the most substantial course of the feast. 42 It was as Glamis that Macbeth dallied with temptation. He became Cawdor later. See I, iii, 105. 47 filthy witness, blood. 56-57 gild and guilt : a play upon words. Is the pun out of harmony with the rest of the scene, or does it heighten the tragic effect ? 62 The multitudinous seas incarnadine. A great line. My hand will redden the great w^aste of waters, wave on wave, turning 98 NOTES AND QUESTIONS the green or blue depths into crimson. Notice here what rhetoricians call "onomatopoeia." 65 so white, so cowardly. 66 retire we, let us retire. 68-69 Your constancy ... unattended. Your firmness, which was your attendant, has now abandoned you. 70 nightgown, dressing-gown, or house-gown. 72 So poorly, so wretchedly. (a) Has Lady Macbeth's prayer that she be unsexed been granted ? (b) Does she drink a posset ? (c) Does Macbeth really hear some one call at line 8? {d) Can you determine at what point he stabs Duncan? (e) What is Macbeth's state of mind after the murder? (/) Do the grooms really cry " murder ! " " God bless us ! " etc. ? (g) Memorize lines 35-40. (/i) What is the most tremendous incident in the scene? (i) What effect does the knocking have uj^on Macbeth? (j) What practical advice does Lady Macbeth give him? (/.) What is Macbeth's state of mind at the close of the scene? (l) How does Shakespeare manage to win our sympathy with this scene of murder? Act IL Scene HI I have omitted several lines from this scene. See page 129. 2 old, colloquial for lively. 4 Beelzebub, one of the devils, or one of the devil's many names. 4-5 farmer . . . plenty. Why should a farmer hang himself on the expectation of plenty? Perhaps because he fears that he must sell the grain he has on hand at a lower price than he expected. 5 napkins, handkerchiefs, enow, strictly the plural of enough. 7 other devil's, one of the other devils, as Belial or Abaddon. 8 equivocator. See equivocate in the dictionary. Perhaps an equivocator here = a Jesuit. See page 141. 10 could not . . . heaven, could not get into heaven by equivocat- ing, for God is not to be deceived. 13 French hose. There were two styles of French hose : some were tight fitting, others were large and full. The allusion is apparently to the former. Wherein is the jest? ACT II. SCENE III 99 14 goose. Note the play upon the word. 17-18 the primrose . . . bonfire. See St. Matthew vii. 13. 19 remember the porter, remember the fee or gratuity. 22 second cock, towards morning, about three o'clock. 25 morrow, morning. 31 physics pain, is a cordial to trouble, or offsets the trouble. 33 limited, appointed. 35 unruly, boisterous. 37 screams of death, screams which seemed to come from per- sons dying. 39 combustion, tumult. 40 the obscure bird, the bird of darkness, i.e. the owl. See II, ii, 3. 41-42 the earth . . . feverous. The fever is of course ague-fever. 45-46 AVhat is the force of the double negative here ? 48-50 Most sacrilegious . . . building. What is the metaphor? 53 Gorgon. See Gorgon and Perseus in a classical dictionary, and then explain the allusion. 57 death's counterfeit. See the first meaning of counterfeit in Webster. 59 The great doom's image, a representation, as it were, of the Judgment Day. 61 to countenance, to be in harmony with. 63 calls to parley, calls to conference. From what is the figure taken ? 66 repetition, recital. 72 chance, event. 74 nothing serious in mortality, nothing of moment in this mortal life. 76-77. Explain the metaphor. Vault is used here in two senses; the vault in which the wine is kept, and the earth under the vault of heaven. 83 badged, marked as with a badge. 92 expedition, haste, urgency. 94 laced, meaning? 98 Unmannerly breech'd with gore, unbecomingly (perhaps, hide- ously) clothed with blood. 100 make's, make his. 102 argument, subject, theme. L »f G 100 NOTES AND QUESTIONS 104 an auger-hole. Treachery is everywhere, and may light on us from some unexpected place. The au gar-hole also sug- gests the hole made by a dagger. 106 Our tears . . . brew'd. Emphasize our, in contrast with Macbeth 's affected grief; hreuo'd, artificially produced. 108 naked frailties. All the characters on the stage are in their dressing-gowns. 110 question, talk over, investigate. 111 Fears and scruples. What are Banquo's fears and scruples? 113-114. undivulged pretence . . . malice, secret designs of treason. ''Pretense" in Shakespeare not infrequently means " intent." 11.5 briefly, quickly. manly readiness, the clothing that befits a man. Ready meant clad, as unready meant half-clad. 122 There's daggers. This use of the singular following there has the authority of long usage. Compare with il y a in French. In general there is nothing to disturb one in Shakespeare's use of a singular verb with a plural subject. Sometimes the subject is singular in idea though not in form. At other times Shakespeare uses the plural in s, with w^hich from boyhood he was familiar. Note all these. near. The old comparison of the word was nigh, near, next. Hence near is the comparative degree. The form nearer in the next line, which we now use, is really a double com- parative, like ivorser and lesser, which we sometimes hear. 123-124 This murderous shaft . . . lighted. Malcolm suspects that Macbeth yet plans to murder him and his brother. 126 not be dainty of leave-taking. Let us leave Macbeth without the usual ceremonies of the parting guest. 127-128 there's warrant . . . left. Even the thief is justified in escaping when all other hope is lost. (a) Coleridge believed (Notes on Macbeth) that the porter's speech, for the most part, was not written by Shakespeare. What purpose, however, does the scene serve? For a masterly defense of the scene, see Transactions of the New Shakspere Society for 1874, pp. 255-275. (6) What highly poetic phrase does it contain ? (c) How does it 1 ACT 11. SCENE IV 101 happen that Macduff and Lennox are at the gate? (d) Is there anythmg strange in Macbeth's appearing so suddenly when Macduff inquires after him? (e) What part does Macbeth now play, and what slips does he make? (/) Do you think that the strange things described in lines 35-4:2 had led Macduff and Lennox to suspect that something- wrong was happening at the castle ? () What motive has he for misrepresenting himself? (c) What are "the king-becoming virtues " ? {d) By what means does Mal- colm recognize Ross as his countryman (160) ? (e) What is the state of Scotland as reported by Ross? (/) How does Ross break the awful news to Macduff? (^) What noble attribute does Macduff possess ? (Ji) What rhetorical passages in this scene? (i) Why is the scene so long? (y) Does any passage seem to have been written as a com- pliment to James the First? Act V. Scene I 3 into the field. See IV, iii, 185. 4 nightgown, dressing-gown. 9 effects, actions, watching, waking. 18 stand close, remain concealed. 23 sense, perception, ability to see things. 29 Yet . . . spot. After all my rubbing, a spot remains. 42 Go to, as used here, an exclamation of reproach. you, i.e. Lady Macbeth. 49 charged, oppressed. 50-51 for the dignity of the whole body, for all the dignity of Lady Macbeth the Queen. ACT V. SCENE II 121 53 Pray God it be [well] . 59 on's, on his. As must have been noticed, Shakespeare fre- quently uses on where we should now use of. 71 means of all annoyance, all means of harm, i.e. of committing suicide. 72 still, ever. 73 mated, bewildered. "The word [mate], originally used at chess, from the Arabic shah mat, ' the king is dead,' whence our 'check-mate,' became common in one form or other in almost all European languages." — Clark and Wright. (a) In what scene did Lady Macbeth last appear ? Qi) Did she have any part in planning the murder of Lady Macduff ? (c) Why does she walk in her sleep? (d) When did she begin this sleep walking? (e) Why does she write upon paper, etc. (5-6) ? (/) Why does she want a light by her at night? {g) In lines 32-37, what scene is she living over in her dreams ? (Ji) No more o' that . . . this starting (4:0-4:1), — what is she thinking of? (i) In lines 57-59, what is she recalling? (_/) And what in lines 61-63? (k) What is her most intense expression of remorse? (Z) Do we feel pity for Lady Macbeth in this scene? (m) Was the gentlewoman aware of the cause of Lady Mac- beth's walking? (n) Why is she unwilling to repeat what her mistress has said on former occasions? (o) Was the Doctor aw^are of a report that Duncan and Banquo had been murdered? (p) At what point in the scene is he assured of the crimes? Act V. Scene II 1 power, army. 2 His uncle Siward, earl of Northumberland. Duncan, according to the history current in Shakespeare's time, married a daughter of Siward. Hence the great earl was Malcolm's grandfather. Shakespeare loosely calls him uncle. 3 Revenges, each having a different cause of revenge. See loves, III, i, 121. dear causes, the causes which come nearest home to the heart of each. 122 NOTES AND QUESTIONS 4 the bleeding and the grim alarm, the alarm announcing blood and horror. 5 Excite the mortified man, awaken the dead. 8 file, muster-roll. 10 unrough, beardless. 11 protest, proclaim, as in ITI, iv, 105. 12 For the pronunciation of Duns inane, see Introduction, p. xxiv. 13 lesser, less. This double comparative still has the authority of good usage. See also I, iii, 65. 15-16 He cannot hold together his disorganized party. 18 minutely revolts, revolts springing up every minute, faith-breach, breach of ikith, usurpation of the throne. 19 in command, when commanded. 20 Nothing, not at all. 23 pester'd, ever troubled. 27 medicine, French medecin, physician, i.e. Malcolm, weal, commonweal, commonwealth. 30 To dew, to bedew, to freshen. The word sovereign seems to have been suggested by the metaphor in the lines just above. A sovereign remedy was a common expression, meaning the most potent remedy. (a) What definite new^s have we now of the forces in array against Macbeth ? (b) In the scene before this where was Macbeth reported to be ? (c) AVhere is he now ? (d) How well is he succeeding in holding together an army? (e) What is the purpose of this scene? Act V. Scene III 1 them, the thanes. 3 taint, become infected. 5 All mortal consequences, all that will happen to mortals. What is the case of 7ne? 8 epicures. See the word in the dictionary. The Scotch, who lived much more simply than the English, naturally looked upon their neighbors as epicures. 9 The mind I sway by, the mind by which I am directed. 11 loon, rogue. 12 goose look, cowardly pale face. ACT V. SCENE IV 123 13 Observe is, preceded by there and followed by a plural subject. See II, iii, 122. 14 over-red, redden. 15 lily-liver'd. The liver was regarded as the seat of courage. In cowards it was white, or bloodless. patch, fool. 16 linen cheeks, white as linen. 17 Are counsellors to fear, awaken fear. 20 push, assault. 21 disseat, unseat. 22 my way of life, " my course of life " or simply " my life." 23 sear, dry, withered. 28 poor, troubled, deny, refuse. 35 moe, more, skirr, scour. 42 Raze out, efface. 43 oblivious antidote, antidote producing forgetfulness. 44 Note the quibble. 48 staff, the general's baton. 50 Come, sir, dispatch. To whom is Macbeth speaking? cast, diagnose. 52 purge, cleanse by medicine. 58 it, a part of his armor pulled off in line 54. To whom is Macbeth speaking? 59 bane, ruin, destruction. (a) What awakens Macbeth to violence of word and action ? (b) Show in detail how his mood changes through the scene. (c) In what lines does he become eloquent? (d) Is he still brave in the face of danger? (e) What is the appearance of the servant ? (/) What means " Therein the patient must Minister to himself" (4.5-46)? (g) Does Macbeth apply this observation to himself? (/*) Macbeth can no longer look for help from his wife and his followers. On what, however, does he still rely? Act V. Scene IV 2 That chambers will be safe, in which our homes will be safe. nothing, in no respect. 5 shadow, keep unseen. 124 NOTES AND QUESTIONS 6 discovery, i.e. the scouts. 9 Keeps still, continues to remain. 10 Our setting down before't, our investment of it. Note setting, as an intransitive verb. 11 For when an opportunity is given them. 12 Both more and less, persons of all classes. 14-15. Let our . . . event. For proof of their correctness, let our opinions await the issue, i.e. let us stop talking and make ready to fight. 18 What our credits and our debits are, how our books stand. 19 The hopes to which our thoughts give utterance are not to be trusted. Write out a metrical analysis of this line. 20 The decisive issue must be determined by blows. (a) In what way is the prophecy of the witches beginning to be fulfilled? (/>) Why do Macduff and Siward check Malcolm ? Act V. Scene V 5 Were not the English reen forced by my own thanes. 6 dareful, i.e. in the open field. 10 cool'd, congealed. 11 fell of hair, scalp and hair. 12 dismal treatise, such as a ghost story. 13 As, as if. 15 start, startle. 17 She should have died hereafter. Were she not dead now, she must have died hereafter. It's all one. 18 such a word, i.e. the announcement of her death. 20 Observe the subject of creeps. 21 recorded time, time represented by the record of events. 22-23 And all . . . dusty death. Shakespeare may be thinking of the torch leading the procession of the dead to the dark and dusty crypt. There is the further thought that our life ends in a return to dust. 21 Write a metrical analysis of this line. 25 frets, chafes. 37 this three mile. This is an anomalous expression, surviving from the English of an earlier time. Mile is really a plural, ACT V. SCENE VII 125 See the declension of the Anglo-Saxon mil and ^es. 40 cling thee, shrivel thee up. sooth, truth. 42 pull in, rein in. 43 equivocation, ambiguous utterances. 50 And wish the well-ordered world were thrown into confusion. 51 wrack, wreck. 52 harness, armor. (a) What is the state of Macbeth's mind when the scene opens? (b) What do you regard as the cause of Lady Macbeth's death? (c) How is Macbeth affected by it? Does he display any grief or affection ? What is the pur- port of his moralizing ? (d) What news is brought by the messenger? (e) How does Macbeth now look upon the witches? — Compare line 43 with V, iii, 1-10. Act V. Scene VI 2 show, appear. 4 our first battle, the first division of our army. 6 order, plan. What disposition does Malcolm make of his army? Act V. Scene VII 1-2 INfacbeth likens himself to a bear being worried. Bear-bait- ing was a common sport in Shakespeare's time. The bear was fastened to a stake, and baited, or harassed, by dogs in successive relays. Each attack was called a course. See The Diary of Master William Silence, pp. 369-370. 17 kerns applied here to the soldiers in Macbeth's army. See I, ii, 13. 18 staves, spear-shafts. either thou. Complete the clause with " must meet me." 20 undeeded, unused, i.e. without slaughter. 22 bruited, noised, announced. Note the number of accents in the line. 24 gently render'd, surrendered with no resistance from the garri- son, 126 NOTES AND QUESTIONS 28-29 foes That strike beside us, " foes that fight on our side ; " or, perhaps, " foes that intentionally strike amiss." (rt) In the first hand-to-hand contest who wins ? (b) What is iNIacduff's sole determination ? (c) How was the castle taken ? Act Y. ScexNe YIII 1 play the Roman fool, i.e. commit suicide like Brutus or Cato. 2 lives, living foes. 9 intrenchant air, air that cannot be cut or that leaves no trace of the cut. 12 charmed life, a life secure from harm. Macbeth so interpreted the prediction of the witches. which must not yield, which is destined not to yield. 13 Despair, despair of. 14 angel, fallen angel, hence evil spirit. Among the current names of the devil were " the cruel angel," " the angel of Satan," and " the angel of hell." — Scot, Divels and Spirits, ch. XX. 18 my better part of man, the better part of my manhood, i.e. my courage. 20 palter, equivocate. 21 to our ear, as regards the mere words. 22 to our hope, as regards what we hope. 24 gaze, spectacle. 26 Painted upon a pole, on cloth raised aloft on a pole. underwrit, underwritten. 32 the last, the last throw against fate. 34 him may be regarded as in the nominative case. The confu- sion in the use of the nominative and the accusative was fre- quent in the sixteenth century, and should in noway trouble the student. Certain of these forms have survived in good usage, as "It is me," and " Between you and I." Him may, however, be explained as an accusative, the expression being a shortened form of " Let him be daran'd." 35 we miss, do not see here. 36 go off, die. by these I see, judging by the number I see. ACT V. SCENE VIII 127 40 only lived but, emphatic for lived hut. 41 Observe the meter. Slur the e in prowess. 42 the unshrinking station, the station from which he did not shrink. 52 parted well, died nobly, score, debt to nature. 54 behold, where stands, i.e. upon a pike. 55 the time is free, the day of freedom from tyranny has come. 56 pearl, used collectively for nobles ; perhaps suggested by the pearls in the crown. 57 Who speak in their minds my congratulations. 61 your several loves, the loyal affection each of you has shown me. 66 our exiled friends abroad, our friends in exile. 68 Producing forth, bringing from their hiding places, f ft) Does Macbeth at the opening of this scene think seriously of suicide? (5) What deters him from suicide? (c) In what lines does he express remorse? and for what? (d) At what point is he wholly disillusioned ? (e) In what spirit does he begin the combat with Macduff? (/) Is Shake- speare's management of his death more impressive than it would have been had Macduff slain him in view of the au- dience? {(j) What rumor was there in regard to the man- ner of Lady Macbeth 's death? Qi) Do you believe the rumor to have been true ? {%) How is young Siward's death regarded by Ross and by the boy's father ? (/ ) In what manner does Malcolm reward his faithful thanes? (k) What is Shakespeare's manner of representing a battle on the stage ? TOPICS FOR STUDY Now after finishing this tragedy, there' is a place for studies on the plot and the characters, on the sources whence the incidents were derived, and on the probable date of the first performance of Macbeth at the Globe Theater. The following observations on these topics lay no claim to completeness ; their purpose is to sug- gest something for the student to work out for himself. I. The Plot The various literary forms whose subject-matter is fictitious incident, differ from one another in the manner of presentation. The epic poem was originally a piece to be recited; it implied a rhapsodist and an audience. The novel is addressed to the silent reader. In the drama, a story is unfolded before our eyes : events, though really of the past, are represented as taking place now, and the characters become the actors whom we see. From these different ways of telling a story follow certain corollaries in respect to plot. Slight inconsistencies in structure are not easily discerni- ble in the epic and in the novel; for when the end is reached, we have forgotten the numerous details of the beginning. But in the drama, which we follow scene by scene on the stage, anything awry is detected at once, and almost as easily as a defect in the figure or in the reasoning of a geometrical proposition, which we grasp at a glance. Though you have read Macbeth much as you would read any other piece of literature, — for the habit of reading has confounded all forms, — you have probably kept in imagination the stage and the actors coming and going. How carefully the play is put together you cannot fail to notice, if you think of it in contrast with some of the novels with which you are familiar. The sequence of its incidents possesses the rigidity of logic.^ 1 And yet this is not true of every detail. What scenes or parts of scenes contribute nothing to the action ? Why, then, are they introduced ? Perhaps, too, there are real inconsistencies in the statements of different characters. —See I, ii, 52-60 ; I, iii, 72-75 and 108-llG. 128 THE PLOT 129 Moreover, the plot of a drama is simpler than that of other lit- erary kinds. The dramatist, in the two or three hours granted him, must select the most important incidents — called dramatic moments — in the career of his hero and bring them to the front, leaving to his audience to fill in by his suggestions what takes place in the intervals. Thus the reign of Macbeth, according to the chronology followed by Shakespeare, covered seventeen years. Shakespeare, in making a drama out of it, brushed aside many events, confining himself to those which bore some relation to the assassination of Duncan ; and even of these, he could not present all. The main dramatic moments of the play are Macbeth's temp- tation by the witches, his subsequent meeting with his wife, the murder of Duncan, the murder of Ban quo, the appearance of the ghost, the slaughter of Lady Macduff and her son, and the death grapple between Macbeth and Macduff. What comes between them is in the w\ay of explaining how these events happen. The simpler the plot, the more effective it is on the stage. It was Shakespeare's custom, as in The Merchant of Venice, to weave together deftly two or more stories, and to carry along with them scenes of low comedy to please the rabble in the yard. Macbeth here differs from the rest. It has but one plot, and interest is focused on a few characters. It contains but one comic scene — the Porter at the gate. For introducing this scene, Shakespeare has often been praised, on the ground that it furnishes a relief to the horror of the assassination. This is undoubtedly its effect on critics and philosophers ; and yet it is, I think, nothing more than the vulgar interlude demanded by the Elizabethan audience. But for it, the drama preserves throughout perfect unity of tone. Without it, the knocking would be equally impressive. Because of this simplicity and unity of plot, the play is, of all Shakespeare's tragedies, the most rapid in its movement. Macbeth is tempted to the murder of Duncan, and with a bound Shakespeare brings him to the deed. Banquo must be put out of the way; the hint is followed by the plan and its execution. Macbeth is told that the thane of Fife has fled to England; and he at once resolves on the murder of Macduff's kin. In the next scene, the assassins are on the stage. The retribution is equally swift. Macbeth has no sooner gained the throne than he is afflicted with terrible dreams that shake him nightly. He is soon 130 TOPICS FOR STUDY besieged in his castle, and a few minutes later Macduff enters, bearing the head of the usurper. The drama is the work of genius at a white heat, and as such it should be compared with the subtle elaboration of Hamlet. For studying more in detail the action of a play, it is convenient to divide it into five logical sections, which do not correspond to the five acts ; namely, the introduction, the rising action, the climax, the falling action, and the catastrophe. The introduction explains the situation. In Macbeth it con- sists of the first two scenes. The first scene brings us at once into the mystical atmosphere which is to pervade the entire play. The second scene describes the brave deeds of Macbeth, the man who is to yield to supernatural solicitings. The rising action begins with the next scene and extends to the third scene of the third act. Macbeth, returning from his victories, is tempted to try for the throne, and in the attainment of this aim he is spurred on by the witches and Lady Macbeth. At length he accomplishes his main purpose. The climax is the turning point in the play ; that is, the place where the reaction sets in against the hero. It is sometimes called "the dramatic center." In this play it occurs in the third scene of the third act, where Fleance escapes. Macbeth has thus not fully gained what he was striving for. Distracted by fears and hallucinations, he loses (III, iv) his self-control; and at this point we know he is doomed. Whom the gods would destroy they first make mad. The falling action runs with little interruption from the banquet to the end of the play. Characters that in the first scenes were kept in the background, now come to the front, — Malcolm and Macduff, in whom is embodied the retribution. One of the most noticeable things about the falling action in Macbeth is Shakespeare's careful preparation for it. Many a drama and many a novel have been utterly spoiled by improbable or impossible occurrences. But says Schiller, "A dexterous use of accident in art, as well as in life, often brings about what is excellent." So skillfully has Shakespeare employed chance in the first half of the play, that perhaps we did not notice the incidents. Macbeth murders Duncan. What more natural than that Mal- colm should flee to England for protection and aid? Banquo is THE PLOT 131 killed. What more natural than that one of the murderers in his fright should put out the torch, and that Fleance, from whom is to proceed a line of kings, should conceal himself in the darkness? The first accident prepares the way for the English invasion ; the second frustrates all of Macbeth's plans for holding the throne. The one works outwardly : the other inwardly and psychologi- cally; and both together make for Macbeth's ruin. The catastrophe is the tragic end. Macbeth, like Romeo and Juliet, has a double catastrophe, — the death of Lady Macbeth and the fall of Macbeth. Li the former case there is no violence. The woman who planned the murder of Duncan, breaks down under the strain of remorse, walks in her sleep, and dies. Mac- beth falls in mortal combat with Macduff, the man whom he has most nearly wronged. The drama has now played itself nearly out. Malcolm is proclaimed king, and Scotland is once more in repose. The structure thus outlined may be represented by diagram : — Climax 132 TOPICS FOR STUDY 11. The Characters The characters in most novels and plays remain the same throughout. We may be hurried on from incident to incident, but the men and women at the close are the very ones we became acquainted with at the beginning. As we turn page after page, we may, it is true, come to know more about them ; but that is all. There is, we say, no development of character ; that is, events work no inward changes. To depict this psychological movement, which we all know takes place in real life, is high art. We have it usually in Thackeray and in George Eliot, and always in the great creations of Shakespeare. For example, the Lady Macbeth who, in the seventh scene of the first act, taunts her husband for his cowardice, could not have done so, in her mental and moral state at the close of the fourth scene of the third act. Again, the Macbeth who is described to us by the Sergeant and Ross in the second scene of the first act, could not have planned the slaughter of Lady Macduff and her son. There w^as only one time when he was quite capable of such a deed, and that was at the close of the first scene in the fourth act. Take up the play in each scene w^here jVIacbeth and Lady Mac- beth appear, and notice in what respects they have changed since they last appeared on the stage. Extend your studies to Banquo and Macduff. Determine the former's relation to Macbeth, ob- serving how Shakespeare keeps him always a man, never making of him a faultless monster such as most writers make of the good character.! And then notice how in the last part of the play Macduff is awakened to terrible energy of will. IIL Shakespeare and Holinshed The incidents of Macbeth w^ere taken from what once passed for history. In the first years of Elizabeth's reign, some London printers undertook a history of the world, employing for the com- pilation one Raphael Holinshed. The outcome, which fell short of the plan, was the Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland, which appeared in 1577. The work, enlarged by other hands, was 1 For an excellent essay on Banquo, see Transactions of the New Shakspere Society for 1875-76, pp. 200-205. SHAKESPEARE AND HOLINSHED 133 again printed in 1587. This latter edition, it is probable, was the one used by Shakespeare. Here he iound the career of Macbeth, the outlines of which he followed in the main. But Holinshed gave a meager account of Duncan's death ; and so for a murder scene Shakespeare had to look elsewhere. Turning back a few pages in the Chronicle of Scotland, he came to the details of the assassination of King Duff, a predecessor of Duncan ; and he took the most dramatic of them. That it may be seen how Shake- speare dramatized hist6ry, I quote that part of Holinshed which covers the first act of the play and a little besides — down to the death of Duncan. The extract is from the London reprint of 1808. The student should notice what incidents Shakespeare appropriated and what he left, to what extent he compressed events, and particularly in what way he modified Banquo's relation to Macbeth. After IMalcolme succeeded his nephue Duncane the sonne of his daughter Beatrice : for Malcolme had two daughters, the one wliich was this Beatrice, being giuen in mariage vnto one Abba- nath Crinen, a man of great nobilitie, and thane of the lies and west parts of Scotland, bare of that mariage the foresaid Dun- cane ; the other called Doada, was maried vnto Sinell the thane of Glammis, by whom she had issue one Makbeth a valiant gentle- man, and one that if he had not beene somewhat cruell of nature, might haue beene thought most woorthie the gouernement of a realme. On the other part, Duncane was so soft and gentle of nature, that the people wished the inclinations and maners of these two cousins to haue beene so tempered and interchangeablie bestowed betwixt them, that where the one had too nuich of clemencie, and the other of crueltie, the meane vertue betwixt these two extremities might haue reigned by indifferent partition in them both, so should Duncane haue proued a woorthie king, and Makbeth an excellent capteine. The beginning of Duncans reigne was verie quiet and peaceable, without anie notable trouble ; but after it was perceiued how negligent he was in punishing offendors, manie misruled persons tooke occasion thereof to trouble the peace and quiet state of the common-wealth, by seditious commotions which first had their beginnings in this wise. Banquho the thane of Lochquhaber, of whom the house of the Stewards is descended, the which by order of linage hath now for a long time inioied the crowne of Scotland, euen till these our dales, as he gathered the finances due to the king, and further punished somewhat sharpelie such as were notorious offc'endors, be- 134 TOPICS FOR STUDY ing assailed by a number of rebels inhabiting in that countrie, and spoiled of the nionie and all other things, had nmch a doo to get p.waie with life, after he had receiued sundrie grieuoiis wounds amongst them. Yet escaping their hands, after hee was somewhat recouered of his hurts, and was able to ride, he repaired to the court, where making his complaint to the king in most earnest w^ise, he purchased at length that the offendors were sent for by a sergeant at amies, to appeare to make answer vnto such matters as should be laid to their charge : but they augmenting their mis- chiefous act with a more wicked deed, after they had misused the messenger with sundrie kinds of reproches, they finallie slue him also. Then doubting not but for such contemptuous demeanor against the kings regall authoritie, they should be inuaded with all the power the king could make, Makdowald one of great estimation among them, making first a confederacie with his neerest fi-iends and kinsmen, tooke vpon him to be chiefe capteine of all such rebels as would stand against the king, in maintenance of their grieuous offenses latelie committed against him. Manie slanderous words also, and railing tants this Makdowald vttered against his prince, calling him a faint-hearted milkesop, more meet to gouerne a sort of idle moonks in some cloister, than to haue the rule of such valiant and hardie men of warre as the Scots were. He vsed also such subtill persuasions and forged allurements, that in a small time he had gotten togither a mightie power of men : for out of the westerne lies there came vnto him a great multitude of peo- ple, offering themselues to assist him in that rebellious quarell, and out of Ireland in hope of the spoile came no small number of Kernes and Galloglasses, offering gladlie to serue vnder him, whither it should please him to lead them. Makdowald thus hauing a mightie puissance about him, incoun- tered with such of the kings people as were sent against him into Lochquhaber, and discomfiting them, by mere force tooke their capteine Malcolme, and after the end of the battell smote off his head. This ouerthrow being notified to the king, did put him in woonderfull feare, by reason of his small skill in warlike affaires. Calling therefore his nobles to a councell, he asked of them their best aduise for the subduing of Makdowald & other the rebels. Here, in sundrie heads (as euer it happeneth) were sundrie opin- ions, which they vttered according to euerie man his skill. At length Makbetii speaking much against the kings softnes, and ouermuch slacknesse in punishing offendors, whereby they had such time to assemble togither, he promised notwithstanding, if the charge were committed vnto him and vnto Banquho, so to order the matter, that the rebels should be shortly vanquished & quite put downe, and that not so much as one of them should be found to make resistance within the countrie. And euen so it came to passe : for being sent foorth with a new SHAKESPEAKE AND HOLINSHED 135 power, at liis eiitriiig into Lochquhaber, the fame of his comming put the enimies in such feare, that a great number of them stale secretlie awaie from their capteine Makdowald, who neuerthelesse inforcecl thereto, gaue battell vnto Makbeth, with the residue which remained with him : but being ouercome, and fleeing for refuge into a castell (within the which his wife & children were inclosed) at length when he saw how he could neither defend the hold anie longer against his enimies, nor yet vpon surrender be suffered to depart with life saued, hee first slue his wife and chil- dren, and lastlie himselfe, least if he had yeelded simplie, he should haue beene executed in most cruell wise for an example to other. Makbeth entring into the castell by the gates, as then set open, found the carcasse of ISIacdowald lieng dead there amongst the residue of the slaine bodies, which when he beheld, remitting no peece of his cruell nature with that pitifull sight, he caused the head to be cut off, and set vpon a poles end, and so sent it as a present to the king who as then laie at Bertha. The headlesse trunke he commanded to bee hoong vp vpon an high paire of gal- lowes. Them of the westerne lies suing for pardon, in that they had aided Makdowald in his tratorous enterprise, he fined at great sums of monie : and those whonie he tooke in Lochquhaber, being- come thither to beare armor against the king, he put to execution. Hervpon the Ilandmen coneeiued a deadlie grudge towards him, calling him a couenant-breaker, a bloudie tyrant, & a ci'uell mur- therer of them whome the kings mercie had pardoned. With which reprochfull words Makbeth being kindled in wrathfull ire against them, had passed ouer with an armie into the lies, to haue taken reuenge vpon them for their liberall talke, had he not heene other- wise persuaded by some of his friends, and partlie pacified by gifts presented vnto him on the behalfe of the Ilandmen, seeking to auoid his displeasure. Thus was iustice and law" restored againe to the old accustomed course, by the diligent means of Makbeth. Immediatlie wherevpon woord came that Sueno king of Norway was arriued in Fife with a puissant armie, to subdue the whole realme of Scotland. . . . The crueltie of this Sueno was such, that he neither spared man, woman, nor child, of what age, condition or degree soeuer they were. Whereof when K. Duncane was certified, he set all slouth- full and lingering delaies apart, and began to assemble an armie in most speedie wise, like a verie valiant capteine : for oftentimes it happeneth, that a dull coward and slouthfull person, constreined by necessitie, becommeth verie bardie and actiue. Therefore when his whole power was come togither, he diuided the same into three battels. The first was led by Makbeth, the second by Banquho, & the king himselfe gouerned in the maine battell or middle ward, wherein were appointed to attend and wait vpon his person the most part of all the residue of the Scotish nobilitie. 136 TOPICS FOR STUDY The armie of Scotislimen being thus ordered, came vnto Cuh-os, wliere incountering with the enimies, after a sore and cruell foLighten battell, Sueno remained victoiious, and ]\Ialcohne with his Scots discomfited. Howbeit the Danes were so broken by this battell, that they were not able to make long chase on their eni- mies, but kept themselues all night in order of battell, for doubt least the Scots assembling togither againe, might haue set vpon them at some aduantage. On the morrow, when the fields were discouered, and that it was perceiued how no enimies were to be found abrode, they gathered the spoile, which they diuided amongst them, according to the law of amies. Then was it or- deined by commandement of Sueno, that no souldier should hurt either man, woman, or child, except such as were found with weapon in hand readie to make resistance, for he hoped now to conquer the realnie without further bloudshed. But when knowledge was giuen how Duncane was fled to the castell of Bertha, and that Makbeth was gathering a new power to withstand the incursions of the Danes, Sueno raised his tents, & comming to the said castell, laid a strong siege round about it. Duncane seeing himselfe thus enuironed by his enimies, sent a se- cret message by counsell of Banquho to Makbeth, commanding him to abide at Inchcuthill, till he heard from him some other newes. In the meane time Duncane fell in fained communication with Sueno, as though he would haue yeelded vp the castell into his hands, vnder certeine conditions, and this did he to driue time, and to put his enimies out of all suspicion of anie enterprise ment against them, till all things were brought to passe that ndght serue for the purpose. At length, when they were fallen at a point for rendring vp the hold, Duncane offered to send foorth of the castell into the campe greate prouision of vittels to refresh the arnde, which offer was gladlie accepted of the Danes, for that they had beene in great penurie of sustenance manie dales before. The Scots heerevpon tooke the iuice of mekilwoort berries, and mixed the same in their ale and bread, sending it thus spiced & confectioned, in great abundance vnto their enimies. They re- ioising that they had got meate and drinke sufficient to satisfie their bellies, fell to eating and drinking after such greedie wise, that it seemed they stroue who might deuoure and swallow vp most, till the operation of the berries spread in such sort through all the parts of their bodies, that they were in the end brought into a fast dead sleepe, that in manner it was vnpossible to awake them. Then foorthwith Duncane sent vnto Makbeth, command- ing him wdth all diligence to come and set vpon the enimies, being in easie point to be ouercome. Makbeth making no delaie, came with his people to the place, where his enimies were lodged, and first killing the watch, afterwards entered the campe, and made such slaughter on all sides without anie resistance, that it was a woonderfull matter to behold, for the Danes were so heauie of SIIAKESrEAKE AND HOLINSHED 137 sleepe, that the most part of them were slaine and neiier sth'red : other that were awakened either by the noise or other waies foorth, were so amazed and dizzie headed"^ vpon their wakening, that they were not able to make anie defense : so that of the whole number there escaped no more but onelie Sueno himselfe and ten other persons, l)y whose helpe he got to his ships lieng at rode in the mouth of Taie. The most part of the mariners, when they heard what plentie of meate and drinke the Scots had sent vnto the campe, came from the sea thither to be partakers thereof, and so were slaine amongst their fellowes : by meanes whereof when Sueno perceiued how through lacke of mariners he should not be able to conueie awaie his nauie, he furnished one ship throughlie with such as were left, and in the same sailed backe into Norwaie, cursing the time that he set forward on this infortunate iournie. The otlier ships which he left behind him, within three dales after his departure from thence, were tossed so togither by violence of an east wind, that beating and rushing one against another, they sunke there, and lie in the same place euen vnto these dales, to the great danger of other such ships as come on that coast : for being couered with the floud when the tide commeth, at the ebbing againe of the same, some part of them appeere aboue water. The place where the Danish vessels were thus lost, is yet called Drownelow sands. This ouerthrow receiued in manner afore said by Sueno, was verie displeasant to him and his people, as should appeere, in that it was a custome manie yeeres after, that no knights w^ere made in Norwaie, except they were first sworne to reuenge the slaughter of their countriemen and friends thus slaine in Scotland. The Scots hauing woone so notable a victorie, after they had gathered & diuided the spoile of the field, caused solemne processions to be made in all places of the realme, and thanks to be giuen to almightie God, that had sent them so faire a day oner their enimies. But whilest the people were thus at their proces- sions, woord was brought that a new fleet of Danes was arriued at Kingcorne, sent thither by Canute king of England, in reuenge of his brother Suenos ouerthrow. To resist these enimies, which were alreadie landed, and busie in spoiling the countrie ; Makbeth and Banquho were sent with the kings authoritie, who hauing with them a conuenient power, incountred the enindes, slue part of them, and chased the otlier to their ships. They that escaped and got once to their ships, obteined of Makbeth for a great summe of gold, that such of their friends as were slaine at this last bicker- ing, might be buried in saint Colmes Inch. In memorie whereof, manie old sepultures are yet in the said Inch, there to be seene grauen with the amies of the Danes, as the maner of burieng noble men still is, and heeretofore hath beene vsed. A peace was also concluded at the same time betwixt the Danes and Scotishmen, ratified (as some haue written) in this wise : lo8 Tories FOR STUDY That from thencefoorth the Danes should iieiier come into Scotland to make anie warres against the Scots by anie maner of meanes. And these were the warres that Duncane had with forren enimies, in the seuenth veere of his reigne. Shortlie after happened a strange and vncouth woonder, wliich afterward was tlie cause of much trouble in the realme of Scotland, as ye shall after heare. It fortuned as Makbeth and Banquho iournied towards Fores, where the king then laie, they went sporting by the waie togither without other companie, saue onelie themselues, passing thorough the woods and fields, when suddenlie in the middest of a laund, there met them three women in strange and wild apparell, resem- bling creatures of elder world, whome when they attentiuelie beheld, woondering much at the sight, the first of them spake and said ; 'All haile Makbeth, thane of Glammis ' (for he had latelie entered into that dignitie and office by the death of his father Sinell). The second of them said; 'Haile Makbeth thane of Cawder.' But the third said; 'All haile Makbeth that heereafter shaft be king of Scotland.' Then Banquho ; ' What manner of women (saith he) are you, that seeme so little fauourable vnto me, whereas to my fellow heere, besides high offices, ye assigne also the kingdome, appointing foorth nothing for me at all ? ' ' Yes (saith the first of them) we promise greater benefits vnto thee, than vnto him, for he shall reigne in deed, but with an vnluckie end : neither shall he leaue anie issue behind him to succeed in his place, where contrarilie thou in deed shalt not reigne at all, but of thee those shall be borne which shall gouern the Scotish kingdome by long order of con- tinuall descent.' Herewith the foresaid women vanished imme- diatlie out of their sight. This was reputed at the first but some vaine fantasticall illusion by Mackbeth and Banquho, insomuch that Banquho would call Mackbeth in iest, king of Scotland ; and Mackbeth againe would call him in sport likewise, the father of manie kings. But afterwards the common opinion was, that these women were either the Aveird sisters, that is (as ye would say) the goddesses of destinie, or else some nymphs or feiries, indued with knowledge of prophesie by their necromanticall science, bicause euerie thing came to passe as they had spoken. For shortlie after, the thane of Cawder being condemned at Fores of treason against the king committed; his lands, linings, and offices were giuen of the kings liberalitie to Mackbeth. The same night after, at supper, Banquho iested with him and said ; ' Now Mackbeth thou hast obteined those things which the two former sisters prophesied, there remaineth onelie for thee to purchase that which the third said should come to passe.' Wherevpon Mackbeth reuoluing the thing in his mind, began euen then to deuise how he might atteine to the kingdome : but yet he thought with himself e that he must tarie a time, which should aduance him thereto (by the diuine prouidence) as it had come to SHAKESPEARE AND HOLINSHED 139 passe in his former preferment. But shortlie after it chanced that king Duncane, hauing two sonnes by his wife which was the daughter of Siward earle of Northumberland, he made the elder of them called Malcoline prince of Cumberland, as it were thereby to appoint him his successor in the kingdonie, inimediatlie after his deceasse. Mackbeth sore troubled herewith, for that he saw by this means his hope sore hindered (where, by the old lawes of the realnie, the ordinance was, that if he that should succeed were not of able age to take the charge vpon himselfe, he that was next of bloud vnto him should be admitted) he began to take counsell how he miglit vsurpe the kingdome by force, hauing a iust quarell so to doo (as he tooke the matter) for that Duncane did what in him lay to defraud him of all maner of title and claime, which he might in time to come, pretend vnto the crowne. The woords of the three w^eird sisters also (of whom before ye haue heard) greatlie incou raged him herevnto, but speciallie his wife lay sore vpon him to attempt the thing, as she that was verie ambitious, burning in vnquenchable desire to beare the name of a queene. At length therefore, communicating his purposed intent with his ti'ustie friends, amongst whom Banquho was the chiefest, vpon confidence of their promised aid, he slue the king at Enuerns, or (as some say) at Botgosuane, in the sixt yeare of his reigne. Holinshed's story of Macbeth has all the dates and circumstance of authentic history ; and, indeed, there is a basis for it in fact. The historical Macbeth ^ had a share in the murder of Duncan; Siward, the Earl of Northumberland, invaded Scotland and defeated him ; and Malcolm, a son of Duncan, was placed upon the throne. But Macbeth was conspicuous not so much for his crimes as for his virtues. " All genuine Scottish tradition," says Freeman, " points to the reign of Macbeth as a period of unusual peace and prosperity in that disturbed land." In his dates, Holinshed is not far from the truth. Duncan, according to him, was murdered in 1040. This or 1039 is the date given by the modern historian. Siward, says Holinshed, invaded Scotland in 1057 ; and Macbeth was killed in single combat with Macduff. History tells the story somewhat differently. Siward defeated Macbeth in a pitched battle on July 27, 1054. Macbeth escaped, but three years later he was again defeated, and this time he was slain. Most of the accessories of Holinshed are legendary; and two of them — the 1 For the historical Macbeth, see The Norman Conquest, E. A. Free- man, Chap. VII, § 2, and Chap. IX, §2; and History of Scotland, P. H. Brown, Bk. II, Chap. I. 140 TOPICS FOR STUDY moving wood and the man not born of woman — are folk stories of great antiquity. In brief, Macbeth, as we have it in Holinshed and in Shakespeare, is history decorated with popular fiction. It is therefore not to be classed with the so-called " histories," of which Henry the Fifth is the type. IV. Date of Composition Of the thirty-seven plays written wholly or in part by Shake- speare, sixteen were ]3ublished separately during the dramatist's lifetime, — and most of them apparently without his cooi^eration or even his consent, — in small thin volumes known as the quartos. Six years after Shakespeare's death, Othello appeared for the first time in the same unpretentious form. Early in 1623, an attempt was made to bring together in one volume all the plays then thought to have been written by Shakespeare. The enterprise was undertaken and carried through slowly by a small group of London publishers and printers, with the aid of two of Shake- speare's friends and fellow-actors, John Heming and Henry Condell. This first edition of Shakespeare's plays, known as the First Folio, contains thirty-six dramas ; all, excepting Pericles, that criticism now usually attributes to Siiakespeare. Thus, but for this literary venture, more than half of Shakespeare's pieces might have been lost to us; and among them. As You Like It, Julius Ccesar, Antony and Cleopatra, and Macbeth. For the text of Macbeth the editors must have had at hand only a very imperfect transcript, probably nothing more than an actor's copy : for the verse in many places is mutilated beyond emendation ; there are inconsistences in the plot ; there are inter- polations by a second-rate playwright, and only in the third scene of the fourth act do we find the elaboration so common with Shakespeare. The tragedy, great and tremendous as it is, certainly was not printed as it came from the master's hand. The Folio of 1623, of course, gives no clew to the date of compo- sition. But this date may be determined within certain limits. Scotch in scene, characters, and superstition, Macbeth is beyond doubt a graceful compliment to James the First. As king of Scotland, he had been invested with the royal office at Scone ; as king of England, he was crowned at Westminster on the 25th of BATE OF COMPOSITION 141 July, 1003. The next year, on the 24th of October, he was pro- claimed King of Great Britain, France, and Ireland. To these events there is undoubted allusion in IV, i, 121, whei-e Macbeth sees, in the magic glass, kings " That two-fold balls and treble sceptres carry." Macbeth, then, was probably written after October 24, 1604. We may also determine the date before which it was written ; for there is preserved a brief description of an early performance at Shakespeare's own theater. Dr. Simon Forman, a London quack and astrologer, who visited the playhouses for instruction, has an entry in his diary which begins in this way : — In Mackbeth at the glob, 16jO, the 20 of Aprill, ther was to be obserued, firste, howe Mackbeth and Bancko, 2 noble men of Scot- land, Ridinge thorowe a wod, the[r] stod before them 3 women feiries or T^imphes, And saluted Mackbeth, sayinge, 3 tyms vnto him, haille mackbeth, king of Codon ; for thou shalt be a kinge, but shalt beget No kinge, &c. then said Bancko, what all to mack- beth And nothing to me. Yes, said the nimphes, haille to thee Banko, thou shalt beget kinge.s^, yet be no kinge. ^ Macbeth, therefore, was written between the autumn of 1004 and the spring of 1610. Attempts have been made to move these dates nearer together. The evidence brought forward for this purpose is, when regarded piecemeal, by no means convincing ; but taken all together, it has some weight. The Porter's "farmer, that hanged himself on th' expectation of plenty," is thought to refer to the abundant har- vests of 1606. Again, the " equivocator, that could swear in both the scales against either scale," seems to point to the defense of equivocation made by the Jesuit Henry Garnett, who was tried, March 28, 1606, for complicity in the Gunpowder Plot, and was executed May 3, 1606. But from the allusions of a clown, though the incidents to which they point are reasonably clear, it is not safe to infer the time of composition ; for they were often prepared to fit some special performance of a play, which might not be the first. Indeed, some editors insist that the Porter scene is, through- out, an interpolation. 1 The quotation is taken from Transactions of the New Shakspere So- ciety, for 1875-76, pp. 417-418. 142 TOPICS FOR STUDY More noteworthy than these questionable indications of date, is the well-authenticated account of a sort of interlude or triumph in honor of King James, on his visit to Oxford in August, 1605. As he approached the gates of St. John's College, three students, in the manner of three sibyls coming from a wood, addressed him in Latin. ^ They hailed him as a descendant of Banquo, as the king who had united Scotland, England, and Ireland, and as ruler over (xreat Britain, Ireland, and France. There is no way of determin- ing whether this Oxford performance preceded or followed Shake- speare's Macbeth; but that there is a link in the way of suggestion between them, is certainly very probable. On account of these and other considerations, especially the versification, critics are now inclined to assign the composition and first presentation of Macbeth to 1605 or 1606. What allusions, besides the one I have cited, are there in the play to James the First? For verse tests, the student may consult Dowden's Shalspere Primer, pp. 39-46. .A more extended account of them may be found in Transactions of the New Shakspere Society, 1874, pp. 442- 451 ; and in Englische Studien, Vol. Ill, pp. 473-504 (the discus- sion is in English). 1 For the text of this performance, see The Neio Varioruni edition of Macbeth, by H. H. Furness, p. 378-379. TEST QUESTIONS 143 TEST QUESTIONS [The following questions are taken, with slight modifications, from a large number of recent examination papers set for students entering col- lege.] I. To what period of Shakespeare's work does Macbeth belong? When was it first published? II. What are the literary sources of the play ? How does Shake- speare use this material ? TIL What is the real climax of the plot? What are the turn- ing points (dramatic moments) of the plot, and in what acts do they occur? What comic scene in the play? IV. Why are the witches introduced at the opening of the play? What is the first reference to Macbeth's murderous intent? What bearing upon subsequent events has the witches' threefold salu- tation of Macbeth as " thane of Glamis, thane of Cawdor, and king to be hereafter"? In what way is Macbeth's decision to proceed no further in the business of killing Duncan overborne by Lady Macbeth? What is the retribution for Macbeth, and for Lady Macbeth ? Where, in each case, does retribution begin ? V. Make a character sketch of Macbeth, illustrating every trait by reference to the play. — Use verbal quotations so far as possible. Describe the character of Macbeth : («) just before the play begins; (h) in Act III; (c) in Act V. Give two sides to Mac- beth's character, and illustrate by his actions. What is the ruling motive of Lady Macbeth's character? Contrast Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Sketch the characters of Banquo; of Macduff; of Malcolm. VI. Write four quotations, giving the speaker and the circum- stances in which the words are spoken. " That way the noise is. Tyrant, show thy face ! If thou be'st slain and with no stroke of mine, My wife and children's ghosts will haunt me still. I cannot strike at wretched kerns, whose arms 5 Are hired to bear their staves : either thou, Macbeth, Or else my sword, with an unbatter'd edge, I sheathe again vndeeded. There thou shouldst be ; By this great clatter, one of greatest note Seems bruited: let me find him, fortune! 10 And more I beg not." 144 TOPICS FOR STUDY By whom are these words spoken? Give a brief account of the situation indicated in the lines. What is the reference in My ivife and childrefi's (jhosfs loill haunt me still ? Comment on all italicized words. What is the grammatical construction of thou in line 5? VII. In what meter is Macbeth written ? Is all the verse in the same meter? What parts of the play are written in prose? Scan lines 5 and 7 in the passage quoted above. Reduce the following to proper metrical form : — "Be innocent of the knowledge dearest chuck till thou applaud the deed come seeling night scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day and with thy bloody and invisible hand cancel and tear to pieces that great bond which keeps me pale." JUl! LB "30