Banquo's murder : Act 3

Question 1

macbeth becomes overzealous in…

Answer 1

his indulgence in murder and sends a third murderer out of paranoia and a lack of trust in act 3 scene 3

Question 2

LINK TO ACT 1 SCENE 2

Answer 2

• the sending of the third murderer reiterates his hamartia of ambition and the description of macbeth in battle : ‘as cannons over-charg’d with double cracks/so they doubly redoubled strokes upon the foe’

Question 3

LINK TO ACT 1 SCENE 2 : ‘as cannons over-charg’d with double cracks/ so they doubly redoubled strokes upon the foe’

Answer 3

• repetition of ‘double’ - shows his acting in excess and not having restraint or boundaries in battle
• he is portrayed with an aggression that cannot be quelled

Question 4

macbeth’s reaction in act 3 scene 4 when he finds about fleance’s escape

Answer 4

‘in time will venom breed / no teeth for th’present’

Question 5

‘in time will venom breed / no teeth for th’present’

Answer 5

• macbeth acknowledges his tumultuous fortune
• yet his hubris (pride) blinds him into a false sense of security, suggesting that danger is not present

Question 6

topic sentence

Answer 6

banquo’s murder allows macbeth’s peripeteia to come to fruition, it initiates a series of unexpected events which happen largely out of macbeth’s control and shakespeare dramatizes macbeth’s inability to control an manipulate fear as an illegitimate king