1. Lady Macbeth learns about the witches prophecy regarding Macbeth in a letter written by Macbeth her husband.

This letter was introduced in In Act 1 Scene 5 of the play where Macbeth wrote; they cried All hail Macbeth! Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor that shalt be King hereafter. 2. Macbeth omitted the parts of the Weird Sisters prophecy concerning Banquo because he was distracted by the parts of the prophecy which concerned him becoming King. Macbeths ego plays a big role in this omition because he is more concerned with the idea of becoming King than he is with the idea of his heirs having any claim to the throne. The witches predicted that Macbeth would be King, and Banquo would be a descendant of kings, the possibility of Macbeth claiming the throne was more important to him initially than retaining the throne. 3. Shakespeare attempted to portray the idea that women corrupt men within the scene where Lady Macbeth is convincing Macbeth to murder King Duncan. This is the moralistic message which Shakespeare as a moralist, and a purveyor of moralistic works tried to send. Within this scene, Shakespeare attempts to parallel the Christian Old testament bible story within Genesis where Eve convinces Adam to defy God and eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge. 4. Lady Macbeth ultimately persuades Macbeth to murder King Duncan by insulting his manhood. She states; When you durst do it then you were a man (1.7.49). This is after Macbeth had decided to not go through with the murder. Lady Macbeth took many blows at the type of man Macbeth was, and struck at his virility and his masculinity. In response to this, Macbeth questions how they will be able to carry out the murder without incriminating themselves clearly lacking confidence in being able

to complete this task. When Lady Macbeth explains her full plan of execution, Macbeth is astounded by her cunning, and is thoroughly manipulated into agreeing to murder the King. 5. Banquo is a foil for Macbeth, Banquo is who Macbeth would be if he did not pursue the prophecy."If you can look into the seeds of time, And say which grain will grow and which will not." (Act 1 Scene 3) The witches created the possibility that both Banquo and Macbeth could become king if they took the initiative. The initiative being political assassination a lot of deception. Macbeth takes this dangerous corrupting path. Banquo stays a loyal, virtuous and insignificant subject of King Duncan. When Macbeth kills Duncan he becomes a new man far detached from virtue or morality. Banquo could have easily have went Macbeth's route, they were the same person at the beginning, both equally capable of carrying out this act. Banquo has children while Macbeth does not, when Banquo dies he leaves his children behind with an unremarkable life. When Macbeth dies he dies an insignificant man until he becomes king. Both roads lead to death, it could have easily have been Banquo who killed Duncan. Banquo dies a virtuous but insignificant man while Macbeth dies a corrupt king but a king nonetheless. 6. Macbeth gives many reasons for not wanting to kill King Duncan; 1) He owed Duncan respect because he was his king and sovereign, and Macbeth was his loyal subject. 2) King Duncan is Macbeths cousin and family should not murder family.3) He would be setting the example that it is acceptable to kill the King making no King (including Macbeth) safe. 4) It might trigger unpredictable consequences. 5) Duncan is a guest in his home and it is not right for a host to kill his guest. 6) There was not

real reason to do it, aside from Macbeths own thirst and greed for power. 7) King Duncan is very well received and admired within the Kingdom and would hate whoever killed him. 7. When Macduff asks to be able to feel it like a man he is responding to the news that his wife and children had been massacred on Macbeths orders. While Malcolm who had delivered this news to Macduff told him to Dispute it like a man. Meaning to fight it like a man, and to take vengeance on Macbeth. Macduff however responds to this by replying that he would however he must also feel the loss and grieve like a man, he then goes on to bemoan the sadness of this tragedy and to blame himself; I shall do so,But I must also feel it as a man.I cannot but remember such things wereThat were most precious to me. Did heaven look on,And would not take their part? Sinful Macduff,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. For Macduff as a man he wishes to grieve for his loved ones deaths and to lament his loss. 8. Lady Macbeth has very clear views on masculinity which conflict with Macduff request to feel it like a man. While Macduff believes that a man should be able to grieve and show weakness when confronted with horrific loss, Lady Macbeth believed that a man should be remorseless and cruel. In one of her soliloquies where she is asking for the strength and male courage she broaches this issue stating; Come, you spirits/ That tend on mortal thoughts! unsex me here,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 /The effect and it! 9. Macbeth is about a couple and their bloodthirsty quest for power. Macbeth and Lady

Macbeth pursue the fulfillment of a prophecy that would give Macbeth power. They are both power hungry and greedy but they need each other to carry out their ambitions. In pursuit of this path of ambition they transform into immoral, tyrants whose spoils are built on blood and deception. They are both two greedy human being that collapse on their own immorality. Macbeth and his wife transform throughout the play. Macbeth transforms from a virtuous, God fearing man who is loyal to his king into an unrecognizable amoral tyrant who kills and uses force. Lady Macbeth is a woman who is very much in control, with the success of her plans she is left the impact of what she did. She expresses no emotion, remorse or guilt until she has a major nervous breakdown. Macbeth is driven into his demise by his ego which has been blown up and led off the righteous path by four witches. The fourth being his wife. They both want power and they both use each other to unlock their ambition. They both can not morally comprehend their actions and drown their bloodbath. Whats fair is foul and whats foul is fair (Act One Scene 1) This quote perfectly characterizes the relationship between the married characters. Lady Macbeth is the masculine party in this marriage, she is in every likeness a witch. Lady Macbeth controls her husband and through her manipulation he accepts this power structure. Macbeth is told a prophecy by three witches that he will be a king, the idea is planted but he has no plans on acting on it. Macbeth tells his wife and she manipulates him into fulfilling the prophecy by killing Duncan. Lady Macbeth is given the concept that she could be the wife of a king, Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent underneath. (Act I, Scene 5) Macbeth is a man of reason and uses reason to dismiss his wife, she attacks his manhood and his reason is thrown out the window. Lady Macbeth attacks his ego and tempts it with ambition. Macbeth with much reservation embarks on his quest to kill Duncan and become king.

He/they succeed and he becomes king. Macbeth is forced to kill anyone who stands against him and he continues on the road of blood. Macbeth quickly starts showing remorse and sees Duncan. Macbeth is visibly haunted by his actions. He starts planning battles and organizing in his leadership role. Lady Macbeth is left alone with her thoughts and her titles. Her deterioration is sudden and quick. She suffers psychotic episodes. In one episode she is washing the imaginary blood off her hands and she bleeds to death. She hallucinates blood because she did not physically kill anyone but she was responsible for the deaths because she made her husband do it. Macbeth has a guilt ridden psyche but he has an enormous ego thanks to his wife and the witches. He feels invincible, and driven. He does not feel endangered or threatened, he is mighty. Lady Macbeth lost her power in the acquisition of it, she could not live with what she had turned in to. She lost power over herself. Macbeth gained his manhood and his recognition and by putting his faith in the witches he fell victim to the sword of a virtuous man like the one he was at the beginning of this play.

10. Shakespeare explains the way man works,suffers,and ends up when he is not behaving morally in a way that is very similar to Dante within his Divine Comedy. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth both acted in an amoral manner conspiring and murdering the king out of greed and a thirst for power. Lady Macbeth suffers after this act slowly losing her grasp on reality and tortured by her evil deeds, like those in Dantes work suffer in the seven circles of hell. Macbeth however through the duration of this play loses himself completely to his own ambition, becoming soulless and sadistic to maintain his position. Ultimately Macbeth dies, a victim to his own greed in a established vengeance of fate which Dante writes within his story.

11. Macbeths state at the end of the play can be explained by Dante. The entire events leading up to the end of the play were motivated by Macbeths greed for power. Within Dantes inferno, greed is one of the seven deadly sins and makes up one of the seven circles of hell. This greed goes beyond a simple want for the kingship, throughout the play it consumes Macbeth to the point where he not only is greedy for authority, but he lusts for the crown. Macbeth also acts in a prideful manner which is another of the seven deadly sins Dante writes about. After learning that none of woman born shall harm him, he becomes arrogant and prideful believing himself to be indestructible.