Macbeth Unit Test

Setting Scotland, 11th century
Shakespeare wrote the play for this king King James
Qualities of a tragic hero position of high rank, admirable personal qualities, tragic flaw
Duncan’s attitude toward Macbeth respectful and grateful for Macbeth’s courage in battle
The title Duncan bestows upon Macbeth Thane of Cawdor
Lady Macbeth can be described as ruthless, cold, calculating, ambitious, manipulative
Macbeth’s tragic flaw over-reaching ambition
Inverness Macbeths’ home
Forres Duncan’s home
Birnam Wood trees used by Malcolm as camouflage for his army’s attack
Dunsinane place of final battle
Malcolm king’s son, named Prince of Cumberland, crowned king at the end of the play
Donalbain king’s son, fled to Ireland after his father’s murder
Fleance Banquo’s son, a threat to Macbeth because of the witches’ prophecy: “Thou shalt get kings though thou be none”
Banquo noble, loyal, moral; killed by his best friend; shows up to haunt Macbeth
Macduff his suspicions of Macbeth get his entire family killed, but he gets his revenge in the end
weather and other natural disturbances indicate a break in the “chain”; signify something evil is happening or about to happen
witches represent fate; play on Macbeth’s ambition; give him deliberately ambiguous prophecies
Hecate vows to destroy Macbeth; states that Macbeth will “spurn fate, scorn death, bear his hopes above wisdom”
Macbeth’s belief that “to be thus is nothing but to be safely thus” means that he feels having the crown is useless if there is a possibility of failure (ie: Banquo’s sons)
Macbeth does not fear Malcolm or Macduff because they are “of woman born”
Lady Macbeth’s guilt eventually causes her to kill herself
“Thou art too full of the milk of human kindness. . .” Lady Macbeth fears that Macbeth is not ruthless or cruel enough to do what needs to be done to get the throne
“The Prince of Cumberland! That is a step on which I must fall down or else overleap!” Malcolm stands between Macbeth and the throne; now he has to wait or kill someone else
“Hie thee hither, that I may pour my spirits in thine ear, and chastise with the valor of my tongue all that impedes thee from the golden round. . . “ Lady Macbeth feels that she must convince Macbeth to do whatever it takes to get Duncan’s crown
“Unsex me here, and fill me, from the crown to the toe, topfull of direst cruelty!” Lady Macbeth calls upon the dark spirits to take away her womanly, human feelings and fill her with a man’s cruelty
“They pluck out mine eyes. Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?” Macbeth believes that he can wash his hands of the blood, but he can never rid himself of the guilt that accompanies it.
Porter a bit of comic relief; he believes that he is working at the gates of hell
Duncan a bit naive; has difficulty judging people’s character; trusted Macbeth and Lady Macbeth and they killed him
Macbeth hesitates to kill Duncan because Duncan has been a good, fair king, and Duncan trusts Macbeth
Indications that Macbeth is losing his grip on reality hallucinates a dagger, hears voices, cannot say “Amen!”, sees ghosts, begins killing anyone he doubts
“Fair is foul and foul is fair!” The line that establishes the mood of the play; all values and morals are flipped upside down
Macbeth’s title when he meets the witches Thane of Glamis