In act 2 the undoing of the heroic admired Macbeth begins an idiosyncrasy often consistent in Shakespearean plays. Macbeth finally kills Duncan on the recommendation of his wife Lady Macbeth in order to become king as predicted by the witches. Despite committing the murders himself, Macbeth shows an undying conscious as he is too disturbed to go back in to plant the daggers on the guards. The whole murder in itself seems subject of botchery; Macbeth killed the king and his guards but forgot the vital parts of the plan. In the end Lady Macbeth becomes the dominant character yet again as she returns to the chamber of murdered Duncan and plants the daggers.
The great Macduff arrives at the castle and is greeted by a drunken porter. It appears the porter has inside knowledge ‘’this place is too cold for hell’’. He constantly speaks of hell and all manner of dark things of his surroundings. Although the function of the drunken porter is often thought to be a comic release, things suggest he may have a deeper meaning. His position in itself as a porter, paired with his recognition of hell in the castle could be construed to be him keeper of the gates of hell.
Lord and Lady Macbeth put on a rouse as King Duncan is discovered dead in his chamber, as in the plan the guards are suspect of the murder. Macbeth claims he killed the guards on discovering them in a position that suggested they had committed the murder; perhaps in a last ditch attempt to claim some heroisms. On hearing of their father’s death Duncan’s sons make hast and flee from the scene which as stated later shifts the suspicion unto them.
Move away from just telling the story and from borrowing ideas from elsewhere. You will gain much more from giving personal reflections on a few areas of each scene in bullet point form. Ask questions. Highlight key quotations.
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