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Knowing the plot of Macbeth inside out is non-negotiable at GCSE. This lesson provides a detailed act-by-act breakdown, identifies key turning points, and maps the dramatic structure so you can write confidently about any moment in the play.
Climax
(Act 3: Banquo's murder / ghost)
/\
/ \
/ \ Falling Action
/ \ (Acts 4-5: Macbeth's tyranny,
/ \ Lady Macbeth's madness)
/ Rising \
/ Action \
/ (Acts 1-2: \ Resolution
/ Prophecy, \ (Act 5: Macbeth killed,
/ Duncan's \ Malcolm crowned)
/ murder) \
/ \
--Exposition-------\----->
(Act 1.1-1.3:
Witches, battle,
prophecy)
The play opens with the three Witches meeting in a storm. They plan to meet Macbeth after the battle.
"Fair is foul, and foul is fair" (1.1)
This paradox establishes the theme of appearance vs reality and signals that the natural order is already disturbed.
A Captain reports to King Duncan that Macbeth has fought heroically, defeating the rebel Macdonwald and the Norwegian army. Duncan rewards Macbeth with the title Thane of Cawdor (whose previous holder was a traitor).
"brave Macbeth — well he deserves that name" (1.2)
The Witches meet Macbeth and Banquo on the heath. They make three prophecies:
| Prophecy | To whom |
|---|---|
| "Thane of Glamis" | Macbeth |
| "Thane of Cawdor" | Macbeth |
| "king hereafter" | Macbeth |
| "lesser than Macbeth, and greater" | Banquo |
| "not so happy, yet much happier" | Banquo |
| "thou shalt get kings" | Banquo |
When Ross arrives and announces Macbeth is Thane of Cawdor, the first prophecy has come true. Macbeth immediately starts thinking about murder:
"why do I yield to that suggestion / Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair" (1.3)
Examiner's tip: The fact that Macbeth immediately thinks of murder — before anyone suggests it — is crucial. It shows his ambition already existed; the Witches did not create it.
Duncan names his son Malcolm as heir to the throne (Prince of Cumberland). Macbeth recognises this as an obstacle:
"Stars, hide your fires; / Let not light see my black and deep desires" (1.4)
Lady Macbeth reads Macbeth's letter about the prophecy. She fears he is "too full o' th' milk of human kindness" (1.5) to act. She calls on dark spirits:
"unsex me here, / And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full / Of direst cruelty" (1.5)
This is her "unsex me" soliloquy — she asks to be stripped of femininity and compassion so she can drive the murder plot.
Duncan arrives at Macbeth's castle and praises its pleasant atmosphere — dramatic irony, since he will be murdered there.
Macbeth debates whether to murder Duncan in his famous soliloquy:
"If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well / It were done quickly" (1.7)
He lists reasons NOT to kill Duncan: he is Duncan's kinsman, subject, and host; Duncan is a good king; Macbeth's only motivation is ambition. He decides against it. Lady Macbeth persuades him by questioning his manhood:
"When you durst do it, then you were a man" (1.7)
She reveals her plan: get Duncan's guards drunk, murder Duncan, frame the guards. Macbeth agrees.
Macbeth sees a hallucinated dagger leading him to Duncan's chamber:
"Is this a dagger which I see before me, / The handle toward my hand?" (2.1)
This soliloquy shows his mental torment — the dagger could represent his guilty conscience or the supernatural pulling him towards evil.
Macbeth murders Duncan offstage. He returns to Lady Macbeth, deeply shaken, carrying the bloody daggers. He says he heard a voice cry:
"Macbeth does murder sleep" (2.2)
Lady Macbeth takes charge, returning the daggers and smearing blood on the sleeping guards. She dismisses his fear:
"A little water clears us of this deed" (2.2)
This line becomes deeply ironic — later, Lady Macbeth will be unable to wash imaginary blood from her hands.
The Porter provides comic relief, pretending to be the gatekeeper of Hell. This scene serves multiple purposes:
| Function | How |
|---|---|
| Comic relief | Breaks tension after the murder |
| Thematic reinforcement | The castle literally becomes a "hell gate" |
| Dramatic irony | The audience knows the horror the Porter does not |
| Foreshadowing | References to equivocation link to the Witches' deception |
Macduff discovers Duncan's body. Macbeth kills the guards, claiming outrage. Duncan's sons flee: Malcolm to England, Donalbain to Ireland — which makes them look guilty.
Ross and an Old Man describe unnatural disturbances: darkness at noon, an owl killing a falcon, Duncan's horses turning wild and eating each other. These signify the disruption of the Great Chain of Being.
Macbeth is named king.
Macbeth fears Banquo because of the prophecy that Banquo's descendants will be kings. He hires murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance.
"To be thus is nothing, / But to be safely thus" (3.1)
Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth he has planned "a deed of dreadful note" but does not share the details. Their relationship is changing — he now acts alone.
"O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife!" (3.2)
The murderers kill Banquo but Fleance escapes. This is crucial — the Witches' prophecy that Banquo's line will produce kings remains possible.
At a royal banquet, Macbeth sees Banquo's ghost sitting in his chair. He reacts with terror, speaking to the ghost in front of his guests. Lady Macbeth tries to cover for him. The scene ends in chaos.
"It will have blood, they say; blood will have blood" (3.4)
This is a key turning point — Macbeth has now lost control publicly, and his tyranny is becoming visible.
Macbeth revisits the Witches. They conjure three apparitions:
| Apparition | Message | What it actually means |
|---|---|---|
| Armed head | "Beware Macduff" (4.1) | Macduff will be his enemy |
| Bloody child | "none of woman born / Shall harm Macbeth" (4.1) | Macduff was born by caesarean section |
| Crowned child with tree | "Macbeth shall never vanquished be until / Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill / Shall come against him" (4.1) | Malcolm's army will carry branches as camouflage |
The Witches also show Macbeth a line of eight kings descended from Banquo — confirming his worst fear.
Examiner's tip: The apparitions are deliberately ambiguous — they seem reassuring but actually predict Macbeth's downfall. This links to the theme of appearance vs reality and the Witches' use of equivocation (telling the truth in a misleading way).
Macbeth orders the murder of Lady Macduff and her children. This is Macbeth at his most tyrannical — killing innocent women and children purely out of cruelty and paranoia.
Malcolm tests Macduff's loyalty by pretending to be corrupt. When Macduff despairs for Scotland, Malcolm reveals it was a test and confirms he is virtuous. Ross arrives with news of Macduff's family's murder. Macduff vows revenge:
"He has no children. All my pretty ones? / Did you say all?" (4.3)
Lady Macbeth is observed sleepwalking, compulsively trying to wash imaginary blood from her hands:
"Out, damned spot! Out, I say!" (5.1)
"Here's the smell of the blood still. All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand." (5.1)
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