Macbeth Act II Study Guide

Scene 1: 1. Who is Fleance? What would you remember of the witches’ prophecy when you see him here? 2. Do you think Macbeth is telling the truth? (line 22) 3. What is to happen upon the ringing of the bell? (32) 4. What do you learn about Macbeth’s state of mind in this soliloquy? (33-64) 5. In what way does this soliloquy reflect the theme of appearance versus reality?

Scene 2: 6. How should Lady Macbeth say this last line (13), which reveals why the plans have changed? Do you think she is beginning to show remorse? 7. What is ironic about Macbeth’s desire for a blessing? (30-32) 8. Who else complained about sleep? In what way has Glamis “murdered sleep”? (41) 9. What is the “filthy witness” (46)? What actions are the couple engaged in here? In the next line, Lady Macbeth discovers the daggers. Why is she so alarmed at seeing them in her husband’s hands? How could Macbeth have been carrying them so they weren’t visible before? 10. How does the imagery concerning blood and water in Macbeth’s speech contrast with that in Lady Macbeth’s speech? (57-68) 11. In what way does this line (72) convey the message that Macbeth knows the depth of evil to which he has sunk?

Scene 3: 12. Why do you think the porter appears in this act? (18-36) 13. In Elizabethan times, people often believed that nature mirrored terrible things happening to human beings, especially kinds. How did this weather mirror what was happening to the king in Macbeth’s castle? (54) 14. Why does Macbeth use such extravagant imagery to describe Duncan’s death? (106-109) 15. What causes Lady Macbeth to cry out? (113) 16. What does Donalbain’s parting comment mean? (133-134)

Scene 4: 17. What is ironic about Ross’s comment on the motive for the murder? (27-30)