The Play

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Macbeth is a tragedy and Shakespeare’s shortest play. It presents the rise and fall of Macbeth, whose ambition drives him to crime, guilt, violence, and finally death.

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Macbeth is the central protagonist and also the antagonist. He is a Scottish nobleman and general in King Duncan’s army who becomes Thane of Cawdor and later King of Scotland after murdering Duncan. H…

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At the beginning, Macbeth is a brave and loyal soldier who serves his king well. Later, ambition and fear make him murder Duncan, and after that he becomes paranoid, violent, and isolated. By the end,…

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The Three Witches, also called the Weird Sisters, are supernatural figures who predict Macbeth’s rise to kingship and Banquo’s descendants becoming kings. They also later give Macbeth misleading appar…

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This line is spoken by the Three Witches at the opening of the play. It means that good and evil are confused in the world of the play, and things are not what they seem. It introduces the theme of bl…

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The witches predict that Banquo himself will not become king, but his descendants will rule. This creates fear in Macbeth because Banquo’s future threatens Macbeth’s own family line and kingship.

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Banquo is Macbeth’s friend and fellow general. He is important because he is cautious about the witches and warns that dark powers may tell partial truths. His ghost later haunts Macbeth, showing Macb…

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Macbeth is appointed Thane of Cawdor as a reward for his bravery. This immediately confirms part of the witches’ prophecy and makes Macbeth trust the rest of it. That trust encourages his ambition.