Macbeth Act 3 Summary

Act 3

• Macbeth desires the deaths of Banquo and Fleance due to the witches' prophecy, which foretold Macbeth's kingship and Banquo's descendants inheriting the throne.
• He is paranoid Banquo suspects him of Duncan's murder.
• Macbeth hires two murderers to kill Banquo and Fleance simultaneously.
• The murderers succeed in killing Banquo, but Fleance escapes.
• Macbeth likens Fleance to a worm whose escape poses a future threat.
• At the banquet, Macbeth sees Banquo's ghost sitting in his chair.
• Lady Macbeth covers for Macbeth's behavior by dismissing it as a lifelong condition.
• Macduff is absent from the banquet, leading Macbeth to suspect disloyalty.
• Macbeth reflects that he is deeply involved in bloodshed, making retreat as difficult as moving forward.
• Hecate orders the witches to meet Macbeth again, providing false security through deceptive visions and prophecies.
• Lennox suspects Macbeth of murdering King Duncan to seize power.
• Lennox believes Fleance was wrongly accused of Banquo’s murder, and Duncan’s sons are innocent.
• Malcolm is raising an army to reclaim his birthright.

Act 4

• A witch announces Macbeth's arrival by stating "Something Wicked this way comes."
• Macbeth is demanding and overly confident with the witches.
• The witches present four apparitions to Macbeth:
  • An armed head warns him to beware Macduff.
  • A bloody child declares that no one born of a woman can harm Macbeth.
  • A crowned child states Macbeth will not be defeated until Birnam Wood moves to Dunsinane Hill.
  • A line of eight kings, followed by Banquo’s ghost.
• Macbeth initially feels overconfident but becomes paranoid about Macduff and Banquo's ghost.
• Macbeth ironically condemns those who trust the witches, not realizing he is one of them.
• Macduff is in England with Malcolm, acting on behalf of Scotland.
• Macbeth orders the murder of Macduff's family and servants due to his paranoia.
• Lady Macduff’s son remarks that liars and swearers are fools, observing that evil men can thrive.
• Malcolm says that evil people mask good in order to appear good but can become evil.
• Macduff expresses grief for Scotland’s current state and future under Macbeth's rule.
• Ross delivers the news to Macduff that his family and servants have been murdered.

Act 5

• The doctor and gentlewoman witness Lady Macbeth sleepwalking, rubbing her hands, and confessing to Duncan's murder.
• The doctor believes Lady Macbeth's condition requires divine intervention rather than medicine.
• Macbeth asks the doctor to cure his wife by erasing her shame and guilt, but the doctor says it is beyond his abilities.
• Malcolm orders his soldiers to cut down branches from Birnam Wood to conceal their numbers, creating the illusion of the woods moving towards Dunsinane.
• Malcolm notes that Macbeth's soldiers serve out of obligation rather than loyalty.
• Macbeth laments Lady Macbeth’s death, questioning the overall meaning of life.
• Macbeth is shocked by the fulfillment of the apparition of Birnam Wood moving and clings to belief in the other apparitions.