English 3 Honors

Mr. Horner

Can you answer these theatrical and acting questions for Macbeth?

Act II.

  1. What is bothering Banquo? What are his cursed thoughts?
  2. When Banquo says” So I lose none (honor)/ In seeking to augment it, but still keep/ My bosom franchised and allegiance clear,” why might he be suspicious at this point? What do these lines tell you about his character?
  3. If you were directing a stage production of Macbeth, would you have the dagger physically appear before Macbeth, or would you have him address the empty air?
  4. What is the significance of the rhyming couplet at the end of scene ii?
  5. In scene ii is Lady Macbeth drunk? Explain.
  6. What does the sound effect of the screeching owl mean?
  7. When Lady Macbeth says, “Had he not resembled/ My Father as he slept, I had don ‘t.” what might here tone be here? Frightened? Irritated? Angry? Shaken?
  8. When Macbeth says” This is a sorry sight” where should the actor’s attention be directed as he speaks these and the following lines?
  9. At what point in scene ii does Macbeth again become aware of Lady Macbeth?
  10. What is Macbeth’s state of mind after the murder?
  11. What effect does all the knocking on the door have on Macbeth? Lady Macbeth? The audience?
  12. At what pace should scene ii be played? What clues in the dialogue tell you?
  13. In what mood should the porter be in scene iii, before Macduff enters?
  14. What mood is the porter in when he speaks to Macduff?
  15. How should Macbeth greet and talk to Macduff in this scene?
  16. “’Twas a rough night.” How should Macbeth say this?
  17. How should Macduff announce the murder?
  18. When Macduff says “your royal father’s murdered,” Malcom says “Oh, by whom?” How might Malcolm say this?
  19. When Macbeth says “Oh , yet I do repent me of my fury/ That I did kill them” Macduff says ” Wherefore did you so?” How should the actor playing Macduff react to this announcement? The actor playing Banquo?
  20. When Lady Macbeth faints, is she faking? Explain.
  21. When Banquo says, “Thence/ against the undivulged pretense I fight/ Of treasonous malice” why did Shakespeare give this speech to Banquo rather than to Macduff?
  22. Why do Malcolm and Donalbain immediately leave rather than look for and fight the assassin? Why do they separate instead of combining forces?
  23. What is the symbolic meaning of the falcon-owl incident in II,iv, 11-14?
  24. Macduff announced “Well, I’ll to Fife.” Why might he be suspicious of Macbeth?
  25. In Act II the king’s murder is not shown. If you were staging this play now, would you show the murder to the audience? Explain your decision.