Act 2 Scene Summaries

Act 2

scene one: 

In this scene Banquo, Fleance and Macbeth are all awake at Macbeth’s castle after 12am at night because they all cannot sleep. They both say they are happy to talk more about the Witches and what they said to them, they both don’t mind when. Lying to each other, they are polite but underneath they do not trust each other.  Later on Macbeth is by himself and has a big soliloquy where he says he can see a dagger.  He cannot touch it and his other senses cannot detect it so he is not sure whether what he is seeing is real and it is a sign or it is a figment of his imagination. 

“There’s a husbandry in heaven; Their candles are all out”

 

 

scene two: 

Lady Macbeth drugged Duncans guards. Macbeth has killed Duncan but feels very guilty about it. He could not say “Amen” and he could not go back and put blood on the servants to frame them so Lady Macbeth says she will do it instead. 

“Still it cried, “Sleep no more!” to all the house. Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefore Cawdor Shall sleep no more. Macbeth shall sleep no more.”

 “My hands are of your color, but I shame To wear a heart so white”

 

scene three: 

The Porter and Macduff located in a courtyard in the castle, go to wake Duncan but instead find that he is dead.  Everyone else in the castle comes to see and they also discover the guards hands are covered with blood and that the dagger is beside them. Lady Macbeth acts like this is the first she’s heard of it and faints. Macbeth then goes to kill the guards before they wake up. Some of the men are suspicious that it was not the guards that killed him.

“T is not for you to hear what I can speak: The repetition, in a woman’s ear, would murder as it fell. ”

“Question this bloody piece of work”

 

scene four:

In this scene Duncan’s death is talked about between an old man, Rosse and Macduff. Rosse says that it was definitely the servants that Macbeth kill were the ones that murdered Duncan. He says they did it because the servants were paid by Duncans sons; Malcom and Donalbain. They are prime suspects because they also just fled.

“Thou seest the heavens, as troubled with man’s act,
Threatens his bloody stage.”

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