Thunder and lightning. Three WITCHES enter

FIRST WITCH
When should the three of us meet again?

SECOND WITCH
We’ll meet when the noise of the battle is over, when one side has won and the other side has lost.

THIRD WITCH
That will happen before sunset.

FIRST WITCH
Where should we meet?

SECOND WITCH
Let’s do it in the open field.

THIRD WITCH
We’ll meet Macbeth there.

The WITCHES hear the calls of their Cats.

FIRST WITCH
(calling to her cat) I’m coming, Graymalkin!

SECOND WITCH
My toad, Paddock, calls me.

THIRD WITCH
(to her spirit) I’ll be right here!

ALL
Fair is foul, and foul is fair. Let’s fly away through the fog and filthy air.


Sounds of a trumpet and soldiers fighting offstage. KING DUNCAN enters with his sons, and a number of attendants. They meet a wounded and bloody CAPTAIN.

DUNCAN
Who is this bloody man?

MALCOLM
This is the brave sergeant who fought to keep me from being captured.

CAPTAIN
For a while you couldn’t tell who would win. The armies were like two exhausted swimmers clinging to each other and struggling in the water, unable to move

DUNCAN
My brave relative! What a worthy man!

CAPTAIN
But in the same way that violent storms always come just as spring appears, our success against Macdonwald created new problems for us

DUNCAN
Didn’t this frighten our captains, Macbeth and Banquo?

CAPTAIN
The new challenge scared them about as much as rabbits frighten a lion. To tell you the truth, they fought the new enemy with twice as much force as before; they were like cannons loaded with double ammunition.

DUNCAN
Your words, like your wounds, bring you honor. Take him to the surgeons.

The CAPTAIN exits, helped by attendants.

ROSS and ANGUS enter.

Who is this?

MALCOLM
The worthy Thane of Ross.

LENNOX
His eyes seem frantic! He looks like someone with a strange tale to tell.

ROSS
God save the king!

DUNCAN
Where have you come from, worthy thane?

ROSS
Great king, I’ve come from Fife, where the Norwegian flag flies, mocking our country and frightening our people.

DUNCAN
Great happiness!

ROSS
So now Sweno, the Norwegian king, wants a treaty.

DUNCAN
The thane of Cawdor will never again betray me. Go announce that he will be executed, and tell Macbeth that Cawdor’s titles will be given to him.

ROSS
I’ll get it done right away.

DUNCAN
The thane of Cawdor has lost what the noble Macbeth has won.

They all exit.
Thunder. The three WITCHES enter.

FIRST WITCH
Where have you been, sister?

SECOND WITCH
Killing pigs.

THIRD WITCH
And you, sister?

FIRST WITCH
A sailor’s wife had chestnuts in her lap and munched away at them. “Give me one,” I said. “Get away from me, witch!” the fat woman cried.

SECOND WITCH
I’ll give you some wind to sail there.

FIRST WITCH
How nice of you!

THIRD WITCH
And I will give you some more.

FIRST WITCH
I already have control of all the other winds, along with the ports from which they blow and every direction on the sailor’s compass in which they can go. I’ll drain the life out of him. He won’t catch a wink of sleep, either at night or during the day.

SECOND WITCH
Show me, show me.

FIRST WITCH
Here I have the thumb of a pilot who was drowned while trying to return home.

A drum sounds offstage.

THIRD WITCH
A drum, a drum! Macbeth has come.

ALL
(dancing together in a circle) We weird sisters, hand in hand, swift travelers over the sea and land, dance around and around like so. Three times to yours, and three times to mine, and three times again, to add up to nine. Enough! The charm is ready.

MACBETH and BANQUO enter.

MACBETH
(to BANQUO) I have never seen a day that was so good and bad at the same time.

BANQUO
How far is it supposed to be to Forres? (he sees the WITCHES) What are these creatures? They’re so withered-looking and crazily dressed.(to the WITCHES) Are you alive? Can you answer questions? You seem to understand me, because each of you have put a gruesome finger to her skinny lips. You look like women, but your beards keep me from believing that you really are.

MACBETH
Speak, if you can. What kind of creatures are you?

FIRST WITCH
All hail, Macbeth! Hail to you, thane of Glamis!

SECOND WITCH
All hail, Macbeth! Hail to you, thane of Cawdor!

THIRD WITCH
All hail, Macbeth, the future king!

BANQUO
My dear Macbeth, why do you look so startled and afraid of these nice things they’re saying? (to the WITCHES) Tell me honestly, are you illusions, or are you really what you seem to be? You’ve greeted my noble friend with honors and talk of a future so glorious that you’ve made him speechless. But you don’t say anything to me. If you can see the future and say how things will turn out, tell me. I don’t want your favors and I’m not afraid of your hatred.

WITCHES
Hail!

FIRST WITCH
You are lesser than Macbeth but also greater.

SECOND WITCH
You are not as happy as Macbeth, yet much happier.

THIRD WITCH
Your descendants will be kings, even though you will not be one. So all hail, Macbeth and Banquo!

FIRST WITCH
Banquo and Macbeth, all hail!

MACBETH
Wait! You only told me part of what I want to know. Stay and tell me more. I already know I am the thane of Glamis because I inherited the position when my father, Sinel, died. But how can you call me the thane of Cawdor?

The WITCHES vanish.

BANQUO
Where did they disappear to?

MACBETH
Into thin air. Their bodies melted like breath in the wind. I wish they had stayed!

BANQUO
were the things fortelling true about us

MACBETH
Your children will be kings.

BANQUO
You will be the king.

MACBETH
And thane of Cawdor too. Isn’t that what they said?

BANQUO
That’s exactly what they said. Who’s this?

ROSS and ANGUS enter.

ROSS
The king was happy to hear of your success, Macbeth.

ANGUS
The king sent us to give you his thanks and to bring you to him.

ROSS
And to give you a taste of what’s in store for you, he told me to call you the thane of Cawdor. So hail, thane of Cawdor! That title belongs to you now.

BANQUO
(shocked) Can the devil tell the truth?

MACBETH
The thane of Cawdor is still alive. Why are you putting his clothes on me?

ANGUS
The man who was the thane of Cawdor is still alive, but he’s been sentenced to death, and he deserves to die.

MACBETH
(to himself) It’s just like they said—now I’m the thane of Glamis and the thane of Cawdor. And the best part of what they predicted is still to come.

BANQUO
If you trust what they say, you might be on your way to becoming king


MACBETH
(to himself) So far the witches have told me two things that came true, so it seems like this will culminate in my becoming king. (to ROSS and ANGUS) Thank you, gentlemen. (to himself) This supernatural temptation doesn’t seem like it can be a bad thing, but it can’t be good either.

BANQUO
Look at Macbeth—he’s in a daze.

MACBETH
(to himself) If fate wants me to be king, perhaps fate will just make it happen and I won’t have to do anything.

BANQUO
(to ROSS and ANGUS) Macbeth is not used to his new titles. They’re like new clothes: they don’t fit until you break them in over time.

MACBETH
(to himself) One way or another, what’s going to happen is going to happen.

BANQUO
Macbeth, we’re ready when you are

MACBETH
I beg your pardon; I was distracted. Kind gentlemen, I won’t forget the trouble you’ve taken for me whenever I think of this day.

BANQUO
Absolutely.

MACBETH
Until then, we’ve said enough. (to ROSS and ANGUS) Let’s go, my friends.

They all exit.

A trumpet fanfare sounds. KING DUNCAN, LENNOX, MALCOLM, DONALBAIN, and their attendants enter.

DUNCAN
Has the former thane of Cawdor been executed yet? Haven’t the people in charge of that come back?

MALCOLM
My king, they haven’t come back yet. But I spoke with someone who saw Cawdor die, and he said that Cawdor openly confessed his treasons, begged your highness’s forgiveness, and repented deeply. He never did anything in his whole life that looked as good as the way he died. He died like someone who had practiced how to toss away his most cherished possession as if it were a worthless a piece of garbage.

DUNCAN
There’s no way to read a man’s mind by looking at his face. I trusted Cawdor completely.

MACBETH, BANQUO, ROSS, and ANGUS enter.

(to MACBETH) My worthiest kinsman! Just this moment I was feeling guilty for not having thanked you enough. You have done so much for me so fast that it has been impossible to reward you properly. If you deserved less, then perhaps my payment would have matched your deeds! All I can say is that I owe you more than I can ever repay.

MACBETH
The opportunity to serve you is its own reward. Your only duty, your highness, is to accept what we owe you. Our duty to you and your state is like the duty of children to their father or servants to their master. By doing everything we can to protect you, we’re only doing what we should.

DUNCAN
You are welcome here. By making you thane of Cawdor, I have planted the seeds of a great career for you, and I will make sure they grow. (to BANQUO) Noble Banquo, you deserve no less than Macbeth, and everyone should know it. Let me bring you close to me and give you the benefit of my love and good will.

BANQUO
Then if I accomplish anything great, it will be a credit to you.

DUNCAN
My joy is so overwhelming it brings tears to my eyes. My sons, relatives, lords, and all those closest to me, I want you to witness that I will bestow my kingdom on my eldest son, Malcolm. Today I name him the prince of Cumberland. But Malcolm isn’t going to be alone in receiving honors—titles of nobility will shine like stars on all of you who deserve them. (to MACBETH) And now, let’s go to your castle at Inverness, where I will become even more obliged to you because of your hospitality.

MACBETH
I’m not happy unless I can be working for you. I will go ahead and bring my wife the good news that you are coming. With that, I’ll be off.

DUNCAN
My worthy Cawdor!

MACBETH
(to himself) Malcolm is now the prince of Cumberland! To become king myself, I’m either going to have to step over him or give up, because he’s in my way. Stars, hide your light so no one can see the terrible desires within me. I won’t let my eye look at what my hand is doing, but in the end I’m still going to do that thing I’d be horrified to see.

MACBETH exits.

DUNCAN
(to BANQUO, in the middle of a conversation we haven’t heard) You’re right, Banquo. Macbeth is every bit as valiant as you say, and I am satisfied with these praises of him. Let’s follow after him, now that he has gone ahead to prepare our welcome. He is a man without equal.

Trumpet fanfare. They exit.

LADY MACBETH enters, reading a letter.

LADY MACBETH
“The witches met me on the day of my victory in battle, and I have since learned that they have supernatural knowledge. When I tried desperately to question them further, they vanished into thin air. While I stood spellbound, messengers from the king arrived and greeted me as the thane of Cawdor, which is precisely how the weird sisters had saluted me before calling me ’the future king!' I thought I should tell you this news, my dearest partner in greatness, so that you could rejoice along with me about the greatness that is promised to us. Keep it secret, and farewell.”
(she looks up from the letter) You are thane of Glamis and Cawdor, and you’re going to be king, just like you were promised. But I worry about whether or not you have what it takes to seize the crown. You are too full of the milk of human kindness to strike aggressively at your first opportunity. You want to be powerful, and you don’t lack ambition, but you don’t have the mean streak that these things call for. The things you want to do, you want to do like a good man. You don’t want to cheat, yet you want what doesn’t belong to you. There’s something you want, but you’re afraid to do what you need to do to get it. You want it to be done for you. Hurry home so I can persuade you and talk you out of whatever’s keeping you from going after the crown. After all, fate and witchcraft both seem to want you to be king.

A SERVANT enters.

What news do you bring?

SERVANT
The king is coming here tonight.

LADY MACBETH
You must be crazy to say that! Isn’t Macbeth with the king, and wouldn’t Macbeth have told me in advance so I could prepare, if the king were really coming?

SERVANT
I’m sorry, but it’s the truth. Macbeth is coming. He sent a messenger ahead of him who arrived here out of breath

LADY MACBETH
Take good care of him. He brings great news.

The SERVANT exits.

So the messenger is short of breath, like a hoarse raven, as he announces Duncan’s entrance into my fortress, where he will die. Come, you spirits that asist murderous thoughts, make me less like a woman and more like a man, and fill me from head to toe with deadly cruelty! Thicken my blood and clog up my veins so I won’t feel remorse, so that no human compassion can stop my evil plan or prevent me from accomplishing it!  Come, thick night, and cover the world in the darkest smoke of hell, so that my sharp knife can’t see the wound it cuts open, and so heaven can’t peep through the darkness and cry, “No! Stop!”

MACBETH enters.

Great thane of Glamis! Worthy thane of Cawdor! You’ll soon be greater than both those titles, once you become king! Your letter has transported me from the present moment, when who knows what will happen, and has made me feel like the future is already here.

MACBETH
My dearest love, Duncan is coming here tonight.

LADY MACBETH
And when is he leaving?

MACBETH
He plans to leave tomorrow.

LADY MACBETH
That day will never come. Your face betrays strange feelings, my lord, and people will be able to read it like a book. In order to deceive them, you must appear the way they expect you to look. Greet the king with a welcoming expression in your eyes, your hands, and your words. You should look like an innocent flower, but be like the snake that hides underneath the flower. The king is coming, and he’s got to be taken care of. Let me handle tonight’s preparations, because tonight will change every night and day for the rest of our lives.

MACBETH
We will speak about this further.

LADY MACBETH
You should project a peaceful mood, because if you look troubled, you will arouse suspicion. Leave all the rest to me.

They exit.

The stage is lit by torches. Hautboys play. DUNCAN enters, together with MALCOLM, DONALBAIN, BANQUO, LENNOX, MACDUFF, ROSS, ANGUS, and their attendants.

DUNCAN
This castle is in a pleasant place. The air is sweet and appeals to my refined senses.

LADY MACBETH enters.

DUNCAN
Look, here comes our honored hostess! Sometimes the love my subjects bring me is inconvenient, but I still accept it as love. In doing so, I’m teaching you to thank me for the incovenience I’m causing you by being here, because it comes from my love to you.

LADY MACBETH
Everything we’re doing for you, even if it were doubled and then doubled again, is nothing compared to the honors you have brought to our family. We gladly welcome you as our guests, with gratitude for both the honors you’ve given us before and the new honors you’ve just given us.

DUNCAN
Where is Macbeth, the thane of Cawdor? We followed closely after him.

LADY MACBETH
We are your servants, your highness, and as always our house and everything in it is at your disposal, for after all, we keep it in your trust and we’re glad to give you back what’s yours.

DUNCAN
Give me your hand. Bring me to my host, Macbeth. I love him dearly, and I shall continue to favor him. Whenever you’re ready, hostess.

They all exit.

Hautboys play. The stage is lit by torches. A butler enters, and various servants carry utensils and dishes of food across the stage. Then MACBETH enters.

MACBETH
If this business would really be finished when I did the deed, then it would be best to get it over with quickly. If the assassination of the king could work like a net, sweeping up everything and preventing any consequences, then the murder would be the be-all and end-all of the whole affair.But for crimes like these there are still punishments in this world. By committing violent crimes we only teach other people to commit violence, and the violence of our students will come back to plague us teachers. Justice, being equal to everyone, forces us to drink from the poisoned cup that we serve to others. The king trusts me in two ways. First of all, I am his kinsman and his subject, so I should always try to protect him. Second, I am his host, so I should be closing the door in his murderer’s face, not trying to murder him myself. Besides, Duncan has been such a humble leader, so free of corruption, that his virtuous legacy will speak for him when he dies, as if angels were playing trumpets against the injustice of his murder. Pity, like an innocent newborn baby, will ride the wind with winged angels on invisible horses through the air to spread news of the horrible deed to everyone everywhere. People will shed a flood of tears that will drown the wind like a horrible downpour of rain. I can’t spur myself to action. The only thing motivating me is ambition, which makes people rush ahead of themselves toward disaster.

LADY MACBETH enters.

What news do you have?

LADY MACBETH
He has almost finished dinner. Why did you leave the dining room?

MACBETH
Has he asked for me?

LADY MACBETH
Don’t you know he has?

MACBETH
We can’t go on with this plan. The king has just honored me, and I have earned the good opinion of all sorts of people. I want to enjoy these honors while the feeling is fresh and not throw them away so soon.

LADY MACBETH
Were you drunk when you seemed so hopeful before? Have you gone to sleep and woken up green and pale in fear of this idea? From now on this is what I’ll think of your love. Are you afraid to act the way you desire? Will you take the crown you want so badly, or will you live as a coward, always saying “I can’t” after you say “I want to”?

MACBETH
Please, stop! I dare to do only what is proper for a man to do. He who dares to do more is not a man at all.

LADY MACBETH
If you weren’t a man, then what kind of animal were you when you first told me you wanted to do this? When you dared to do it, that’s when you were a man. And if you go one step further by doing what you dared to do before, you’ll be that much more the man. The time and place weren’t right before, but you would have gone ahead with the murder anyhow. Now the time and place are just right, but they’re almost too good for you.

MACBETH
But if we fail—

LADY MACBETH
We, fail? If you get your courage up, we can’t fail. When Duncan is asleep—the day’s hard journey has definitely made him tired—I’ll get his two servants so drunk that their memory will go up in smoke through the chimneys of their brains. And whatever we do, we can lay all the blame on the drunken servants.

MACBETH
May you only give birth to male children, because your fearless spirit should create nothing that isn’t masculine. Once we have covered the two servants with blood, and used their daggers to kill, won’t people believe that they were the culprits?

LADY MACBETH
Who could think it happened any other way? We’ll be grieving loudly when we hear that Duncan has died.

MACBETH
Now I’m decided, and I will exert every muscle in my body to commit this crime. Go now, and pretend to be a friendly hostess. Hide with a false pleasant face what you know in your false, evil heart.

They exit.

BANQUO enters with FLEANCE, who lights the way with a torch.

BANQUO
How’s the night going, boy?

FLEANCE
The moon has set. The clock hasn’t struck yet.

BANQUO
The moon sets at twelve, right?

FLEANCE
I think it’s later than that, sir.

BANQUO
Here, take my sword. The heavens are being stingy with their light. Take this, too. I’m tired and feeling heavy, but I can’t sleep. Merciful powers, keep away the nightmares that plague me when I rest!

MACBETH enters with a SERVANT, who carries a torch.

Give me my sword. Who’s there?

MACBETH
A friend.

BANQUO
You’re not asleep yet, sir? The king’s in bed. He’s been in an unusually good mood and has granted many gifts to your household and servants. This diamond is a present from him to your wife for her boundless hospitality. (he hands MACBETH a diamond)

MACBETH
Because we were unprepared for the king’s visit, we weren’t able to entertain him as well as we would have wanted to.

BANQUO
Everything’s OK. I had a dream last night about the three witches. At least part of what they said about you was true.

MACBETH
I don’t think about them now. But when we have an hour to spare we can talk more about it, if you’re willing.

BANQUO
Whenever you like.

MACBETH
If you stick with me, when the time comes, there will be something in it for you.

MACBETH
Rest easy in the meantime.

BANQUO
Thank you, sir. You do the same.

BANQUO and FLEANCE exit.

MACBETH
(to the SERVANT) Go and tell your mistress to strike the bell when my drink is ready. Get yourself to bed.

The SERVANT exits.

Is this a dagger I see in front of me, with its handle pointing toward my hand? (to the dagger) Come, let me hold you. (he grabs at the air in front of him without touching anything) I don’t have you but I can still see you. Fateful apparition, isn’t it possible to touch you as well as see you? Or are you nothing more than a dagger created by the mind, a hallucination from my fevered brain? I can still see you, and you look as real as this other dagger that I’m pulling out now. (he draws a dagger) You’re leading me toward the place I was going already, and I was planning to use a weapon just like you. My eyesight must either be the one sense that’s not working, or else it’s the only one that’s working right. I can still see you, and I see blood splotches on your blade and handle that weren’t there before. (to himself) There’s no dagger here. It’s the murder I’m about to do that’s making me think I see one. Now half the world is asleep and being deceived by evil nightmares. Witches are offering sacrifices to their goddess Hecate. Old man murder, having been roused by the howls of his wolf, walks silently to his destination, moving like Tarquin, as quiet as a ghost. (speaking to the ground) Hard ground, don’t listen to the direction of my steps. I don’t want you to echo back where I am and break the terrible stillness of this moment, a silence that is so appropriate for what I’m about to do. While I stay here talking, Duncan lives. The more I talk, the more my courage cools.

A bell rings.

I’m going now. The murder is as good as done. The bell is telling me to do it. Don’t listen to the bell, Duncan, because it summons you either to heaven or to hell.

MACBETH exits.

LADY MACBETH enters.

LADY MACBETH
The alcohol that got the servants drunk has made me bold. The same liquor that quenched their thirst has fired me up. Listen! Quiet! That was the owl that shrieked, with a scary “good night” like the bells they ring before they execute people. Macbeth must be killing the king right now. The doors to Duncan’s chamber are open, and the drunk servants make a mockery of their jobs by snoring instead of protecting the king. I put so many drugs in their drinks that you can’t tell if they’re alive or dead.

MACBETH
(from offstage) Who’s there? What is it?

LADY MACBETH
Oh no, I’m afraid the servants woke up, and the murder didn’t happen. For us to attempt murder and not succeed would ruin us. (She hears a noise.) Listen to that! I put the servants' daggers where Macbeth would find them. He couldn’t have missed them. If Duncan hadn’t reminded me of my father when I saw him sleeping, I would have killed him myself.

MACBETH enters carrying bloody daggers.

My husband!

MACBETH
I have done the deed. Did you hear a noise?

LADY MACBETH
I heard the owl scream and the crickets cry. Didn’t you say something?

MACBETH
When?

LADY MACBETH
Just now.

MACBETH
As I came down?

LADY MACBETH
Yes.

MACBETH
Listen! Who’s sleeping in the second chamber?

LADY MACBETH
Donalbain.

MACBETH
(looking at his bloody hands) This is a sorry sight.

LADY MACBETH
That’s a stupid thing to say.

MACBETH
One of the servants laughed in his sleep, and one cried, “Murder!” and they woke each other up. I stood and listened to them, but then they said their prayers and went back to sleep.

LADY MACBETH
Malcolm and Donalbain are asleep in the same room.

MACBETH
One servant cried, “God bless us!” and the other replied, “Amen,” as if they had seen my bloody hands. Listening to their frightened voices, I couldn’t reply “Amen” when they said “God bless us!”

LADY MACBETH
Don’t think about it so much.

MACBETH
But why couldn’t I say “Amen”? I desperately needed God’s blessing, but the word “Amen” stuck in my throat.

LADY MACBETH
We can’t think that way about what we did. If we do, it’ll drive us crazy.

MACBETH
I thought I heard a voice cry, “Sleep no more! Macbeth is murdering sleep.” Innocent sleep. Sleep that soothes away all our worries. Sleep that puts each day to rest. Sleep that relieves the weary laborer and heals hurt minds. Sleep, the main course in life’s feast, and the most nourishing.

LADY MACBETH
What are you talking about?

MACBETH
The voice kept crying, “Sleep no more!” to everyone in the house. “Macbeth has murdered sleep, and therefore Macbeth will sleep no more.”

LADY MACBETH
Who said that? Why, my worthy lord, you let yourself become weak when you think about things in this cowardly way. Go get some water and wash this bloody evidence from your hands. Why did you carry these daggers out of the room? They have to stay there. Go take them back and smear the sleeping guards with the blood.

MACBETH
I can’t go back. I’m afraid even to think about what I’ve done. I can’t stand to look at it again.

LADY MACBETH
Coward! Give me the daggers. Dead and sleeping people can’t hurt you any more than pictures can. Only children are afraid of scary pictures. If Duncan bleeds I’ll paint the servants' faces with his blood. We must make it seem like they’re guilty.

LADY MACBETH exits.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

MACBETH
Where is that knocking coming from? What’s happening to me, that I’m frightened of every noise? (looking at his hands) Whose hands are these? Ha! They’re plucking out my eyes. Will all the water in the ocean wash this blood from my hands? No, instead my hands will stain the seas scarlet, turning the green waters red.

LADY MACBETH enters.

LADY MACBETH
My hands are as red as yours, but I would be ashamed if my heart were as pale and weak.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

I hear someone knocking at the south entry. Let’s go back to our bedroom. A little water will wash away the evidence of our guilt. It’s so simple! You’ve lost your resolve.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

Listen! There’s more knocking. Put on your nightgown, in case someone comes and sees that we’re awake. Snap out of your daze.

MACBETH
Rather than have to think about my crime, I’d prefer to be completely unconscious.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

Wake Duncan with your knocking. I wish you could!

They exit.

A sound of knocking from offstage. A PORTER , who is obviously drunk, enters.

PORTER
This is a lot of knocking! Come to think of it, if a man were in charge of opening the gates of hell to let people in, he would have to turn the key a lot.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

Knock, knock, knock! (pretending he’s the gatekeeper in hell) Who’s there, in the devil’s name? Maybe it’s a farmer who killed himself because grain was cheap. (talking to the imaginary farmer) You’re here just in time! I hope you brought some handkerchiefs; you’re going to sweat a lot here.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

Knock, knock! Who’s there, in the other devil’s name? Maybe it’s some slick, two-faced con man who lied under oath. But he found out that you can’t lie to God, and now he’s going to hell for perjury. Come on in, con man.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

Knock, knock, knock! Who’s there? Maybe it’s an English tailor who liked to skimp on the fabric for people’s clothes. But now that tight pants are in fashion he can’t get away with it. Come on in, tailor. You can heat your iron up in here.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

Knock, knock! Never a moment of peace! Who are you? Ah, this place is too cold to be hell. I won’t pretend to be the devil’s porter anymore. I was going to let someone from every profession into hell.

A sound of knocking from offstage.

I’m coming, I’m coming! Please, don’t forget to leave me a tip.

The PORTER opens the gate.

MACDUFF and LENNOX enter.

MACDUFF
Did you go to bed so late, my friend, that you’re having a hard time getting up now?

PORTER
That’s right sir, we were drinking until 3 A.M., and drink, sir, makes a man do three things.

MACDUFF
What three things does drink make a man do?

PORTER
Drinking turns your nose red, it puts you to sleep, and it makes you urinate. Lust it turns on but also turns off. What I mean is, drinking stimulates desire but hinders performance. Therefore, too much drink is like a con artist when it comes to your sex drive. It sets you up for a fall. It gets you up but it keeps you from getting off. It persuades you and discourages you. It gives you an erection but doesn’t let you keep it, if you see what I’m saying. It makes you dream about erotic experiences, but then it leaves you asleep and needing to pee.

MACDUFF
I believe drink did all of this to you last night.

PORTER
It did, sir. It got me right in the throat. But I got even with drink. I was too strong for it. Although it weakened my legs and made me unsteady, I managed to vomit it out and laid it flat on the ground.

MACDUFF
Is your master awake?

MACBETH enters.

Our knocking woke him up. Here he comes.

LENNOX
Good morning, noble sir.

MACBETH
Good morning to both of you.

MACDUFF
Is the king awake, worthy thane?

MACBETH
Not yet.

MACDUFF
He commanded me to wake him up early. I’ve almost missed the time he requested.

MACBETH
I’ll bring you to him.

MACDUFF
I know the burden of hosting him is both an honor and a trouble, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a trouble just the same.

MACBETH
The work we enjoy is not really work. This is the door.

MACDUFF
I’ll wake him, because that’s my job.

MACDUFF exits.

LENNOX
Is the king leaving here today?

MACBETH
He is. He told us to arrange it.

LENNOX
The night has been chaotic. The wind blew down through the chimneys where we were sleeping. People are saying they heard cries of grief in the air, strange screams of death, and terrible voices predicting catastrophes that will usher in a woeful new age. The owl made noise all night. Some people say that the earth shook as if it had a fever.

MACBETH
It was a rough night.

LENNOX
I’m too young to remember anything like it.

MACDUFF enters, upset.

MACDUFF
Oh, horror, horror, horror! This is beyond words and beyond belief!

MACBETH & LENNOX
What’s the matter?

MACDUFF
The worst thing imaginable has happened. A murderer has broken into God’s temple and stolen the life out of it.

MACBETH
What are you talking about? “The life”?

LENNOX
Do you mean the king?

MACDUFF
Go into the bedroom and see for yourself. What’s in there will make you freeze with horror. Don’t ask me to talk about it. Go look and then do the talking yourselves.

MACBETH and LENNOX exit.

Wake up, wake up! Ring the alarm bell. Murder and treason! Banquo and Donalbain, Malcolm! Wake up! Shake off sleep, which looks like death, and look at death itself! Get up, get up, and look at this image of doomsday! Malcolm! Banquo! Get up from your beds as if you were rising out of your own graves, and walk like ghosts to come witness this horror. Ring the bell.

A bell rings. LADY MACBETH enters.

LADY MACBETH
What’s going on? Why is that terrifying trumpet calling together everyone who’s sleeping in the house? Speak up and tell me!

MACDUFF
Oh gentle lady, my news isn’t fit for your ears. If I repeated it to you, it would kill you as soon as you heard it.

BANQUO enters.

Oh Banquo, Banquo, the king has been murdered!

LADY MACBETH
How horrible! What, in our own house?

BANQUO
It would be a terrible event no matter where it happened. Dear Macduff, I beg you, tell us you were lying and say it isn’t so.

MACBETH and LENNOX reenter, with ROSS.

MACBETH
If I had only died an hour before this event I could say I had lived a blessed life. Because from this moment on, there is nothing worth living for. Everything is a sick joke. The graceful and renowned king is dead. The wine of life has been poured out, and only the dregs remain.

MALCOLM and DONALBAIN enter.

DONALBAIN
What’s wrong?

MACBETH
You are, but you don’t know it yet. The source from which your royal blood comes has been stopped.

MACDUFF
Your royal father is murdered.

MALCOLM
Who did it?

LENNOX
It seems that the guards who were supposed to be protecting his chamber did it. Their hands and faces were all covered with blood. So were their daggers, which we found on their pillows, unwiped. They stared at us in confusion. No one’s life should have been entrusted to them.

MACBETH
And yet I still regret the anger that drove me to kill them.

MACDUFF
What did you do that for?

MACBETH
Is it possible to be wise, bewildered, calm, furious, loyal, and neutral all at once? Nobody can do that. The violent rage inspired by my love for Duncan caused me to act before I could think rationally and tell myself to pause. There was Duncan, his white skin all splattered with his precious blood. The gashes where the knives had cut him looked like wounds to nature itself. Then right next to him I saw the murderers, dripping with blood, their daggers rudely covered in gore. Who could have restrained himself, who loved Duncan and had the courage to act on it?

LADY MACBETH
Help me out of here, quickly!

MACDUFF
Take care of the lady.

MALCOLM
(speaking so that only DONALBAIN can hear) Why are we keeping quiet? The two of us have the most to say in this matter.

DONALBAIN
(speaking so that only MALCOLM can hear) What are we going to say here, where danger may be waiting to strike at us from anywhere? Let’s get out of here. We haven’t even begun to weep yet—but there will be time for that later.

MALCOLM
(speaking so that only DONALBAIN can hear) And the time hasn’t come yet for us to turn our deep grief into action.

BANQUO
Take care of the lady.

LADY MACBETH is carried out.

When we’re properly dressed for the cold, let’s meet and discuss this bloody crime to see if we can figure anything out. Right now we’re shaken up by fears and doubts. I’m putting myself in God’s hands, and with his help I plan to fight against the secret plot that caused this treasonous murder.

MACDUFF
So will I.

ALL
So will we all.

MACBETH
Let’s get dressed quickly and then meet in the hall.

ALL
Agreed.

Everyone exits except MALCOLM and DONALBAIN.

MALCOLM
What are you going to do? Let’s not stay here with them. It’s easy for a liar to pretend to feel sorrow when he actually feels none. I’m going to England.

DONALBAIN
I’ll go to Ireland. We’ll both be safer if we go separate ways. Wherever we go, men will smile at us while hiding daggers. Our closest relatives are the ones most likely to murder us.

MALCOLM
We haven’t yet encountered that danger, and the best thing to do is avoid it entirely. With that in mind, let’s get on our horses. We’d better not worry about saying polite good-byes; we should just get away quickly. There’s good reason to escape when there’s no mercy to be found anymore.

They exit.

ROSS and an OLD MAN enter.

OLD MAN
I can remember the past seventy years pretty well, and in all that time I have seen dreadful hours and strange things. But last night’s horrors make everything that came before seem like a joke

ROSS
Ah yes, old man. You can see the skies. They look like they’re upset about what mankind has been doing, and they’re threatening the Earth with storms. The clock says it’s daytime, but dark night is strangling the sun. Is it because night is so strong, or because day is so weak, that darkness covers the earth when it’s supposed to be light?

OLD MAN
It’s unnatural, just like the murder that has been committed. Last Tuesday a falcon was circling high in the sky, and it was caught and killed by an ordinary owl that usually goes after mice.

ROSS
And something else strange happened. Duncan’s horses, which are beautiful and swift and the best of their breed, suddenly turned wild and broke out of their stalls. Refusing to be obedient as usual, they acted like they were at war with mankind.

OLD MAN
They say the horses ate each other.

ROSS
I saw it with my own eyes. It was an amazing sight. Here comes the good Macduff.

MACDUFF enters.

How are things going now?

MACDUFF
Can’t you see for yourself?

ROSS
Does anyone know who committed this horrible crime?

MACDUFF
The servants Macbeth killed.

ROSS
It’s too bad he killed them. What good would it have done those men to kill Duncan?

MACDUFF
They were paid to betray their master. Malcolm and Donalbain, the king’s two sons, have run away and fled, which makes them the prime suspects.

ROSS
Everything about this is unnatural! What a stupid ambition, causing a son to kill the father who supports him. Then it looks like Macbeth will become king.

MACDUFF
He has already been named king and has left for Scone to be crowned.

ROSS
Where is Duncan’s body?

MACDUFF
It was carried to Colmekill to be placed in the tomb of his ancestors, where their bones are kept safe.

ROSS
Are you going to Scone?

MACDUFF
No, cousin, I’m going to Fife.

ROSS
Well, I’ll go to Scone.

MACDUFF
I hope things go well there. Good-bye! And let’s hope things don’t get worse.

ROSS
Farewell, old man.

OLD MAN
May God’s blessing go with you and with all who turn bad into good, and enemies into friends!

They all exit.

BANQUO enters.

BANQUO
Now you have it all: you’re the king, the thane of Cawdor, and the thane of Glamis, just like the weird women promised you. And I suspect you cheated to win these titles. But it was also prophesied that the crown would not go to your descendants, and that my sons and grandsons would be kings instead. If the witches tell the truth—which they did about you—maybe what they said about me will come true too. But shhh! I’ll shut up now.

A trumpet plays. MACBETH enters dressed as king, and LADY MACBETH enters dressed as queen, together with LENNOX, ROSS, LORDS, LADIES, and their attendants

MACBETH
(indicating BANQUO) Here’s our most important guest.

LADY MACBETH
If we forgot him, our big celebration wouldn’t be complete, and that wouldn’t be any good.

MACBETH
(to BANQUO) Tonight we’re having a ceremonial banquet, and I want you to be there.

BANQUO
Whatever your highness commands me to do, it is always my duty to do it.

MACBETH
Are you going riding this afternoon?

BANQUO
Yes, my good lord.

MACBETH
We would have liked to have heard your good advice, which has always been serious and helpful, at the council today, but we’ll wait until tomorrow. Are you riding far?

BANQUO
I’m going far enough that I’ll be riding from now until dinner. Unless my horse goes faster than expected, I will be back an hour or two after sunset.

MACBETH
Don’t miss our feast.

BANQUO
My lord, I won’t miss it.

MACBETH
We hear that the princes, those murderers, have hidden in England and Ireland. They haven’t confessed to cruelly murdering their own father, and they’ve been making up strange lies to tell their hosts. But we can talk more about that tomorrow, when we’ll discuss matters of state that concern us both. Hurry up and get to your horse. Good-bye, until you return tonight. Is Fleance going with you?

BANQUO
Yes, my good lord. It’s time we hit the road.

MACBETH
I hope your horses are fast and surefooted. And with that, I send you to them. Farewell.

BANQUO exits.

Everybody may do as they please until seven o'clock tonight. In order to make your company even more enjoyable, I’m going to keep to myself until suppertime. Until then, God be with you!

Everyone exits except MACBETH and a SERVANT

(to the SERVANT) You there, let me have a word with you. Are those men waiting for me?

SERVANT
They’re waiting outside the palace gate, my lord.

MACBETH
Bring them to me.

The SERVANT exits.

To be the king is nothing if I’m not safe as the king. I’m very afraid of Banquo. There’s something noble about him that makes me fear him. He’s willing to take risks, and his mind never stops working. He has the wisdom to act bravely but also safely. I’m not afraid of anyone but him. Around him, my guardian angel is frightened, just as Mark Antony’s angel supposedly feared Octavius Caesar. Banquo chided the witches when they first called me king, asking them to tell him his own future. Then, like prophets, they named him the father to a line of kings. They gave me a crown and a scepter that I can’t pass on. Someone outside my family will take these things away from me, since no son of mine will take my place as king. If this is true, then I’ve tortured my conscience and murdered the gracious Duncan for Banquo’s sons. I’ve ruined my own peace for their benefit. I’ve handed over my everlasting soul to the devil so that they could be kings. Banquo’s sons, kings! Instead of watching that happen, I will challenge fate to battle and fight to the death. Who’s there!

The SERVANT comes back in with two MURDERERS

Now go to the door and stay there until I call for you.

The SERVANT exits.

Wasn’t it just yesterday that we spoke to each other?

FIRST MURDERER
It was yesterday, your highness.

MACBETH
Well, did you think about what I said? You should know that it was Banquo who made your lives hell for so long, which you always thought was my fault. But I was innocent. I showed you the proof at our last meeting. I explained how you were deceived, how you were thwarted, the things that were used against you, who was working against you, and a lot of other things that would convince even a half-wit or a crazy person to say, “Banquo did it!”

FIRST MURDERER
You explained it all.

MACBETH
I did that and more, which brings me to the point of this second meeting. Are you so patient and forgiving that you’re going to let him off the hook? Are you so pious that you would pray for this man and his children, a man who has pushed you toward an early grave and put your family in poverty forever?

FIRST MURDERER
We are men, my lord.

MACBETH
Yes, you’re part of the species called men. Just as hounds and greyhounds, mongrels, spaniels, mutts, shaggy lapdogs, swimming dogs, and wolf-dog crossbreeds are all dogs. But if you list the different kinds of dogs according to their qualities, you can distinguish which breeds are fast or slow, which ones are clever, which ones are watchdogs, and which ones hunters. You can classify each dog according to the natural gifts that separate it from all other dogs. It’s the same with men. Now, if you occupy some place in the list of men that isn’t down at the very bottom, tell me. Because if that’s the case, I will tell you a plan that will get rid of your enemy and bring you closer to me. As long as Banquo lives, I am sick. I’ll be healthy when he is dead.

SECOND MURDERER
My lord, I’ve been so kicked around by the world, and I’m so angry, that I don’t even care what I do.

FIRST MURDERER
I’m the same. I’m so sick of bad luck and trouble that I’d risk my life on any bet, as long as it would either fix my life or end it once and for all.

MACBETH
You both know Banquo was your enemy.

BOTH MURDERERS
It’s true, my lord.

MACBETH
He’s my enemy too, and I hate him so much that every minute he’s alive it eats away at my heart. Since I’m king, I could simply use my power to get rid of him. But I can’t do that, because he and I have friends in common whom I need, so I have to be able to moan and cry over his death in public even though I’ll be the one who had him killed. That’s why I need your help right now. I have to hide my real plans from the public eye for many important reasons.

SECOND MURDERER
We’ll do what you want us to, my lord.

FIRST MURDERER
Though our lives—

MACBETH
(interrupts him) I can see the determination in your eyes. Within the next hour I’ll tell you where to go and exactly when to strike. It must be done tonight, away from the palace. Always remember that I must be free from suspicion. For the plan to work perfectly, you must kill both Banquo and his son, Fleance, who keeps him company. Getting rid of Fleance is as important to me as knocking off Banquo. Each of you should make up your own mind about whether you’re going to do this. I’ll come to you soon.

BOTH MURDERERS
We have decided, my lord. We’re in.

MACBETH
I’ll call for you soon. Stay inside.

The MURDERERS exit.

The deal is closed. Banquo, if your soul is going to make it to heaven, tonight’s the night.

He exits.

LADY MACBETH and a SERVANT enter.

LADY MACBETH
Has Banquo left the court?

SERVANT
Yes, madam, but he’ll be back tonight.

LADY MACBETH
Go tell the king I want to talk to him for a few minutes.

SERVANT
No problem, madam.

The SERVANT exits.

LADY MACBETH
If you get what you want and you’re still not happy, you’ve spent everything and gained nothing. It’s better to be the person who gets murdered than to be the killer and be tormented with anxiety.

MACBETH enters.

What’s going on, my lord? Why are you keeping to yourself, with only your sad thoughts to keep you company? Those thoughts should have died when you killed the men you’re thinking about. If you can’t fix it, you shouldn’t give it a second thought. What’s done is done.

MACBETH
We have slashed the snake but not killed it. It will heal and be as good as new, and we’ll be threatened by its fangs once again. But the universe can fall apart, and heaven and earth crumble, before I’ll eat my meals in fear and spend my nights tossing and turning with these nightmares I’ve been having. I’d rather be dead than endure this endless mental torture and harrowing sleep deprivation. We killed those men and sent them to rest in peace so that we could gain our own peace. Duncan lies in his grave, through with life’s troubles, and he’s sleeping well. We have already done the worst we can do to him with our treason. After that, nothing can hurt him further—not weapons, poison, rebellion, invasion, or anything else.

LADY MACBETH
Come on, relax, dear. Put on a happy face and look cheerful and agreeable for your guests tonight.

MACBETH
That’s exactly what I’ll do, my love, and I hope you’ll do the same. Give Banquo your special attention. Talk to him and look at him in a way that will make him feel important. We’re in a dangerous situation, where we have to flatter him and hide our true feelings.

LADY MACBETH
You have to stop talking like this.

MACBETH
Argh! I feel like my mind is full of scorpions, my dear wife. You know that Banquo and his son Fleance are still alive.

LADY MACBETH
But they can’t live forever.

MACBETH
That’s comforting. They can be killed, it’s true. So be cheerful. Before the bat flies through the castle, and before the dung beetle makes his little humming noise to tell us it’s nighttime, a dreadful deed will be done.

LADY MACBETH
What are you going to do?

MACBETH
It’s better you don’t know about it until after it’s done, when you can applaud it. (to the night) Come, night, and blindfold the kindhearted day. Use your bloody and invisible hand to tear up Banquo’s lease on life, which keeps me in fear. (to himself) The sky’s getting dark, and the crow is returning home to the woods. The gentle creatures of the day are falling asleep, while night’s predators are waking up to look for their prey. (to LADY MACBETH) You seem surprised at my words, but don’t question me yet. Bad deeds force you to commit more bad deeds. So please, come with me.

They exit.

The two MURDERERS enter with a third MURDERER.

FIRST MURDERER
But who told you to come here and join us?

THIRD MURDERER
Macbeth.

SECOND MURDERER
We can trust this guy. He was given exactly the same orders we were.

FIRST MURDERER
Then stay with us. There’s still a bit of daylight in the sky. Now all the late travellers are hurrying to reach their inns. Banquo is almost here.

THIRD MURDERER
Listen! I hear horses.

BANQUO
(from offstage) Hey, give us some light here!

SECOND MURDERER
That must be him. The rest of the king’s guests are already inside.

FIRST MURDERER
You can hear his horses moving around as the servants take them to the stables.

THIRD MURDERER
It’s almost a mile to the palace gate, but Banquo, like everybody else, usually walks from here to the palace.

BANQUO and FLEANCE enter with a torch.

SECOND MURDERER
Here comes a light! Here comes a light!

THIRD MURDERER
That’s him.

FIRST MURDERER
Prepare yourselves.

BANQUO
It will rain tonight.

FIRST MURDERER
Then let the rain come down.

The MURDERERS attack BANQUO.

BANQUO
Oh, this is treachery! Get out of here, good Fleance, run, run, run! Someday you can get revenge.—Oh, you bastard!

BANQUO dies. FLEANCE escapes.

THIRD MURDERER
Who put out the light?

FIRST MURDERER
Wasn’t that the best thing to do?

THIRD MURDERER
There’s only one body here. The son ran away.

SECOND MURDERER
We failed in half of our mission.

FIRST MURDERER
Well, let’s get out of here and tell Macbeth what we did accomplish.

They exit.

The stage is set for a banquet. MACBETH enters with LADY MACBETH, ROSS, LENNOX, LORDS, and their attendants.

MACBETH
You know your own ranks, so you know where to sit. Sit down. From the highest to the lowest of you, I bid you a hearty welcome.

The LORDS sit down.

LORDS
Thanks to your majesty.

MACBETH
I will walk around and mingle with all of you, playing the humble host. My wife will stay in her royal chair, but at the appropriate time I will have her welcome you all.

LADY MACBETH
Say welcome to all of our friends for me, sir, for in my heart they are all welcome.

The FIRST MURDERER appears at the door.

MACBETH
And they respond to you with their hearts as well. The table is full on both sides. I will sit here in the middle. Be free and happy. Soon we will toast around the table.

(approaching the door and speaking to the MURDERER) There’s blood on your face.

FIRST MURDERER
Then it must be Banquo’s.

MACBETH
I’d rather see his blood splattered on your face than flowing through his veins. Did you finish him off?

FIRST MURDERER
My lord, his throat is cut. I did that to him.

MACBETH
You are the best of the cutthroats. But whoever did the same to Fleance must also be good. If you cut both their throats, then you are the absolute best.

FIRST MURDERER
Most royal sir, Fleance has escaped.

MACBETH
Now I’m scared again. Otherwise I would have been perfect, as solid as a piece of marble, as firm as a rock, as free as the air itself. But now I’m all tangled up with doubts and fears. But Banquo’s been taken care of?

FIRST MURDERER
Yes, my good lord. He’s lying dead in a ditch, with twenty deep gashes in his head, any one of which would have been enough to kill him.

MACBETH
Thanks for that. The adult snake lies in the ditch. The young snake that escaped will in time become poisonous and threatening, but for now he has no fangs. Get out of here. I’ll talk to you again tomorrow.

The FIRST MURDERER exits.

LADY MACBETH
My royal lord, you’re not entertaining the guests. If you don’t make your guests know they’re welcome, they’ll feel like they’re paying for their meal. When you just want to eat, it’s better to do that at home. When you’re eating out with people, you need to have a little more ceremony. Otherwise dinner parties would be boring.

MACBETH
It’s nice of you to remind me. (raising a glass to toast his guests) Since good digestion requires a good appetite, and good health requires both of those, here’s to good appetites, good digestion, and good health!

LENNOX
Why don’t you have a seat, your highness?

The GHOST OF BANQUO enters and sits in MACBETH’s place.

MACBETH
We would have all the nobility of Scotland gathered under one roof, if only Banquo were here. I hope it turns out that he’s late out of rudeness, and not because something bad has happened to him.

ROSS
His absence means he’s broken his promise, sir. If it pleases you, your highness, why don’t you sit with us and grace us with your royal company?

MACBETH
The table’s full.

LENNOX
Here’s an empty seat, sir.

MACBETH
Where?

LENNOX
(pointing to where the GHOST sits) Here, my good lord. What’s wrong, your highness?

MACBETH
(seeing the GHOST) Which one of you did this?

LORDS
What, my good lord?

MACBETH
(to the GHOST) You can’t say I did it. Don’t shake your bloody head at me.

ROSS
Gentlemen, stand up. His highness is not well.

LADY MACBETH
Sit down, worthy friends. My husband is often like this, and he has been since he was a child. Please stay seated. This is just a brief fit. In a moment he’ll be well again. If you pay too much attention to him you’ll make him angry, and that will make his convulsions go on longer. Eat your dinner and pay no attention to him. (speaking so that only MACBETH can hear) Are you a man?

MACBETH
Yes, and a brave one, who dares to look at something that would frighten the devil.

LADY MACBETH
Oh, that’s nonsense! This is just another one of the hallucinations you always get when you’re afraid. This is like that floating dagger you said was leading you toward Duncan. These outbursts of yours don’t even look like real fear. They’re more like how you would act if you were a woman telling a scary story by the fireside in front of her grandmother. Shame on you! Why are you making these faces? When the vision passes, you’ll see that you’re just looking at a stool.

MACBETH
Please, just look over there. Look! Look! See! (to the GHOST) What do you have to say? What do I care? If you can nod, then speak too. If the dead are going to return from their graves, then there’s nothing to stop the birds from eating the bodies. So there’s no point in our burying people.

The GHOST vanishes.

LADY MACBETH
What, has your foolishness paralyzed you completely?

MACBETH
As sure as I’m standing here, I saw him.

LADY MACBETH
Nonsense!

MACBETH
In ancient times, before there were laws to make the land safe and peaceful, a lot of blood was spilled. Yes, and since then murders have been committed that are too awful to talk about. It used to be that when you knocked a man’s brains out he would just die, and that would be it. But now they rise from the dead with twenty fatal head wounds and push us off our stools. This haunting business is even stranger than murder.

LADY MACBETH
My worthy lord, your noble friends miss your company.

MACBETH
I forgot about them. (to the guests) Don’t be alarmed on my account, my most worthy friends. I have a strange disorder, which no longer shocks those who know me well. (raising his glass to toast the company) Come, let’s drink a toast: love and health to you all. Now I’ll sit down. Give me some wine. Fill up my cup.

The GHOST OF BANQUO reappears in MACBETH’s seat.

I drink to the happiness of everyone at the table, and to our dear friend Banquo, whom we miss. I wish he were here! Let’s drink to everyone here, and to Banquo. Now, everybody, drink

LORDS
Hear, hear.

They drink.

MACBETH
(to the GHOST) Go! And get out of my sight! Stay in your grave. There’s no marrow in your bones, and your blood is cold. You’re staring at me with eyes that have no power to see.

LADY MACBETH
Good friends, think of this as nothing more than a strange habit. It’s nothing else. Too bad it’s spoiling our pleasure tonight.

MACBETH
I am as brave as any other man. Come at me in the form of a rugged Russian bear, an armor-plated rhinoceros, or a tiger from Iran. Take any shape other than the one you have now and I will never tremble in fear. Or come back to life again and challenge me to a duel in some deserted place. If I tremble then, you can call me a little girl. Get out of here, you horrible ghost, you hallucination. Get out!

The GHOST vanishes.

I am a man again. Pray you sit still. Look, now that it’s gone, I’m a man again. Please, remain seated.

LADY MACBETH
You have ruined our good cheer and disrupted the gathering by making a spectacle of yourself.

MACBETH
(to the guests) Can things like this happen so suddenly without making us all astonished? You make me feel like I don’t know myself, when I see you looking at these terrible things and keeping a straight face, while my face has gone white with fear.

ROSS
What things, my lord?

LADY MACBETH
Please, don’t speak to him. He’s getting worse and worse. Talk makes him crazy. Everybody, please leave right now. Don’t bother exiting in the order of your rank, but just leave right away.

LENNOX
Good night. I hope the king recovers soon!

LADY MACBETH
A kind good night to all!

Everyone leaves except MACBETH and LADY MACBETH.

MACBETH
There’s an old saying: the dead will have their revenge. Gravestones have been known to move, and trees to speak, to bring guilty men to justice. The craftiest murderers have been exposed by the mystical signs made by crows and magpies. How late at night is it?

LADY MACBETH
It’s almost morning. You can’t tell whether it’s day or night.

MACBETH
What do you think about the fact that Macduff refuses to come to me when I command him?

LADY MACBETH
Did you send for him, sir?

MACBETH
I’ve heard about this indirectly, but I will send for him. In every one of the lords' households I have a servant paid to spy for me. Tomorrow, while it’s still early, I will go see the witches. They will tell me more, because I’m determined to know the worst about what’s going to happen. My own safety is the only important thing now. I have walked so far into this river of blood that even if I stopped now, it would be as hard to go back to being good as it is to keep killing people. I have some schemes in my head that I’m planning to put into action. I have to do these things before I have a chance to think about them.

LADY MACBETH
You haven’t slept.

MACBETH
Yes, let’s go to sleep. My strange self-delusions just come from inexperience. We’re still just beginners when it comes to crime.

They exit.

Thunder. The three WITCHES enter, meeting HECATE.

FIRST WITCH
What’s wrong, Hecate? You look angry.

HECATE
Don’t I have a reason to be angry, you disobedient hags? How dare you give Macbeth riddles and prophecies about his future without telling me? I am your boss and the source of your powers. I am the one who secretly decides what evil things happen, but you never called me to join in and show off my own powers. And what’s worse, you’ve done all this for a man who behaves like a spoiled brat, angry and hateful. Like all spoiled sons, he chases after what he wants and doesn’t care about you. But you can make it up to me. Go away now and in the morning meet me in the pit by the river in hell. Macbeth will go there to learn his destiny. You bring your cauldrons, your spells, your charms, and everything else. I’m about to fly away. I’ll spend tonight working to make something horrible happen. I have a lot to do before noon. An important droplet is hanging from the corner of the moon. I’ll catch it before it falls to the ground. When I work it over with magic spells, the drop will produce magical spirits that will trick Macbeth with illusions. He will be fooled into thinking he is greater than fate, he will mock death, and he will think he is above wisdom, grace, and fear. As you all know, overconfidence is man’s greatest enemy.

Music plays offstage, and voices sing a song with the words “Come away, come away.”

Listen! I’m being called. Look, my little spirit is sitting in a foggy cloud waiting for me.

HECATE exits.

FIRST WITCH
Come on, let’s hurry. She’ll be back again soon.

They all exit.

LENNOX and another LORD enter.

LENNOX
What I’ve already said shows you we think alike, so you can draw your own conclusions. All I’m saying is that strange things have been going on. Macbeth pitied Duncan—after Duncan was dead. And Banquo went out walking too late at night. If you like, we can say that Fleance must have killed him, because Fleance fled the scene of the crime. Clearly, men should not go out walking too late! And who can help thinking how monstrous it was for Malcolm and Donalbain to kill their gracious father? Such a heinous crime—how it saddened Macbeth! Wasn’t it loyal of him to kill those two servants right away, while they were still drunk and asleep? That was the right thing to do, wasn’t it? Yes, and it was the wise thing, too, because we all would have been outraged to hear those two deny their crime. Considering all this, I think Macbeth has handled things well. If he had Duncan’s sons in prison—which I hope won’t happen—they would find out how awful the punishment is for those who kill their fathers, and so would Fleance. But enough of that. I hear that Macduff is out of favor with the king because he speaks his mind too plainly, and because he failed to show up at Macbeth’s feast. Can you tell me where he’s hiding himself?

LORD
Duncan’s son Malcolm, whose birthright and throne Macbeth has stolen, lives in the English court. There, the saintly King Edward treats Malcolm so well that despite Malcolm’s misfortunes, he’s not deprived of respect. Macduff went there to ask King Edward for help. He wants Edward to help him form an alliance with the people of Northumberland and their lord, Siward. Macduff hopes that with their help—and with the help of God above—he may once again put food on our tables, bring peace back to our nights, free our feasts and banquets from violent murders, allow us to pay proper homage to our king, and receive honors freely. Those are the things we pine for now. Macbeth has heard this news and he is so angry that he’s preparing for war.

LENNOX
Did he tell Macduff to return to Scotland?

LORD
He did, but Macduff told the messenger, “No way.” The messenger scowled and rudely turned his back on Macduff, as if to say, “You’ll regret the day you gave me this answer.”

LENNOX
That might well keep Macduff away from Scotland. Some holy angel should go to the court of England and give Macduff a message. He should return quickly to free our country, which is suffering under a tyrant!

LORD
I’ll send my prayers with him.

They exit.

A cavern. In the middle, a boiling cauldron. Thunder. The three WITCHES enter.

FIRST WITCH
The tawny cat has meowed three times.

SECOND WITCH
Three times. And the hedgehog has whined once.

THIRD WITCH
My spirit friend, Harpier, is yelling, “It’s time, it’s time!”

FIRST WITCH
Dance around the cauldron and throw in the poisoned entrails. (holding up a toad) You’ll go in first—a toad that sat under a cold rock for a month, oozing poison from its pores.

ALL
Double, double toil and trouble,
Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.

SECOND WITCH
(holding something up) We’ll boil you in the cauldron next—a slice of swamp snake. All the rest of you in too: a newt’s eye, a frog’s tongue, fur from a bat, a dog’s tongue, the forked tongue of an adder, the stinger of a burrowing worm, a lizard’s leg, an owl’s wing. (speaking to the ingredients) Make a charm to cause powerful trouble, and boil and bubble like a broth of hell.

ALL
Double, double toil and trouble,
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

THIRD WITCH
Here come some more ingredients: the scale of a dragon, a wolf’s tooth, a witch’s mummified flesh, the gullet and stomach of a ravenous shark, a root of hemlock that was dug up in the dark, a Jew’s liver, a goat’s bile, some twigs of yew that were broken off during a lunar eclipse, a Turk’s nose, a Tartar’s lips, the finger of a baby that was strangled as a prostitute gave birth to it in a ditch. (to the ingredients) Make this potion thick and gluey. (to the other WITCHES) Now let’s add a tiger’s entrails to the mix.

ALL
Double, double toil and trouble,
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

SECOND WITCH
We’ll cool the mixture with baboon blood. After that the charm is finished.

HECATE enters with three other WITCHES.

HECATE
Well done! I admire your efforts, and all of you will share the rewards. Now come sing around the cauldron like a ring of elves and fairies, enchanting everything you put in.

Music plays and the six WITCHES sing a song called “Black Spirits.” HECATE leaves.

SECOND WITCH
I can tell that something wicked is coming by the tingling in my thumbs. Doors, open up for whoever is knocking!

MACBETH enters.

MACBETH
What’s going on here, you secret, evil, midnight hags? What are you doing?

ALL
Something there isn’t a word for.

MACBETH
I don’t know how you know the things you do, but I insist that you answer my questions. I command you in the name of whatever dark powers you serve. I don’t care if you unleash violent winds that tear down churches, make the foamy waves overwhelm ships and send sailors to their deaths, flatten crops and trees, make castles fall down on their inhabitants' heads, make palaces and pyramids collapse, and mix up everything in nature. Tell me what I want to know.

FIRST WITCH
Speak.

SECOND WITCH
Demand.

THIRD WITCH
We’ll answer.

FIRST WITCH
Would you rather hear these things from our mouths or from our master’s?

MACBETH
Call them. Let me see them.

FIRST WITCH
Pour in the blood of a sow who has eaten her nine offspring. Take the sweat of a murderer on the gallows and throw it into the flame.

ALL
Come, high or low spirits. Show yourself and what you do.

Thunder. The FIRST APPARITION appears, looking like a head with an armored helmet.

MACBETH
Tell me, you unknown power—

FIRST WITCH
He can read your thoughts. Listen, but don’t speak.

FIRST APPARITION
Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff. Beware the thane of Fife. Let me go. Enough.

The FIRST APPARITION descends.

MACBETH
Whatever you are, thanks for your advice. You have guessed exactly what I feared. But one word more—

FIRST WITCH
He will not be commanded by you. Here’s another, stronger than the first.

Thunder. The SECOND APPARITION appears, looking like a bloody child.

SECOND APPARITION
Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth!

MACBETH
If I had three ears I’d listen with all three.

SECOND APPARITION
Be violent, bold, and firm. Laugh at the power of other men, because nobody born from a woman will ever harm Macbeth.

The SECOND APPARITION descends.

MACBETH
Then I don’t need to kill Macduff. I have no reason to fear him. But even so, I’ll make doubly sure. I’ll guarantee my own fate by having you killed, Macduff. That way I can conquer my own fear and sleep easy at night.

Thunder. The THIRD APPARITION appears, in the form of a child with a crown on his head and a tree in his hand.

What is this spirit that looks like the son of a king and wears a crown on his young head?

ALL
Listen but don’t speak to it.

THIRD APPARITION
Be brave like the lion and proud. Don’t even worry about who hates you, who resents you, and who conspires against you. Macbeth will never be defeated until Birnam Wood marches to fight you at Dunsinane Hill.

The THIRD APPARITION descends.

MACBETH
That will never happen. Who can command the forest and make the trees pull their roots out of the earth? These were sweet omens! Good! My murders will never come back to threaten me until the forest of Birnam gets up and moves, and I will be king for my entire natural life. But my heart is still throbbing to know one thing. Tell me, if your dark powers can see this far: will Banquo’s sons ever reign in this kingdom?

ALL
Don’t try to find out more.

MACBETH
I demand to be satisfied. If you refuse, let an eternal curse fall on you. Let me know. Why is that cauldron sinking? And what is that music?

Hautboys play music for a ceremonial procession.

FIRST WITCH
Show.

SECOND WITCH
Show.

THIRD WITCH
Show.

ALL
Show him and make him grieve. Come like shadows and depart in the same way!

Eight kings march across the stage, the last one with a mirror in his hand, followed by the GHOST OF BANQUO.

MACBETH
You look too much like the ghost of Banquo. Go away! (to the first) Your crown hurts my eyes. (to the second) Your blond hair, which looks like another crown underneath the one you’re wearing, looks just like the first king’s hair. Now I see a third king who looks just like the second. Filthy hags! Why are you showing me this? A fourth! My eyes are bulging out of their sockets! Will this line stretch on forever? Another one! And a seventh! I don’t want to see any more. And yet an eighth appears, holding a mirror in which I see many more men. And some are carrying double balls and triple scepters, meaning they’re kings of more than one country! Horrible sight! Now I see it is true, they are Banquo’s descendants. Banquo, with his blood-clotted hair, is smiling at me and pointing to them as his.

The spirits of the kings and the GHOST OF BANQUO vanish.

What? Is this true?

FIRST WITCH
Yes, this is true, but why do you stand there so dumbfounded? Come, sisters, let’s cheer him up and show him our talents. I will charm the air to produce music while you all dance around like crazy, so this king will say we did our duty and entertained him.

Music plays. The WITCHES dance and then vanish.

MACBETH
Where are they? Gone? Let this evil hour be marked forever in the calendar as cursed. (calls to someone offstage) You outside, come in!

LENNOX enters.

LENNOX
What does your grace want?

MACBETH
Did you see the weird sisters?

LENNOX
No, my lord.

MACBETH
Didn’t they pass by you?

LENNOX
No, indeed, my lord.

MACBETH
The air on which they ride is infected. Damn all those who trust them! I heard the galloping of horses. Who was it that came here?

LENNOX
Two or three men, my lord, who brought the message that Macduff has fled to England.

MACBETH
Fled to England?

LENNOX
Yes, my good lord.

MACBETH
Time, you thwart my dreadful plans. Unless a person does something the second he thinks of it, he’ll never get a chance to do it. From now on, as soon as I decide to do something I’m going to act immediately. In fact, I’ll start following up my thoughts with actions right now. I’ll raid Macduff’s castle, seize the town of Fife, and kill his wife, his children, and anyone else unfortunate enough to stand in line for his inheritance. No more foolish talk. I will do this deed before I lose my sense of purpose. But no more spooky visions!—Where are the messengers? Come, bring me to them.

They exit.

LADY MACDUFF, her SON, and ROSS enter.

LADY MACDUFF
What did he do that made him flee this land?

ROSS
You have to be patient, madam.

LADY MACDUFF
He had no patience. He was crazy to run away. Even if you’re not a traitor, you’re going to look like one if you run away.

ROSS
You don’t know whether it was wisdom or fear that made him flee.

LADY MACDUFF
How could it be wisdom! To leave his wife, his children, his house, and his titles in a place so unsafe that he himself flees it! He doesn’t love us. He lacks the natural instinct to protect his family. Even the fragile wren, the smallest of birds, will fight against the owl when it threatens her young ones in the nest. His running away has everything to do with fear and nothing to do with love. And since it’s so unreasonable for him to run away, it has nothing to do with wisdom either.

ROSS
My dearest relative, I’m begging you, pull yourself together. As for your husband, he is noble, wise, and judicious, and he understands what the times require. It’s not safe for me to say much more than this, but times are bad when people get denounced as traitors and don’t even know why. In times like these, we believe frightening rumors but we don’t even know what we’re afraid of. It’s like being tossed around on the ocean in every direction, and finally getting nowhere. I’ll say good-bye now. It won’t be long before I’m back. When things are at their worst they have to stop, or else improve to the way things were before. My young cousin, I put my blessing upon you.

LADY MACDUFF
He has a father, and yet he is fatherless.

ROSS
I have to go. If I stay longer, I’ll embarrass you and disgrace myself by crying. I’m leaving now.

LADY MACDUFF
Young man, your father’s dead. What are you going to do now? How are you going to live?

SON
I will live the way birds do, Mother.

LADY MACDUFF
What? Are you going to start eating worms and flies?

SON
I mean I will live on whatever I get, like birds do.

LADY MACDUFF
You’d be a pitiful bird. You wouldn’t know enough to be afraid of traps.

SON
Why should I be afraid of them, Mother? If I’m a pitiful bird, like you say, hunters won’t want me. No matter what you say, my father is not dead.

LADY MACDUFF
Yes, he is dead. What are you going to do for a father?

SON
Maybe you should ask, what will you do for a husband?

LADY MACDUFF
Oh, I can buy twenty husbands at any market.

SON
If so, you’d be buying them to sell again.

LADY MACDUFF
You talk like a child, but you’re very smart anyway.

SON
Was my father a traitor, Mother?

LADY MACDUFF
Yes, he was.

SON
What is a traitor?

LADY MACDUFF
Someone who makes a promise and breaks it.

SON
And is everyone who swears and lies a traitor?

LADY MACDUFF
Everyone who does so is a traitor and should be hanged.

SON
And should everyone who makes promises and breaks them be hanged?

LADY MACDUFF
Everyone.

SON
Who should hang them?

LADY MACDUFF
The honest men.

SON
Then the liars are fools, for there are enough liars in the world to beat up the honest men and hang them.

LADY MACDUFF
(laughing) Heaven help you for saying that, boy! (sad again) But what will you do without a father?

SON
If he were dead, you’d be weeping for him. If you aren’t weeping, it’s a good sign that I’ll soon have a new father.

LADY MACDUFF
Silly babbler, how you talk!

A MESSENGER enters.

MESSENGER
Bless you, fair lady! You don’t know me, but I know you’re an important person. I’m afraid something dangerous is coming toward you. If you’ll take a simple man’s advice, don’t be here when it arrives. Go away and take your children. I feel bad for scaring you like this, but it would be much worse for me to let you come to harm. And harm is getting close! Heaven keep you safe!

The MESSENGER exits.

LADY MACDUFF
Where should I go? I haven’t done anything wrong. But I have to remember that I’m here on Earth, where doing evil is often praised, and doing good is sometimes a stupid and dangerous mistake. So then why should I offer this womanish defense that I’m innocent?

The MURDERERS enter.

Who are these men?

FIRST MURDERER
Where is your husband?

LADY MACDUFF
I hope he’s not anywhere so disreputable that thugs like you can find him.

FIRST MURDERER
He’s a traitor.

SON
You’re lying, you shaggy-haired villain!

FIRST MURDERER
What’s that, you runt? (stabbing him) Young son of a traitor!

SON
He has killed me, Mother. Run away, I beg you!

The SON dies. LADY MACDUFF exits, crying “Murder!” The MURDERERS exit, following her.

MALCOLM and MACDUFF enter.

MALCOLM
Let’s seek out some shady place where we can sit down alone and cry our hearts out.

MACDUFF
Instead of crying, let’s keep hold of our swords and defend our fallen homeland like honorable men. Each day new widows howl, new orphans cry, and new sorrows slap heaven in the face, until it sounds like heaven itself feels Scotland’s anguish and screams in pain.

MALCOLM
I will avenge whatever I believe is wrong. And I’ll believe whatever I’m sure is true. And I’ll put right whatever I can when the time comes. What you just said may perhaps be true. This tyrant, whose mere name is so awful it hurts us to say it, was once considered an honest man. You were one of his favorites. He hasn’t done anything to harm you yet. I’m inexperienced, but maybe you’re planning to win Macbeth’s favor by betraying me to him. It would be smart to offer someone poor and innocent like me as a sacrificial lamb to satisfy an angry god like Macbeth.

MACDUFF
I am not treacherous.

MALCOLM
But Macbeth is. Even someone with a good and virtuous nature might give way to a royal command. But I beg your pardon. My fears can’t actually make you evil. Angels are still bright even though Lucifer, the brightest angel, fell from heaven. Even though everything evil wants to look good, good still has to look good too.

MACDUFF
I have lost my hope of convincing you to fight against Macbeth.

MALCOLM
Maybe you lost your hopes about me where I found my doubts about you. Why did you leave your wife and child vulnerable—the most precious things in your life, those strong bonds of love? How could you leave them behind? But I beg you, don’t interpret my suspicions as slander against you. You must understand that I want to protect myself. You may really be honest, no matter what I think.

MACDUFF
Bleed, bleed, poor country! Great tyrant, go ahead and build yourself up, because good people are afraid to stand up to you. Enjoy everything you stole, because your title is safe! Farewell, lord. I wouldn’t be the villain you think I am even if I were offered all of Macbeth’s kingdom and the riches of the East too.

MALCOLM
Don’t be offended. I don’t completely distrust you. I do think Scotland is sinking under Macbeth’s oppression. Our country weeps, it bleeds, and each day a fresh cut is added to her wounds. I also think there would be many people willing to fight for me. The English have promised me thousands of troops. But even so, when I have Macbeth’s head under my foot, or stuck on the end of my sword, then my poor country will be plagued by worse evil than it was before. It will suffer worse and in more ways than ever under the reign of the king who follows Macbeth.

MACDUFF
Who are you talking about?

MALCOLM
I’m talking about myself. I know I have so many vices that when people see all of them exposed, evil Macbeth will seem as pure as snow in comparison, and poor Scotland will call him a sweet lamb when they compare him to me and my infinite evils.

MACDUFF
Even in hell you couldn’t find a devil worse than Macbeth.

MALCOLM
I admit that he’s murderous, lecherous, greedy, lying, deceitful, violent, malicious, and guilty of every sin that has a name. But there is no end, absolutely none, to my sexual desires. Your wives, your daughters, your old women, and your young maids together could not satisfy my lust. My desire would overpower all restraints and anyone who stood in my way. It would be better for Macbeth to rule than someone like me.

MACDUFF
Endless greed and lust in a man’s nature is a kind of tyranny. It has caused the downfall of many kings. But don’t be afraid to take the crown that belongs to you. You can find a way to satisfy your desires in secret, while still appearing virtuous. You can deceive everyone. There are more than enough willing women around. Your lust can’t possibly be so strong that you’d use up all the women willing to give themselves to the king once they find out he wants them.

MALCOLM
Along with being full of lust, I’m also incredibly greedy. If I became king, I would steal the nobles' lands, taking jewels from one guy and houses from another. The more I had, the greedier I would grow, until I’d invent false quarrels with my good and loyal subjects, destroying them so I could get my hands on their wealth.

MACDUFF
The greed you’re talking about is worse than lust because you won’t outgrow it. Greed has been the downfall of many kings. But don’t be afraid. Scotland has enough treasures to satisfy you out of your own royal coffers. These bad qualities are bearable when balanced against your good sides.

MALCOLM
But I don’t have any good sides. I don’t have a trace of the qualities a king needs, such as justice, truth, moderation, stability, generosity, perseverance, mercy, humility, devotion, patience, courage, and bravery. Instead, I overflow with every variation of all the different vices. No, if I had power I would take world peace and throw it down to hell.

MACDUFF
Oh Scotland, Scotland!

MALCOLM
If someone like me is fit to be king, let me know. I really am exactly as I have described myself to you.

MACDUFF
(to MALCOLM) Fit to be king? You’re not fit to live!—Oh miserable nation, ruled by a usurping, murderous tyrant, when will you see peaceful days again? The man who has a legal right to the throne is, by his own admission, a cursed man and a disgrace to the royal family.—Your royal father Duncan was a virtuous king. Your mother spent more time on her knees in prayer than she did standing up, and she lived a life of absolute piety. Good-bye. The evils you have described inside yourself have driven me out of Scotland forever. Oh my heart, your hope is dead!'

MALCOLM
Macduff, this passionate outburst, which proves your integrity, has removed my doubts about you and made me realize that you really are trustworthy and honorable. That devil Macbeth has tried many times to trick me and lure me into his power, and prudence prevents me from believing people too quickly. But with God as my witness, I will let myself be guided by you, and I take back my confession. I take back all the bad things I said about myself, because none of those flaws are really part of my character. I’m still a virgin. I have never told a lie. I barely care about what I already own, let alone feel jealous of another’s possessions. I have never broken a promise. I wouldn’t betray the devil himself. I love truth as much as I love life. The lies I told about my character are actually the first false words I have ever spoken. The person who I really am is ready to serve you and our poor country.
Indeed, before you arrived here, old Siward, with ten thousand soldiers already prepared for battle, was making his way here. Now we will fight Macbeth together, and may the chances of our success be as great as the justice of our cause! Why are you silent?

MACDUFF
It’s hard to make sense of such different stories.

A DOCTOR enters.

MALCOLM
Well, we’ll speak more soon. (to the DOCTOR) Is King Edward coming out?

DOCTOR
Yes, sir. A crowd of sick people is waiting for him to heal them. Their illness confounds the most advanced techniques of modern medicine, but when he touches them, they heal immediately because of the power granted to him by heaven.

MALCOLM
Thank you, doctor.

The DOCTOR exits.

MACDUFF
What disease is he talking about?

MALCOLM
It’s called the evil. Edward’s healing touch is a miracle that I have seen him perform many times during my stay in England. How he receives these gifts from heaven, only he can say. But he cures people with strange conditions—all swollen, plagued by ulcers, and pitiful to look at, patients who are beyond the help of surgery—by placing a gold coin around their necks and saying holy prayers over them.
They say that he bequeaths this ability to heal to his royal descendants. Along with this strange power, he also has the gift of prophecy and various other abilities. All of these signs mark him as a man graced by God.

ROSS enters.

MACDUFF
Who’s that coming over here?

MALCOLM
By his dress I can tell he’s my countryman, but I don’t recognize him.

MACDUFF
My noble kinsman, welcome.

MALCOLM
I recognize him now. May God alter the circumstances that keep us apart!

ROSS
Hello, sir.

MACDUFF
Is Scotland the same as when I left it?

ROSS
Alas, our poor country! It’s too frightened to look at itself. Scotland is no longer the land where we were born; it’s the land where we’ll die. Where no one ever smiles except for the fool who knows nothing. Where sighs, groans, and shrieks rip through the air but no one notices. Where violent sorrow is a common emotion. When the funeral bells ring, people no longer ask who died. Good men die before the flowers in their caps wilt. They die before they even fall sick.

MACDUFF
Oh, your report is too poetic, but it sounds so true!

MALCOLM
What is the most recent news?

ROSS
Even news an hour old is old news. Every minute another awful thing happens.

MACDUFF
How is my wife?

ROSS
She’s well.

MACDUFF
And all my children?

ROSS
They’re well too.

MACDUFF
Macbeth hasn’t attacked them?

ROSS
They were at peace when I left them.

MACDUFF
Don’t be stingy with your words. What’s the news?

ROSS
While I was coming here to tell you my sad news, I heard rumors that many good men are arming themselves to rebel against Macbeth. When I saw Macbeth’s army on the move, I knew the rumors must be true. Now is the time when we need your help. Your presence in Scotland would inspire people to fight. Even the women would fight to rid themselves of Macbeth’s oppression.

MALCOLM
Let them be comforted—I’m returning to Scotland. Gracious King Edward has sent us noble Siward and ten thousand soldiers. There is no soldier more experienced or successful than Siward in the entire Christian world.

ROSS
I wish I could repay this happy news with good news of my own. But I have some news that should be howled in a barren desert where nobody can hear it.

MACDUFF
What is this news about? Does it affect all of us? Or just one of us?

ROSS
No decent man can keep from sharing in the sorrow, but my news affects you alone.

MACDUFF
If it’s for me, don’t keep it from me. Let me have it now.

ROSS
I hope you won’t hate me forever after I say these things, because I will soon fill your ears with the most dreadful news you have ever heard.

MACDUFF
I think I can guess what you’re about to say.

ROSS
Your castle was attacked. Your wife and children were savagely slaughtered. If I told you how they were killed, it would cause you so much pain that it would kill you too, and add your body to the pile of murdered corpses.

MALCOLM
Merciful heaven! (to MACDUFF) Come on, man, don’t keep your grief hidden. Put your sorrow into words. The grief you keep inside you will whisper in your heart until it breaks.

MACDUFF
They killed my children too?

ROSS
They killed your wife, your children, your servants, anyone they could find.

MACDUFF
And I had to be away! My wife was killed too?

ROSS
I said she was.

MALCOLM
Take comfort. Let’s cure this awful grief by taking revenge on Macbeth.

MACDUFF
He doesn’t have children. All my pretty little children? Did you say all? Oh, that bird from hell! All of them? What, all my children and their mother dead in one fell swoop?

MALCOLM
Fight it like a man.

MACDUFF
I will. But I also have to feel it like a man. I can’t help remembering the things that were most precious to me. Did heaven watch the slaughter and not send down any help? Sinful Macduff, they were killed because of you! As wicked as I am, they were slaughtered because of me, not because of anything they did. May God give their souls rest.

MALCOLM
Let this anger sharpen your sword. Transform your grief into anger. Don’t block the feelings in your heart; let them loose as rage.

MACDUFF
I could go on weeping like a woman and bragging about how I will avenge them! But gentle heavens, don’t keep me waiting. Bring me face to face with Macbeth, that devil of Scotland. Put him within the reach of my sword, and if he escapes, may heaven forgive him as well!

MALCOLM
Now you sound like a man. Come on, let’s go see King Edward. The army is ready. All we have to do now is say goodbye to the king. Macbeth is ripe for the picking. We’ll be acting as God’s agents. Cheer up as much as you can. A new day will come at last.

They exit.

A DOCTOR and a waiting- GENTLEWOMAN enter.

DOCTOR
I’ve stayed up with you for two nights now, and I haven’t seen any evidence of what you were talking about. When was the last time you saw her sleepwalking?

GENTLEWOMAN
Since Macbeth went to war, I have seen her rise from her bed, put on her nightgown, unlock her closet, take out some paper, fold it, write on it, read it, seal it up, and then return to bed, remaining asleep the entire time.

DOCTOR
It’s unnatural to be asleep and act as if you’re awake. When she is like this, besides walking and performing various activities, have you heard her say anything?

GENTLEWOMAN
She says something, sir, but I will not repeat it to you.

DOCTOR
You can tell me. You really should.

GENTLEWOMAN
I will not confess it to you nor to anyone else, because there was no one else to witness her speech.

LADY MACBETH enters, holding a candle.

Look, here she comes! This is exactly how she always looks, and—I swear it—she is fast asleep. Watch her. Keep hidden.

DOCTOR
How did she get that candle?

GENTLEWOMAN
It stands by her bedside. She always has to have a light next to her. Those are her orders.

DOCTOR
You see, her eyes are open.

GENTLEWOMAN
Yes, but they don’t see anything.

DOCTOR
What’s she doing now? Look how she rubs her hands.

GENTLEWOMAN
She often does that. She looks like she’s washing her hands. I’ve seen her do that before for as long as fifteen minutes.

LADY MACBETH
There’s still a spot here.

DOCTOR
Listen! She’s talking. I’ll write down what she says, so I’ll remember it better.

LADY MACBETH
(rubbing her hands) Come out, damned spot! Out, I command you! One, two. OK, it’s time to do it now.—Hell is murky!—Nonsense, my lord, nonsense! You are a soldier, and yet you are afraid? Why should we be scared, when no one can lay the guilt upon us?—But who would have thought the old man would have had so much blood in him?

DOCTOR
Did you hear that?

LADY MACBETH
The thane of Fife had a wife. Where is she now?—What, will my hands never be clean?—No more of that, my lord, no more of that. You’ll ruin everything by acting startled like this.

DOCTOR
Now look what you’ve done. You’ve heard something you shouldn’t have.

GENTLEWOMAN
She said something she shouldn’t have said, I’m sure of that. Heaven knows what secrets she’s keeping.

LADY MACBETH
I still have the smell of blood on my hand. All the perfumes of Arabia couldn’t make my little hand smell better. Oh, oh, oh!

DOCTOR
What a heavy sigh! Her heart is carrying a heavy weight.

GENTLEWOMAN
I wouldn’t want a heart like hers even if you made me queen.

DOCTOR
Well, well, well.

GENTLEWOMAN
I hope what she’s saying is well, sir!

DOCTOR
This disease is beyond my medical skills. But I have known people who sleepwalked and weren’t guilty of anything.

LADY MACBETH
Wash your hands. Put on your nightgown. Don’t look so frightened. I tell you again, Banquo is buried. He cannot come out of his grave.

DOCTOR
Is this true?

LADY MACBETH
To bed, to bed! There’s a knocking at the gate. Come, come, come, come, give me your hand. What’s done cannot be undone. To bed, to bed, to bed!

LADY MACBETH exits.

DOCTOR
Will she go to bed now?

GENTLEWOMAN
Yes, right away.

DOCTOR
Evil rumors are going around. Unnatural acts will cause supernatural things to happen. People with guilty and deranged minds will confess their secrets to their pillows as they sleep. This woman needs a priest more than a doctor. God forgive us all! (to the waiting- GENTLEWOMAN) Look after her. Remove anything she might hurt herself with. Watch her constantly. And now, good-night. She has bewildered my mind and amazed my eyes. I have an opinion, but I don’t dare to say it out loud.

GENTLEWOMAN
Good night, good doctor.

They exit.

MENTEITH, CAITHNESS, ANGUS, LENNOX, and soldiers enter with a drummer and flag.

MENTEITH
The English army is near, led by Malcolm, his uncle Siward, and the good Macduff. They burn for revenge. The wrongs they have suffered would make dead men rise up and fight.

ANGUS
We’ll meet them near Birnam Wood. They are coming that way.

CAITHNESS
Does anyone know if Donalbain is with his brother?

LENNOX
He is definitely not there, sir. I have a list of all the important men. Siward’s son is there, as well as many boys too young to have beards who will become men by joining in this battle.

MENTEITH
What is the tyrant Macbeth doing?

CAITHNESS
He is fortifying his castle at Dunsinane with heavy defenses. Some say he’s insane. Those who hate him less call it brave anger. One thing is certain: he’s out of control.

ANGUS
Now Macbeth feels the blood of his murdered enemies sticking to his hands. Now, rebel armies punish him every minute for his treachery. The soldiers he commands are only following orders. They don’t fight because they love Macbeth. Now he seems too small to be a great king, like a midget trying to wear the robes of a giant.

MENTEITH
Who can blame him for acting crazy, when inside he condemns himself for everything he’s done?

CAITHNESS
Well, let’s keep marching and give our loyalty to someone who truly deserves it. We’re going to meet Malcolm, the doctor who will cure our sick country. We’ll pour out our own blood to help him.

LENNOX
However much blood we need to give to water the royal flower and drown the weeds—to make Malcolm king and get rid of Macbeth. Let’s proceed on our march to Birnam.

They exit, marching.

MACBETH, a DOCTOR, and attendants enter.

MACBETH
Don’t bring me any more reports. I don’t care if all the thanes desert me. Until Birnam Wood gets up and moves to Dunsinane, I won’t be affected by fear. What’s the boy Malcolm? Wasn’t he born from a woman? The spirits that know the future have told me this: “Don’t be afraid, Macbeth. No man born from a woman will ever defeat you.” So get out of here, disloyal thanes, and join the weak and decadent English! My mind and courage will never falter with doubt or shake with fear.

A SERVANT enters.

May the devil turn you black, you white-faced fool! Why do you look like a frightened goose?

SERVANT
There are ten thousand—

MACBETH
Geese, you idiot?

SERVANT
Soldiers, sir.

MACBETH
Go pinch your cheeks and bring some color back into your face, you cowardly boy. What soldiers, fool? Curse you! That pale face of yours will frighten the others as well. What soldiers, milk-face?

SERVANT
The English army, sir.

MACBETH
Get out of my sight.

The SERVANT exits.

Seyton!—I’m sick at heart when I see—Seyton, come here!—This battle will either secure my reign forever or else topple me from the throne. I have lived long enough. The course of my life is beginning to wither and fall away, like a yellowing leaf in autumn. The things that should go along with old age, like honor, love, obedience, and loyal friends, I cannot hope to have. Instead, I have passionate but quietly whispered curses, people who honor me with their words but not in their hearts, and lingering life, which my heart would gladly end, though I can’t bring myself to do it. Seyton!

SEYTON enters.

SEYTON
What do you want?

MACBETH
Is there more news?

SEYTON
All the rumors have been confirmed.

MACBETH
I’ll fight until they hack the flesh off my bones. Give me my armor.

SEYTON
You don’t need it yet.

MACBETH
I’ll put it on anyway. Send out more cavalry. Scour the whole country and hang anyone spreading fear. Give me my armor. (to the DOCTOR) How is my wife, doctor?

DOCTOR
She is not sick, my lord, but she is troubled with endless visions that keep her from sleeping.

MACBETH
Cure her of that. Can’t you treat a diseased mind? Take away her memory of sorrow? Use some drug to erase the troubling thoughts from her brain and ease her heart?

DOCTOR
For that kind of relief, the patient must heal herself.

MACBETH
Medicine is for the dogs. I won’t have anything to do with it. (to SEYTON) Come, put my armor on me. Give me my lance. Seyton, send out the soldiers. (to the DOCTOR) Doctor, the thanes are running away from me. (to SEYTON) Come on, sir, hurry. (to the DOCTOR) Can you figure out what’s wrong with my country? If you can diagnose its disease by examining its urine, and bring it back to health, I will praise you to the ends of the Earth, where the sound will echo back so you can hear the applause again.—(to SEYTON) Pull it off, I tell you. (to the DOCTOR) What drug would purge the English from this country? Have you heard of any?

DOCTOR
Yes, my good lord. Your preparation for war sounds like something.

MACBETH
(to SEYTON) Bring the armor and follow me. I will not be afraid of death and destruction until Birnam forest picks itself up and moves to Dunsinane.

DOCTOR
(to himself) I wish I were far away from Dunsinane. You couldn’t pay me to come back here.

They exit.

MALCOLM, old SIWARD and his SON, MACDUFF, MENTEITH, CAITHNESS, ANGUS, LENNOX, ROSS, and SOLDIERS enter marching, with a drummer and flag.

MALCOLM
Kinsmen, I hope the time is coming when people will be safe in their own bedrooms.

MENTEITH
We don’t doubt it.

SIWARD
What’s the name of this forest behind us?

MENTEITH
Birnam Wood.

MALCOLM
Tell every soldier to break off a branch and hold it in front of him. That way we can conceal how many of us there are, and Macbeth’s spies will give him inaccurate reports.

SOLDIERS
We’ll do it.

SIWARD
We have no news except that the overconfident Macbeth is still in Dunsinane and will allow us to lay siege to the castle.

MALCOLM
He wants us to lay siege. Wherever his soldiers have an opportunity to leave him, they do, whatever rank they are. No one fights with him except men who are forced to, and their hearts aren’t in it.

MACDUFF
We shouldn’t make any judgments until we achieve our goal. Let’s go fight like hardworking soldiers.

SIWARD
Soon we’ll find out what’s really ours and what isn’t. It’s easy for us to get our hopes up just sitting around thinking about it, but the only way this is really going to be settled is by violence. So let’s move our armies forward.

They exit, marching.

MACBETH, SEYTON, and SOLDIERS enter with a drummer and flag.

MACBETH
Hang our flags on the outer walls. Everyone keeps yelling, “Here they come!” Our castle is strong enough to laugh off their seige. They can sit out there until they die of hunger and disease. If it weren’t for the fact that so many of our soldiers revolted and joined them, we could have met them out in front of the castle, man to man, and beaten them back to England.

A sound of women crying offstage.

What’s that noise?

SEYTON
It’s women crying, my good lord.

SEYTON exits.

MACBETH
I’ve almost forgotten what fear feels like. There was a time when I would have been terrified by a shriek in the night, and the hair on my skin would have stood up when I heard a ghost story. But now I’ve had my fill of real horrors. Horrible things are so familiar that they can’t startle me.

SEYTON comes back in.

What was that cry for?

SEYTON
The queen is dead, my lord.

MACBETH
She would have died later anyway. That news was bound to come someday. Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow. The days creep slowly along until the end of time. And every day that’s already happened has taken fools that much closer to their deaths. Out, out, brief candle. Life is nothing more than an illusion. It’s like a poor actor who struts and worries for his hour on the stage and then is never heard from again. Life is a story told by an idiot, full of noise and emotional disturbance but devoid of meaning.

A MESSENGER enters.

You’ve come to tell me something. Tell me quickly.

MESSENGER
My gracious lord, I should tell you what I saw, but I don’t know how to say it.

MACBETH
Just say it.

MESSENGER
As I was standing watch on the hill, I looked toward Birnam, and I thought I saw the forest begin to move.

MACBETH
Liar and slave!

MESSENGER
Punish me if it’s not true. Three miles from here you can see it coming, a moving forest.

MACBETH
If you’re lying, I’ll hang you alive from the nearest tree until you die of hunger. If what you say is true, you can do the same to me. (to himself) My confidence is failing. I’m starting to doubt the lies the devil told me, which sounded like truth. “Don’t worry until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane.” And now a wood is coming to Dunsinane. Prepare for battle, and go! If what this messenger says is true, it’s no use running away or staying here. I’m starting to grow tired of living, and I’d like to see the world plunged into chaos. Ring the alarms! Blow, wind! Come, ruin! At least we’ll die with our armor on.

They exit.

MALCOLM, old SIWARD, MACDUFF, and their army enter carrying branches, with a drummer and flag.

MALCOLM
We’re close enough now. Throw down these branches and show them who you really are. Uncle Siward, you and your son will lead the first battle. Brave Macduff and I will do the rest, according to our battle plan.

SIWARD
Good luck. If we meet Macbeth’s army tonight, let us be beaten if we cannot fight.

MACDUFF
Blow all the trumpets. They loudly announce the news of blood and death.

They exit.

Trumpets and the noise of battle. MACBETH enters.

MACBETH
They have me tied to a stake. I can’t run away. I have to stand and fight, like a bear.Where’s the man who wasn’t born from a woman? He’s the only one I’m afraid of, nobody else.

YOUNG SIWARD enters.

YOUNG SIWARD
What’s your name?

MACBETH
You’ll be afraid to hear it.

YOUNG SIWARD
No I won’t, even if you were one of the worst demons in hell.

MACBETH
My name’s Macbeth.

YOUNG SIWARD
The devil himself couldn’t say a name I hate more.

MACBETH
No, nor could the devil’s name be more frightening.

YOUNG SIWARD
You lie, you disgusting tyrant. I’ll prove with my sword that I’m not scared of you.

They fight and YOUNG SIWARD is killed.

MACBETH
You were born from a woman. Swords don’t frighten me. I laugh at any weapon used by a man who was born from a woman.

MACBETH exits.

Trumpets and battle sounds. MACDUFF enters.

MACDUFF
The noise is coming from over there. Tyrant, show your face! If someone other than me kills you, the ghosts of my wife and children will haunt me forever. I can’t be bothered to fight these lame soldiers who only fight for money. I’ll either fight you, Macbeth, or else I’ll put down my sword unused. You must be over there. By the great noise, it sounds like one of the highest-ranking men is being announced. I hope I find him! I ask for nothing more than that.

MACDUFF exits. More battle noises.

MALCOLM and old SIWARD enter.

SIWARD
Come this way, my lord. The castle has been surrendered without a fight. Macbeth’s soldiers are fighting on both sides. Our noblemen are battling bravely. The victory is almost yours, and it seems like there’s not much left to do.

MALCOLM
Our enemies fight as if they’re trying not to hurt us.

SIWARD
Sir, enter the castle.

They exit. Battle noises continue.

MACBETH enters.

MACBETH
Why should I commit suicide like one of the ancient Romans? As long as I see enemies of mine alive, I would rather see my sword wound them than me.

MACDUFF enters.

MACDUFF
Turn around, you dog from hell, turn around!

MACBETH
You are the only man I have avoided. But go away now. I’m already guilty of killing your whole family.

MACDUFF
I have nothing to say to you. My sword will talk for me. You are too evil for words!

They fight.

MACBETH
You’re wasting your time trying to wound me. You might as well try to stab the air with your sword. Go fight someone who can be harmed. I lead a charmed life, which can’t be ended by anyone born from a woman.

MACDUFF
You can forget about your charm. The evil spirit you serve can tell you that I was not born. They cut me out of my mother’s womb before she could bear me naturally.

MACBETH
Curse you for telling me this. You’ve fightened away my courage. I don’t believe those evil creatures anymore. They tricked me with their wordgames, raising my hopes and then destroying them. I won’t fight you.

MACDUFF
Then surrender, coward, and we’ll put you in a freakshow, just like they do with deformed animals. We’ll put a picture of you on a sign, right above the words “Come see the tyrant!”

MACBETH
I’m not going to surrender and have to kiss the ground in front of Malcolm, or be taunted by the common people. Even though Birnam Wood really did come to Dunsinane, and I’m fighting a man not of woman born, I’ll fight to the end. I’ll put up my shield and battle you. Come on, let’s go at it, Macduff, and damn the first man who cries, 'Stop! Enough!'

hey exit fighting. Trumpets and battle noises. The trumpet of one army sounds a call to retreat. The other army’s trumpet sounds a call of victory. The victorious army enters, led by MALCOLM, old SIWARD, ROSS, the other THANES, and soldiers, with a drummer and flag.

MALCOLM
I wish all of our friends could have survived this battle.

SIWARD
In every battle, some people will always be killed, but judging from the men I see around us, our great victory didn’t cost us very much.

MALCOLM
Macduff is missing, and so is your noble son.

ROSS
My lord, your son has paid the soldier’s price: death. He only lived long enough to become a man, and as soon as he proved that he was a man by fighting like one, he died.

SIWARD
So he’s dead?

ROSS
Yes, and he’s been carried off the field. Your grief should not be equal to his worth, because then your sorrow would never end.

SIWARD
Were his wounds on his front side?

ROSS
Yes, on his front.

SIWARD
Well then, he’s God’s soldier now! If I had as many sons as I have hairs on my head, I couldn’t hope that any of them would die more honorably than he did. And that’s all there is to it.

MALCOLM
He is worth more mourning than that, and I will mourn for him.

SIWARD
He is worth no more than that. They tell me he died well, and settled his scores. With that, I hope God is with him! Here comes better news.

MACDUFF enters, carrying MACBETH’s head.

MACDUFF
Hail, king! Because that’s what you are now. Look, here I have Macbeth’s cursed head. We are free from his tyranny. I see that you have the kingdom’s noblemen around you, and they’re thinking the same thing as me. I want them to join me in this loud cheer, Hail, King of Scotland!

ALL
Hail, King of Scotland!

Trumpets play.

MALCOLM
It won’t be long before I reward each of you as he deserves. My thanes and kinsmen, I name you all earls, the first earls that Scotland has ever had. We have a lot to do at the dawn of this new era. We must call home all of our exiled friends who fled from the grip of Macbeth’s tyranny, and we must bring to justice all the evil ministers of this dead butcher and his demon-like queen, who, rumor has it, committed suicide. This, and whatever else we are called to do by God, we will do at the right time and in the right place. So I thank you all, and I invite each and every one of you to come watch me be crowned king of Scotland at Scone.

Trumpets play. They all exit.

Teh End