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What happens in Act 4 of Macbeth?
In Scene 1 of Act 4, Macbeth meets again with the three witches who produce three apparitions and provide comforting but convoluted prophecies. One says that Macbeth cannot be killed by any man who is born of a woman, while another says that he will be safe until Birnam Wood moves to Dunsinane Hill. In Scene 2, Lady Macduff is frustrated over her husband’s decision to leave the country. A group of murderers arrive, killing Macduff’s son and then pursuing Lady Macduff to kill her as well. In Scene 3, Malcolm tests Macduff's loyalty to Scotland. Ross arrives with news that things have gone badly since Macbeth took charge, and that Macduff’s family has been murdered.
Read our Summary & Analysis of Act 4. (3-minute read)
What is the significance of the Three Apparitions who appear in Act 4, Scene 1?
Following Hecate’s orders in Act 3, Scene 5, the witches summon up three ghostly specters to reassure Macbeth about the future. The first apparition is a disembodied head in a helmet that tells Macbeth to be wary of Macduff. The second, a bloody child, falsely reassures him by saying that no one “of woman born” can harm him. The third is another child wearing a crown and holding a tree. It strokes Macbeth’s ego and cryptically tells him that he will only be defeated if a local forest shows up at his castle to fight him. Macbeth is fully taken in by this elaborate spectacle. He feels invincible and chooses to ignore the many questionable aspects of the three apparitions’ messages.
Read our in-depth Character Analysis of the Three Apparitions. (2-minute read)
Read about deliberately ambiguous Doublespeak as a Motif (#4) in Macbeth). (1-minute read).
Why are the brief appearances of Lady Macduff and Macduff’s son important in Macbeth?
Lady Macduff and Macduff’s son only appear in one scene in Macbeth (Scene 2 of Act 4), but they are crucial to the play—and not just because they are brutally murdered on the orders of Macbeth (see below). Lady Macduff serves as a powerful counterpoint to the self-serving Lady Macbeth, while the intelligent and sincere conversation she and her son have right before they are killed is filled with honesty and meaning.
Read our in-depth Character Analysis of Lady Macduff. (2-minute read)
Read our in-depth Character Analysis of Macduff’s Son. (2-minute read)
What is the significance of the killing of Macduff’s son in Act 4, Scene 2?
In a play where almost all the violence occurs offstage, it is noteworthy that this killing takes place as the audience is watching. (The subsequent killing of Lady Macduff happens offstage.) The murder of Macduff’s son is also significant to the play’s key theme of The Role of Children in Political Power Struggles, which characterizes children as both the hope for the future and a nuisance standing in the way of quests for power.
Read about the Theme of The Role of Children in Political Power Struggles (#5). (2-minute read)
Why does Ross tell Macduff that his wife and child are “well” after they are killed?
Ross probably means that they are in heaven and under God’s care in an effort be kind, rather than just blurting out that they have been brutally murdered. But this is just one example of the role of equivocation in Macbeth. The witches, Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, and other characters continually mince their words—sometimes outright lying, but more often just being purposely unclear—usually for reasons of deception.
Read about The Significance of Equivocation in Macbeth. (3-minute read)
How is Macbeth a play about the distinctions between bad kings and good ones?
The Differences Between Kingship and Tyranny is a strong theme of Macbeth. While examples of how Macbeth is not just a bad king, but a terrible one are too numerous to list, what they have in common is that he always puts his own interests ahead of those of his country and its people. The conversation in Act 4, Scene 3 between Macduff and Malcolm expresses many of the qualities of proper kingship and citizenship.
Read more about the Theme of the Differences between Kingship in Tyranny (#3). 2-minute read)
Read about Malcolm’s leadership qualities in his in-depth Character Analysis. (2-minute read).
