After Malcolm is named Prince of Cumberland, Macbeth says, "Stars, hide your fires; / Let not light see my black and deep desires." What does this reveal?

Macbeth's soliloquy says he has "no spur" except "vaulting ambition." What admission does the image make?

Macbeth says, "We will proceed no further in this business," but later kills Duncan. What theme does the change sharpen?

Lady Macbeth asks whether Macbeth is afraid to be "the same in thine own act" as in desire. How does this push him?

After Lady Macbeth's pressure, Macbeth says, "I am settled." What does the line mark?

Why does Malcolm's title, Prince of Cumberland, matter to Macbeth's ambition?

In the murder soliloquy, Macbeth notes Duncan is meek and "clear in his great office." Why does this matter?

Once king, Macbeth says, "To be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus." What cost of ambition appears here?

Macbeth vows, "The very firstlings of my heart shall be / The firstlings of my hand." What moral shift follows the later prophecies?

Before Duncan's murder, Macbeth sees a dagger leading him toward Duncan's room. What does staging the vision do?

Macbeth hears, "Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep." How is guilt dramatized?

Macbeth asks, "Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand?" What does the blood motif show?

Lady Macbeth says "A little water clears us of this deed," then later rubs at an unseen spot. What does the reversal show?

At the banquet, Macbeth cries to Banquo's ghost while the guests see no ghost. What effect does this have?

Macbeth tells Lady Macbeth, "O, full of scorpions is my mind." What does the image make visible?

As the doctor and gentlewoman watch Lady Macbeth sleepwalk, what does the scene show about her?

Lady Macbeth says, "All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand." What has changed since the murder night?

Macbeth first says, "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, / Without my stir." What does his later murder prove?

Banquo warns that the "instruments of darkness" may tell truths to win people to harm. How is his warning proved?

Banquo hears the witches and waits; Macbeth hears them and acts. What does this contrast suggest?

Ross calling Macbeth Thane of Cawdor soon after the witches' greeting affects Macbeth how?

After "Beware Macduff," Macbeth attacks Macduff's castle. What does his response show?

The prophecy says none "of woman born" shall harm Macbeth. How does Macduff reveal the equivocation?

How does Birnam Wood seem to come to Dunsinane?

Banquo is told, "Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none." Why does this matter to Macbeth?

How does Banquo function as Macbeth's foil after hearing the witches?

At first, Lady Macbeth asks spirits to make her cruel; near the end, Macbeth orders murders without her. What contrast emerges?

Duncan rewards service and trusts his thanes; Macbeth rules through spies and murder. What theme does this contrast build?

Macduff leaves Scotland's court to seek help; Macbeth kills Macduff's family to keep power. What does the contrast emphasize?

Malcolm tests Macduff by pretending he would be a vicious king. Why contrast this with Macbeth?