© Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All rights reserved.NOTESAssisted by that most disloyal traitor
The Thane of Cawdor, began a dismal^21 conflict;
Till that Bellona’s bridegroom, lapped in proof,^22
Confronted him with self-comparisons,^23
Point against point, rebellious arm ’gainst arm,
Curbing his lavish^24 spirit: and, to conclude,
The victory fell on us.
King. Great happiness!
Ross. That now
Sweno, the Norways’ king, craves composition;^25
Nor would we deign him burial of his men
Till he disbursed, at Saint Colme’s Inch,^26
Ten thousand dollars to our general use.
King. No more that Thane of Cawdor shall deceive
Our bosom interest:^27 go pronounce his present^28 death,
And with his former title greet Macbeth.
Ross. I’ll see it done.
King. What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won.
[Exit.]⌘ ⌘ ⌘Scene iii • A heath near Forres.
[Thunder. Enter the Three Witches.]
First Witch. Where hast thou been, sister?
Second Witch. Killing swine.^1
Third Witch. Sister, where thou?
First Witch. A sailor’s wife had chestnuts in her lap.
And mounched, and mounched, and mounched.
“Give me,” quoth I.
Aroint thee,^2 witch!” the rump-fed ronyon^3 cries.
Her husband’s to Aleppo^4 gone, master o’ th’ Tiger:
But in a sieve^5 I’ll thither sail.
And, like a rat without a tail,^6
I’ll do, I’ll do, and I’ll do.
Second Witch. I’ll give thee a wind.
First Witch. Th’ art kind.
Third Witch. And I another.
First Witch. I myself have all the other;
And the very ports they blow,^7
All the quarters that they know
I’ th’ shipman’s card.^8- dismal threatening.
- Bellona’s... proof Macbeth is
called the mate of Bellona, the
goddess of war, clad in tested
armor. - self-comparisons counter
movements.
rebellious (rih BEHL yuhs) adj.
acting against authority - lavish insolent.
- composition terms of peace.
- St. Colme’s Inch island near
Edinburgh, Scotland. - Our bosom interest my heart’s
trust. - present immediate.
556065- Killing swine It was commonly
believed that witches killed
domestic animals. - Aroint thee Be off.
- rump-fed ronyon fat-rumped,
scabby creature. - Aleppo trading center in Syria.
- sieve It was commonly
believed that witches sailed
in sieves, or strainers used in
cooking. - rat... tail According to
popular belief, witches could
assume the form of any
animal, but the tail would
always be missing.
51015- they blow to which the winds
blow. - card compass.
The Tragedy of Macbeth, Act I 263LIT17_SE12_U03_A1C_WC.indd 263 20/03/16 1:22 AMAnalyze Plot
Students may have marked Scene ii,
lines 58−67 during their first read. Use these
lines to help students understand what
significant event occurs at this point in the
plot. Encourage them to talk about the
annotations that they marked. You may want
to model a close read with the class based on
the highlights shown in the text.
ANNOTATE: Have students mark details
in these lines that describe what the king
has just done that affects Macbeth, or have
students participate while you highlight them.
QuEsTiON: Guide students to consider what
these details might tell them. Ask what a
reader can infer from the king’s action, and
accept student responses.
Possible response: The king declares that the
Thane of Cawdor will no longer betray him. He
strips him of his title and gives it to Macbeth.
CONCLuDE: Help students to formulate
conclusions about the importance of these
details in the text. Ask students why the
author might have included these details.
Possible response: It now appears that
Macbeth is a true hero, and the king is pleased
with his actions in battle.
Remind students that a plot is the sequence
of events that make up a story and often
involves characters in conflict. The plot is
usually divided into five parts: the exposition;
rising action; climax; falling action; and
resolution, or denouement. The exposition
introduces the setting, the characters, and
the basic situation. It is followed by the rising
action, which usually contains an inciting
incident that introduces the central conflict.
In the first act, Shakespeare introduces the
characters and basic situation. The first
inciting incident occurs when Macbeth is
given the title of Thane. This sets the stage for
the character’s actions.CLOSER LOOK
DIGITAL PERSPECTIVES
illuminating the Text Review Act I, Scene
ii. Because a drama depends on dialogue,
playwrights must find creative ways to
reveal information that, in a different
genre—such as a novel—might go into
a character description, a description
of setting, or a flashback. In particular,
Shakespeare’s plays were written to beperformed with minimal sets and few
props. Have students read or listen to a
recording of The Tragedy of Macbeth Act I,
Scene ii. Discuss the following questions:
• How does the king find out
what happened in battle with
Macdonwald?• How might this information have
been presented in a modern film
adaptation of the play?
Tell students that, as they read the
drama, they should be aware of how
details of setting and off-stage actions
are revealed through dialogue.Whole-Class Learning 263
LIT17_TE12_U03_A1C_WC.indd 263 4/9/16 10:09 AM