ISC Class 11 English Drama Macbeth Act 1 Scene 3 Important Question Answers
Macbeth Act 1 Scene 3 Question Answer: Looking for ISC Class 11 English Drama Macbeth Act 1 Scene 3 question answers? Look no further! Our comprehensive compilation of important questions will help you brush up on your subject knowledge. Practising ISC Class 11 English question answers can significantly improve your performance in the exam. Our solutions provide a clear idea of how to write the answers effectively. Improve your chances of scoring high marks by exploring Macbeth Act 1 Scene 3 now. The questions listed below are based on the latest ICSE exam pattern.
Related:
ISC Class 11 English Drama Macbeth Act 1 Scene 3 Textbook Questions
ASSIGNMENT
Question 1
Choose the correct options for the following questions:
1. Who are referred to in this scene as ‘the weird sisters’?
(a) Wives of the sailors
(b) The witches
(c) Wives of the Generals
(d) Wives of the thanes
Ans. (b) The witches
2. How does Banquo describe the three witches?
(a) Like the inhabitants of earth
(b) Unlike the inhabitants of earth
(c) Like the sea-animals
(d) Like the storms
Ans. (b) Unlike the inhabitants of earth
3. According to Banquo, witches don’t look like women due to which of the following?
(a) Absence of affection
(b) Presence of cruelty
(c) Presence of beards
(d) Absence of love
Ans. (c) Presence of beards
4. To whom does the witches refer to as ‘Posters’?
(a) Macbeth and Banquo
(b) Their familiars
(c) Swift Travellers
(d) The Book of Magic
Ans. (c) Swift Travellers
5. What does the witches’ curse on the sailor indicate?
(a) Macbeth’s future
(b) Duncan’s future
(c) Banquo’s future
(d) None of the above
Ans. (a) Macbeth’s future
6. The witches do NOT use which of the titles for Macbeth?
(a) The Thane of Glamis
(b) The Thane of Fife
(c) The Thane of Cawdor
(d) The future king
Ans. (b) The Thane of Fife
7. Which of the following is incorrect about the witches?
(a) They are spiteful
(b) They speak in riddles
(c) They vanish in sunlight
(d) They vanish under the cover of fog
Ans. (c) They vanish in sunlight
8. Who is referred to as Sinel?
(a) Macbeth’s cousin
(b) Macbeth’s brother
(c) Macbeth’s father
(d) Macbeth’s uncle
Ans. (c) Macbeth’s father
9. How did Banquo react to the witches prophecy?
(a) He remained sceptical
(b) He got scared
(c) He got delighted
(d) He remained indifferent
Ans. (a) He remained sceptical
10. Which of the following traits of Macbeth is revealed by his soliloquy?
(a) Anxiety
(b) Terror
(c) Hesitation
(d) Scepticism
Ans. (d) Scepticism
11. The thought of murdering Duncan has the following effect on Macbeth:
(a) He feels it is a horrid image
(b) His hair stands at their ends
(c) His heart pounds unnaturally
(d) All of the above
Ans. (d) All of the above
12. Banquo considers the witches prophecy as mere_______________.
(a) sand on a beach
(b) bubbles in the air
(c) winds in the air
(d) None of the above
Ans. (b) bubbles in the air
Question 2
Complete the following sentences by providing a reason for each:
1. The first witch wanted to punish the sailor because______________________.
Ans. The first witch wanted to punish the sailor because his wife refused to share her chestnuts and rudely told the witch to ‘Aroint thee, witch!’, leading the witch to seek revenge on the sailor husband.
2. The Good Sir’ was startled on hearing the pleasant tidings because_______________.
Ans. The ‘Good Sir’ was startled on hearing the pleasant tidings because the title of ‘King hereafter’ stirred his latent ambition and brought forth the horrifying thought of murdering King Duncan to achieve the prophecy.
3. According to Macbeth, the supernatural soliciting cannot be ill because_____________.
Ans. According to Macbeth, the supernatural soliciting cannot be ill because it has already commenced in a truth by correctly hailing him as the Thane of Cawdor, a partial fulfilment of the prophecies.
4. Macbeth’s imagination prevented him from taking action because______________.
Ans. Macbeth’s imagination prevented him from taking action because the mere thought, or ‘horrid image’, of murdering Duncan was so terrifying that it rendered him mentally and physically paralyzed, making his ‘seated heart knock at my ribs’ and his ‘function / Is smother’d in surmise’.
5. The devil sends his messengers to deliver half-truths so that______________________.
Ans. The devil sends his messengers to deliver half-truths so that they can ‘win us with honest trifles, to betray’s / In deepest consequence’, meaning they use small, true details to gain trust and ultimately lead people to terrible harm or ruin.
ISC Class 11 English Drama Macbeth Act 1 Scene 3 Extra Question and Answers
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
Q1. What is the first title the Witches use to greet Macbeth?
A. Thane of Cawdor
B. King hereafter
C. Thane of Glamis
D. Prince of Cumberland
Ans. C. Thane of Glamis
Q2. Which of the following best describes the Witches’ prophecy for Banquo?
A. He will be king but will not father kings
B. He will be lesser than Macbeth but happier
C. He will be thane of Cawdor and father of kings
D. He will be king and father of kings
Ans. B. He will be lesser than Macbeth but happier
Q3. Who delivers the news to Macbeth that he has been given the title Thane of Cawdor?
A. King Duncan
B. Malcolm
C. Ross and Angus
D. Lady Macbeth
Ans. C. Ross and Angus
Q4. Why was the previous Thane of Cawdor executed?
A. He fled the country
B. He committed treason by conspiring with the enemy
C. He was killed in battle by Macbeth
D. He refused to swear allegiance to King Duncan
Ans. B. He committed treason by conspiring with the enemy
Q5. In his first aside after the prophecies, what is Macbeth’s initial internal conflict?
A. Whether to tell Banquo about his ambition.
B. Whether the prophecies are real or just a dream.
C. Whether he needs to murder Duncan to gain the throne.
D. Whether he should immediately thank the King.
Ans. C. Whether he needs to murder Duncan to gain the throne.
Q6. What is the meaning of Banquo’s warning: ‘The instruments of darkness tell us truths, / Win us with honest trifles, to betray’s / In deepest consequence’?
A. Macbeth should listen to the Witches because they speak truth
B. Evil beings use small truths to lure people into serious harm
C. The Witches’ prophecies are just meaningless riddles
D. Goodness can come from dark sources.
Ans. B. Evil beings use small truths to lure people into serious harm
Q7. Which line from the scene foreshadows Macbeth’s eventual willingness to murder?
A. ‘So foul and fair a day I have not seen’
B. ‘My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical…’
C. ‘Thou art kind’
D. ‘The earth hath bubbles, as the water has’
Ans. B. ‘My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical…’
Q8. When Macbeth says, ‘If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, / Without my stir’, what is he contemplating?
A. That fate will handle everything and he will take no action
B. That he must immediately murder Duncan
C. That Banquo will betray him
D. That he must first kill the former Thane of Cawdor.
Ans. A. That fate will handle everything and he will take no action
Q9. The first two lines spoken by Macbeth upon entering the scene ‘So foul and fair a day I have not seen’ echo which previous line spoken by the Witches?
A. Peace! the charm’s wound up.
B. Here I have a pilot’s thumb.
C. Fair is foul, and foul is fair.
D. I’ll do. I’ll do, and I’ll do.
Ans. C. Fair is foul, and foul is fair.
Q10. What is Macbeth’s final decision regarding the Witches’ prophecies at the end of the scene before speaking to Banquo?
A. He fully commits the murder of Duncan.
B. He fully dismisses the prophecies.
C. He decides to wait and see what time brings, though the idea of murder has begun.
D. He decides to immediately go to the King and confess his thoughts.
Ans. C. He decides to wait and see what time brings, though the idea of murder has begun.
Fill Up Sentences
Complete the following sentences by providing a reason for each:
1. The First Witch plans to sail to Aleppo in a sieve because_____________________.
Ans. The First Witch plans to sail to Aleppo in a sieve because witches were believed to have the power to travel in unconventional ways, showing their supernatural ability to defy natural rules.
2. The Witches greet Macbeth first with the title Thane of Glamis because_____________________.
Ans. The Witches greet Macbeth first with the title Thane of Glamis because he inherited this title from his father, Sinel, making it his current, undisputed position.
3. Macbeth is struck by fear when the Witches first speak because_____________________.
Ans. Macbeth is struck by fear when the Witches first speak because the horrid image of murdering Duncan to attain the third title, King, immediately enters his mind.
4. Banquo cautions Macbeth about the Witches’ prophecies because _____________________.
Ans. Banquo cautions Macbeth about the Witches’ prophecies because he believes instruments of darkness i.e. evil beings often tell small truths to betray people into doing great harm, highlighting the danger of trusting evil sources.
5. Macbeth becomes the Thane of Cawdor because _____________________.
Ans. Macbeth becomes the Thane of Cawdor because the previous Thane of Cawdor was executed for treason against King Duncan during the recent battles.
6. Macbeth initially tries to convince himself that he does not need to act, stating, ‘If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, / Without my stir’, because _____________________.
Ans. Macbeth initially tries to convince himself that he does not need to act, stating, ‘If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, / Without my stir’, because he is hoping fate or luck will bring him the crown without him having to commit the terrible deed of murder.
7. Banquo notes that Macbeth’s new honours ‘cleave not to their mould, / But with the aid of use’ because ____________________.
Ans. Banquo notes that Macbeth’s new honours ‘cleave not to their mould, / But with the aid of use’ because he is suggesting that new titles, like new clothes, feel awkward at first and will only fit properly with time and habit.
8. The Witches hail Banquo as ‘Lesser than Macbeth, and greater’ because ____________________.
Ans. The Witches hail Banquo as ‘Lesser than Macbeth, and greater’ because he will not be king himself (lesser), but he will be the ancestor of future kings (greater).
9.Macbeth’s line, ‘So foul and fair a day I have not seen’, echoes the Witches’ initial chant because ___________________.
Ans. Macbeth’s line, ‘So foul and fair a day I have not seen’, echoes the Witches’ initial chant because it links Macbeth directly to the theme of moral confusion and evil presented by the Witches’ paradox, suggesting a spiritual kinship with them.
10. When Ross and Angus arrive, Macbeth is described as being rapt because____________________.
Ans. When Ross and Angus arrive, Macbeth is described as being rapt because he is so lost in the astonishing realization and the terrifying thoughts sparked by the prophecies that he is completely absorbed and oblivious to his surroundings.
Extra Questions
SHORT QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Answer the questions briefly in about 100-150 words.
Q1. How do the Witches’ prophecies immediately impact Macbeth, and how does his reaction differ from Banquo’s?
Ans. The Witches’ prophecies act as a powerful catalyst for Macbeth’s pre-existing ambition. When he is praised as Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and King hereafter, he is instantly thrown into a state of fear and confusion. The titles spark a terrifying internal conflict, as the ‘horrid image’ of murdering King Duncan immediately enters his mind. This shows Macbeth is morally vulnerable and already prone to thinking about extreme action to achieve power. In contrast, Banquo reacts with skepticism and caution. He questions the Witches’ appearance and motives, immediately issuing a famous warning that ‘instruments of darkness’ often tell small truths to trick people and lead them to ultimate ruin. Banquo’s response highlights his integrity and wisdom, as he recognizes the danger of trusting evil sources, serving as a moral foil to Macbeth’s rapid descent into temptation.
Q2. Explain the significance of the first prophecy of ‘Thane of Cawdor’ being immediately fulfilled.
Ans. The immediate fulfillment of the ‘Thane of Cawdor’ prophecy is critically significant because it legitimizes the Witches’ power in Macbeth’s mind and accelerates his tragic downfall. When Ross and Angus arrive to bestow the title upon him, it provides tangible, real-world proof that the supernatural beings have spoken the truth. This partial fulfillment effectively convinces Macbeth that the final, greatest prophecy, that he will be king must also be true. The event fuels his belief in fate, making the crown seem like a plausible destiny rather than a mere fantasy. It traps him, as he now internalizes the moral dilemma: either passively wait for ‘chance’ to crown him, or actively secure the throne through murder. The instantaneous nature of the honor erases any doubt Macbeth might have had, pushing him over the edge of contemplation and into the realm of destructive ambition.
Q3. What is the central conflict expressed in Macbeth’s soliloquy?
Ans. The central conflict in Macbeth’s soliloquy is the terrifying collision between his ambition and his conscience. He recognizes the prophecy’s power i.e. ‘Cannot be ill; cannot be good’. It cannot be entirely evil since the first part came true, but it cannot be entirely good because the idea it inspires is of murdering the king, which is so horrifying that it makes his hair stand on end and his heart beat unnaturally. Macbeth is caught between the temptation of ultimate power and the moral repulsion of committing the action of killing a king. His thought is described as a ‘fantastical’ murder, showing the deed is still an abstract idea, but one that severely paralyzes his ability to function. He wrestles with the dilemma of whether to trust the supernatural and actively work for the crown or resign himself to destiny. The mere thought of the action shakes his entire being, revealing his initial, albeit temporary, humanity and moral terror.
Q4. Analyze Banquo’s prophecy ‘Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none’ and its importance to the play’s themes.
Ans. Banquo’s prophecy, ‘Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none’, which means that he will father kings, though he will never be king himself, is vital as it introduces the theme of posterity and the future consequences of evil acts. While Macbeth focuses intensely on his own immediate title, Banquo’s prophecy shifts the focus to the succession and legacy that lies beyond Macbeth’s reign. This prophecy immediately plants a seed of future conflict between the two men, even before Macbeth acts. For Macbeth, the possibility that Banquo’s lineage, not his own, will ultimately inherit the throne becomes a source of frustration and paranoia later in the play. It drives him to commit further murders of Banquo and Fleance in a desperate and bloody attempt to defeat the prophecy. The fact that the Witches are predicting the fate of two distinct royal lines establishes the sweep of the tragedy, which extends far beyond the life of the main character.
Q5. How does Macbeth’s final speech in the scene reflect a shift in his moral state?
Ans. Macbeth’s final speech, reaching climax in the line ‘Come what come may, / Time and the hour runs through the roughest day’, reflects a shift toward resignation and passive acceptance of a dark course. While his soliloquy showed paralyzing fear over the thought of murder, his closing remarks signal that he is ceasing to fight the temptation.
He momentarily retreats to a fatalistic view, deciding to let ‘chance’ run its course, effectively giving permission to the dark desires to fester without actively rejecting them. He agrees to discuss the matter with Banquo later, but internally, his moral resistance is weakened. By concluding that time will inevitably advance through any difficulty, he is bracing himself for the ‘roughest day’ that his ambitious thoughts will likely bring. This is not a complete commitment to murder, but it is a surrender of his innocence and a mental preparation for whatever the path to kingship requires.
LONG QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Answer the questions briefly in about 200-250 words.
Q1. How do the Witches’ descriptions of their recent activities establish their malevolent nature and supernatural power before Macbeth’s arrival?
Ans. The Witches’ initial dialogue, before Macbeth and Banquo enter, serves to immediately establish their malice, petty cruelty, and formidable supernatural power. The First Witch recounts being denied chestnuts by a sailor’s wife and, in revenge, planning to torment her husband, a master of a ship called the Tiger, who is sailing to Aleppo. This act is not about grand, world-changing evil, but vindictive, localized mischief sparked by a simple denial, underscoring their irrational spite. The First Witch boasts of sailing to the ship in a sieve and turning into a ‘rat without a tail’, clearly defying natural laws and showcasing their metamorphic abilities. She then outlines her plan: to exhaust the sailor completely by controlling the winds, draining him ‘dry as hay’, and keeping him awake for eighty one weeks. While the Witches admit they are limited, they cannot sink the ship entirely, they vow to ensure it is severely ‘tempest-tost’, demonstrating their power to inflict prolonged suffering and chaos. The scene is sealed with the Third Witch’s macabre trophy: a ‘pilot’s thumb, / Wreck’d as homeward he did come’. This frightful detail confirms their direct involvement in human misery and death. The entire exchange conditions the audience to view the Witches not as harmless eccentrics, but as dangerous, spiteful agents capable of manipulating natural elements and human fortunes, thus lending profound weight and terror to the prophecies they are about to deliver to Macbeth.
Q2. Analyze Macbeth’s line, ‘So foul and fair a day I have not seen’, and its significance in relation to the play’s major themes.
Ans. Macbeth’s opening line, ‘So foul and fair a day I have not seen’, is profoundly significant as it immediately links him thematically to the Witches and the central paradox of the play which is the inversion of morality. The phrase directly mirrors the Witches’ closing chant from the very first scene: ‘Fair is foul, and foul is fair’, suggesting Macbeth is unknowingly echoing the philosophy of moral chaos. The day is ‘fair’ because Macbeth has achieved a glorious, reputation-making victory for Scotland, fulfilling his duty as a loyal subject, and the weather after the storm might be clearing. However, it is ‘foul’ due to the tremendous slaughter and chaotic bloodshed of the war he has just endured. More importantly, it foreshadows the moral corruption that will soon consume him. Macbeth is unwittingly expressing the central dilemma of his future: the path to the ‘fair’ title of King will require the ‘foul’ deed of murder. By echoing the Witches’ words, he reveals that his inner moral compass is already aligned with their ambiguous, contradictory view of the world. This makes him uniquely susceptible to their influence and signals his innate capacity for wickedness and confusion. The line acts as a dramatic bridge, moving the paradoxical evil established by the Witches directly into the mind and mouth of the tragic hero, marking the moment his fate intersects with the supernatural.
Q3. How does Banquo’s description of the Witches emphasize their unnatural and deceptive nature?
Ans. Banquo’s description of the Witches immediately focuses on their unnatural and confusing appearance, effectively emphasizing their role as agents of deceit and disorder. He calls them ‘wither’d, and so wild in their attire’, indicating they are not only aged and haggard but dressed in a disturbing manner that marks them as outcasts or supernatural figures. His initial bewilderment is profound, he questions whether they are even alive or ‘aught / That man may question’, suggesting their very existence defies natural understanding and challenges their reality. Most memorably, he observes the contradiction between their implied gender and their physical features: ‘You should be women, / And yet your beards forbid me to interpret / That you are so’. This profound sexual ambiguity highlights their unsettling nature, they are neither fully male nor fully female, neither fully human nor fully spirit. They are beings of a liminal space, incapable of being clearly defined or trusted. By presenting them as figures whose exterior appearances are fundamentally misleading and defy conventional interpretation, Shakespeare establishes them as masters of illusion and moral ambiguity. This sharp, critical observation underscores Banquo’s immediate suspicion that their words, too, will be deceptive and harmful, serving as an early, clear warning against the deceptive nature of supernatural temptation.
Q4. Describe the shift in Macbeth’s thoughts and plans regarding the crown between his soliloquy and his final remark to himself.
Ans. Macbeth’s internal state undergoes a subtle but crucial shift from paralyzing terror in his soliloquy to a fatalistic resignation in his closing remark. In his soliloquy, he is completely overwhelmed by the ‘horrid image’ of murder, which unfixes his hair and makes his heart violently beat ‘Against the use of nature’. His mind is so consumed by this ‘fantastical’ thought that his capacity for normal action is suspended. At this juncture, he is actively fighting the murderous suggestion, seeking to dismiss it as unnatural. However, this moral struggle is abandoned by his final remark to himself: ‘Come what come may, / Time and the hour runs through the roughest day’. Here, he chooses to stop fighting and submit to the flow of events. He decides to set aside the agonizing moral dilemma for the moment and wait to see if ‘chance’ will crown him without effort. This is a dangerous form of passive surrender; rather than firmly rejecting the evil thought, he is allowing the passage of time and inevitable events to dictate his actions. He is psychologically bracing himself to accept whatever action is required, effectively leaving the door open for the crime, suggesting that the ‘roughest day’ of murder is now viewed as an inevitable part of the journey to kingship.
Q5. How does the concept of ‘borrowed robes’ appear in this scene, and what symbolic importance does it carry for Macbeth?
Ans. The concept of ‘borrowed robes’ symbolizing unearned or ill-fitting honour, appears when Macbeth is hailed as the Thane of Cawdor. Upon hearing the news from Ross and Angus, Macbeth’s immediate, startled question is, ‘The thane of Cawdor lives. Why do you dress me / In borrow’d robes?’ This question is initially literal, as he believes the title rightly belongs to the current, living Thane. Symbolically, the phrase is a powerful metaphor for Macbeth’s entire ascent to power and his subsequent discomfort. First, the title itself is ‘borrowed’ from a traitor the previous Thane, immediately associating Macbeth’s new honour with treachery and ill-gotten gains. Second, and most critically, the final ‘robe’ the Crown will be taken through murder, and will thus never truly fit or belong to him. His kingship will be an unnatural, temporary garment. Banquo later reinforces this image by comparing Macbeth’s new honours to ‘strange garments, cleave not to their mould, / But with the aid of use’, suggesting Macbeth is not yet accustomed to or worthy of such greatness, and that the honours feel awkward and forced upon him. The ‘borrowed robes’ motif therefore instantly establishes Macbeth as a usurper; his honours are temporary, ill-gotten, and will ultimately feel uncomfortable, reflecting his own unsuitability and the temporary, unnatural nature of his impending kingship.