ISC Class 12 English Drama Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 Summary, Theme, Explanation along with difficult word meanings
Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 Class 12 ISC– Are you looking for Summary Theme and Lesson Explanation for ISC Class 12 English Drama Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2. Get summary, theme, explanation along with difficult word meanings.
ISC Class 12 – Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2
By William Shakespeare
In Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship begins to strain as Macbeth becomes increasingly paranoid. He is worried about Banquo and Fleance, secretly planning to kill them. Lady Macbeth says that their power doesn’t bring happiness and tells Macbeth to hide his fears before the upcoming banquet. Macbeth’s mind is now full of psychological disturbance.
- Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 Summary
- Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 Summary in Hindi
- Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 Theme
- Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 Explanation
Related:
Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 Summary
This scene shows the heavy emotional toll that being King and Queen has taken on the Macbeths. The scene begins with Lady Macbeth alone, and for the first time, her mask slips. She admits to herself that getting what you want is pointless if it doesn’t bring you peace. She feels that it might actually be better to be dead like Duncan than to live in a state of constant, doubtful joy and anxiety. Even though she successfully pushed her husband to commit murder, she is now realizing that the crown is a very heavy burden.
When Macbeth enters, Lady Macbeth immediately hides her own sadness to try and comfort him. She scolds him for spending so much time alone, brooding over what they’ve done. She tells him that since they can’t change the past, they shouldn’t waste time thinking about it. However, it’s clear that neither of them can actually follow that advice. They are both putting on a brave face for each other while crumbling on the inside.
Macbeth responds with a dark intensity that shows just how much his mental state has deteriorated. He uses the famous metaphor of scotching the snake, explaining that by killing Duncan, they only wounded the threat to their power rather than ending it. He admits that he is terrified to eat or sleep, haunted by terrible dreams every night. He even expresses a twisted sense of envy for the dead King Duncan, noting that Duncan is lucky because he can finally sleep peacefully, safe from treason, poison, and war.
By the end of the scene, there is a subtle but major shift in their relationship. While Lady Macbeth used to be the mastermind, Macbeth is now taking control of the violence. He hints that the murder of Banquo will happen that night, but he refuses to tell her the details. He calls her dearest chuck and tells her to stay unaware about it until it’s finished. The scene ends with Macbeth calling upon the darkness of night to cover up the crimes he is about to commit, showing that he has fully embraced a path of evil that even his wife no longer fully understands.
Summary of Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 in Hindi
यह दृश्य उस भारी भावनात्मक क्षति को दर्शाता है जो राजा और रानी होने के नाते मैकबेथ पर हुई है। दृश्य की शुरुआत अकेले लेडी मैकबेथ से होती है, और पहली बार, उसका मुखौटा फिसल जाता है। वह खुद को स्वीकार करती है कि आप जो चाहते हैं उसे प्राप्त करना व्यर्थ है यदि यह आपको शांति नहीं लाता है। उसे लगता है कि निरंतर, संदिग्ध आनंद और चिंता की स्थिति में रहने की तुलना में डंकन की तरह मर जाना वास्तव में बेहतर हो सकता है। भले ही उसने अपने पति को हत्या करने के लिए सफलतापूर्वक धक्का दिया, लेकिन अब उसे एहसास हो रहा है कि ताज एक बहुत भारी बोझ है।
जब मैकबेथ प्रवेश करती है, तो लेडी मैकबेथ तुरंत उसे सांत्वना देने की कोशिश करने के लिए अपना दुख छुपाती है। वह उसे इतना समय अकेले बिताने के लिए डांटती है कि उन्होंने क्या किया है। वह उससे कहती है कि चूंकि वे अतीत को नहीं बदल सकते हैं, इसलिए उन्हें इसके बारे में सोचने में समय बर्बाद नहीं करना चाहिए। हालाँकि, यह स्पष्ट है कि उनमें से कोई भी वास्तव में उस सलाह का पालन नहीं कर सकता है। वे दोनों अंदर से टूटते हुए एक-दूसरे के लिए एक बहादुर चेहरा पहन रहे हैं।
मैकबेथ एक गहरी तीव्रता के साथ प्रतिक्रिया करता है जो दिखाता है कि उसकी मानसिक स्थिति कितनी बिगड़ गई है। वह सांप को भगाने के प्रसिद्ध रूपक का उपयोग करता है, यह समझाते हुए कि डंकन को मारकर, उन्होंने इसे समाप्त करने के बजाय केवल अपनी शक्ति के लिए खतरे को घायल किया। वह स्वीकार करता है कि वह खाने या सोने से डरता है, हर रात भयानक सपनों से परेशान रहता है। वह मृत राजा डंकन के लिए ईर्ष्या की एक विकृत भावना भी व्यक्त करता है, यह देखते हुए कि डंकन भाग्यशाली है क्योंकि वह अंततः शांति से, राजद्रोह, जहर और युद्ध से सुरक्षित सो सकता है।
दृश्य के अंत तक, उनके रिश्ते में एक सूक्ष्म लेकिन बड़ा बदलाव आता है। जबकि लेडी मैकबेथ मास्टरमाइंड हुआ करती थी, मैकबेथ अब हिंसा पर नियंत्रण कर रहा है। वह संकेत देता है कि उस रात बैंको की हत्या हो जाएगी, लेकिन वह उसे विवरण बताने से इनकार कर देता है। वह उसकी सबसे प्यारी लड़की को फोन करता है और उसे इसके बारे में तब तक अनजान रहने के लिए कहता है जब तक कि यह खत्म नहीं हो जाता। दृश्य मैकबेथ द्वारा रात के अंधेरे को उन अपराधों को छिपाने के लिए बुलाने के साथ समाप्त होता है जो वह करने वाला है, यह दर्शाता है कि उसने पूरी तरह से बुराई के रास्ते को अपनाया है जिसे उसकी पत्नी भी अब पूरी तरह से समझ नहीं पाती है।
Theme of Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2
The Guilt and Regret
The most prominent theme is the crushing weight of guilt. Lady Macbeth begins the scene by admitting that they have gained nothing because they are not happy. She realizes that killing Duncan didn’t bring peace; it only brought constant worry. Macbeth is even more tormented, famously saying his mind is ‘full of scorpions’. This vivid image suggests that his guilt isn’t just a quiet feeling, it is a stinging, poisonous pain that keeps him in a state of restless happiness, or a frantic kind of madness.
The Cycle of Violence
This scene highlights how one crime leads to another. Macbeth feels that his throne is not safe as long as Banquo and Fleance are alive. He uses the metaphor of the ‘scorched snake’ to explain that they have only slightly wounded the threats to their power, not destroyed them. This theme shows that it is difficult to walk the slope of evil, to protect the first murder, Macbeth feels he must commit a second, and then a third. His ambition has turned into a desperate, paranoid struggle for survival.
Appearance vs. Reality
The theme of hiding one’s true self is very strong here. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are miserable, yet they tell each other to put on jovial and bright faces for their guests. Macbeth tells his wife that they must make their faces mask their hearts. This highlights the theme of deception, they are living a double life where they must act like happy royalty while they are actually rotting with fear on the inside.
The Loss of Sleep and Natural Order
Shakespeare uses the motif of sleep to show how the natural order has been broken. Because they murdered Duncan while he was sleeping, they have murdered sleep for themselves. Macbeth envies Duncan because the dead king sleeps well in his grave, free from the unsteady life. For the Macbeths, sleep is now replaced by terrible dreams that shake them off at night. This loss of rest symbolizes that they are no longer part of the natural, innocent world.
Theme of Power and Isolation
The scene explores the theme of isolation. At the start of the play, the Macbeths were a partner of greatness, sharing every secret. Now, they are drifting apart. Macbeth plans the murder of Banquo without Lady Macbeth’s help, telling her to stay unaware about it until the deed is done. This marks a major shift, Macbeth is becoming a lone tyrant, and their once-strong relationship is being destroyed by the very secrets and crimes that were supposed to bind them together.
Setting of the Scene
The setting of Act 3, Scene 2 is a private room within the royal palace at Forres. While the physical location is a place of grand power and luxury, the atmosphere is heavy with gloom, isolation, and paranoia. The palace, which should be a symbol of Macbeth’s success and security, feels more like a prison where the walls are closing in on the couple. The ‘thickening light’ and the approach of twilight mentioned toward the end of the scene reflect the internal darkness of the characters; as the sun sets on the physical world, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are descending further into a world of shadows, secrets, and terrible dreams. This setting creates a sharp contrast between public appearance and private reality. Just outside this room, a great banquet is being prepared, which is supposed to be a celebration of Macbeth’s kingship. However, inside this private space, the palace is a site of mental torture. The shift from day to night is crucial here, as it signals the end of good things of day and the rise of night’s black agents. The setting serves as a quiet, claustrophobic bubble where the audience witnesses the couple’s relationship begin to fracture and their peace of mind completely vanishes.
Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2 Explanation
Play
Scene 2. The palace.
Enter Lady Macbeth, and a Servant
Lady Macbeth
Is Banquo gone from court?
Servant
Ay, madam, but returns again to-night.
Lady Macbeth
Say to the king, I would attend his leisure
For a few words.
Servant
Madam, I will.
[Exit
Lady Macbeth
Naught’s had, all’s spent,
Where our desire is got without content:
‘Tis safer to be that which we destroy
Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy.
Enter Macbeth
How now, my lord! why do you keep alone,
Of sorriest fancies your companions making;
Using those thoughts which should indeed have died
With them they think on? Things without all remedy
Should be without regard: what’s done is done.
Word Meanings
Naught’s: nothing is.
spent: lost.
without content: without satisfaction.
doubtful joy: joy mixed with insecurity.
Of sorriest… making: brooding forever on past deeds
Without regard: Without further thought or concern.
Attend his leisure: Wait until he is free.
Explanation of the above dialogues— Lady Macbeth asks a servant if Banquo has departed from the court, to which the servant confirms that he has but plans to return that evening. Lady Macbeth then instructs the servant to inform the King that she wishes to speak with him for a few moments whenever he is free. Once the servant exits, Lady Macbeth speaks to herself, lamenting that they have gained nothing and lost everything because they have achieved their desires but lack any sense of peace or satisfaction. She reasons that it would actually be safer to be the dead victim than to be the murderer living in a state of anxious, uncertain joy. When Macbeth enters, Lady Macbeth questions him about why he has been isolating himself and keeping company with his most miserable thoughts. She tells him that he should have let those thoughts die along with the people i.e. King Duncan he is thinking about. She firmly advises him that things which cannot be fixed should be ignored, concluding with the famous sentiment that what has already been done cannot be changed. This exchange between the couples highlights the theme of appearance vs. reality and the deterioration of the ‘Partner of Greatness’. Macbeth is no longer seeking her advice; instead, he is being consumed by his own private anxieties. By keeping his distance, Macbeth is emotionally abandoning his wife, and she, in turn, is losing her influence over him. They have changed their status but they cannot change their memories.
Play
Macbeth
We have scotch’d the snake, not kill’d it;
She’ll close and be herself, whilst our poor malice
Remains in danger of her former tooth.
But let the frame of things disjoint, both the worlds suffer,
Ere we will eat our meal in fear, and sleep
In the affliction of these terrible dreams
That shake us nightly: better be with the dead,
Whom we, to gain our peace, have sent to peace,
Than on the torture of the mind to lie
In restless ecstasy. Duncan is in his grave;
After life’s fitful fever he sleeps well;
Treason has done his worst; nor steel nor poison,
Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing,
Can touch him further.
Lady Macbeth
Come on;
Gentle my lord, sleek o’er your rugged looks,
Be bright and jovial among your guests to-night.
Macbeth
So shall I, love; and so I be pray you:
Let your remembrance apply to Banquo;
Present him eminence, both with and eye tongue;
Unsafe the while, that we
Must lave our honours in these flattering streams,
And make our faces vizards to our hearts,
Disguising what they are.
Word Meanings
scotch’d: wounded.
close: coil or heal up.
be herself: be her original self (the poisonous snake). Snake represents Duncan and his male heirs.
former tooth: earlier power.
frame of things: the fabric of the universe.
disjoint: fall apart.
both the worlds: heaven and earth.
Ere: before.
affliction: suffering.
terrible dreams: dreams of murdering Duncan.
shake: agitate.
Restless ecstasy: A state of frantic, intense mental agitation or madness.
Fitful fever: An intermittent, restless sickness (referring to the struggles of life).
Foreign levy: The raising of foreign armies or an invasion.
Sleek o’er: Smooth over; hide a troubled expression.
Rugged looks: Rough, furrowed, or worried facial expressions.
Eminence: High honor or special attention.
Lave: Wash or bathe.
Vizards: Masks or visors (used to hide one’s true face).
Explanation of the above dialogues— Macbeth explains to his wife that they have only wounded the threat to their power rather than destroying it, comparing it to a snake that will heal and remain a danger to them. He declares that he would rather see the entire universe fall apart than continue to live in constant fear, eating his meals in terror and being tormented nightly by horrific dreams. He expresses a bitter envy for the dead, specifically Duncan, noting that they murdered the King to find peace, yet it is Duncan who truly rests in peace while they endure mental torture. He observes that Duncan is safe in his grave, where he sleeps soundly after the feverish struggle of life; since the criminal act against Scotland has already done its worst, nothing neither weapons, poison, civil war, nor foreign invasion can hurt him anymore. Lady Macbeth urges her husband to snap out of his mood, asking him to smooth over his troubled expression and act happy and welcoming toward their guests that night. Macbeth agrees to do so, but he asks her to pay special attention to Banquo, honoring him with both her looks and her words. He laments that they are still in a precarious position where they must wash their reputations in a stream of flattery and turn their faces into masks to hide the true feelings of their hearts. By killing Duncan, he has only ‘slashed’ the danger. He fears the snake will ‘close’ i.e. heal, meaning the opposition like Banquo and Fleance will regroup and strike back with ‘her former tooth’ i.e. original power. Macbeth expresses a nihilistic worldview when he says he would rather let the ‘frame of things disjoint’ and both heaven and earth ‘both the worlds’ suffer than continue living in fear. The use of the word ‘lave’ meaning wash suggests that their honours are dirty and must be constantly cleaned with ‘flattering streams’ of lies to stay shiny.
Play
Lady Macbeth
You must leave this.|
Macbeth
O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife!
Lady Macbeth
But in them nature’s copy’s not eterne.
Macbeth
There’s comfort yet; they are assailable;
Then be thou jocund: ere the bat hath flown
His cloister’d flight, ere to black Hecate’s summons
The shard-born beetle with his drowsy hums
Hath rung night’s yawning peal, there shall be done
A deed of dreadful note.
Lady Macbeth
What’s to be done?
Macbeth
Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck,
Till thou applaud the deed. Come, seeling night,
Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day;
And with thy bloody and invisible hand
Cancel and tear to pieces that great bond
Which keeps me pale! Light thickens, and the crow
Makes wing to the rooky wood:
Good things of day begin to droop and drowse,
Whiles night’s black agents to their preys do rouse.
Thou marvell’st at my words: but hold thee still; 60
Things bad begun, make strong themselves by ill:
So prithee, go with me.
[Exeunt
Word Meanings
Full of scorpions: A metaphor for agonizing, stinging thoughts and paranoia.
Nature’s copy: The lease on life given by nature; mortality.
Eterne: Eternal or everlasting.
Assailable: Vulnerable to attack or murder.
Jocund: Cheerful, lighthearted, or merry.
Hecate: The Greek goddess of witchcraft and magic.
Shard-born: Born in dung (referring to the beetle) or having scaly wing-cases.
Deed of dreadful note: A horrific or shocking act (the murder of Banquo).
innocent: ignorant.
chuck: wife (term of endearment).
applaud: praise.
seeling night: blinding night.
Scarf up: Cover or blindfold.
tender eye: compassionate moon.
bond: lease of life given by nature to Banquo and his son.
Rooky wood: A wood filled with rooks (crow-like birds);
Explanation of the above dialogues— Lady Macbeth tells her husband that he must stop dwelling on these dark thoughts, but Macbeth cries out that his mind is filled with the stinging pain of scorpions because he cannot forget that Banquo and his son, Fleance, are still alive. Lady Macbeth reminds him that they do not have the gift of immortality and will eventually die. Finding comfort in this, Macbeth notes that they are indeed vulnerable to attack and tells his wife to be cheerful. He cryptically tells her that before the night is over and the nocturnal creatures have finished their flights, a terrible and significant crime will be committed. When Lady Macbeth asks for specifics about what is to be done, Macbeth tells her to remain ignorant of the plan until it is finished, at which point she can applaud the result. He then calls upon the blinding night to blindfold the compassionate day and use its invisible, bloody hand to destroy the life of Banquo, which is the lease of life given by nature that keeps Macbeth living in fear. As the light fades and the creatures of the day go to sleep, Macbeth observes that the evil agents of the night are waking up to find their prey. Noticing his wife’s surprise at his dark words, he tells her to stay calm, explaining that actions started through evil can only be made secure by committing further evil deeds. Finally, he asks her to go with him as they leave the stage. The scorpions represent an internal infestation. They symbolize the constant stinging of his conscience and the sharp, piercing fear that he cannot be safe as long as Banquo and Fleance live. It suggests a mind that is attacking itself. He has become so comfortable with murder that he no longer needs Lady Macbeth to pacify him; in fact, he has surpassed her in his capacity for cold-blooded planning. This scene shows a major dynamic shift between the couples. The scene concludes with the chilling couplet: ‘Things bad begun, make strong themselves by ill’, which summarizes Macbeth’s new life philosophy i.e. the only way to protect a crime is to commit more crimes.
Conclusion
In Macbeth Act 3 Scene 2, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship begins to strain as Macbeth becomes increasingly paranoid. Students can take help from this post to understand Act 3, Scene 2 and also learn the difficult word meanings to get a better grasp of Macbeth. This post includes a summary of Macbeth, which will help students of ISC class 12, to get a quick recap of the play.