ISC Class 11 English Drama Macbeth Act 2 Scene 2 Important Question Answers
Macbeth Act 2 Scene 2 Question Answers: Looking for ISC Class 11 English Drama Macbeth Act 2 Scene 2 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 2 Scene 2 now. The questions listed below are based on the latest ISC exam pattern.
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ISC Class 11 English Drama Macbeth Act 2 Scene 2 Textbook Questions
Question 1
Choose the correct options for the following questions:
1. What was the effect of the wine on Lady Macbeth?
(a) It dampened her senses
(b) It filled her with courage
(c) It made her drowsy
(d) None of the above
Ans. (b) It filled her with courage
2. Who are referred to as ‘the surfeited grooms’?
(a) The drunken servants
(b) The defeated warriors
(c) The trusted servants
(d) Duncan’s sons
Ans. (a) The drunken servants
3. In her soliloquy, Lady Macbeth refers to the struggle between which of the following?
(a) Man and Animal
(b) Evil and Virtue
(c) Death and Nature
(d) Day and Night.
Ans. (c) Death and Nature
4. What did Lady Macbeth say she heard in this scene?
(a) Lion’s roar
(b) Owl scream
(c) Crickets cry
(d) Both (b) and (c).
Ans. (d) Both (b) and (c).
5. What does the conversation between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth after the murder of Duncan reveal about them?
(a) Their fear and anxiety
(b) Their confidence and success
(c) Their joy and jubilation
(d) Their struggle and hardships.
Ans. (a) Their fear and anxiety
6. What does Macbeth refer to as “a sorry sight”?
(a) Murder of Duncan
(b) Plight of Lady Macbeth
(c) His blood-stained hands
(d) None of the above.
Ans. (c) His blood-stained hands
7. In this scene, who are the ‘two lodg’d together’?
(a) Two guards outside Duncan’s room
(b) Two sons of King Duncan
(c) Two witches
(d) Banquo and Fleance
Ans. (b) Two sons of King Duncan
8. In this scene, unlike Macbeth, who appears as an imaginative person, Lady Macbeth is shown as a
(a) practical person
(b) stubborn person
(c) artistic person
(d) None of the above
Ans. (a) practical person
9. For Macbeth, the blood on his hands is symbolic of which of the following?
(a) His bravery in the battle
(b) His guilt of murdering Duncan
(c) His revenge against enemies
(d) None of the above.
Ans. (b) His guilt of murdering Duncan
10. What did Lady Macbeth do after the murder of King Duncan?
(a) She smeared the guards with blood
(b) She poised the guards
(c) She made the guards run away from them
(d) None of the above
Ans. (a) She smeared the guards with blood
11. What do you understand by “sternest good-night”?
(a) A night spent in drunken stupor
(b) A drugged good night
(c) Last good-night before death
(d) Both (a) and ©
Ans. (c) Last good-night before death
12. In this scene the atmosphere of fear is evoked by
(a) The owl’s shrieking
(b) The grooms praying
(c) The strange sounds
(d) All of the above
Ans. (d) All of the above
Question 2
Complete the following sentences by providing a reason for each:
1. Lady Macbeth also took wine because
Ans. Lady Macbeth also took wine because it made her feel courageous and gave her the determination necessary to carry out the dangerous plan, contrasting with the guards whom it merely made drunk.
2. Lady Macbeth could not kill King Duncan herself because
Ans. Lady Macbeth could not kill King Duncan herself because as he slept, he strongly resembled her own father, introducing a moment of human weakness that she could not overcome.
3. Macbeth could not say ‘Amen’ though he needed blessing because
Ans. Macbeth could not say ‘Amen’ though he needed blessing because his hands were stained with the ultimate sin of regicide, which he felt had instantly cut him off from God’s grace and the possibility of divine blessing.
4. An unknown voice tells Macbeth that “Glamis hath murder’d sleep” because
Ans. An unknown voice tells Macbeth that “Glamis hath murder’d sleep” because by killing Duncan while he slept, Macbeth murdered the very concept of innocent sleep and therefore condemned himself to a life without rest and peace.
ISC Class 11 English Drama Macbeth Act 2 Scene 2 Extra Question and Answers
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
Q1. What has made Lady Macbeth feel bold in this scene?
A. The victory of Macbeth in battle
B. The wine that drugged the guards
C. The dark night
D. The witches’ prophecies
Ans. B. The wine that drugged the guards
Q2. Why does Lady Macbeth say she could not kill Duncan herself?
A.He looked like her father while sleeping
B. He was too strong and awoke
C. Macbeth entered the room too quickly
D. She was distracted by the knocking
Ans. A. He looked like her father while sleeping
Q3. What key piece of evidence did Macbeth mistakenly bring with him from the murder scene?
A. Duncan’s crown
B. A bloody cloak
C. The bloody daggers
D. A servant’s lamp
Ans. C. The bloody daggers
Q4. What terrible sound does Macbeth hear in his hallucination after the murder?
A. Hail, King of Scotland!
B. Sleep no more!
C. God save the King!
D. Vengeance for Duncan!
Ans. B. Sleep no more!
Q5. What does Macbeth obsessively worry about being unable to say?
A. Farewell
B. Forgive me
C. Amen
D. Murder
Ans. C. Amen
Q6. What is the state of the grooms in this scene?
A. They are wide awake and praying
B. They are guarding the door
C. They have fled the castle
D. They are drugged and deeply asleep
Ans. D. They are drugged and deeply asleep
Q7. When Macbeth refuses to return the daggers, what does Lady Macbeth call him?
A. A traitor to Scotland
B. A valiant soldier
C. Infirm of purpose!
D. Her noble thane
Ans. C. Infirm of purpose!
Q8. How does Lady Macbeth propose to deal with the blood on their hands?
A. By burning their hands
B. By praying for forgiveness
C. By washing it off with a little water
D. By cutting their hands off
Ans. C. By washing it off with a little water
Q9. What cosmic image does Macbeth use to describe the stain of blood on his hands?
A. It could cover all the stars
B. It could turn the green ocean red
C. It could blot out the moon
D. It could dry up all the rivers
Ans. B. It could turn the green ocean red
Q10. What sound interrupts the couple’s conversation at the end of the scene?
A. A loud, urgent knocking
B. The ringing of a bell
C. A trumpet blast
D. The screaming of Lady Macduff
Ans. A. A loud, urgent knocking
Fill Up Sentences
Complete the following sentences by providing a reason for each:
1. Lady Macbeth did not kill King Duncan herself because________________________.
Ans. Lady Macbeth did not kill King Duncan herself because he resembled her father as he slept.
2. Macbeth refused to go back to Duncan’s chamber because________________________.
Ans. Macbeth refused to go back to Duncan’s chamber because he was afraid to look upon the bloody deed he had done.
3. Macbeth could not say the word ‘Amen’ because ________________________.
Ans. Macbeth could not say the word ‘Amen’ because he felt instantly cut off from God’s blessing due to his sin of murder.
4. Lady Macbeth had drugged the grooms’ drinks because________________________.
Ans. Lady Macbeth had drugged the grooms’ drinks because she needed them to be heavily asleep so they could be framed for the murder.
5. Macbeth was tormented by a voice crying ‘Sleep no more!’ because__________________.
Ans. Macbeth was tormented by a voice crying ‘Sleep no more!’ because he had murdered an innocent man in his sleep, thereby destroying his own peace of mind.
6. Macbeth was horrified by his hands being stained with blood because_________________.
Ans. Macbeth was horrified by his hands being stained with blood because he believed the guilt was so immense it would permanently stain the world, not just his skin.
7. Lady Macbeth called Macbeth ‘Infirm of purpose!’ because________________________.
Ans. Lady Macbeth called Macbeth ‘Infirm of purpose!’ because he was paralyzed by guilt and refused to carry out the critical task of returning the daggers.
8. Lady Macbeth returned the daggers herself because ________________________.
Ans. Lady Macbeth returned the daggers herself because she needed to follow the plan and smear the sleeping grooms with blood to make them appear guilty.
9. Lady Macbeth urged Macbeth to quickly put on his nightgown because________________________.
Ans. Lady Macbeth urged Macbeth to quickly put on his nightgown because she did not want them to be discovered as ‘watchers’ when the knocking came.
10. The alcohol that made the grooms drunk made Lady Macbeth feel ‘bold’ because________________________.
Ans. The alcohol that made the grooms drunk made Lady Macbeth feel ‘bold’ because it gave her the courage and determination she needed to stay focused on the murderous plot.
Extra Questions
SHORT QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q1. What is the significance of the voice Macbeth hears crying, ‘Sleep no more!’?
Ans. The voice crying ‘Sleep no more!’ is the central hallucination of the scene and carries profound thematic significance. It immediately establishes that Macbeth’s crime is not just an act of regicide, but a destruction of natural order and his own peace of mind. Sleep is personified as innocent and restorative, the ‘balm of hurt minds’. By murdering Duncan while he slept, Macbeth has murdered the very concept of repose for himself. The repeated warning ‘Macbeth shall sleep no more’ is a terrifying prophecy of eternal torment and escalating paranoia, confirming that the psychological consequences of the deed are immediate and permanent, ensuring his downfall.
Q2. How does Lady Macbeth’s reaction to the murder contrast with Macbeth’s in this scene?
Ans. Lady Macbeth exhibits extreme composure and practicality, while Macbeth experiences immediate psychological collapse. Macbeth is paralyzed by guilt, haunted by auditory hallucinations, and fixated on the blood as an irrevocable stain. Lady Macbeth, conversely, is coldly dismissive, viewing the blood as a mere physical mess that ‘A little water clears’. She takes charge by mocking his fear, calling him ‘Infirm of purpose!’, and physically returning the daggers to the grooms to frame them. This contrast establishes her temporary dominance and Macbeth’s immediate disintegration, showing that she is morally hardened, while he is spiritually broken.
Q3. What is the dramatic irony and importance of Lady Macbeth’s momentary weakness regarding Duncan?
Ans. Lady Macbeth’s revelation that she would have killed Duncan herself had he not ‘resembled / My father as he slept’ is dramatically important because it provides a brief, fleeting moment of humanity in her otherwise monstrous resolve. It shatters her facade of utter ruthlessness, suggesting she possesses a moral boundary that Macbeth, in his ambition, easily crossed. The dramatic irony lies in her quick dismissal of this weakness, asserting her control and calling the dead ‘but as pictures’. This brief internal struggle highlights the immense psychological effort required for her wicked purpose, making her eventual descent into guilt-ridden madness even more tragic and powerful.
Q4. Explain the symbolism of the blood on Macbeth’s hands and his reference to ‘Neptune’s ocean’.
Ans. The blood on Macbeth’s hands symbolizes his irrevocable guilt and moral corruption. His horrified lament, comparing the blood to a stain that cannot be washed away by ‘all great Neptune’s ocean’, uses hyperbole to express the cosmic magnitude of his crime. He fears his hand would instead turn the vast, ‘multitudinous seas incarnadine’ meaning it would turn the seas red, suggesting that his sin is so monumental it can stain the entire universe and defy all natural forces of purification. This demonstrates his immediate, instinctive realization that his act of regicide has condemned him eternally, a feeling completely opposite to his wife’s practical suggestion.
Q5. What is the significance of the loud knocking that interrupts the couple at the end of the scene?
Ans. The sudden, urgent knocking serves multiple crucial functions. Dramatically, it ratchets up the tension and suspense, forcing the audience to share the characters’ panic about imminent discovery. Symbolically, the knocking is often interpreted as the sound of Judgment or Retribution arriving at the castle gates. It represents the external world, the reality of consequences violently intruding on their private sphere of crime. The sound forces Lady Macbeth into immediate damage control, urging them to adopt the façade of innocence. For Macbeth, it is a sound of terror, leading him to wish desperately that the knocking could ‘Wake Duncan’ expressing his first great moment of regret.
LONG QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q1. Discuss how the theme of guilt is introduced and immediately solidified in the character of Macbeth in Act 2, Scene 2.
Ans. The theme of guilt is not just introduced in Act 2, Scene 2; it immediately solidifies as the central, defining force of Macbeth’s future. Upon entering, Macbeth is already a broken man, consumed by paralyzing psychological horror. His guilt is initially manifested through auditory hallucinations. He is tormented by the voices of the sleeping grooms, particularly their inability to join them in saying ‘Amen’ after the prayer ‘God bless us’. This signifies his instant exclusion from divine grace, confirming his belief that his soul is damned. Furthermore, his guilt is visualized through the unwashable blood on his hands. He despairs that all of ‘great Neptune’s ocean’ cannot cleanse him, believing instead that his blood could turn the vast green seas red, reflecting a sense of cosmic, irreversible sin. His absolute refusal to return the daggers, a simple task required by the plan is the physical manifestation of his fear. This unwillingness to face the evidence means his guilt has rendered him ‘Infirm of purpose’, signaling the shift from a decisive warrior to a terrified, delusional tyrant who can no longer trust his senses or his own identity. The immediate onset of this extreme psychological torment confirms that the price of the crown is his sanity.
Q2. Analyze Lady Macbeth’s role in this scene, focusing on her temporary dominance and the fragility of her composure.
Ans. Lady Macbeth dominates Act 2, Scene 2, serving as the scene’s cold, practical anchor against Macbeth’s hysterical collapse. Her primary role is damage control and manipulation. She is clear-headed, contrasting her husband’s imaginative terror with her brisk, business-like efficiency. She criticizes his emotional breakdown, urging him to stop thinking so deeply and dismisses his hallucinations as ‘brainsickly’. Her most forceful act is physically taking the daggers and returning them to the grooms, a decisive action that underscores her immediate superiority and Macbeth’s utter paralysis. She attempts to trivialise the crime, stating that the dead are ‘but as pictures’ and that ‘A little water clears us of this deed’. However, the fragility of her composure is subtly hinted at. Her admission that she would have killed Duncan herself had he not ‘resembled / My father as he slept’ is a crucial moment of human vulnerability, suggesting she possesses a moral boundary Macbeth lacked. More importantly, her desperate insistence that the blood is easily washed away is dramatically ironic; it is a denial of the spiritual cost that will eventually destroy her. Her temporary dominance is an act of sheer will, foreshadowing the inevitable mental break she will suffer later when her guilt manifests as obsessive compulsive washing.
Q3. Discuss the symbolism of sleep and blood in this scene and how they relate to the central theme of disorder.
Ans. Both sleep and blood are potent symbols that underscore the chaotic disorder resulting from the murder. Sleep symbolizes peace, innocence, and the natural cycle of life. Macbeth delivers one of the play’s most beautiful and tragic passages describing sleep as ‘Balm of hurt minds, great nature’s second course, / Chief nourisher in life’s feast’. By murdering Duncan while he was asleep, Macbeth symbolically murdered the state of innocence and repose for himself and his kingdom. The auditory hallucination, ‘Macbeth does murder sleep’, confirms that he has thrown the natural world into disorder and sentenced himself to a life of waking guilt and anxiety. Blood, on the other hand, symbolizes the irreversible sin and its permanent moral stain. For Macbeth, the physical blood represents cosmic guilt that cannot be contained or removed. His belief that he could turn the entire ocean red illustrates the vast, supernatural scope of the crime’s contamination. While Lady Macbeth attempts to contain this chaos by treating the blood as mere physical paint to frame the grooms, Macbeth’s reaction, where the blood becomes an active agent of disorder and judgment is the correct one, signaling that their transgression has fundamentally broken the divine and natural order.
Q4. Analyze the dramatic function of the knocking that occurs near the end of the scene.
Ans. The loud, persistent knocking that occurs near the scene’s climax serves multiple vital dramatic functions. Firstly, it instantly injects heightened tension and suspense into the private, psychological horror of the couple. It is the terrifying sound of the outside world of consequences, intruding violently upon their chamber, forcing them to shift immediately from obsessing over guilt to the necessity of survival and deception. Symbolically, the knocking is often interpreted as the sound of Judgment or Retribution arriving at the gate, representing the moral authority that demands accountability for their transgression. It forces Lady Macbeth into her final, urgent act of control, demanding that Macbeth compose himself and assume the appearance of someone just awakened, ‘show us to be watchers’. The sound forces Macbeth to confront the reality of their situation, leading to his final, poignant wish, ‘Wake Duncan with thy knocking. I would thou couldst’. This line is Macbeth’s first profound expression of regret, underscoring the irreversible nature of his deed and the beginning of his tyranny, driven by the need to maintain the lie that the knocking threatens to expose.
Q5. How does the exchange between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in Act 2, Scene 2 set the stage for their contrasting fates in the remainder of the play?
Ans. The exchange in Act 2, Scene 2 definitively sets the contrasting trajectories for the couple’s tragic fates. Macbeth is shown to be highly imaginative and sensitive to the spiritual cost of his actions, immediately collapsing under the weight of guilt and hallucination. His focus is inward, on his damned soul and his inability to sleep. This reaction foreshadows his descent into tyrannical paranoia; he will commit more murders not out of ambition, but out of fear and a desperate need to secure a kingdom that brings him no peace. His fate is defined by relentless mental torture and subsequent bloody acts. In stark contrast, Lady Macbeth is introduced as relentlessly practical and dismissive, focused solely on the physical details and the political necessity of the cover-up. She suppresses all moral feelings and relies on her will, believing she can easily control the outcome. Her fate, however, is sealed by her belief that the deed is simple, ‘A little water clears us’. This profound denial of guilt means she has no internal outlet for her suppressed conscience. Her eventual, unavoidable mental breakdown characterized by her sleepwalking and obsessive hand-washing is the delayed consequence of the moral burden she contemptuously dismissed in this scene.