Question

by william shakespeare
act i, scene 7
shakespeare’s play macbeth is one of his most famous tragedies. through his characters macbeth and lady macbeth, shakespeare explores the psychological
effects on those who seek power for power’s sake. in this scene, macbeth has returned to his castle after learning of the prophecy that he will one day be king. but
to do so means he must kill the sitting king, duncan. macbeth is facing a difficult decision—to kill for the throne or not.
macbeth’s castle
(hautboys and torches. enter a sewer, and divers servants with dishes and service, and pass over the stage. then enter macbeth)
macbeth: if it were done when ’tis done, then ’twere well
it were done quickly: if the assassination
could trammel up the consequence, and catch
with his surcease success; that but this blow
(5) might be the be-all and the end-all here,
but here, upon this bank and shoal of time,
we’d jump the life to come. but in these cases
we still have judgment here; that we but teach
bloody instructions, which, being taught, return
(10) to plague the inventor: this even-handed justice
commends the ingredients of our poison’d chalice
to our own lips. he’s here in double trust.
2
select the correct answer.
how does the character of macbeth change over the course of the scene?
○ a. he moves from admiration of lady macbeth to fear of her
○ b. he moves from deciding not to kill duncan to promising to do so.
○ c. he moves from certainty to uncertainty about killing duncan
○ d. he moves from feeling ashamed of his ambition to accepting it.

Explanation:

To solve this, we analyze Macbeth's thoughts in Act 1, Scene 7. Initially, Macbeth is hesitant about killing Duncan (expressing concerns about consequences like judgment in the afterlife). Later, though the full scene (not all shown here, but from context of Macbeth's arc), he moves from deciding not to kill (due to moral/consequence concerns) to promising Lady Macbeth he will (as she persuades him). Option A is incorrect as there's no shift from admiration to fear. Option C: He's uncertain initially, not certain. Option D: He doesn't feel ashamed of ambition but conflicted about the means. So B matches the character's change from indecision (not killing) to agreeing to kill.

Answer:

B. He moves from deciding not to kill Duncan to promising to do so.