Macbeth 4.3 Reading/Discussion Guide

Macbeth 4.3 Reading/Discussion Guide

Overview of 4.3

This scene mostly features a conversation between Macduff, who has gone to England to see if Malcolm can gather English troops to accompany him back to Scotland to challenge Macbeth for Malcolm’s rightful place as King of Scotland. 

Disclaimer: Lines may or may not match the version of the text you are reading; they are intended to be an approximate guide.

Open Ended

1) How does Malcolm’s attitude at the start of the scene differ from Macduff’s (lines 1-5)

Open Ended

2) How is dramatic irony used, yet again, in line 14?

Open Ended

3) What is Malcolm’s suspicion of Macduff, as expressed in lines 15-31?

Open Ended

4) Who does Malcolm claim, in lines 45-55, would be a worse king than Macbeth?

Open Ended

5) Read through lines 60-99. What are the various vices and character flaws Malcolm claims to have?

Open Ended

6) What is Macduff’s response to Malcolm’s claims about his own character flaws?

Open Ended

7) Why did Malcolm make these claims about himself?

Open Ended

8) In lines 148-158 Malcolm makes what claims about the English king? What purpose does this seemingly irrelevant discussion serve?

Open Ended

9) Ross seems to pop up in all sort of places. What do you imagine he is coming to tell Macduff?

Open Ended

10) What particularly powerful imagery does Ross use to describe the state-of-affairs in Scotland (lines 165-171)

Open Ended

11) How Ross beat around the bush before sharing his news with Macduff?

Open Ended

12) What does Malcolm urge Macduff to do after hearing of the slaughter of his household?

Open Ended

13) How might the line “He has no children” be interpreted in several ways? In other words, who is the “he”?

Open Ended

14) What emotions does Macduff wrestle with at the end of this scene? Which one wins out?

Open Ended

15) How does the ending of Act Four set up our expectations for the final act of the play?

Macduff Learns of the Attack on His Family