Macbeth Act 1, Scene 3

In this episode of Read It and (Don’t) Weep, we continue with Act 1, Scene 3 of Macbeth. After the battle, Macbeth and Banquo encounter the mysterious witches on the heath. The strange meeting quickly takes a surprising turn when the witches greet Macbeth with a series of unexpected titles and offer cryptic predictions about the future.

When part of the prophecy is confirmed almost immediately, both men are left wondering whether the witches spoke the truth or something far more dangerous. As Macbeth begins to reflect on what their words might mean, an important question emerges: can a prophecy influence someone’s choices before it ever comes true?

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Transcript

Hello and welcome to "Read it and (Don't) Weep," the podcast that will help you breeze through your high school literature classes. Are you tired of struggling to understand the themes and characters in classic works of literature? Well, I’ve got you covered! I am your host, Jackey Taggart, and I taught high school English for almost 20 years. Join me each episode as I dive into the world of high school literature and break down the essential elements of each work. From Shakespeare to Steinbeck, I'll cover it all. My goal is to give you valuable insights and analysis on some of the most popular high school literary texts, as well as tips and tricks for acing your tests and essays. Let’s start reading!

Act 1, Scene 3

Welcome back! In Act 1, Scene 2, we left off with King Duncan making the fateful decision to have the Thane of Cawdor executed and award that title to Macbeth. As Act 1, Scene 3 opens, we are at the heath with thunder and lightning.  Macbeth and Banquo come upon the three mysterious "weird sisters." If you have not yet read up to this point in the play, it would be a good idea to get caught up with your reading and listen to my other episodes before continuing.

As the scene opens, we learn just how petty and malicious these witches can be. The Second Witch casually mentions she's been "Killing swine" while the First Witch tells the others of her revenge plan. A sailor’s wife was snacking on some chestnuts when the First Witch asked for a bite. The wife, though, called her a pig and told her to leave. Now, the First Witch plans to get back at her by attacking her husband, a captain on his way to Aleppo. The witch is going to sail to him in a sieve, a magical boat, and she vows, "I'll do, I'll do, and I'll do.”

The other two Witches immediately offer her winds to help her travel. The First Witch says she already controls all the other winds and will track the sailor using the shipman’s "card," which is a compass. She will "drain him dry as hay," which means she will exhaust him by denying him sleep, "Weary seven nights, nine times nine,” which calculates to 81 weeks! She promises he "shall he dwindle, peak and pine," and his ship will hit strong storms.  

As a gruesome souvenir, she pulls out a "pilot's thumb, / Wrecked as homeward he did come." A trophy from another sailor she punished. In other words, don’t mess with the witches!

Next, we hear drumming offstage.  Macbeth is on his way, so the three witches prepare to meet him. 

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Macbeth and Banquo arrive, and Macbeth’s first line perfectly mirrors the Witches comments in Scene 1, "So foul and fair a day I have not seen." Remember, the day is "fair" because they won a great battle, but "foul" due to the stormy weather and the deaths they witnessed in the battle. So, it’s a great day because we won, but sad as so many died and the weather is horrible.

Banquo is the first to notice the women, describing them as "So withered and so wild in their attire" that they "look not like the inhabitants o' the earth". He notes that they look like women, but their beards forbid him to think that.

Macbeth demands they speak. And speak they do, delivering a three-part prophecy that drives the rest of the play.

The First Witch greets them, "All hail, Macbeth. Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis." No surprises here.  Macbeth currently holds the title Thane of Glamis.  The Second Witch greets them, "All hail, Macbeth. Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor." A bit surprising.  Macbeth is not yet aware that the current Thane of Cawdor has been executed, and King Duncan has named him the new Thane of Cawdor.  The Third Witch greets them, "All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter." Ok, what?  You have got to be crazy lady.  I am not going to be king.  Macbeth is taken completely of guard, but the witches now have is attention.

Banquo steps forward. Since the Witches have greeted Macbeth with such predictions, he asks them to look into his fate. The Witches provide Banquo with a similar prophecy. They say he will be "Lesser than Macbeth, and greater." OK, that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Lesser, which seems bad, but greater, which seems good (remembering the fair is foul and foul is fair stuff) Next, they tell him he will be "Not so happy, yet much happier." Again, that is a bit confusing but still follows the good is bad and bad is good theory.  Finally, he will "get kings, though thou be none." So, Banquo will not be king (seems bad), but his sons will be kings (well, that seems good).   

At this point, Macbeth cries out for them to stay, because he wants to know how he is supposed to become the Thane of Cawdor when someone else holds that title. But just as he charges them to speak, the Witches vanish into thin air. Poof! They are gone!

After they leave, Banquo and Macbeth try to process what happened, wondering if the things they spoke about were real, or if these weird sisters were just crazy. They repeat the prophecies to each other - Macbeth will be Thane of Cawdor and King; Banquo's children will be kings.

Right on cue, Ross and Angus, enter. Ross is talking quicky telling Macbeth the King is ecstatic about his success on the battlefield.  Then, the moment of truth! Ross delivers the news that King Duncan has made Macbeth the new Thane of Cawdor. Can you believe it!

Banquo, shocked by the immediate truth of the prophecy, asks, "What, can the devil speak true?"

Macbeth, still reeling, asks Ross and Angus why they dress him in "borrowed robes." In other words, why are you calling me by another title, instead of using my current title. Angus explains that the former Thane of Cawdor is to be executed for treason, if he has not been executed already.  Macbeth is in complete shock, and it starts his brain thinking furiously about the future.

With two of the three prophecies immediately confirmed, Thane of Glamis and Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth, in an aside, which is when a character on stage thinks out loud so the audience knows what they are thinking, realizes, there is a real possibility that he will become king!

Banquo, however, offers a warning to Macbeth, noting that Macbeth’s immediate success might make him attempt to do something he might regret to get the crown. Banquo suggests that the Witches might "Win us with honest trifles, to betray's / In deepest consequence". In other words, they, meaning the witches, trick us by telling small truths so that we’ll believe them when they lie about something that really matters. Basically, they are trying to get us to trust them so they can deceive us later.  This is very important as Banquo seems to realize the evil intent behind the prophecies.  Don’t forget about what these witches did to the sailors at the beginning of the scene! They should NOT be trusted.  

But Macbeth is already too far gone!  He recognizes that the information he was given is complex; it cannot be good, yet some of it has already come true. 

At this point, Macbeth begins to struggle with a terrible, violent thought, if he kills King Duncan, then he will become king. Yikes! He tries to calm himself, thinking, "If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, / Without my stir." Maybe I don’t have to kill the king. Maybe fate will make me king without doing anything at all. 

Macbeth eventually snaps out of his dark meditation and agrees to go meet King Duncan. He tells Banquo that they should "Think upon what hath chanced" and discuss it more fully later when they have "weighed it" in the "interim." Essentially, let’s think about it and discuss it later. 

That is where the scene ends, but the plot has already been put into motion.  Before continuing on to the next scene, take a few minutes to record your thoughts in your reading journal.  After hearing how the witches’ prophecies immediately begin to influence Macbeth’s thoughts and actions, consider Banquo’s warning that the weird sisters may be trying to trick them with partial truths. How does this idea apply to the choices people make when they are presented with tempting but potentially dangerous opportunities? Can you think of a situation—real or fictional—where someone might be misled by partial truths like Macbeth?

Ending

Thanks for listening to this episode of Read it and (Don’t) Weep. Be sure to subscribe to the show so you will be notified when new episodes are released. If you liked today’s show, please leave a review so others can discover my show.  If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, drop me an email at readitanddontweep@gmail.com, or reach out to me on social media. I would love to hear from you. The links are in the show notes.  

Thank you for listening.  I am Jackey Taggart and remember to Read It and Don’t Weep.