The Impact of Act 2 scene 2 of Macbeth
Lady Macbeth by George Cattermole.
English: Poster of Thos. W. Keene in William Shake...
The sleepwalking Lady MacbethAct 2 scene 2 is the most violent and intense part of Macbeth although we do no actually witness the murder of King Duncan. It is interesting that Shakespeare chooses to have Macbeth kill Duncan offstage. We can only guess why he wrote the scene that way, I think that Shakespeare wanted to focus not on the murder but on Macbeth's reaction to it; the bloody details supplied by the audiences imaginations will be much worse than anything that could be done onstage. It is also the most crucial part of the play; it is the first of many murders. This scene takes place at night; I feel the darkness represents what is unnatural, cruel and evil. Everything that happens within the play appears to revolve around this particular scene. Not only is this important because it contains the murderous act, it also conveys to the audience the rapid disintegration of the relationship between the two main characters, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.
In act 2, scene 2, the murder of Duncan takes place. The audience should be on the edge of their seats by now, wondering if Macbeth will actually have the nerve to murder his king.
The tension increases dramatically when we see Lady Macbeth pacing about in a nervous but excited state, awaiting Macbeth's return increases the tension dramatically. We get a peek at Lady Macbeth's softer side. She says that she would have killed Duncan herself, but the old man looked too much like her father. This small reminder of Lady Macbeth's humanity will be important to our understanding of what happens to her at the end of the play.
As she waits she decides that she heard a screech owl, and she takes...