Scene Revision Guide
Macbeth Act 1, Scene 7 Summary & Meaning
Macbeth wrestles with his conscience in a famous soliloquy, realizing Duncan is his king, kinsman, and guest. He decides not to proceed, but Lady Macbeth brutally attacks his manhood and courage, laying out a foolproof plan to frame Duncan's drunken guards.
Companion video lesson: Macbeth by William Shakespeare | Act 1, Scene 7 Summary & Analysis
Macbeth’s hesitation, Lady Macbeth’s persuasion, and the decision that closes the scene.
Companion video presented by Course Hero.
What happens in this scene?
As a lavish royal feast proceeds off-stage, Macbeth steps away into a quiet hallway to confront his profound moral crisis. In an intense soliloquy ('If it were done when 'tis done...'), he analyzes the catastrophic consequences of regicide. He reflects that earthly justice inevitably punishes murderers in this world: violence boomerangs back to torment the violent. Moreover, Duncan is at Inverness under double protection: first, Macbeth is his kinsman and loyal subject; second, Macbeth is his host, whose sacred duty is to bar the door against murderers rather than wield the knife himself. Furthermore, Duncan has ruled with such meekness and radiant virtue that his slaughtered virtues will plead like angels 'trumpet-tongued against the deep damnation of his taking-off.' Macbeth realizes he possesses no legitimate justification for the deed—only 'vaulting ambition' which overleaps itself and crashes down. When Lady Macbeth enters, Macbeth firmly tells her: 'We will proceed no further in this business.' Furious at his retreat, Lady Macbeth unleashes a devastating psychological attack. She questions the sincerity of his love and mocks his masculine courage, accusing him of acting like the timid cat in the proverb that wanted fish but refused to get its paws wet. She boasts that had she sworn an oath as he has, she would have ripped her smiling nursing baby from her breast and dashed its brains out against the wall. Shaken, Macbeth asks, 'If we should fail?' Lady Macbeth scoffs, commanding him to screw his courage to the sticking-place. She details her tactical masterstroke: once Duncan falls sound asleep after his exhausting journey, she will drug his two chamberlains with drugged wine until they blackout; Macbeth can then use the chamberlains' own daggers to slaughter the unprotected king and smear the sleeping guards with royal blood. Dazzled by her lethal audacity, Macbeth relents, exclaiming that she should bring forth male children only. Fully recommitted to regicide, he ends the scene determined: 'False face must hide what the false heart doth know.'
Key themes in this scene
- Conscience and Guilt
- Retributive Justice
- Manipulated Masculinity
- The Mechanics of Treason
Revision focus
Key takeaway: Macbeth’s conscience and sense of duty confront his ambition until Lady Macbeth’s calculated brutality forces him to commit, framing murder as both a private moral catastrophe and a public deception.
Close-reading question: How does the 'poison'd chalice' metaphor, paired with Macbeth’s fear that 'bloody instructions' return on their inventor, condense his anxiety about culpability and reciprocal justice?
Frequently asked questions about this scene
What reasons does Macbeth give against killing King Duncan in his Act 1 Scene 7 soliloquy?
Macbeth lists four major reasons: (1) Earthly justice will punish him because violence teaches violent lessons that return to plague the inventor; (2) Duncan is his kinsman and sovereign; (3) As Duncan's host, his sacred obligation is to protect him, not murder him; (4) Duncan has been an exceptionally pure, gentle king whose virtues will plead like angels against his murder.
How does Lady Macbeth convince Macbeth to go through with the murder?
She attacks his manhood and bravery, calling him a coward who lives like the proverb's timid cat. She questions his love for her, contrasts his weakness with her own ruthless commitment (declaring she would dash out her infant's brains if she had sworn to do so), and presents a concrete plan to frame Duncan's drunken chamberlains.
What is Lady Macbeth's specific plan to frame Duncan's guards?
She will ply Duncan's two bedroom guards with spiked, drugged wine until they fall into a drunken stupor. Macbeth can then enter Duncan's chamber, murder him with the guards' own daggers, and smear the royal blood onto the sleeping guards so everyone will believe they committed the murder.
How to study this scene
Track the changing language, identify a recurring image or contrast, and connect the scene's conflict to the play's larger dramatic movement. Use the linked reader to compare the original with the modern-English paraphrase.