THE FIRST ACT OF THE TRAGEDY.
Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare.
The title refers to the main character who is also the hero or better the tragic hero.
The play consists of five acts.
The first act is organized into seven scenes.
In the first scene the three witches agree to meet Macbeth. The atmosphere is suggested by the stage directions whichcreate a setting with thunder and lightning. The only characters of the scene are the three witches who recall magic and the supernatural.
Moreover, the first scene wants to create context and atmosphere as well as curiosity for Macbeth and the battles referred to in the witches’ speech. The playwright creates an immaterial context with the use of alliteration “F” giving the idea of suspect.
Shakespeare makes the reader into the play with the speech of the witches and he uses a strong language.
The function of the first scene is to create an immaterial context, to recall the magic of the Middle Ages and, last but not least, to remind battles and warriors.
In the second scene there are new characters:king Duncan, Donalbain, Malcolm, Lennox and a bleeding captain.
The king does not know how the battle is proceeding and he meets a bleedding captain. He tells the king Macbeth is very courageous and strong in battles .
Thanks to stage directions the reader understands where the scene is set: in a battle camp.
In this scene Duncan's dialogue with Malcolm and the captain recalls the witches' prophecies: he does not know how the battle is proceeding.
Moreove, for the first time the name of Macbeth is said.
The semantic field of war is important, as you can see from the words like “plight”, “revolt”, “captain”, soldier”, “sergeant”, “cannons” ... In this scene adjectives like “brave and “worthy” create the idea of warriors' values.
The function of the second scene is to remind the battles and warriors but also to underline Macbeth's importance.
In the third scene Macbeth and Banquo meet the three witches. They tell the generals that Macbeth will become count of Cawdor and later king of Scotland, while Banquo will be father of kings. After that, Ross and Anguss, two Scottish nobles, announce to Macbeth that he has been appointed count of Cawdor as the witches had predicted. The atmosphere is suggested by the image of thunder as you can see in the first scene. It is important to underline that in this scene the main character appears for the first time.
Shakespeare uses the typical language of the witches that is based on contrasts and puns which is also used by Macbeth. The function of the third scene is to create a special atmosphere underlined by the image of the witches, theirs spell and the supernatural.
In the fourth scene the meeting between king Duncan and Macbeth takes place.
The atmosphere is created by typical sounds like “flourish”(Stage Direction). The reader pays attention to the key figures that is Macbeth and Duncan. The language is formal and respectful as you can see from words like “service”, “loyalty” and “honour”…. The function of the fourth scene is to underline the importance of loyalty to the king. In the fifth scene Lady Macbeth reads the letter written by her husband where he informs her about the witches’ prophecies. After that the woman persuades Macbeth to kill king Duncan.
The most important character is Lady Macbeth because her function is to make the tragedy act. She uses a very formal language to speak with her husband. She plays with Macbeth’s psychology (mind, fault).
The function of this scene is to underline the role of the woman, a relevant one in the play.
The sixth scene sees the entrance of king Duncan into Macbeth’s castle. The stage directions suggest a merry atmosphere underlined by hautboys and torches. The language is formal, in fact Shakespeare wants to suggest the relation between the nobles.
The function of the scene is to focus on the loyalty between the king and his generals.
In the seventh scene Lady Macbeth persuades Macbeth to kill Duncan. In fact she wants to secure the throne to her husband. The place, where the scene is set, is typical of the castle with aishes and service. (Stage Directions)
Here Lady Macbeth insists on Macbeth’s flaw.
The language is informal because there is a dialogue between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.
The function of the seventh scene is to underline the relationship between the married couple where the woman plays with the Macbeth’s weaknesses.
The first act has got an introductory function: the reader can see the description of the play main characters and can understand the context of the tragedy.