Comment upon the Banquet Scene in Macbeth.

Ans.

1. Introduction

The fourth scene of act III of Macbeth, commonly referred to as the Banquet Scene is one of the most prominent scenes in this play. It is an important illustration of Shakespeare’s skillful handling of supernatural forces. It is one of the few very effective ghost scenes in all Shakespeare. The scene is also significant from the point of view of the dramatic action of the play. With this scene Macbeth’s tyrannical career starts moving in a direction from which there seems to be no escape. It most exposes Macbeth’ guilt and it serves as the beginning of his moral downfall. Lastly the scene also presents a sharp contrast between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.

2. A brief summary of the Scene

Macbeth has become king by usurpation, and he arranges a royal banquet to celebrate the occasion. All lords and nobles are invited to the banquet. Banquo is proposed to be the chief guest. Banquo tells Macbeth that he is going away for some time along with his son but that he will arrive at the banquet by nightfall. Macbeth is vexed because of the prophecy of the Witches that Banquo’s descendants shall be Kings of Scotland. He is also jealous of Banquo’s popularity as a nobleman. So he hires murderers, and Banquo is killed in a pre-planned way though his son fleance escapes.

While the banquet is on, a murderer comes and secretly informs Macbeth that Banquo has been killed. Macbeth now turns to his guests at the table and entertains them by expressing his great pleasure at finding them there. He says that if Banquo, too, had been present there his pleasure would have been the greater. After this he turns to take his own appointed seat but is horrified to find the ghost of Banquo already occupying it. He begins to rebuke and rave at the ghost in a strange manner. The guests are puzzled because the ghost is visible only to Macbeth. Lady Macbeth, however, shows great presence of mind at this critical juncture and she successfully explains away this strange behaviour of her husband by saying that he has been subject to such fits of frenzy ever since his youth. In the meantime the ghost disappears and Macbeth is again normal. He apologizes to the guests for his infirmity.

While drinking to the joy of the whole party, Macbeth once again regrets that Banquo is not in their midst, and the ghost of Banquo prompt reappears. Macbeth at once reacts. He is frightened out of his wits. He is on the point of betraying himself. Sensing the danger, Lady Macbeth abruptly disperses the guests with profound regrets, saying that her husband is not well. The ghost again vanishes and Macbeth again comes to his senses. His wife rebukes him for his strange behaviour. After the guests are gone, Macbeth gives expression to the utter desperateness of his situation. He now announces his determination to persist in his career of bloodshed. He says that from now onwards he will promptly execute his plans of crime as soon as they come into his head.

3. It dramatic significance

The Banquet scene of Macbeth is an important scene of the play. It is interesting for several reasons. It is highly dramatic in its effect. For one thing, it is one of the most memorable ghost scenes in all Shakespeare.

(a) As a ghost scene- Shakespeare often introduces supernatural agents such as witches, fairies, and ghosts in his plays. His main purpose is to eater to the taste of his audience which literally believed in the existence of such supernatural beings. Shakespeare’s ghosts, like his witches, are not merely the crude beings of popular superstition. They have a deep moral and psychological significance. Their function is either to reveal a murder, or else to create suspicion in the minds of the people and to incite them to avenge a murder. In Macbeth, the ghost of Banquo appears as a subjective ghost, which is visible only to Macbeth and remain invisible to the guests or to Lady Macbeth present in the banquet hall. It has been interpreted as a creation of Macbeth’s over rated imagination like the airborne dagger of a previous scene. The ghost of Banquo acts as an instruments of justice and punishment. It serves to expose Macbeth before the lords and noblemen present in the banquet hall.

(b) Signifies the beginning of Macbeth’s downfall- The appearance of the ghost marks the beginning of a definite decline in Macbeth’s fortune. Before this scene. there have been sings of some sort of nervousness in the hero. But somehow he manages to preserve a semblance of self-confidence. The ghost scene contributes significantly to his moral as well as political downfall. It completes his moral downfall. After this he is completely at the mercy of his devilish designs and the compulsions of his desperate situation. He sheds all his moral scruples and resolves to follow up his bloody purpose with bloody actions.

(c) Serves to expose Macbeth’s guilt- As indicated above, scene also serves to expose Macbeth before the lords and other courtiers. The unexpected appearance of the ghost of Banquo unnerves Macbeth beyond measure and compels him to make several disclosures even if in a guarded way. It serves to bring to light Macbeth’s secret guilt which was hitherto only a matter of surmise.

(d) Brings out the between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth- The scene also shows the sharp contrast between the characters of the husband and the wife. Lady Macbeth displays once again her superb self-control, Macbeth once again exposes himself as a person with a weak will and an easily excitable and nervous nature. At the appearance of the ghost in the banquet hall, Macbeth’s self-control evaporates and he begins to rave as a madman. He is on the point of divulging the many secrets connected with his past guilts. At this critical juncture Lady Macbeth displays tremendous self-control and an extraordinary presence of mind. She once again exerts all her will to bring her husband round. Failing in this, she does her best to confuse the guests regarding the true cause of her husband’ disturbance. Lady Macbeth’s role in this scene is truly heroic. It is almost sublime.

Thus we find that the Banquet Scene is one of the most critical scenes in the whole play. It marks the beginning of the catastrophe as regards the hero’s career.