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The two scenes in which murderers attack Banquo and Fleance, Lady Macduff and Macduff's son, have been compared to Herod's attempt to murder Christ and save the throne for himself by killing all new-born children in Bethlehem. [18] The conversation between Fleance and Banquo in their own murder scene is especially dark.
Lord Banquo / ˈ b æ ŋ k w oʊ /, the Thane of Lochaber, is a semi-historical character in William Shakespeare's 1606 play Macbeth.In the play, he is at first an ally of Macbeth (both are generals in the King's army) and they meet the Three Witches together.
An opportunistic courtier, he hails Macbeth at Scone, while the noble Macduff heads back to his home in Fife. When Macbeth begins to fear possible usurpation by Banquo and his son Fleance, he sends two murderers to kill them, and then sends Ross as the mysterious Third Murderer. Banquo is killed, while Fleance escapes.
The killings of Banquo and Fleance were important to Macbeth and, while the banquet that night was scheduled to start at 7pm, Macbeth did not appear until midnight. Paton believes the Third Murderer extinguished a light to avoid recognition, and later, Macbeth tells Banquo's ghost something that sounds like "In yon black struggle you could ...
Fearing that Banquo will seize the kingdom, Macbeth invites him to a supper where he intends to kill him and his son. He succeeds in killing Banquo, but his son, Fleance, flees to Wales. Macbeth, convinced by the witches of his invincibility, commits outrageous acts against his subjects, gradually becoming a cruel and paranoid ruler.
Macduff's son, in his bold denunciation of the murderers, is a strong symbol of the danger Macbeth faces. Paradoxically, the more Macbeth tries to rid himself of the human emotions (compassion, love) that lead to children, the less capable he is of meeting this threat and controlling his future. [6]
Lady Macduff is a character in William Shakespeare's Macbeth.She is married to Lord Macduff, the Thane of Fife.Her appearance in the play is brief: she and her son are introduced in Act IV Scene II, a climactic scene that ends with both of them being murdered on Macbeth's orders.
Depicted, counter-clockwise from top-left, are: Macbeth and Banquo meet the witches; just after the murder of Duncan; Banquo's ghost; Macbeth duels Macduff; and Macbeth. The Tragedy of Macbeth, often shortened to Macbeth (/ m ə k ˈ b ɛ θ /), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606.