ACT 4 Active Reading Notes

Scene 1
The scene starts out with the three witches making their stew and adding in weird ingredients. The witches are singing their spells, when Hecate comes in a commends them for their work. One witch predicts that Macbeth is coming and he enters right after. Macbeth asks for their latest visions of the future and they come up with three very bad visions that bring out Macbeth's fear. The first vision is of a floating head which is supposed to warn Macbeth to beware of Macduff and what he wants to do to Macbeth. After hearing this Macbeth responds by saying he already had figured that. The next vision is a bloody child appears and tells him that no women will harm him. The third vision is a child holding a tree that tells Macbeth he is safe until some man by the name of Birnam Wood moves. Kings are walking by and at the end is Banquo's ghost and Macbeth demands the witches to tell him what the ghost of Banquo means. The witches do not tell him, but rather chant and then disappear. Lennox enters and informs Macbeth that Macduff has fled to England so Macbeth orders murderers to be sent to kill Macduff's wife and children.
Scene 2
This scene starts with Lady Macduff talking to Ross. Lady Macduff explains how her husband has left her and her children and that he is a traitor. Ross stands up for Macduff and says he is no traitor. Ross leaves and Lady Macduff and her son talk about what he will do with out a father because his father is dead. The son doesn't believe her but she says that he is traitorous and will be hanged because everyone who lies and swears is considered a traitor and therefore hung. A messenger enters to inform them that they are in danger. Lady Macduff questions whether she should stay and claim that she has done no wrong or flee and be safe. While thinking about it the murderers enter and talk badly about Macduff, his son stands up for him and his immediately killed. Lady Macduff runs and the murderers take off after her.
Scene 3
Macduff and Malcolm are talking and Malcolm is concerned that Macduff has betrayed him and is sided with Macbeth because Macduff left his children and wife all alone in England. In order to see if he can trust Macduff he begins going through his own morals and sees if he is fit for King, which he believes he isn't because of his greed and other bad characteristics. At first Macduff says that Malcolm is fit to be King and then his love for Scotland forces him to tell Malcolm that he is not fit to be King. Macduff passes the loyalty test and Malcolm tries to create an alliance between the two. A doctor enters and says there are many souls waiting to be cured by King Edward. Malcolm then explains how King Edward has this skill of curing diseases. Ross tries to lie to Macduff and tells him that his wife and children are fine and that Malcolm should return to his country after all that Macbeth is doing, but Malcolm will only return with an army of 10,000 men. Ross then breaks down and tells Macduff that his wife and all of his children have been murdered. Macduff is very heart broken and Malcolm encourages Macduff to change his pain into anger, but Macduff says I must also grieve like a man, but I will take my anger out and seek revenge at some point.