Macbeth: Key Quotes

Character	Quote	Act.Scene	Context/Explanation
Sergeant	"For brave Macbeth—well he deserves that name."	1.2	The Sergeant praises Macbeth's bravery in battle, establishing his heroic reputation early in the play.
Duncan	"O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman!"	1.2	Duncan praises Macbeth, reinforcing his noble status before his tragic downfall.
Macbeth	"I'll go no more: I'm afraid to think what I have done; Look on't again I dare not."	2.2	Macbeth expresses fear and regret after murdering Duncan, showing his inner turmoil.
Macbeth	"Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No."	2.2	Macbeth realizes the enormity of his crime, believing nothing can cleanse him of the guilt.
Lady Macbeth	"A little water clears us of this deed."	2.2	Lady Macbeth dismisses Macbeth's guilt, believing that washing their hands will absolve them.
Lady Macbeth	"When you durst do it, then you were a man."	1.7	Lady Macbeth challenges Macbeth's masculinity to manipulate him into committing the murder.
Lady Macbeth	"Have pluck'd my nipple from his boneless gums, And dash'd the brains out, had I so sworn as you Have done to this."	1.7	Lady Macbeth shocks Macbeth by describing the extreme lengths she would go to keep a promise, pressuring him to act.
Macbeth	"Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee."	2.1	Macbeth hallucinates a dagger leading him to Duncan's chamber, symbolizing his guilty conscience.
Lady Macbeth	"That which hath made them drunk hath made me bold."	2.2	Lady Macbeth feels emboldened by the alcohol she gave Duncan's guards, which also shows her resolve to go through with the plan.
Lady Macbeth	"Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done't."	2.2	Lady Macbeth reveals a moment of weakness, admitting that Duncan's resemblance to her father prevented her from killing him herself.
Lady Macbeth	"These deeds must not be thought after these ways; so, it will make us mad."	2.2	Lady Macbeth tries to calm Macbeth, warning that dwelling on their actions will lead to madness.
Macbeth	"Macbeth shall sleep no more!"	2.2	Macbeth, haunted by guilt, believes he has destroyed his own peace and innocence by murdering Duncan.
Macbeth	"Wake Duncan with thy knocking! I would thou couldst!"	2.2	Macbeth expresses deep regret and wishes he could undo the murder of Duncan.
Macbeth	"O yet I do repent me of my fury that I did kill them."	2.3	Macbeth pretends to regret killing Duncan's guards, whom he has just murdered to cover up his crime.
Ross	"And yet dark night strangles the travelling lamp."	2.4	Ross describes the unnatural darkness that has fallen, reflecting the moral corruption and disorder following Duncan's murder.
Old Man	"'Tis said that they eat each other."	2.4	The Old Man recounts strange omens, suggesting that nature itself is reacting to the unnatural act of regicide.

| Banquo | "Thou hast it now: King, Cawdor, Glamis, all, As the weird women promis'd; and, I fear, Thou play'dst most foully for't." | 3.1 | Banquo suspects Macbeth has achieved his kingship through treachery, fulfilling the witches' prophecy by foul means. | | Macbeth | "Upon my head they plac'd a fruitless crown, And put a barren sceptre in my gripe." | 3.1 | Macbeth laments that his kingship is empty and will not be passed on to his descendants. | | Macbeth | "In the affliction of these terrible dreams that shake us nightly." | 3.2 | Macbeth reveals that his guilt manifests in nightmares, showing how the murder has disturbed his peace of mind. | | Macbeth | "The table's full." | 3.4 | Macbeth sees Banquo's ghost at the banquet, symbolizing his guilt and the inescapable consequences of his actions. | | Macbeth | "It will have blood, they say: blood will have blood." | 3.4 | Macbeth acknowledges that violence begets more violence, foreshadowing his own downfall. | | Macbeth | "I keep a servant fee'd." | 3.4 | Macbeth reveals his growing paranoia by admitting he has spies in every household. | | Lennox | "Our suffering country under a hand accurs'd." | 3.6 | Lennox comments on the suffering of Scotland under Macbeth's tyrannical rule. |

| Macbeth | "How now, you secret, black, and mid-night hags! What is't you do?" | 4.1 | Macbeth confronts the witches, showing his descent into darkness and desperation for control. | | Ross | "Where sighs and groans and shrieks that rent the air" | 4.3 | Ross describes the atmosphere in Scotland under Macbeth's reign, filled with sorrow and despair. | | Ross | "Where violent sorrow seems a modern ecstasy." | 4.3 | Ross speaks of grief turning to madness, highlighting the emotional toll of Macbeth's rule on Scotland. | | Ross | "Your castle is surpris'd; your wife and babes savagely slaughter'd." | 4.3 | Ross informs Macduff of the brutal murder of his family by Macbeth's orders, igniting Macduff's desire for revenge. | | Ross | "Wife, children, servants, all that could be found." | 4.3 | Ross lists the victims of Macbeth's cruelty, underscoring the extent of Macbeth's tyranny. | | Ross | "Be this the whetstone of your sword. Let grief convert to anger; blunt not the heart, enrage it." | 4.3 | Ross advises Macduff to channel his grief into anger, encouraging him to take action against Macbeth. |

| Doctor | "Look, how she rubs her hands." | 5.1 | The Doctor observes Lady Macbeth's compulsive hand-washing, a sign of her overwhelming guilt. | | Lady Macbeth | "Yet here's a spot…Out, damned spot! out, I say." | 5.1 | Lady Macbeth, tormented by guilt, imagines a bloodstain on her hand that she cannot wash away. | | Lady Macbeth | "Will these hands ne'er be clean?" | 5.1 | Lady Macbeth, consumed by guilt, realizes she cannot rid herself of the metaphorical blood on her hands. | | Lady Macbeth | "What's done cannot be undone." | 5.1 | Lady Macbeth acknowledges the irreversible nature of their crimes, expressing her deep regret. | | Angus | "Now does he feel his title hang loose about him, like a giant's robe upon a dwarfish thief." | 5.2 | Angus compares Macbeth to a thief wearing a robe too large, highlighting his unworthiness to be king. | | Macbeth | "I have almost forgot the taste of fears." | 5.5 | Macbeth reflects on how desensitized he has become, having lost his fear and humanity. | | Malcolm | "Of this dead butcher and his fiend-like queen." | 5.9 | Malcolm describes Macbeth and Lady Macbeth as ruthless and evil, summarizing their tragic fall from grace. | | Macbeth | "Fail not our feast." | 3.1 | Macbeth reminds Banquo to attend the feast, knowing he has already planned Banquo's murder, demonstrating his deception. | | Macbeth | "And make our faces vizards to our hearts, disguising what they are." | 3.2 | Macbeth acknowledges the need for deception, to hide their true intentions behind a mask of normalcy. |