eth, because of her ambition for her husband, uses all her strength and intelligence for evil purposes. They are very unlike Banquo, who will not compromise his honor for anything. 3.APPEARANCE VERSUS REALITY Practically nothing in the play is what it appears to be. The witches' predictions sound like good news; actually, they lead to death and destruction. Macbeth and his wife seem like gracious hosts; actually, they are plotting murder. The Macbeths appear to achieve their heart's desires; in reality, they only gain torment and death. In reading the play, examine each scene to compare what appears to be happening with what is really happening. 4.HONOR AND LOYALTY In a feudal society such as the one in Macbeth, peace and order are maintained largely through honor and loyalty. Men of honor obey certain rules. Macbeth throws all ideas of honor out the window. Once he has done that, the country is in turmoil. Nobody knows whom he can trust. Look at what Macduff has to go through to win Malcolm's trust in Act IV. In Act V, it is made very clear that the few followers Macbeth has left have been forced to stay with him. They feel no sense of loyalty toward him. When it comes time to fight, they just give up. 5.FATE AND DESTINY The play suggests that a person should trust his destiny to a higher power. After encountering the three witches, Macbeth tries to take fate into his own hands, and that action brings him nothing but grief. Malcolm, on the other hand, trusts that all things will work out "...by the grace of Grace [in other words, heaven]" (Act V, Scene viii, line 72). "Be what you're meant to be," the play seems to be saying. SOURCES The story of Macbeth is a combination of two stories found in Holinshed's Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland. Shakespeare developed many of the plots and characters for his plays from this book of history and legend. Holinshed tells one story about a man named Macbeth who killed a king named Dunc...
