of having Banquo murdered must also have been a large one. Yet the difference here is that he does not have much in the way of doubt about arranging for Banquo and Fleance to be disposed of. Now that he is king, he can dispatch the two murderers to do the deed for him.He explains that while he "could With barefaced power sweep him from my sight And bid my will avouch it, yet I must not" (3:1 118-120). While he is correct in assessing that merely ordering Banquo’s death in the open is not an option because of the other Lords, it is because he fears a loss of allegiance from his men. Surely, Macbeth is aware of the suspicions that must still be about the court of Duncan’s murder and his sudden rise to power and does not wish to jeopardize his tenuous hold on the throne. Yet, there is nothing but resolve and determination in his voice when instructing the murderers. Is he truly emboldened by his recent successes or is he actually presenting a front for the murderers and the audience as well? The very contrast between his near complete lack of apprehension prior to Banquo’s murder and his wild vision at the banquet scene surely are related. Macbeth may not be showing any indication of his guilty conscience on a level he’s actually aware of but it certainly all comes up to the surface at the banquet scene. He progresses from misapprehension, to alarm, and ultimately sheer terror in a matter of minutes. He tries to justify that he wasn’t the one who killed Banquo "thou canst not say I did it. Never shake Thy gory locks at me" (3:4 51-52). Curiously he first exculpates himself from the deed by stressing that he was actually removed from its execution.While not taking direct part in the murder of Banquo allowed Macbeth to keep his hands clean this time around, it also has weakened him severely precisely because of his obliqueness in the deed. Inversely to his participation in it, the fear and guilt he feels is com...
