Macbeth: Pg. 227 #1, 4, 5

1. To what specific incidents does Lady Macbeth refer in her sleep? Which incident has affected her the most, and why do you think it has done so? Why is it appropriate that Lady Macbeth suffers from a sleep disorder?

• First Lady Macbeth refers to the killing of King Duncan in lines 32-33, "Yet  who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?" Lady Macbeth also refers to the killing of all the people in Macduff's castle, particularly Macduff's wife (Lines 36-37: "The Thane of Fife had a wife; where is she now? What, will these hands ne'er be clean? No more o'that, my lord, no more o' that; you mar all with this starting.") Lady Macbeth also refers to the killing of Banquo (Lines 52-54: "Wash your hands, put on your nightgown, look not so pale. I tell you yet again, Banquo's buried; he cannot come out on 's grave.") 
• I think the killing of King Duncan bothers Lady Macbeth the most. I think this is so because it was the first murder that was committed. Lady Macbeth also helped out a lot and this is the incident that she got blood on her hands. She encouraged her husband to kill King Duncan and now she sees the course of the effects. Her conscience won't let her forget from what event stemmed all the other murders. If she hadn't encouraged Macbeth to kill King Duncan as much as she did, things could have turned out differently for Lady Macbeth and Macbeth.
• It is appropriate that Lady Macbeth suffers a sleep disorder because she is plagued by the guilty conscience she carries around with her everywhere. Even in her sleep it gets to her and will not let her relax. A guilty conscience is not gotten rid of easily. At night it probably effects her even more because it is dark and also spooky at night, Lady Macbeth is probably scared of what she cannot see; which could be apparitions of her past deeds.

4. What reaction does Macbeth display in Scene v, lines 17-28, when he learns of his wife's death? What has been ultimately responsible for his disillusionment with life? What visual imagery in this speech do you consider especially vivid?

• Macbeth's reaction to his wife's death is not really one of surprise. He sounds like he expected it to happen very soon.
• I think that the weird sister's prophesies about Macbeth becoming king caused him to have a disillusioned view of life. Before the prophesies Macbeth was just another soldier about to be honored by the king. He had no desire to be king or to kill anyone for the sake of power and title. After the prophesies however, Macbeth had a burning desire within him to be king. He believed that the weird sister's prophesies would come true, no matter what the cost. After being king, Macbeth thought that all in his life would be okay. He thought that he would live out a satisfying life as ruler and king without anything to worry about. Macbeth could also be disillusioned though because his wife ended up killing herself, no matter how many times she said that the murders would be fine and that it would not affect them after. The one who encouraged him and pushed him to make those decisions has now killed herself over her guilt. 
• I think that lines 24-28 are especially vivid, it says, "Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more. It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." 

5. How does the structure of Act V serve to bring together the country's outer turmoil and Macbeth's inner turmoil? Also, how does this closing speech bring the play to a satisfactory conclusion?

• The structure of Act V goes from Lady Macbeth's inner turmoil, which will affect Macbeth's inner turmoil, to the country's outer turmoil and the preparation for war, to Macbeth's inner turmoil as he is becoming worried of an attack, to more preparation for the war and the idea that the soldiers should disguise themselves as trees, to Macbeth learning about the Queen's death, to the attack of soldiers on Macbeth's castle, to Macbeth panicking about all the soldiers and then meeting Macduff where they begin this long conversation and it ultimately ends up in Macbeth dying. The structure of Act V is done just so that as the turmoil within Macbeth is growing, the turmoil within the country is going until war breaks out and Macbeth is finally killed.
• The closing is wonderfully written and it closes up the question as to what happens to the war heroes after, it also says that those who ran from the tyranny of Macbeth will be welcomed home again, and it also says that whatever else needs be done will be done at the right time and in the right place. It ends with a thanks to the audience and the announcement that the people in the play will be crowned at Scone.