Macbeth: Questions pg. 246-247 #2 and 4

2. Why do you think Macbeth sends the Third Murderer to help kill Banquo and Fleance? In what way do the murderers fail, and how significant do you think the failure is? In Scene iv, line 28, to whom does the word worm refer, and what implication does Macbeth make by using the term?

• I think Macbeth sends the Third Murderer just to make sure that nothing goes wrong (act as a back up) and that both Banquo and Fleance are killed. 
• They fail to kill Fleance. I think this is very significant because Fleance is Banquo's son. The prophesy of the three witches said that the crown would not go to Banquo himself but to his heirs. Fleance is the heir of Banquo and so failure to kill Fleance still means that the prophesy can be fulfilled.
• The word worm refers to Fleance and the implication Macbeth makes by using this term is that Fleance is still young, but he can become a huge threat to Macbeth in the future if Macbeth does not do something about Fleance now. 

4. What does Macbeth mean in Scene iv, line 121, when he says, "Blood will have blood"? Find another example of Macbeth's statement of this idea in his opening soliloquy in Act I, Scene vii. Why does Macbeth feel that he must speak to the witches again? Do you consider his assessment of his situation in Scene iv, lines 135-37, a valid motive for his continuation of evil?

• By saying "Blood will have blood," Macbeth is insinuating that one death will eventually lead up to another. It is a cycle and once one killing has taken place, there will be another. It could also relate to the idea of vengeance. That the "blood" being the person killed will have "blood" being revenge on the one who killed that person.
• Act I, Scene vii, Lines 8-10
• "We still have judgement here, that we but teach
• Bloody instructions, which being taught, return
• To plague th' inventor..."
• Macbeth feels that he needs to speak to the witches again in order to know what bad things are waiting for him in the future. 
• No I do not consider Macbeth's assessment of his situation in Scene iv to be a valid motive for his continuation of evil. Macbeth has dug himself a very large hole and he believes there is no other option but to keep digging. He believes that he should act on the impulses within his head before he can study their consequences fully. This is not a valid motive because he could make a change and stop being evil, yet he chooses to continue with his evil deeds. There is no valid motive for a continuation of evil.