Interrogatives? In Macbeth? Spells out Toil and Trouble

As Professor Little pointed out in class, the first four scenes of Macbeth begin with questions. These interrogatives let the read know that something is seriously wrong. The characters themselves don’t know what’s going on, which spells out panic and chaos for the rest of the play.

King Duncan particularly is introduced as a character by asking questions about his own battle. This emphasizes Duncan’s effeminate nature in Macbeth’s masculine society and establishes a weakness in what is supposed to be King Duncan’s supposed “rule of absolute authority” (a nod to King James I and his doctrine). How can a king rule absolutely if he doesn’t even know what’s going on in his kingdom?

The play opening interrogative mode, combined with other elements like bad weather and dodgy politics spell out to the reader though the first few scenes that the world of Macbeth is unstable and in a panic mode.

-Michelle Gonzalez