Act 3: Banquo's Ghost & Paranoia
Macbeth’s Soliloquy — “To Be Thus Is Nothing” (Act 3, Scene 1)
Having achieved the crown, Macbeth discovers that power brings not satisfaction but fear. His soliloquy reveals a new obsession: Banquo. “To be thus is nothing, / But to be safely thus.” Being king means nothing if his position is insecure. He fears Banquo’s “royalty of nature” — his natural nobility — and the witches’ prophecy that Banquo’s descendants, not Macbeth’s, will inherit the throne.
Macbeth has committed regicide for “a fruitless crown” and “a barren sceptre” — symbols of power without legacy. The agricultural imagery (“fruitless”, “barren”) echoes Duncan’s earlier language of planting and growth (Act 1, Scene 4), but inverts it: where Duncan’s rule created fertility, Macbeth’s produces nothing. He has “filed my mind” (defiled/corrupted) for Banquo’s descendants — all his crimes benefit someone else’s bloodline.
Macbeth fears Banquo’s “royalty of nature” and the prophecy that Banquo’s line will inherit the throne. His “fruitless crown” and “barren sceptre” mean he has gained power without legacy — all his crimes benefit another’s bloodline. This drives him to order Banquo’s murder without consulting Lady Macbeth, marking a shift in their power dynamic.
The Murder of Banquo (Act 3, Scene 3)
Macbeth hires murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance. He manipulates the murderers using the same tactic Lady Macbeth used on him — challenging their masculinity: “Are you so gospelled / To pray for this good man and for his issue?” The echo of Lady Macbeth’s method shows Macbeth has internalised her manipulation techniques. Critically, he acts alone — “Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck” (Act 3, Scene 2) — excluding Lady Macbeth from his plans for the first time.
Banquo is killed, but Fleance escapes. This is structurally crucial: the prophecy that Banquo’s descendants will be kings remains intact. Macbeth’s attempt to control the future has failed. The dramatic irony is devastating: Macbeth has committed murder for nothing — his “fruitless crown” remains fruitless.
Before the banquet, Macbeth invokes darkness: “Come, seeling night, / Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day.” “Seeling” is a falconry term for sewing a hawk’s eyelids shut — Macbeth wants night to blind the world to his crimes. This echoes Lady Macbeth’s earlier “thick night” (Act 1, Scene 5) and Macbeth’s own “Stars, hide your fires” (Act 1, Scene 4). The pattern shows both Macbeths consistently associate evil with darkness, reinforcing the light/dark imagery throughout the play.
His language has become more violent and commanding. “O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife!” The scorpion metaphor shows his thoughts as poisonous, stinging, self-destructive. His mind is now a nest of torment — a stark contrast to the morally conscious man of Act 1.
Banquo’s Ghost at the Banquet (Act 3, Scene 4)
The banquet scene is the play’s dramatic climax. Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost sitting in his chair — occupying the seat of honour that Macbeth himself should hold. Like the dagger, the ghost is ambiguous: is it a genuine supernatural visitation, or a projection of Macbeth’s guilt? Crucially, no one else can see it. Macbeth addresses the ghost directly: “Thou canst not say I did it. Never shake / Thy gory locks at me.” He denies responsibility even while confronting the evidence of his crime.
Lady Macbeth tries to control the situation, again attacking his masculinity: “Are you a man?” and “This is the very painting of your fear.” She uses the same tactics as Act 1, Scene 7 — but they no longer work. Macbeth is beyond her control. The dramatic irony is intense: the guests see a king raving at an empty chair, while the audience understands his guilt-ridden terror.
Banquo’s ghost (Act 3, Scene 4) occupies Macbeth’s seat — symbolically taking the place of the king. The ghost reveals Macbeth’s deteriorating psychology, his loss of control in public, and the collapse of Lady Macbeth’s power over him. She cannot stop his outbursts. The banquet, meant to consolidate his rule, instead exposes his guilt and instability to the Scottish lords.
The Shift in the Macbeths’ Relationship
Act 3 marks the turning point in the Macbeths’ partnership. In Act 1, Lady Macbeth planned and controlled; in Act 3, Macbeth acts alone (“Be innocent of the knowledge”), using her own manipulation tactics on the murderers. After the ghost scene, Lady Macbeth is sidelined. She does not appear at all in Act 4. Shakespeare structures the play so that as Macbeth’s tyranny grows, Lady Macbeth’s influence diminishes — a reversal that reaches its conclusion in her sleepwalking scene (Act 5, Scene 1).
After the ghost vanishes, Macbeth delivers a chilling assessment: “I am in blood / Stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, / Returning were as tedious as go o’er.” He imagines himself wading through a river of blood. He has gone so far that turning back would be as difficult as continuing. The word “tedious” is shocking — murder has become boring, routine. This is the play’s point of no return: Macbeth chooses to continue killing not out of ambition but out of necessity.
He resolves to visit the witches again: “I will to-morrow — and betimes I will — to the weird sisters.” He now actively seeks out the supernatural rather than being approached by it. The man who was terrified of the witches in Act 1 now depends on them. This marks his complete moral surrender.