Macbeth | Act 3, Scene 6 | Summary

Summary

Lennox meets with another thane and talks about the strange events and suspicious deaths that have taken place recently. He mentions Duncan's murder, Banquo's killing, and Fleance's departure. The sons may be accused of killing their fathers, he asserts, because Malcolm, Donalbain, and Fleance all fled after the murders. He talks about Macbeth killing Duncan's guards, and it becomes clear he suspects Macbeth is behind all the killings. Both men refer to Macbeth as a tyrant. The other lord tells Lennox that Malcolm has been accepted into the English court and that Macduff is on his way there to find him and ask the English king for an army to depose Macbeth. Macbeth has also heard all of this and may be preparing for battle, so the two pray for Macduff's success.

Analysis

When Lennox talks about Macbeth's grief for Duncan and his actions against Duncan's guards, his tone is sarcastic. Banquo's death has caused Lennox and the other lords to notice a pattern—the people Macbeth professes to love somehow keep winding up dead. The conversation raises the question of whether Macbeth might have gotten away with his plot if he had left Banquo alone. Instead, suspicions are high; Macbeth's lords call him "tyrant" behind his back and have begun making plans to get rid of him.