Macbeth BRAWL Questions

T3
1) How would the story change if Lady Macbeth was the only ruler?
2) What would have happened if King Duncan had not been killed?
3) What would have happened if Macbeth was caught killing
Duncan?
4) How could things have changed if Macbeth had had children?
5) What is Shakespeare’s tone towards ambition? What observation
is he trying to make about ambition?
6) What observation does Shakespeare make about nobility?

Characterization
1) How did Macbeth “kill sleep”? After Duncan’s death, where else
in the play do we see evidence of this?
2) Suppose Banquo had lived. How would this have impacted the
story?
3) What did the apparitions (4) tell Macbeth?
4) In Macbeth’s soliloquy, why does he see a dagger in front of him?
5) Why does Macbeth hire murderers to kill Banquo and Macduff’s
family? How are these deaths different than when he killed Duncan?
6) What is Macbeth’s tragic flaw?

Plot
1) What is the climax of the play? Who was involved in this?
2) What are the prophecies given to Macbeth by the witches?
3) Did Macbeth have to kill Duncan? What would have happened if
he hadn’t killed Duncan?
4) At what point in the play is Macbeth’s downfall inevitable?
5) During the rising action, who had to run away? Why did they feel
they had run away? Where did they go?
6) In the beginning of the play, Macbeth was reluctant to kill Duncan
while Lady Macbeth was cold-hearted and pushing him into it. How
did their roles reverse throughout the play? Give examples of each.

Specifics
1) How did Macbeth feel before killing Duncan? How does this
change after he kills Duncan?
2) Why was Macduff called a traitor (by Macbeth and by Lady
Macduff)?
3) What were some things Malcolm said after becoming king in Act
5 scene 8? What does this reveal about his character?
4) At Macbeth’s feast, who does he imagine he can see? Why was
this person there? What does this represent about Macbeth?
5) Why did it seem that Macbeth didn’t care when Lady Macbeth
died?
6) What role does darkness play in this tragedy? What happens in
the darkness? Why?

Unusual
1) Why do you think Macbeth sees Banquo’s ghost, even though he
didn’t kill him?
2) How were the witches ambiguous about Macbeth’s future? How
does this impact the story?
3) Why was lady Macbeth sleep walking?
4) Why did Malcolm not want to be king?
5) Why does Macbeth kill Duncan’t bodyguards after the king is
discovered murdered?
6) One of the witches says, “something wicked this way comes”
right before Macbeth enters. When in the story did Macbeth become
wicked? Was there a moment or was it a gradual transformation?