Macbeth, Act 3 Scene 2 runs 62 lines of dialogue, spoken by 3 speakers. That is shorter than the play’s average scene length of about 85 lines. This scene is part of Act 3 of Macbeth.
Full Dialogue
Lady Macbeth ♀
Is Banquo gone from court?
Servant ♂
Ay, madam, but returns again to-night.
Lady Macbeth ♀
Say to the king, I would attend his leisure
For a few words.
For a few words.
Servant ♂
Madam, I will.
Lady Macbeth ♀
Nought's had, all's spent,
Where our desire is got without content:
'Tis safer to be that which we destroy
Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy.
How now, my lord! why do you keep alone,
Of sorriest fancies your companions making,
Using those thoughts which should indeed have died
With them they think on? Things without all remedy
Should be without regard: what's done is done.
Where our desire is got without content:
'Tis safer to be that which we destroy
Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy.
How now, my lord! why do you keep alone,
Of sorriest fancies your companions making,
Using those thoughts which should indeed have died
With them they think on? Things without all remedy
Should be without regard: what's done is done.
Macbeth ♂
We have scotch'd the snake, not kill'd it:
She'll close and be herself, whilst our poor malice
Remains in danger of her former tooth.
But let the frame of things disjoint, both the
worlds suffer,
Ere we will eat our meal in fear and sleep
In the affliction of these terrible dreams
That shake us nightly: better be with the dead,
Whom we, to gain our peace, have sent to peace,
Than on the torture of the mind to lie
In restless ecstasy. Duncan is in his grave;
After life's fitful fever he sleeps well;
Treason has done his worst: nor steel, nor poison,
Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing,
Can touch him further.
She'll close and be herself, whilst our poor malice
Remains in danger of her former tooth.
But let the frame of things disjoint, both the
worlds suffer,
Ere we will eat our meal in fear and sleep
In the affliction of these terrible dreams
That shake us nightly: better be with the dead,
Whom we, to gain our peace, have sent to peace,
Than on the torture of the mind to lie
In restless ecstasy. Duncan is in his grave;
After life's fitful fever he sleeps well;
Treason has done his worst: nor steel, nor poison,
Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing,
Can touch him further.
Lady Macbeth ♀
Come on;
Gentle my lord, sleek o'er your rugged looks;
Be bright and jovial among your guests to-night.
Gentle my lord, sleek o'er your rugged looks;
Be bright and jovial among your guests to-night.
Macbeth ♂
So shall I, love; and so, I pray, be you:
Let your remembrance apply to Banquo;
Present him eminence, both with eye and tongue:
Unsafe the while, that we
Must lave our honours in these flattering streams,
And make our faces vizards to our hearts,
Disguising what they are.
Let your remembrance apply to Banquo;
Present him eminence, both with eye and tongue:
Unsafe the while, that we
Must lave our honours in these flattering streams,
And make our faces vizards to our hearts,
Disguising what they are.
Lady Macbeth ♀
You must leave this.
Macbeth ♂
O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife!
Thou know'st that Banquo, and his Fleance, lives.
Thou know'st that Banquo, and his Fleance, lives.
Lady Macbeth ♀
But in them nature's copy's not eterne.
Macbeth ♂
There's comfort yet; they are assailable;
Then be thou jocund: ere the bat hath flown
His cloister'd flight, ere to black Hecate's summons
The shard-borne beetle with his drowsy hums
Hath rung night's yawning peal, there shall be done
A deed of dreadful note.
Then be thou jocund: ere the bat hath flown
His cloister'd flight, ere to black Hecate's summons
The shard-borne beetle with his drowsy hums
Hath rung night's yawning peal, there shall be done
A deed of dreadful note.
Lady Macbeth ♀
What's to be done?
Macbeth ♂
Be innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck,
Till thou applaud the deed. Come, seeling night,
Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day;
And with thy bloody and invisible hand
Cancel and tear to pieces that great bond
Which keeps me pale! Light thickens; and the crow
Makes wing to the rooky wood:
Good things of day begin to droop and drowse;
While night's black agents to their preys do rouse.
Thou marvell'st at my words: but hold thee still;
Things bad begun make strong themselves by ill.
So, prithee, go with me.
Till thou applaud the deed. Come, seeling night,
Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day;
And with thy bloody and invisible hand
Cancel and tear to pieces that great bond
Which keeps me pale! Light thickens; and the crow
Makes wing to the rooky wood:
Good things of day begin to droop and drowse;
While night's black agents to their preys do rouse.
Thou marvell'st at my words: but hold thee still;
Things bad begun make strong themselves by ill.
So, prithee, go with me.
62 lines rendered verbatim from the dialogue corpus.
Who’s On Stage
Speaking characters in this scene
| Character | Lines | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Macbeth | 42 | 67.7% |
| Lady Macbeth | 18 | 29.0% |
| Servant | 2 | 3.2% |
Line distribution
The top speaker in this scene delivers 42 lines, while the scene’s average per speaker is about 21 lines.
Total speakers on stage
3 named characters speak in this scene.
Scene in Context
Position within Act 3
This is Scene 2 of 6 in Act 3 of Macbeth.
Scene length vs. play average
At 62 lines, this scene is shorter than the Macbeth average scene in Macbeth (~85 lines).
Adjacent scenes
Previous: Act 3 Scene 1 · Next: Act 3 Scene 3
About Act 3 Scene 2 of Macbeth
Who carries Act 3 Scene 2 of Macbeth?
Macbeth, with 42 lines — about 68% of the scene.
Is the scene a dialogue or a solo?
With 3 speakers and the lead holding 68% of the lines, this scene is a showcase for the lead voice.