This scene serves as a crucial bridge between Duncan's murder and Macbeth's coronation, using pathetic fallacy to demonstrate how regicide has disrupted the natural order. Shakespeare employs the Old Man as a witness to history, emphasizing that even someone who has lived seventy years has never witnessed such unnatural phenomena. The imagery of darkness strangling light reinforces the theme that evil has temporarily triumphed over good.The animal symbolism is particularly significant: the owl killing the falcon represents the natural hierarchy being overturned, as owls typically hunt mice while falcons are noble birds of prey. Similarly, Duncan's horses eating each other suggests that Macbeth's act has caused even animals to violate their nature. This motif of cannibalism will recur throughout the play as Scotland metaphorically devours itself under Macbeth's tyrannical rule.Shakespeare uses dramatic irony as the characters discuss who could have committed such an unnatural deed while remaining unaware that the true perpetrator, Macbeth, is about to be crowned king. Macduff's subtle skepticism and his decision to return to Fife rather than attend the coronation establishes him as a figure of integrity who will later emerge as Macbeth's primary antagonist.The scene's structure mirrors the broader play's concern with appearance versus reality....
Scene Summary
In this brief but powerful scene, Ross and an Old Man witness supernatural disturbances that mirror the unnatural murder of Duncan. The Old Man, despite his seventy years of experience, has never seen such strange events: an owl has killed a falcon, and Duncan's horses have turned cannibalistic. These unnatural occurrences reflect the moral chaos that Macbeth's regicide has unleashed upon Scotland.
Macduff arrives with news that Malcolm and Donalbain have fled, making them appear guilty of their father's murder. This has cleared the way for Macbeth to be crowned king at Scone. However, Macduff's refusal to attend the coronation and his cryptic warning that "old robes" might fit better than "new" ones hints at his growing suspicion of Macbeth and foreshadows the resistance that will eventually challenge the usurper's reign.
"Threescore and ten I can remember well: / Within the volume of which time I have seen / Hours dreadful and things strange; but this sore night / Hath trifled former knowings." — Old Man (2.4.1-4)
"Thou seest, the heavens, as troubled with man's act, / Threaten his bloody stage" — Ross (2.4.5-6)
"'Tis day, / And yet dark night strangles the traveling light" — Ross (2.4.6-7)
"'Tis unnatural, / Even like the deed that's done." — Old Man (2.4.10-11)
"A falcon, towering in her pride of place, / Was by a mousing owl hawk'd at and kill'd." — Old Man (2.4.12-13)
"Duncan's horses--a thing most strange and certain-- / Beauteous and swift, the minions of their race, / Turn'd wild in nature, broke their stalls, flung out" — Ross (2.4.14-16)
"'Gainst nature still! / Thievish ambition, that will ravin up / Thine own life's means" — Ross (2.4.27-29)
"Lest our old robes sit easier than our new!" — Macduff (2.4.38)
Click any tag to explore where it appears across the play, then ask the Bard to explain how it works in this scene.
