ACT IV - Scene I Practice Quiz — Macbeth
by William Shakespeare — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: ACT IV - Scene I
Where does Act 4, Scene 1 take place?
In a dark cavern with a boiling cauldron in the middle, accompanied by thunder.
What is the Witches' famous refrain in this scene?
"Double, double, toil and trouble; / Fire burn and cauldron bubble."
How many times is the "Double, double" refrain chanted?
Three times, once after each Witch adds her round of ingredients to the cauldron.
What does the First Witch put in the cauldron first?
A toad that has slept under a cold stone for thirty-one days, collecting venom.
Name three ingredients the Second Witch adds to the cauldron.
Eye of newt, toe of frog, wool of bat, tongue of dog, adder's fork, blind-worm's sting, lizard's leg, and howlet's wing (any three).
What is a "howlet" as mentioned in the Witches' recipe?
An owlet, or young owl. "Howlet's wing" is one of the ingredients in the cauldron.
What role does Hecate play in this scene?
Hecate briefly appears to commend the Witches' work, tells them to sing and enchant the cauldron, then departs before Macbeth arrives.
What line does the Second Witch speak as Macbeth approaches?
"By the pricking of my thumbs, / Something wicked this way comes."
Why is it significant that the Witches call Macbeth "wicked"?
It shows that even the agents of evil now recognize Macbeth as one of their own, marking how far he has fallen from the noble hero he was at the start of the play.
What does Macbeth call the Witches when he enters?
"Secret, black, and midnight hags."
When Macbeth asks what the Witches are doing, what do they answer?
"A deed without a name" — suggesting their dark arts are beyond human language or categorization.
What is the First Apparition and what does it say?
An armed (helmeted) head. It warns: "Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff, / Beware the Thane of Fife."
What does the armed head of the First Apparition symbolize?
It foreshadows Macbeth's own beheading by Macduff at the end of the play.
What is the Second Apparition and what does it say?
A bloody child. It declares: "Be bloody, bold, and resolute... none of woman born / Shall harm Macbeth."
What does the bloody child of the Second Apparition symbolize?
It represents Macduff, who was born by cesarean section ("from his mother's womb / Untimely ripp'd") and is therefore not technically "of woman born."
What is the Third Apparition and what does it say?
A crowned child holding a tree. It says Macbeth "shall never vanquish'd be until / Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill / Shall come against him."
What does the crowned child holding a tree symbolize?
It represents Malcolm, who will be crowned king and who orders his soldiers to cut branches from Birnam Wood as camouflage during their march on Dunsinane.
How does Macbeth react to the three prophecies?
He feels reassured and nearly invincible, believing no man can harm him and that forests cannot move. He misinterprets the equivocal language.
What does Macbeth demand to know after the three apparitions?
Whether Banquo's descendants ("issue") will ever reign as kings in Scotland.
What do the Witches show Macbeth when he demands to know about Banquo's line?
A procession of eight kings, all resembling Banquo, followed by Banquo's blood-boltered ghost. The eighth king holds a mirror showing even more future monarchs.
What do the "twofold balls and treble sceptres" represent in the show of kings?
They allude to King James I's double coronation (Scotland and England) and his rule over three kingdoms (England, Scotland, Ireland). This was Shakespeare's compliment to his royal patron.
What news does Lennox bring after the Witches vanish?
That Macduff has fled to England.
How does Macbeth respond to the news of Macduff's flight?
He resolves to act on his first impulse and orders the immediate slaughter of Macduff's wife, children, and entire household at the castle of Fife.
What does Macbeth mean by "The very firstlings of my heart shall be / The firstlings of my hand"?
He will act instantly on his first violent thoughts without deliberation or moral reflection — a complete abandonment of conscience.
What is equivocation and how does it relate to this scene?
Equivocation is language that is technically true but deliberately misleading. The apparitions' prophecies all equivocate: they seem to promise safety but actually foretell Macbeth's doom through loopholes he fails to see.
What is a "chaudron" as mentioned in the Third Witch's recipe?
Entrails or guts. The Third Witch adds "a tiger's chaudron" (tiger's entrails) to the cauldron.