ACT V - Scene II Macbeth

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The country near Dunsinane. Drum and colors.

Enter Menteith, Caithness, Angus, Lennox, and Soldiers.

MENTEITH
The English power is near, led on by Malcolm,
His uncle Siward, and the good Macduff.
Revenges burn in them, for their dear causes
Would to the bleeding and the grim alarm
Excite the mortified man.

ANGUS
Near Birnam Wood
Shall we well meet them; that way are they coming.

CAITHNESS
Who knows if Donalbain be with his brother?

LENNOX
For certain, sir, he is not; I have a file
Of all the gentry. There is Seward's son
And many unrough youths that even now
Protest their first of manhood.

MENTEITH
What does the tyrant?

CAITHNESS
Great Dunsinane he strongly fortifies.
Some say he's mad; others, that lesser hate him,
Do call it valiant fury; but, for certain,
He cannot buckle his distemper'd cause
Within the belt of rule.

ANGUS
Now does he feel
His secret murthers sticking on his hands,
Now minutely revolts upbraid his faith-breach;
Those he commands move only in command,
Nothing in love. Now does he feel his title
Hang loose about him, like a giant's robe
Upon a dwarfish thief.

MENTEITH
Who then shall blame
His pester'd senses to recoil and start,
When all that is within him does condemn
Itself for being there?

CAITHNESS
Well, march we on
To give obedience where 'tis truly owed.
Meet we the medicine of the sickly weal,
And with him pour we, in our country's purge,
Each drop of us.

LENNOX
Or so much as it needs
To dew the sovereign flower and drown the weeds.
Make we our march towards Birnam.

Exeunt marching.

Frequently Asked Questions about ACT V - Scene II from Macbeth

What happens in Act 5, Scene 2 of Macbeth?
In Act 5, Scene 2, a group of Scottish nobles—Menteith, Caithness, Angus, and Lennox—march with their soldiers toward Birnam Wood to join forces with Malcolm's English army, led by Malcolm, Siward, and Macduff. They discuss Macbeth's deteriorating hold on power, noting that he has fortified Dunsinane Castle and that his followers serve him out of fear rather than loyalty. Angus delivers the famous line comparing Macbeth's stolen title to "a giant's robe upon a dwarfish thief." The scene ends with the rebels marching toward Birnam Wood, framing their rebellion as a cure for Scotland's sickness under Macbeth's tyranny.

Who are the Scottish nobles in Act 5, Scene 2 of Macbeth?
The Scottish nobles who appear in Act 5, Scene 2 are Menteith, Caithness, Angus, and Lennox. These four thanes have turned against Macbeth and are leading a rebel force to join Malcolm's English army near Birnam Wood. They represent the widespread abandonment of Macbeth by Scotland's nobility, and their dialogue reveals that Macbeth's remaining soldiers follow him only out of obligation, not out of genuine loyalty or love.

What does "like a giant's robe upon a dwarfish thief" mean in Macbeth?
This simile, spoken by Angus in Act 5, Scene 2, compares Macbeth's royal title to an oversized garment hanging loosely on someone far too small to wear it. The "giant's robe" represents the legitimate authority and moral stature of kingship, while the "dwarfish thief" represents Macbeth, who stole the crown through murder and is morally unfit to hold it. The clothing imagery connects to a pattern throughout the play where ill-fitting garments symbolize Macbeth's illegitimate claim to the throne.

Why is Birnam Wood important in Act 5, Scene 2 of Macbeth?
Birnam Wood is important because it is the meeting point for the rebel Scottish forces and Malcolm's English army, and it connects directly to the witches' prophecy from Act 4, Scene 1. The Third Apparition told Macbeth he would never be defeated until "Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill shall come against him." When the rebels march toward Birnam Wood in this scene, the audience recognizes that the prophecy is beginning to unfold. In the following scenes, Malcolm orders his soldiers to cut branches from Birnam Wood and carry them as camouflage, literally making the wood "move" toward Dunsinane.

What is the "medicine of the sickly weal" in Macbeth Act 5, Scene 2?
Caithness uses the phrase "the medicine of the sickly weal" to describe Malcolm, the rightful heir to the Scottish throne. The "sickly weal" means the diseased commonwealth—Scotland under Macbeth's tyrannical rule. By calling Malcolm the "medicine," Caithness frames the rebellion as a healing process, casting Macbeth's reign as an illness that must be purged. This medical imagery reinforces the scene's theme of restoration and connects to the broader motif of disease and cure that runs throughout Act 5.

 

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