Enter the GHOST OF BANQUO! (3.4.36-43) #DaggerDrawn #SlowShakespeare

Enter the Ghost of Banquo, and sits in Macbeth’s place

MACBETH      Sweet remembrancer!

Now good digestion wait on appetite,

And health on both!

LENNOX         May’t please your highness sit?

MACBETH      Here had we now our country’s honour roofed

Were the graced person of our Banquo present,

Who may I rather challenge for unkindness

Than pity for mischance.

ROSS                           His absence, sir,

Lays blame upon his promise.         (3.4.36-43)

 

Sweet remembrancer! What would I do without my lovely wife? The Macbeths grit their teeth, grimace, as Lady Macbeth succeeds in reminding him who he is, where he is, what he’s meant to be doing. And he finally gives the toast: now good digestion wait on appetite, and health on both! Cheers everyone, tuck in! Perhaps a signal for servants to enter with food, to start serving.

 

Too late. Not only has the Ghost already entered (and the audience mightn’t notice yet either, a good effect, potentially) but he’s sitting in Macbeth’s place, whether that’s where he’s intending to sit, in the midst of his thanes, or in his chair of state, beside his wife. Much to be done with the Ghost’s appearance: not in a shroud, it seems, rather as if he’s just been killed, but ghostly. A whitened face, probably, and blood on his face, his hair, his garments. He doesn’t have to bleed on stage, but rather can enter bloody, so it was likely a change into a bloodied costume, perhaps just a shirt (that’d be easiest and cheapest, not risking one of the more expensive outer garments) and some sort of artificial blood on his face and head. Although there’s probably time taken up at the beginning of the banquet scene with a procession, seating the guests (and setting up the table) there isn’t a huge amount of time for an elaborate costume change for Banquo, and in fact he could well wear his ‘ghost’ costume under a cloak (natural, if he’s been out riding) for the murder scene.

 

May’t please your highness sit? Lennox is attention-seeking, perhaps, wanting the favour of the king, or else he too has noticed that’s something’s a bit off (especially if he’s been the Third Murderer) and wants to smooth things over, get Macbeth sitting down, calmed down, carrying on. Lady Macbeth might have caught his eye. Macbeth ignores, instead carries on, ill-advisedly, drawing attention to Banquo’s absence by saying how sorry he is that he’s not there. If only Banquo were here! If we had the graced person of our Banquo with us (awkward, as ever) here had we now our country’s honour roofed: we’d have everyone important, all the most honourable, virtuous people of the land here at once, in one room, under one roof (and perhaps also suggesting that Banquo would be that roof, the pinnacle of Scotland’s honour). It’s such a shame he’s not here—and then some performative finger wagging (perhaps; or he could play it straight, with a bit of menace): I rather think that he’s staying away out of unkindness, and if that’s the case I want to know why he’s behaving like that—I think it’s that rather than mischance, getting unexpectedly held up, ill luck, that I’ll have to pity and excuse. He’ll get such a telling-off! (Such ambiguity here, room for all the thanes to interpret slightly differently, some to smile or laugh, some to look alarmed, even shocked. How seriously to take this? What’s going on?) Ross is literal (perhaps—like Lennox? because of Lennox? ingratiating): he said he was going to be here, and now his absence lays blame upon his promise. It makes him look bad, breaking his word, as if he doesn’t mean what he says. But it’s Macbeth who doesn’t mean what he’s saying, and this little exchange with Lennox and Ross is the murderers again, wary, mindful of status, not wanting to give anything away, not trusting anyone.

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