Malcolm duncan macbeth play king presents act dramatic

Text	How is Malcolm presented in the play as a whole? The play was probably written around 1603‒06, soon after the Scottish King James came to the English throne and became the patron of Shakespeare’s company, the King’s Men. Macbeth presents a flattering image of James’s ancestor, Banquo https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/the-history-of-scotland-by-john-leslie-1578 , but raises troubling questions about the weaknesses of kings. As a character, Malcolm serves as a benchmark by which we can judge Macbeth as a ruler. Alongside Banquo and Duncan, he helps us weigh up conflicting ideas about manhood https://www.bl.uk/shakespeare/articles/manhood-and-the-milk-of-human-kindness-in-macbeth , family, royal duty and ‘Vaulting ambition’ (1.7.27). In the first act, Duncan names Malcolm as ‘the Prince of Cumberland’, the lawful heir of Scotland (1.4.39). Immediately, he is established as an obstacle to Macbeth’s unlawful ambitions – ‘a step / On which I must fall down or else o’er leap’ (1.4.48–49). This might lead us to expect a dramatic clash between them, but when Duncan is murdered, Malcolm flees. Sensibly – but perhaps not heroically – he seeks allies in England and his younger brother Donalbain escapes to Ireland. As fugitives, they are suspected of killing their own father, and Macbeth seizes the crown for himself. So the conflict between Macbeth and Malcolm is delayed until the final act, when their soldiers meet in battle. Importantly, Malcolm’s reaction shows his difference from his father. Both men are keenly aware that appearances can be deceptive, but Duncan fails to act on it. As king, he knows how hard it is to read the truth in faces (1.4.11‒12), but he still lets himself be deceived. With stark dramatic irony, he puts his trust in Macbeth, who seems an ‘innocent flower’ but is really a ‘serpent’ (1.5.65) who wields a dagger against him. By contrast, Malcolm observes that ‘There’s daggers in men’s smiles’ (2.3.140) and takes pains to find men’s real motives. While Duncan seemed honest, but also gullible, Malcolm uses deception in the name of decency. At the English court of King Edward https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/gold-coin-used-in-the-ceremony-of-touching-for-the-kings-evil – in Act 4, Scene 3 – Malcolm tests Macduff to ensure that he’s not ‘treacherous’ (4.3.18). To provoke a reaction, Malcolm falsely presents himself as a tyrannical ruler – full of ‘stanchless avarice’ (4.3.78) and uncontrolled ‘lust’ (4.3.63). He then lists the graces of a good king ‒ ‘justice, verity, tempr’ance, stableness’ ‒ but insists that he has ‘none’ of them (4.3.92; 91). When Macduff finally cracks and refuses to let such a man govern, Malcolm reveals his true chastity and self-control. In the course of this strange game, he manages to give us his vision of true kingship. While ‘devilish Macbeth’ (4.3.117) is the symbol of immoderate desire, Malcolm will be the model of virtue and restraint that we see in the last scene.

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How is Malcolm presented in the play as a whole?

The play was probably written around 1603‒06, soon after the Scottish King James came to the English throne and became the patron of Shakespeare’s company, the King’s Men. Macbeth presents a flattering image of

James’s ancestor, Banquo
https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/the-history-of-scotland-by-john-leslie-1578

, but raises troubling questions about the weaknesses of kings. As a character, Malcolm serves as a benchmark by which we can judge Macbeth as a ruler. Alongside Banquo and Duncan, he helps us weigh up conflicting ideas about

manhood
https://www.bl.uk/shakespeare/articles/manhood-and-the-milk-of-human-kindness-in-macbeth

, family, royal duty and ‘Vaulting ambition’ (1.7.27).

In the first act, Duncan names Malcolm as ‘the Prince of Cumberland’, the lawful heir of Scotland (1.4.39). Immediately, he is established as an obstacle to Macbeth’s unlawful ambitions – ‘a step / On which I must fall down or else o’er leap’ (1.4.48–49). This might lead us to expect a dramatic clash between them, but when Duncan is murdered, Malcolm flees. Sensibly – but perhaps not heroically – he seeks allies in England and his younger brother Donalbain escapes to Ireland. As fugitives, they are suspected of killing their own father, and Macbeth seizes the crown for himself. So the conflict between Macbeth and Malcolm is delayed until the final act, when their soldiers meet in battle.

Importantly, Malcolm’s reaction shows his difference from his father. Both men are keenly aware that appearances can be deceptive, but Duncan fails to act on it. As king, he knows how hard it is to read the truth in faces (1.4.11‒12), but he still lets himself be deceived. With stark dramatic irony, he puts his trust in Macbeth, who seems an ‘innocent flower’ but is really a ‘serpent’ (1.5.65) who wields a dagger against him. By contrast, Malcolm observes that ‘There’s daggers in men’s smiles’ (2.3.140) and takes pains to find men’s real motives.

While Duncan seemed honest, but also gullible, Malcolm uses deception in the name of decency. At the

English court of King Edward
https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/gold-coin-used-in-the-ceremony-of-touching-for-the-kings-evil

– in Act 4, Scene 3 – Malcolm tests Macduff to ensure that he’s not ‘treacherous’ (4.3.18). To provoke a reaction, Malcolm falsely presents himself as a tyrannical ruler – full of ‘stanchless avarice’ (4.3.78) and uncontrolled ‘lust’ (4.3.63). He then lists the graces of a good king ‒ ‘justice, verity, tempr’ance, stableness’ ‒ but insists that he has ‘none’ of them (4.3.92; 91). When Macduff finally cracks and refuses to let such a man govern, Malcolm reveals his true chastity and self-control. In the course of this strange game, he manages to give us his vision of true kingship. While ‘devilish Macbeth’ (4.3.117) is the symbol of immoderate desire, Malcolm will be the model of virtue and restraint that we see in the last scene.

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How is Malcolm presented in the play as a whole?