Macbeth: Act 1 – MCQs (25 Questions)
Choose the correct option for each question.
-
Who is the author of Macbeth?
a) Christopher Marlowe
b) William Shakespeare
c) Ben Jonson
d) Edmund Spenser -
What supernatural beings appear in Act 1, Scene 1?
a) Ghosts
b) Angels
c) Three witches
d) Demons -
What is the setting of Act 1, Scene 1?
a) A castle chamber
b) A battlefield
c) A Scottish moor during a storm
d) A royal court -
Who are Macbeth and Banquo at the beginning of the play?
a) Kings of Scotland
b) Generals serving King Duncan
c) Thanes of Cawdor
d) Witches' servants -
What victory does the Captain report to King Duncan?
a) Macbeth defeated the English army
b) Macbeth defeated Macdonwald and the Norwegian forces
c) Banquo defeated the Irish forces
d) Duncan's son Malcolm defeated the rebels -
What prophecy do the witches make to Macbeth in Act 1, Scene 3?
a) He will become rich and powerful
b) He will be Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland
c) He will die in battle
d) He will have many sons -
What prophecy do the witches make about Banquo?
a) He will also become king
b) He will die in battle
c) His descendants will be kings, though he will not be king himself
d) He will betray Macbeth -
What does Macbeth already hold as titles when the witches meet him?
a) King of Scotland only
b) Thane of Glamis only
c) Thane of Glamis and Thane of Cawdor
d) Prince of Cumberland -
What news does Ross bring to Macbeth in Act 1, Scene 3?
a) King Duncan has died
b) Macbeth has been named the new Thane of Cawdor
c) The witches are imprisoned
d) Banquo has fled Scotland -
What is Banquo's initial reaction to the witches' prophecies?
a) He is eager to make them come true
b) He urges Macbeth to question the witches further
c) He is cautious and warns that evil speaks truth to manipulate
d) He immediately accepts them as absolute truth -
Who is King Duncan's son that is named Prince of Cumberland?
a) Macbeth
b) Banquo
c) Malcolm
d) Donalbain -
What is Duncan's reaction to Macbeth's loyalty and bravery?
a) He ignores Macbeth
b) He thanks and praises Macbeth and Banquo extensively
c) He becomes suspicious of Macbeth
d) He sentences Macbeth to death -
What does Macbeth confess in an aside after hearing Duncan praise Malcolm?
a) His plans to betray Duncan
b) That the throne is now further from him since Malcolm is named heir
c) That he loves Duncan as a father
d) That he will kill Banquo -
What is Lady Macbeth's first reaction upon reading Macbeth's letter about the witches?
a) She becomes afraid
b) She is ambivalent and wishes to do nothing
c) She immediately begins plotting to make Macbeth king
d) She wants to consult the witches again -
What does Lady Macbeth fear about Macbeth's character in Act 1, Scene 5?
a) He is too ambitious and ruthless
b) He is too full of "the milk of human kindness" to murder Duncan
c) He is plotting against her
d) He loves King Duncan too much -
What does Lady Macbeth pray for when she calls upon the spirits?
a) Forgiveness for her sins
b) To be unsexed and filled with cruelty to commit murder
c) To become invisible
d) To become the Queen of Scotland -
What plan does Lady Macbeth devise for murdering Duncan?
a) She will poison his wine
b) She will stab him with a sword
c) She will get his guards drunk and then frame them for his murder
d) She will hire an assassin -
What does Lady Macbeth advise Macbeth to do in Act 1, Scene 5?
a) Flee Scotland immediately
b) Confess everything to the King
c) Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under it
d) Declare himself the new king -
When does King Duncan plan to visit Macbeth's castle?
a) That very night
b) The next day
c) A week later
d) Duncan never plans to visit -
What is the main theme introduced by the witches in Act 1?
a) Love and romance
b) Ambition, fate, and the power of prophecy
c) Religion and morality
d) Friendship and loyalty -
How does Macbeth's ambition develop in Act 1?
a) It grows from his own desires before hearing the prophecy
b) The witches' prophecy awakens and inflames his existing ambition
c) He does not show any ambition in Act 1
d) Lady Macbeth creates his ambition from nothing -
What is the dramatic irony of Duncan placing "absolute trust" in the former Thane of Cawdor?
a) The Thane was actually loyal
b) The Thane had betrayed Duncan, yet Duncan now trusts Macbeth in the same position
c) Duncan is a poor judge of character
d) The Thane is still alive and plotting -
What emotional conflict does Macbeth experience in Act 1?
a) He has no conflicts
b) He struggles between his ambition for the throne and his moral doubts
c) He only feels joy at the prophecy
d) He only fears the witches -
How do the witches disappear in Act 1, Scene 3?
a) They walk away slowly
b) They vanish suddenly, foreshadowing that Macbeth cannot control his fate
c) They are killed by soldiers
d) They fly away on broomsticks -
What does the dagger symbolize that Macbeth imagines in Act 1?
a) His reward from Duncan
b) His tool for committing murder and his internal conflict
c) A gift from the witches
d) Nothing important
Answer Key
i) b – William Shakespeare
ii) c – Three witches
iii) c – A Scottish moor during a storm
iv) b – Generals serving King Duncan
v) b – Macbeth defeated Macdonwald and the Norwegian forces
vi) b – He will be Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland
vii) c – His descendants will be kings, though he will not be king himself
viii) b – Thane of Glamis only
ix) b – Macbeth has been named the new Thane of Cawdor
x) c – He is cautious and warns that evil speaks truth to manipulate
xi) c – Malcolm
xii) b – He thanks and praises Macbeth and Banquo extensively
xiii) b – That the throne is now further from him since Malcolm is named heir
xiv) c – She immediately begins plotting to make Macbeth king
xv) b – He is too full of "the milk of human kindness" to murder Duncan
xvi) b – To be unsexed and filled with cruelty to commit murder
xvii) c – She will get his guards drunk and then frame them for his murder
xviii) c – Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under it
xix) a – That very night
xx) b – Ambition, fate, and the power of prophecy
xxi) b – The witches' prophecy awakens and inflames his existing ambition
xxii) b – The Thane had betrayed Duncan, yet Duncan now trusts Macbeth in the same position
xxiii) b – He struggles between his ambition for the throne and his moral doubts
xxiv) b – They vanish suddenly, foreshadowing that Macbeth cannot control his fate
xxv) b – His tool for committing murder and his internal conflict