Previous
Act 1, Scene 1
Macbeth Translation Act 1, Scene 2
A trumpet and the sounds of fighting offstage. KING DUNCAN enters with his sons MALCOLM and DONALBAIN, along with the Duke of LENNOX and a number of attendants. They meet a wounded CAPTAIN.
DUNCAN
What bloody man is that? He can report,As seemeth by his plight, of the revoltThe newest state.
DUNCAN
Who’s this bloody man? From the looks of him, it seems likely he can give us the latest news about the revolt.
MALCOLM
This is the sergeant Who like a good and hardy soldier fought ‘Gainst my captivity. Hail, brave friend! Say to the king the knowledge of the broil As thou didst leave it.
MALCOLM
This is the sergeant, a good and tough soldier who fought to stop me from getting captured.
[To CAPTAIN] Greetings, brave friend! Tell the king about your knowledge of the battle from how you left it.
CAPTAIN
Doubtful it stood, As two spent swimmers that do cling together And choke their art. The merciless Macdonwald— Worthy to be a rebel, for to that The multiplying villanies of nature Do swarm upon him— from the Western Isles Of kerns and gallowglasses is supplied, And fortune, on his damnèd quarrel smiling, Showed like a rebel’s whore. But all’s too weak, For brave Macbeth—well he deserves that name— Disdaining fortune, with his brandished steel, Which smoked with bloody execution, Like valor’s minion carved out his passage Till he faced the slave; Which ne’er shook hands, nor bade farewell to him, Till he unseamed him from the nave to th’ chops, And fixed his head upon our battlements.
CAPTAIN
The outcome was in doubt. The two armies were like two tired swimmers clinging to each other, making it impossible for either to stay afloat. The armies of the merciless Macdonwald—who has so many villainous qualities that he’s a natural rebel—were reinforced by foot soldiers and warriors with axes from Ireland and the Hebrides. Luck was smiling on his damned rebellion as if she were his whore. But that wasn’t enough because brave Macbeth—he deserves that description—defied Lady Luck with his sword, which smoked with blood, and carved through Macdonwald’s army until he faced the rogue. Not pausing to shake hands or say goodbye, Macbeth split Macdonwald from belly to jaw and stuck his head on the walls of our castle.
DUNCAN
O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman!
DUNCAN
Oh, heroic cousin! A worthy gentleman!
CAPTAIN
As whence the sun ‘gins his reflection Shipwracking storms and direful thunders break, So from that spring whence comfort seemed to come Discomfort swells. Mark, King of Scotland, mark: No sooner justice had, with valor armed, Compelled these skipping kerns to trust their heels, But the Norweyan lord, surveying vantage, With furbished arms and new supplies of men, Began a fresh assault.
CAPTAIN
But just as terrible storms and dreadful thunder come right when the sun rises, so did new trouble arise from what had seemed to be our triumph. Listen, King of Scotland, listen: as soon as we defeated those Irish soldiers and sent them running, the Norwegian king spied an advantage and began a new assault with fresh soldiers and sharpened weapons.
DUNCAN
Dismayed not this our captains, Macbeth and Banquo?
DUNCAN
Didn’t this trouble our captains, Macbeth and Banquo?
CAPTAIN
Yes, as sparrows eagles, or the hare the lion. If I say sooth, I must report they were As cannons overcharged with double cracks, So they doubly redoubled strokes upon the foe. Except they meant to bathe in reeking wounds, Or memorize another Golgotha, I cannot tell— But I am faint, my gashes cry for help.
CAPTAIN
About as much as sparrows trouble eagles, or rabbits scare a lion. To be honest, they were like cannons loaded with double charges of gunpowder. They fought this new opponent with double their earlier ferocity. Perhaps they wanted to bathe in the blood of their enemies’ wounds, or make that battlefield as infamous as Golgotha...But I feel weak. My wounds are crying out for a doctor.
DUNCAN
So well thy words become thee as thy wounds;They smack of honor both. Go get him surgeons.
DUNCAN
Your words speak to your honor—as do your wounds. Get him to a doctor.
Attendants help the CAPTAIN to exit.
ROSS and ANGUS enter.
DUNCAN
Who comes here?
DUNCAN
Who’s just arrived?
MALCOLM
The worthy thane of Ross.
MALCOLM
The worthy Thane of Ross.
LENNOX
What a haste looks through his eyes! So should he lookThat seems to speak things strange.
LENNOX
His eyes are wild! He looks like a man with an incredible story to tell.
ROSS
God save the king.
ROSS
God save the king.
DUNCAN
Whence cam’st thou, worthy thane?
DUNCAN
Where have you come from, heroic thane?
ROSS
From Fife, great king, Where the Norweyan banners flout the sky And fan our people cold. Norway himself, with terrible numbers, Assisted by that most disloyal traitor, The thane of Cawdor, began a dismal conflict, Till that Bellona’s bridegroom, lapped in proof, Confronted him with self-comparisons, Point against point, rebellious arm ‘gainst arm, Curbing his lavish spirit; and to conclude, The victory fell on us.
ROSS
Great King, I've come from Fife, where the Norwegian flag flies—mocking our land and terrifying our people. The King of Norway—with a huge army and the support of that disloyal traitor, the Thane of Cawdor—began a battle that our forces looked likely to lose. That is, until Macbeth—covered in armor and seeming like Bellona's husband—met the rebellious thane sword in hand-to-hand combat, and in the end, Macbeth defeated Cawdor. To conclude, we were victorious.
DUNCAN
Great happiness!
DUNCAN
Great happiness!
ROSS
That now Sweno, the Norways’ king, craves composition. Nor would we deign him burial of his men Till he disbursed at Saint Colme’s Inch Ten thousand dollars to our general use.
ROSS
Now Sweno, the Norwegian king, begs for a peace treaty. We refused to let him bury his men until he retreated to Saint Colme’s Inch and gave us ten thousand dollars.
DUNCAN
No more that thane of Cawdor shall deceiveOur bosom interest: go pronounce his present death, And with his former title greet Macbeth.
DUNCAN
The Thane of Cawdor will never again deceive me. Go proclaim that he will be executed, and tell Macbeth that he will receive Cawdor’s title.
ROSS
I’ll see it done.
ROSS
I’ll do that.
DUNCAN
What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won.
DUNCAN
Noble Macbeth has won what the Thane of Cawdor has lost.
They all exit.
