Macbeth Chapter 5 Summary

Chapter 5: chapter recap, key events, character developments, and running summary.

By William Shakespeare

5 chapters

Chapter 53,250 wordsCompleted

ACT V SCENE I. Dunsinane, a room in the castle. A Doctor of Physic and a Gentlewoman observe Lady Macbeth sleep‑walking. She repeatedly attempts to wash an imagined bloodstain from her hands, utters fragmented guilt‑laden phrases (“Out, damned spot!”, “What, will these hands ne’er be clean?”), and reveals knowledge of the murders. The Doctor declares her condition beyond his skill, urges removal of any means of self‑harm, and asks others to keep watch over her. The Gentlewoman notes the Lady’s continual light and her strange, open‑eye yet unseeing state. Both exit, leaving Lady Macbeth’s mental collapse starkly displayed.

SCENE II. The countryside near Dunsinane. Malcolm, old Siward, his son, Macduff, and other Scottish nobles (Menteith, Caithness, Angus, Lennox, Ross) assemble with drums and colours. They discuss the imminent assault on Macbeth. Malcolm orders each soldier to cut a branch from Birnam Wood and carry it before them, planning to use the branches as camouflage and to fulfill the witches’ prophecy that Birnam Wood will move to Dunsinane.

SCENE III. Dunsinane, a room in the castle. Macbeth, Seyton, and a Doctor converse. Macbeth rejects further reports, declares he will not fear until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane, and boasts of his invincibility. He orders his armour, summons Seyton, and demands that the Doctor cure Lady Macbeth’s “thick‑coming fancies.” The Doctor replies that the patient must cure herself. Macbeth, in a tirade, demands that any remedy be cast away and resolves to fight.

SCENE IV. Wood near Dunsinane. Malcolm addresses his troops, explaining that each should hew a bough from Birnam Wood and bear it before them. The soldiers agree, intending to disguise their numbers and fulfill the prophecy.

SCENE V. Dunsinane, within the castle. Macbeth, Seyton, and soldiers await battle. A cry of women is heard; Seyton reports it is the Queen’s death. Macbeth delivers his famous soliloquy on the futility of life (“Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow…”) then is interrupted by a Messenger who reports that he saw Birnam Wood moving toward Dunsinane. Macbeth reacts with fury, threatening the messenger, and resolves to meet the approaching army.

SCENE VI. The plain before the castle. Macbeth enters amidst alarum. He encounters Young Siward, curses him, and they duel; Young Siward is slain. Macbeth boasts that he is invincible because no man born of a woman can harm him.

SCENE VII. The same battlefield. Macduff enters, declares his intent to kill Macbeth, and they clash. During the fight, Macduff reveals that he was “from his mother’s womb untimely ripped,” i.e., not born of a woman. Macbeth, realizing the witches’ equivocation, loses confidence but continues fighting. The combat ends with Macbeth’s death; Macduff emerges victorious.

SCENE VIII. The same field after the battle. Malcolm, old Siward, Ross, and their soldiers gather. They lament the loss of their son (young Siward) but celebrate the defeat of the tyrant. Macduff arrives bearing Macbeth’s severed head, hails Malcolm as king, and the troops proclaim “Hail, King of Scotland!” Malcolm announces his plans to reward loyal thanes, restore exiled friends, and purge the realm of Macbeth’s murderous officials, including the dead queen. The play ends with Malcolm’s coronation and the restoration of order in Scotland.

What happened until now

Summary of the chapters Chapter 1 to Chapter 5.

Macbeth receives the witches’ prophecy, is named Thane of Cawdor, learns of Duncan’s appointment of Malcolm as Prince of Cumberland, and, spurred by Lady Macbeth, resolves to murder King Duncan. Duncan is slain by Macbeth; Lady Macbeth plants the bloody daggers on the royal grooms and attempts to wash away the evidence; Macduff and Lennox discover the king’s body and alert the court; Malcolm and Donalbain flee, drawing suspicion; the Porter delivers comic relief while the kingdom erupts into panic. Macbeth hires murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance; Banquo is slain while Fleance escapes; Banquo’s ghost haunts Macbeth at the banquet, causing a public breakdown; Lady Macbeth attempts to cover his behavior; Hecate rebukes the witches and plots new apparitions to further unnerve Macbeth; Lennox reports Macduff’s flight to England, heightening political tension. The witches deliver three apparitions warning Macbeth about Macduff, a man not born of woman, and Birnam Wood moving to Dunsinane, leading him to resolve to eliminate Macduff; Macbeth orders the murder of Macduff’s wife and children, resulting in the deaths of Lady Macduff and her son; Macduff, now in England, meets Malcolm, who reveals his own vices and tests Macduff before they agree to raise an army against Macbeth; Ross brings the tragic news that Macduff’s castle has been attacked and his family slaughtered. Lady Macbeth’s guilt manifests in a sleep‑walking scene, confirming her mental collapse; Malcolm, Siward, Macduff and the English‑Scottish army march toward Dunsinane, cutting branches from Birnam wood to conceal their numbers; Macbeth, dismissing the witches’ prophecies, prepares for battle, confronts Young Siward and later Macduff, learns that Macduff was “from his mother’s womb untimely ripped,” and is slain; Malcolm triumphs, is crowned king, and plans the restoration of Scotland.

Chapter Intelligence

Characters and settings known up to the selected chapter.