duncan

• How does Duncan reward his nobles?

  With honour and titles
• Who does Duncan epitomize in the play?

  Good kingship
• What is Duncan's major flaw according to Shakespeare?

  His naivety in detecting deceit
• How does Duncan's unsuspecting nature affect the audience's perception?

  It increases the pathos of his murder
• What does Duncan's regicide symbolize in the play?

  The perversion of the natural order
• Who is the rightful heir that must be crowned to restore order?

  Malcolm
• What key quotation reflects Duncan's trust in Cawdor?

  • "He [Cawdor] was a gentleman on whom I built / An absolute trust." (1:4)
• What key quotation indicates Duncan's succession plan?

  • "We will establish our estate upon / Our eldest, Malcolm, whom we name hereafter, / The Prince of Cumberland." (1:4)
• What does the quotation about the mind's construction suggest?

  • "There's no art to find the mind's construction in the face." (1:4)
• How does Macbeth describe Duncan's nature?

  • "This Duncan / Hath borne his faculties so meek." (Macbeth, 1:7)
• What imagery is used to describe Duncan's murder?

  • "Here lay Duncan / His silver skin laced with his golden blood / And his gashed stabs looked like a breach in nature." (Macbeth, 2:3)