Welcome to our blog post ISC Macbeth Workbook Answers : Act 5, Scene 8 of William Shakespeare’s timeless masterpiece, “Macbeth.” As dedicated learners and educators, we recognize the importance of unraveling the nuances of Shakespearean literature, which is why we’ve curated this comprehensive guide specifically tailored to the ISC curriculum.
Within this blog, we’ll explore Act 5, Scene 8, utilizing the meticulously crafted workbook provided by Morning Star publishers. Our objective is to not only present multiple-choice questions (MCQs) and detailed answers but also to foster a deeper comprehension of the play’s themes, characters, and linguistic complexities.
While our responses are structured based on the workbook, we encourage students to use this resource as a springboard for their own exploration. Shakespeare’s works offer rich layers of interpretation, inviting individual analysis. Therefore, feel empowered to adapt and personalize our insights to suit your unique learning style and needs.
Whether you’re striving for academic excellence or simply eager to unravel the depths of “Macbeth,” join us on this enlightening journey through Act 5, Scene 8. Let’s embark on an adventure where Shakespeare’s words transcend time, captivating minds across generation
Table of Contents
Workbook Summary :
Macbeth is shown to be ruthless and determined and not ready to give up under any circumstances. He faces Macduff who seeks him and they go out to fight. Macheth is not ready to play the ‘Roman fool’ and die on his sword. He is determined to keep inflicting wounds on any man who comes his way. Macduff challenges him and Macbeth’s instinct asks him to avoid Macduff. He asks Macduff to go away as he has shed too much of blood and his heart is changed with remorse for the blood shed. Macduff is not ready to waste words to express his fury and wants to speak through his sword. Macbeth mocks Macduff and tells him that he is losing labour. Macduff can never harm him as he is protected by a charm which is that he can never be harmed by any man born of a woman. Macduff reveals the bitter truth that he can harm Macbeth to every extent as he was never born of a woman but was ‘untimely ripped’ from his mother’s womb. Macbeth at this juncture refrains from fighting with Macduff. When Macduff challenges him further by calling him a ‘coward’ his pride does not allow him to take a step back and he goes ahead to fight with Macduff only to meet his fatal end.
Workbook MCQs :
1. Who does Macbeth not want to be like?
a. The Greek gods
b. The Roman fools
c. The Roman gladiators
d. The Greek heroes
Answer :- b. The Roman fools
2. What does Macbeth intend to do as long as he lives?
a. To keep his throne secure
b. To keep meeting the witches to know his future
c. To keep inflicting wounds on men
d. To keep seeking for the man who is not born of a woman
Answer :- c. To keep inflicting wounds on men
3. How does Macduff address Macbeth?
a. Cursed tyrant
b. Hell-hound
c. Roman fools
d. Hell-kite
Answer :- b. Hell-hound
4. “My voice is in my sword”
What is the literary device used in the above lines?
a. Personification
b. Simile
c. Metaphor
d. Hyperbole
Answer :- a. Personification
5. Why does Macbeth ask Macduff to go away?
1. He has shed too much of Macduff’s blood by killing his entire family
2. He is scared of Macduff
3. His heart has changed with remorse for the blood shed
4. He hates the sight of Macduff
a. 1 and 2
b. 1 and 3
c. 2 and 3
d. 2 and 4
Answer :- b. 1 and 3
6. How does Macduff want to speak to Macbeth?
a. By abusing him
b. By insulting him
c. By way of his sword
d. By challenging him with words
Answer :- c. By way of his sword
7. What challenge does Macbeth put forward to Macduff?
a. He can fight Hercules but can never fight Macbeth
b. He can wound the air with his sword but can never make Macbeth bleed
c. He can stop the pines from moving their tops but can never harm Macbeth
d. He can challenge a lion but not Macbeth
Answer :- b. He can wound the air with his sword but can never make Macbeth bleed
8. What reason does Macbeth give to Macduff for never yielding to him?
a. Macduff is born of a woman
b. Macduff is too weak
c. Macduff suffers from fits
d. Macduff is inferior to him in every way
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
9. Why does Macduff tell Macbeth to “despair thy charm”?
a. He is the one who was untimely ripped from his mother’s womb.
b. He is the descendant of the witches
c. He has a large army waiting to kill Macbeth
d. He has been sent by the witches to kill Macbeth
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
10. Why does Macbeth curse the tongue of Macduff?
a. It has cursed Macbeth
b. It has subdued the better part of Macbeth’s manhood
c. It has been insubordinate to Macbeth’s position
d. It has challenged Macbeth
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
11. What bitter truth dawns on Macbeth?
a. The witches had juggled with their words and duped him
b. God’s retribution has fallen on him
c. Duncan has taken his revenge
d. Malcolm will soon be declared King of Scotland
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
12. What does Macbeth decide not to do?
a. Not to abdicate the throne
b. Not to fight Macduff
c. To surrender to Macduff
d. To acknowledge and accept Malcolm as the rightful ruler and heir to the throne
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
13. What will Macduff show Macbeth?
a. Rare specimens of animals hung on a pole
b. Rare specimens of human beings hung on a pole
c. Rare specimens of monsters painted and hung upon a pole
d. Rare specimens of children painted on a pole
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
14. Why does Macbeth refuse to yield to Macduff?
a. He does not want to kiss the ground before young Malcolm’s feet
b. He does not want to dragged down on the streets as a prisoner
c. He does not want to be killed in the hands of Macduff
d. He does not want to surrender at the cost of Malcolm’s happiness
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
15. How does Macbeth show his courage till the end?
a. By throwing his warlike shield before him to challenge Macduff to fight
b. By trying to kill Macduff
c. By challenging the English army
d. By not accepting his defeat in any way
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
16. Who will Macbeth curse?
a. The man who cries “Hold, enough “seeking for a truce
b. The witches who have seen his end
c. The man who will give orders to stop the combat
d. Fortune for being so unkind to him
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
17. What happens to Macbeth at the end of the scene?
a. He runs away to save his life
b. He is slain by Malcolm
c. He is slain by Macduff
d. He is chased out of Scotland
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
Contextual Questions :
Macbeth: They have tied me to a stake
I cannot fly, But, bear like, I must fight the course
What’s he, That was not born of a woman?
Such a one Am I to fear, or none.
a. Who does Macbeth compare himself to? Explain the imagery in the extract.
Answer :- Macbeth compares himself to a bear tied to a stake.
b. What does the word ‘course’ mean? Why does Macbeth associate himself to ‘the course”?
Answer :- ‘course’ here means till the last ie., till his death. He associates himself with ‘course’ because he is left with no choice but to fight and die.
c. Who enters the scene after this extract? How does the person challenge Macbeth?
Answer :- Young Siward enters the scene. He challenges Macbeth by asking his name.
d. How does the killing of young Siward boost Macbeth’s self confidence to a greater degree?
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
e. Give the meanings of:
i. abhorred
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
II. brandish’d
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
Question Answers :
(i)What is the difference in the courage displayed by Macbeth in this scene from the one shown in the beginning of the play. Write your answer in a short paragraph of about 100-150 words.
Answer :- As reported by the bleeding soldier Macbeth fought very bravely in the battlefield.He cut his way through the enemy soldier and came face to face with Macdonwald. Then he ripped his body and cut off his head. Again as reported by Ross Macbeth fought bravely the forces of the king of Norway who was assisted by the Thane of Cawdor; and defeated them. But in the battle in the Act V, Scene 8, Macbeth did not fight as bravely as he had done in earlier wars. Now, he was internally broken because his officers had deserted him. Moreover, the prophecy of the witches had proved ambiguous. The Birnam wood had, in a way moved towards Dunsinane. So Macbeth’s confidence was broken. He fought half heartedly and ultimately lost.
(II) What is the significance of the words “Why should I play the Roman fool”? What is Macbeth trying to prove when he utters these words? Write your answer in a short paragraph of about 100-150 words.
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
(III) a. With close reference to the scene describe how fate plays a fatal role in the life of Macbeth? Write your answer in about 200-250 words.
Answer :- Fate weaves a cruel tapestry in Macbeth’s life, appearing to promise glory while actually orchestrating his destruction. The witches’ prophecies, which initially seem to guarantee Macbeth’s invincibility, ultimately become the instruments of his downfall through their deceptive wording. When Birnam Wood appears to move toward Dunsinane through Malcolm’s clever strategy, Macbeth’s confidence is shaken but not destroyed – he still clings to the assurance that “none of woman born” can harm him. This lingering belief allows fate to deal its final, ironic blow. After demonstrating his martial skill by killing young Siward, Macbeth encounters Macduff with initial bravado, secure in the witches’ words. However, fate’s cruel twist emerges when Macduff reveals his cesarean birth, technically fulfilling yet completely undermining the prophecy’s protective promise. This revelation unnerves Macbeth completely, stripping away his last illusion of safety. The very prophecies that propelled him to power now abandon him at the critical moment, demonstrating how fate manipulated him throughout – first by tempting him with royal promises, then by providing false security, and finally by revealing the technicalities that would destroy him. Macbeth’s tragedy lies in being fate’s plaything, believing himself the master of his destiny while actually being led to ruin by forces beyond his control or full understanding. His death at Macduff’s hands completes this fatal trajectory, proving that the witches’ words were never blessings but carefully crafted traps.
b. How does over-confidence cause the downfall of Macbeth? Write your answer in about 200-250 words.
Answer :- For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
Essay Question :
Q. Describe the overthrow of Macbeth and his death.
Answer :- Macbeth is now a broken man as he is deserted by everyone. Death is knocking at his door, yet, his fighting spirit is still active and he is determined to fight till the last. The false security given by the witches is also a relief to Macbeth as he feels that no one can kill him as only a man not born of a woman can be a threat to his life. Macbeth does not comprehend the ambiguity attached to this prophecy and continues to be confident of not being defeated and killed. After he kills young Siward he feels more confident and challenges Macduff as soon as the latter enters. Though the pangs of conscience of killing the innocent family of Macduff do prick Macbeth. Macbeth tells Macduff that he is invulnerable as no man born of a woman can ever kill him. For Full Answers Get The Workbook Answers PDF – View
