Malcolm

Malcolm is the man who will be the ideal king, and thus he represents all that Macbeth as king is not. Malcolm uses deception only in a time of turmoil, when the values of fair and foul are confused. His deception, as he tells Macduff in IV.iii, is "modest wisdom" and therefore not to be used indiscriminately. When he feignedly denies his possession of the "king-becoming graces," he shows his understanding that these virtues in a king will bring his land "the sweet milk of concord." And when he finally confesses that he has been practising a deception on Macduff and asserts an unspotted personal integrity, we realise that he does have the "king-becoming graces"; and that his behaviour is meant to symbolise what a man in his position should do; and that when he becomes king he will rule with the "king-becoming graces" for the purpose of bringing his land "the sweet milk of concord." That he will in fact return Scotland to "wholesome days" is shown at the end both by his expressed intention and his usage of the imagery of time and growth.

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