Read the excerpt from act 1, scene 3, of The Tragedy of Macbeth. Third Witch. Sister, where thou? First Witch. A sailor’s wife had chestnuts in her lap,And munch’d, and munch’d, and munch’d: ‘Give me,’ quoth I:‘Aroint thee, witch!’ the rump-fed ronyon cries.Her husband’s to Aleppo gone, master o’ the Tiger:But in a sieve I’ll thither sail,And, like a rat without a tail,I’ll do, I’ll do, and I’ll do.
Answer
A
A sailor’s wife was munching on chestnuts while her husband was sailing on a ship called The Tiger.
B
A sailor’s wife greedily snacked on the chestnuts in her lap while waiting for her husband to return from the sea.
C
A sailor’s wife was eating chestnuts, but when I asked if I could have one, she yelled at me to go away.
D
A sailor’s wife scurried away like a rat without a tail when I demanded some chestnuts from her.
Explanation
The witch says the sailor’s wife was eating chestnuts, and when the witch asked for one—“Give me”—the wife replied, “Aroint thee, witch!” meaning “Get away, witch!” Choice C captures both the request and the wife’s angry refusal. The lines about her husband sailing to Aleppo and the witch traveling in a sieve come afterward; the wife does not scurry away like a rat.
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