The second act begins with an unpleasant atmosphere at night, when the moon is down and the sky is starless. As we've come to know, night is the hour of the evil. So the atmosphere at the very beginning is the foreboding of the events to unfold. In the first scene, Banquo and Fleance are talking casually on the courtyard of Macbeth's castle a little before midnight. Although Banquo is heavy with sleep he doesn't …
showed first 75 words of 1869 total

showed last 75 words of 1869 total
…even in this act of heightened tension, Shakespeare has managed to wedge in a comic-relief scene which, in fact, does well to increase the dramatic effect. The atmosphere has been used well to make the events more effective. The last scene of the act leaves the state in complete chaos and with Macbeth crowned the King, we are left in eager anticipation of the next act. [I think the commentary here is not elaborate enough]