Is Macbeth, Act I, Scene 2 prose or verse?

Act I, Scene 2 of Macbeth is written in verse and ends with a rhyming couplet (done/won). It follows Shakespeare's usual verse style of iambic pentameter: five feet of two iambs (an iamb is comprised of two syllables, the first unstressed and the second stressed: duh DUM). However, Shakespeare employs the verse quite cleverly in this scene to help increase the dramatic tension. To do this, he uses split lines and short lines.

Notice that the first three times characters speak in the scene (Duncan, Malcolm, Captain), the last line of each character's dialogue is what we call a "split" or "shared" line. That is, one character has some of the five feet of the pentameter and the next character has the rest. On the page, it looks like this:

DUNCAN: The newest state.

MALCOLM:                         This is the sergeant
                                                                    (I.ii.3)

Duncan has two feet of the verse line, Malcolm has the final three (giving "sergeant" an extra syllable than we use today). The same thing happens at the end of Malcolm's dialogue leading into the start of the Captain's.

When you see a break in the lines like this, Shakespeare is usually telling us that the scene should move quickly -- characters are all but cutting each other off as they speak. In this scene, Duncan and Malcolm are waiting anxiously to hear news of an important battle and the Captain is eager to tell his tale. Shakespeare uses the split lines to draw our attention (and his actors' attention) to this sense of urgency.

But what about places where Shakespeare doesn't complete a full line of iambic pentameter? Interestingly, Macbeth is full of what we call "irregular" lines -- having more or fewer syllables than a normal pentameter would. [Note: some modern editors try to "correct" the text to make it more regular, so some texts may not have all of the short lines discussed here.]

Examples of short lines in this scene include line 20 ("Till he faced the slave -"), 38 ("So they"), and 42 ("I cannot tell"). When you see a short line like this, Shakespeare is indicating a breath or a pause (you could count out the missing iambs in your head to know how long to pause). Notice, too, that all these short lines belong to the Captain -- why would Shakespeare do this?

The answer comes on line 43: "But I am faint; my gashes cry for help." The Captain is speaking in choppy lines because he is hurt. Shakespeare's indicating to the actor that the Captain is struggling to get through his story, and the short lines are places for the actor to catch his breath or let the wounds start to get to him.

Finally, note the second-to-last line is also a short verse line, "I'll see it done." The Captain is gone and the speaker of this short line is Ross, who is definitely not injured. What's Shakespeare doing there?

Think about all those split lines throughout the scene, where characters were nearly talking over one another in their anticipation of desperate news. Ross has just told them the battle is over and Macbeth is victorious. Duncan shouts some last orders -- and then there is this short line, ending with the word "done".

Imagine all the characters on stage hear that word and suddenly the reality of their hard-won victory sinks in. The war is over. And for the first time since this scene began, King Duncan can take a breath. He does so, then offers one last Kingly sentiment.

That's the flow, rhythm and drama of the scene as Shakespeare intended it. Always remember, Shakespeare wrote his plays to be performed -- and actors hardly rehearsed at all. If the playwright wanted his actors to do something specific, he had to indicate it somehow in the text. So, wherever you see irregularities in the verse, try to figure out what dramatic purpose they serve!