In Macbeth, Shakespeare writes about a man named Macbeth, who has a very strong ambition to be the the king of Scotland. His credulousness led him into believing the prophecy from the three witches without thinking rigorously. Because of this prophecy, Macbeth is willing to do everything he can to gain the throne, even to the extreme of murdering someone. Shakespeare uses syntax, similes, and personification to convey the evolution of Macbeth’s insanity. Before Macbeth’s entanglement in bloody deeds, Shakespeare portrays Macbeth as rational. When he first encounters the three witches, he says, “Speak if you can. What are you?” (1.3.50). “Speak if you can” is an imperative sentence, giving direct command to the witches. On the other hand …show more content…
If the stars shine their light, his “black and deep desire” will be revealed to everyone. Because he knows that what he is about to do is immoral and no one should hear about it, Macbeth is compos mentis. “The eye wink at the hand” refer to Macbeth’s wanting to blind his eyes so that he will not have to see the actions he will be making. Macbeth have an emotional conflict because he knows he might regret his actions later on and he is afraid to see the outcome. Due to the concerns he is having, Macbeth is still sane because he thinks about it before committing the actions. While Macbeth is contemplating whether or not to kill Duncan, he thinks about the consequence that will come afterward by stating: “his [Duncan’s] virtues / Will plead like angels, trumpet-tongued, against / The deep damnation of his taking-off” (1.7.18-20). This simile compares the the begging of his goodness to the angels’ compelling speech against all the wrongs that have been done to him. Even though Macbeth eventually is going to kill Duncan, he admits that Duncan is a virtuous king. In his head, he is rationalizing Duncan’s death by stating that Duncan’s good deeds will compensate bloody way of dying. Because Macbeth is still sane, he realizes that killing is not justifiable. He knows that he will not be as righteous as Duncan. Eventually, the truth about his tyranny will be reveal and …show more content…
This syntax shows how panicked and scared he is after committing a murder. Iambic pentameter is a consistent and predictable syntax. In contrast, Macbeth’s speech suggest an unpredictable thought that can be associated with loss of clear thinking. His hallucination shows a sign of madness emerging in his mind. Macbeth is hearing voices inside his head saying, “Macbeth does murder sleep”. He cannot actually kill sleep. In this personification, sleep is given a human-like quality. Because of his guiltiness, Macbeth is paranoid and the lunacy is invading his mind in every aspect. When Macbeth orders Macduff’s family to be killed, he declares, “From this moment / The very firstlings of my heart shall be / The firstlings of my hand” (4.1.166-168). In this quote, firstlings means the firstborn. This personifies the heart and the hand by giving them the ability to birth a child like human. The purpose of firstling, that Macbeh uses in this context, refers to first priority. Whatever is the first priority of his heart will be the first priority of his hand. The use of the word “heart” is significant because he is simply thinking with his emotions and not with his mind. He will immediately do something as soon as his emotions suggest it. He will not stop to think anymore, unlike a rational person who would contemplate his actions before he
To what I ask you” (IV.1.48-64). Here Macbeth uses symbolism through his description of the witches as "secret, black, and midnight hags," Symbolism is used to not only portray their mysterious and supernatural nature but also to highlight the corrupting influence of ambition on his character. By describing the witches as "midnight hags," Macbeth suggests that his ambition is heavily influenced by the supernatural forces at play, pushing him further into making immoral decision and leading him away from his noble, moral origins. Just as darkness blinds one’s vision, Macbeth’s ambition blinds him to the moral and ethical boundaries he had once respected. As the play progresses, Macbeth slowly becomes willing to engage in more treacherous acts, including murder and
Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible / To feeling as to sight? Or art thou but A dagger of the mind, a false creation,/ Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?” In this couple of lines we see repetition through the questions Macbeth is asking himself if he is able to kill Duncan. To add on through the questioning we see Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth written by William Shakespeare deals with the concepts of power, ambition, evil and fear. One particular scene in the play seems to deal with more of the concepts of fear and power, as well as feeling nothing. In Act 5, Scene 5, Shakespeare uses differing types of figurative language to add to the somber tone and dark nature of the scene/play. In this scene, Macbeth is preparing to go to war with the people who were once on his side.
For starters when Macbeth says, “In the affliction of these terrible dreams that shake us nightly: better be with the dead, whom we, to gain our peace, have sent to peace that on the torture of the mind to lie in restless ecstacy” it proves that the theme that the feeling of guilt can destroy one’s quality of life is true. This is because Lady Macbeth and Macbeth are now envious of Duncan because whilst dead he is finally at peace and they aren’t at peace even whilst having what they wanted in the fear of danger. Plus the quote shows how macbeth is being tormented by his actions (the murders more specifically) which brings the topics of morality(?), guilt and paranoia. Because of his increase of power Macbeth could be feeling more paranoid as he is being tormented by his mind so he could start to think that he is being targeted. Another example of metaphor is when he says “O, full of scorpions is my mind dear wife!”
At this point in the play, Macbeth has decided to kill the king of Scotland. In Act 2 Scene 1 of Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, he utilizes pathos and dark, liquid imagery to create a mood in the reader similar to that of Macbeth’s emotions. As stated earlier, Macbeth is prepared to kill his king--an act he originally didn’t want to commit. Since his meeting with the Witches, Lady Macbeth has worked her way into Macbeth’s mind. She has now completely convinced him that he wants to be king, this is an example of the reliance on someone else’s thoughts.
Now, the readers can see how the plot of the story is really going to lay out with guilt and murder. Now for the next allusion I will be explaining is an allusion that lady Macbeth really got into detail with. During all of the crimes and murders her and Macbeth were committing she started to become very ill and psychotic. During Lady Macbeth's illness she started to see things and sleep walk. They hired a doctor to watch over her while she slept but the things
Playwright, William Shakespeare, in his drama, Macbeth, warns about the dangers of how ambition can lead to devastation. His purpose is to demonstrate how greed can drive a person to abandon their morals, and he adopts an unhinged tone in order to affectively shock his audience to its severity. Throughout the play, Shakespeare uses apostrophe, symbolism, and foreshadowing to show that desire for power can lead one’s own destruction. Throughout the drama, Shakespeare uses apostrophe as a way to communicate a character’s emotions to the reader; he does this with Macbeth as well as Lady Macbeth, and while both instances portray how desire for power can lead to the loss of a person’s integrity, it is during Macbeth’s monologue that the reader is able to understand the internal conflict that takes place in a struggle for power.
The fact that Macbeth believes the witches’ prophecies are not evil nor good foreshadows how he will go on to kill any other person standing in his way to more power. His ambition blinds his mind to make him even think about ruthlessly committing a murder. This forceful way of gaining power will only lead Macbeth to become a “tyrant” in Scotland and his “fantastical” desires of killing Duncan and receiving the crown will lead Scotland to failure. Under Macbeth’s rule, Scotland seems to be in a terrible condition. With distrust among the people, there is tension all within the country, as Macbeth’s totalitarian regime had rendered the prosperity of Scotland.
In act one scene 7, Macbeth doubts if he should kill the king; however, his wife, Lady Macbeth, manipulates him into proceeding. It might be difficult for Macbeth, the renowned warrior, to hear his wife accusing him of cowardice. Therefore, under Lady Macbeth’s influence, as she questions his manhood, he commences the murder in order to prove to her that he is not a “coward.” This is important to note because his soliloquy shows his determination to proceed.
Macbeth’s ambition is one of the most prominent things that drive Macbeth in the play and truly becomes evident when he hears of the Witches prophecies. When the witches stop talking, he demands to know more. “Stay you imperfect speakers, tell me more” (I, III, 73-74). This portrays his excessive curiosity on the subject as well as his craving for more desirable prophecies. This ambitious nature and craving for power is also demonstrated only moments after hearing the witches, when he starts formulating a plan to kill Duncan in order to make the third prophecy come true.
Macbeth’s state of mind changes dramatically throughout the play. This is revealed through his soliloquy. In his soliloquy, He shows his intention he would like to achieve but its construction shows Macbeth’s mind still very much in confusion. However, most of the time Macbeth shows three different fears considering the consequences of killing king Duncan. At the beginning of Act 1 Scene 7, Macbeth is in turmoil about killing Duncan.
Macbeths guilty conscience makes him unable to play the ‘true’ role of a villain of the play. Macbeth begins to see ‘false creations’ before murdering Duncan; the image of a floating dagger taunts Macbeth’s senses. Macbeth is devoured in his anxiety he starts to hallucinate the crime before going through with it. Macbeth is unable to dispose thoughts of his guilt and doubt, which prevents him from being stuck at the point where it is too late to turn back, yet the fear of his nature prevents him from turning completely into a ruthless coldblooded
The language in 2.1.44-74 conveys Macbeth’s eagerness of taking over King Duncan by killing him, because many words connoted the coming of the dagger. For example, line 45 can be interpreted into-- the handle of the dagger is pointing at me. Come here, let me grab it, let me grab it to kill Duncan. This sentence showed that Macbeth was too impatient to wait to get his weapon. In addition to that, words like ‘toward’, ‘come’, and ‘clutch’ emphasized Macbeth’s zeal.
In William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, Shakespeare introduces us to a man on a mission to assassinate the reigning king of Scotland, King Duncan. Through King Duncan, Shakespeare reveals Macbeth’s crude and unfiltered nature while capturing every second of Macbeth’s sadistic plan. With the use of paradox, internal character struggles, and the idea of fate, Shakespeare provides insight on what madness Macbeth created and the effect his madness has on other characters. Through the use of paradox in the play, minor details guide the path of the story to the very end.
When Macbeth kills Duncan, it also begins his moral descent into darkness, as he is willing to do anything in order to continue being the ruler of Scotland “Now if you have a station in the file, Not in the worst rank of manhood, say it, And I will put that business in your bosoms Whose execution takes your enemy off.”