kingship

• Shakespeare employs anaphora (a word repeated at the beginning of a sentence) to show the overwhelming nature of tyranny they are now subject to:

  • "New widows howl, new orphans cry, new sorrows strike" creates a claustrophobic impression of suffering.
• There is a fragmented trust between Malcolm and Macduff which depicts the repercussions of Macbeth's tyranny.

  • It seems Scotland has become rife with suspicion.
• Macduff and Malcolm's dialogue establishes what it means to be an honorable king, highlighting the disparity between this expectation and Macbeth's reality.
• Malcolm communicates the ideal of kingship through his admiration for the King of England, Edward the confessor.

  • He pays hommage to his godlike "healing benediction" which reinforces the notion of the Divine right of kings and narrows the distance between God and the monarchy.
  • This characterises Macbeth as evil.