Guilt

• blood - guilt
• " O , full of scorpions is my mind "
• " O , full of scorpions is my mind "

  • his head is full of damaging thoughts
  • he has no control
  • guilt is all consuming and overwhelming
• " will all Great Neptunes ocean wash this blood clean "
• " will all Great Neptunes ocean wash this blood clean "

  • he fears never being able to rid himself of the guilt
  • he has realised the severity of the act his has committed and is now facing the consequences
  • wants to simply wash away the guilt
• " a little water clears us of this deed "
• " a little water clears us of this deed "

  • Lady Macbeth does not see the severity of what he has done and what she has been an accomplice too
  • she is naive to the effects of guilt ( later falls into madness)
  • thinks blood / guilt can be easily removed
• " go wash this filthy witness form your hands "
• " thou can not say i did it : never shake thy gory locks at me "
• " thou can not say i did it : never shake thy gory locks at me "

  • Macbeth sees Banquo's ghost
  • feels the most guilt about his murder - he was a friend and he ordered people to kill him
  • trying to distance himself from the blame so he doesn't fall further into guilt
  • he is commanding and wants to regain control
  • blood - symbolises guilt
• " out dammed spot "
• " out dammed spot "

  • Lady Macbeth
  • Act 5
  • she descends into madness
  • can't face what she has done
  • guilt is taking over
  • fully consuming her
  • blood - symbolises guilt
• " will all the perfumes of Arabia sweeten this little hand "
• " will all the perfumes of Arabia sweeten this little hand "

  • she wants to be free of guilt
  • she can smell the blood - hallucinating
  • wants to regain her femininity and purity
• Lady Macbeth ends up killing herself due to guilt

  • Shakespeare uses her as a warning to women of the time to not subvert society's standings
  • even if they do gain power it will all inevitably be stripped from them