Act 5

• Key words to describe Macbeth in Act 5

  Catharsis, Anagnorisis, Turmoil, Pity, Unjustified confidence, Hubris, Tragic hero, Imminent death, Inevitable death, Puppet for evil
• Macbeth and Macduff's battle

  Shakespeare interrogates Macbeth's internal divisions between guilt, Unjustified confidence, and a propensity towards violence.

  Initially, his guilt begins to surface, claiming "my soul is too much charg'd with blood of thine already", which maintains his sense of humanity, as he has a capacity for remorse.

  This reiterates the notion that Macbeth must remain somewhat redeemable to be characterised as a tragic hero - he is not merely a villain.
• Macbeth and Macduff's battle 2

  He begins the battle with elevated confidence, gloating that he cannot be killed by a man "of woman born", yet Macduff soon disparages him revealing "Macduff was from his others womb Ultimately ripp'd" meaning he was born by caesarean section.

  This moment of Anagnorisis for Macbeth strips him of his hubris, courage, and tenacity, revealing his intrinsic cowardice which Lady Macbeth formerly ridiculed rising to the surface again. He concedes in saying "I'll not fight with thee".
• Macbeth and Macduff's battle 3

  Shakespeare remind us that Macbeth is merely a puppet for evil, it is his intrinsic qualities of a soldier (an inclination to violence and bloodthirsty) which are extrapolated by external forces in the play i.e. Lady Macbeth or the Witches.

  This is integral in characterising him as a tragic hero - a figure with noble traits that descends from a position of grace due to their hamartia.
• Comparison

  We experience almost a sense of deja vu, as Macduff belittles him with the epithets "coward" and "tyrant" - he is riled and persuaded to engage in battle, much in the same way he was manipulated by Lady Macbeth initially.
• Lady Macbeth's death

  His wife's death is a pitiful moment of realisation for Macbeth, as he realises the hollowness of the Witches' prophecies and the futility of the mental turmoil he's been through, saying "life is but a walking shadow... It is a tale... Signifying nothing".

  The noun "tale" extends the idea that the Witches' influence was like an ominous nursery rhyme - they speak in trochaic tetrameter and rhyming couplets, which almost parody their dialogue.
• Lady Macbeth's death 2

  It appears the witches have been engaging in devious childlike meddling just to cause Macbeth turmoil - he is slowly coming to realise this. He realises he has been placed upon a "stage" for the Witches' entertainment.

  Macbeth's lexis almost creates a semantic field of transience - the nouns "candle" and "shadow" are impermanent and fragile in the sense that they can be easily extinguished.
• Lady Macbeth's death 3

  It could be argued Macbeth undergoes two moments of Anagnorisis within act 5.

  The first beng this realisation of the futility of his actions, so he consequently suits himself to nihilism.

  He retreats to his ingrained role as a soldier - he enters a battle knowing that fate will likely not work in his favour, it could be argued this is an act of martyrdom (dying to obtain sympathy), as he believes he has been exploited by the witches and almost submits himself to death out of self-pity.
• His anagnorisis

  Definition: When the protagonist becomes aware of their downfall.

  Macbeth arguably could be sen to have many Anagnorisis.

  Firstly, after his murder of Duncan, he begins to hallucinate and goes into a panic.

  In act 5, it could be interpreted that he has 2 moments of Anagnorisis. One when he realises his wife has commited suicide, alluding to how his death will be imminent as he's physically commited murders.

  Secondly, when Macduff reveals he was not "of woman born", is a clear moment of Anagnorisis as Macbeth knows his fortunes are no longer and his death is inevitable.