Macduff

• Key Words to Describe Macduff:

  Archetypal hero Loyal, Morally sound, Sensitive, Foil to Macbeth, Valiant, Restores order
• “I have no words; my voice is my sword”


  Emphasizes Macduff’s heroic qualities and draws on a key idiom - actions speak louder than words.
• “To cure this deadly grief"


   immediately upon learning of the slaughter of his family, he begins to plot his revenge, motivated by a desire to hold Macbeth accountable for his sins.
• Loyalty: “Most sacrilegious murder hath broke ope the Lord’s anointed temple”


  There is a religious semantic field - “sacrilegious” and “anointed” create an image of sacredness and holiness. Macduff’s extreme distress that the king, divinely ordained by God has been callously murdered despite his sacredness.
• “Most sacrilegious murder hath broke ope the Lord’s anointed temple”


  His hyperbolic language and reaction reinforces how Macduff abides strictly to the religious moral code.
• “O horror, horror, horror”.


  Shakespeare makes use of repetition here to emphasize the strength of Macduff’s devastated emotions.
• Restoration of Order


  The main purpose of Macduff’s character in the play is to restore order to Scotland, restoring the divine right of kings through killing Macbeth.
• “Turn, hell-hound, turn”


  Repetition of the imperative “turn” emphasizes the extent to which Macbeth has turned order on its head, while the epithet “hell-hound” is used to highlight the true nature of the tyrant king.