Macbeth

• We’d jump the life to come- macbeth 


  When macbeth soliloquised ,he says “we‘d jump the life to come” which makes a reference to the afterlife, which Christian’s believed would be granted to those who honoured God .Macbeth knows committing murder will sacrifice his life in heaven,making him fully mortal and abandoned by God . The threat of this was enough to make macbeth his plans.This shows the power of religion and belief had over people during the jacobean era .

  Shakespeare suggest Macbeth should have listened to his conscience and faith rather that his Machiavelli wife
• Macbeth: 'Life but a walking shadow, a poor player'
• Metaphor


  Life is a walking shadow

  Man is a poor player
• Metaphor


  • Emphasises the fleeting nature of life
• Metaphor "shadow"


  Suggests life without purpose
• Plosive sounds in "poor player"


  Reveals Macbeth's bitterness as he realised he had lost his power, control and ambition
• Big idea: Perhaps Shakespeare could be warning the contemporary audience to beware of the corruption effect of an unchecked ambition
• Thunder lightning or in rain- witches


  At the beginning of Macbeth,shakespeare uses immediate pathetic fallacy “in thunder ,lightning or in rain “ to create an ominous atmosphere and implies the mood is frightening his also cements their eccentric nature and power to withstand impossible weather condition for mortals.

  This creates a sense of unease ,compounded by the sinister presence of the witches .The Jacobean audience firmly believes in the existence and malevolent power of the supernatural .
• “Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under’t “- Lady Macbeth 


  Lady Macbeth urges her husband Macbeth to “look like the innocent flower but the serpent under’t” which means he should deceive everyone as they plan the regicide.The use of imagery here shows that Lady macbeth wishes her husband should appear well meaning to hide his deceit .The use of metaphor here ”serpent “ is to symbolise temptation and lost innocence through the serpent’s link to biblical story of adam and Eve
• near in blood -Donalbain 


  Donalbian refers to”near in the blood “ to signify family.Blood is also what is literally shed when wars and murders occur;it is part of the imagery that pervades the play creating a sense of menance and destruction;and it is a symbol for the evil that is associated with macbeth
• Fair is foul ,foul is fair


  The witches uses a paradox “fair is foul ,foul is fair” to highlight the power of the witches who will give ”fair” prophecy which will result to “foul” consequences .Shakespeare may be communicating to King James and the audience that thing might not appear the way the seem .This also links to the way macbeth appears to be a good friend and a heroic character's,but when he is tempted by power,he becomes a vallainous ,selfish character who murders numerous people including his own family
• William Shakespeare: '"Unsex me here"'
• Lady Macbeth's character


  • Disturbed mind
  • High ambitions
  • Willingness to do anything, despite how disturbing, immoral or unrealistic, to get exactly what she wants
• Lady Macbeth: '"come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty!"'
• Lady Macbeth has no regard for her own mind and will; she wants to be controlled by a higher power, an illusion which does not exist to control her in order to help fulfill her ambition
• Lady Macbeth's ambition is so great, she is blinded by it and does not live in the real world
• This is a soliloquy and because a 'spirit' does not exist, the audience is aware that Lady Macbeth is speaking to herself
• The audience would have realised Lady Macbeth's madness and heresy because instead of asking God for help, she asks a non-existent hollow that most definitely does not exist
• Lady Macbeth: '"What is done is done"'
• Lady Macbeth says "what is done is done"


  Suggests she can't change her fate and has to accept the consequences
• Shakespeare suggests that greed and unchecked ambition can not predict the guilt that comes with making fantasies into reality
• Lady Macbeth: '"What's done cannot be undone"'
• The line "what is done is done" becomes a refrain to Lady Macbeth


  She mutters it to herself in her sleep
• The change from "is done" to "cannot be undone"


  Gives the impression that her guilt and desperation increased
• The repetition of "what done" makes it apparent that Lady Macbeth is trying to convince herself to let go and get the courage to face reality
• I have no spur… but only vaulting ambition which o’er leaps itself

  Macbeth is fully aware that his ambition is his only motivation in killing the king.

  • The horse metaphor shows his ambition to be incredibly powerful. Macbeth already knows that his ambition could lead to disaster as it loses control and ‘o’er leaps itself’, yet he still chooses to murder his king.

  Context: Shakespeare uses the Greek tragedy convention of a tragic and noble hero who has a fatal flaw or weakness, a hamartia, which leads to his downfall. Macbeth’s hamartia is his ambition.
• ”I could not say amen”

  Immediately after the regicide, Macbeth is consumed with guilt and is unable to say the traditional response to a religious blessing. His actions have placed him beyond God’s love and comfort.

  Context: Regicide (killing of a king/queen) was seen as an appalling crime because it was a crime against God. The Jacobeans believed in the divine right of kings, that God anointed (chose) the monarch. The audience would understand the sacrilegious nature of Macbeth’s crime and appreciate his overwhelming guilt.
• “brave Macbeth”

  • Macbeth is described with the epithet ‘brave’ as he fights for his king and country.

  • Shakespeare establishes him as the epitome (best example) of a courageous, honourable man.

  Context: The Jacobean era was one of political and social unrest. Military strength was seen as an important part of being a man as was loyalty to the king.
• Macbeth: '"so foul and fair a day"'
• Macbeth's opening words “fair and foul a day”


  • Comment on the day and weather
  • Associate him with the witches' chant: 'fair is foul'
  • Make us wonder whether he is already under the witches' spell
• Paradox ”foul and fair day”


  • Emphasises the theme of appearance and reality
  • The day is ambiguous, just like the witches' prophecies which are full of 'fair' promises yet have 'foul' consequences
• “my mind is full of scorpions’

  Macbeth finds that becoming king does not bring him happiness.

  • The metaphor shows that he is deeply troubled. The sense of pain and viciousness in this image allows the audience to understand his torment. We are not sure whether his mind is tortured with the guilt of regicide or the fear and suspicion that plagues him now that he is king. 
• Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had done it. My husband?’

  • As Lady Macbeth waits for news of Duncan’s murder, she 

  As Lady Macbeth waits for news of Duncan’s murder, she reflects that she was unable to kill him herself. She has not lost all traces of humanity.

  • The sudden switch from her thoughts to seeing or hearing her husband captures her nervousness. The short interrogative sentence ‘my husband?’ reflects this.
• All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. O, O, O’

  • Lady Macbeth acknowledges in her madness the extent 

  Lady Macbeth acknowledges in her madness the extent of her guilt as she tries to clean imaginary blood from her hands. 

  • The image of the heavy scents of the myriad (many types of) perfumes of an exotic land shows how nothing can eradicate her guilt.
• All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. O, O, O’


  The fragmented speech of ‘O, O, O’ reflects the lack of control she has over her mind; this is very different from Act 1 when she calls the spirits to her with such authority. In this scene, she uses prose, rather than the blank verseshe used in earlier acts, showing again the descent into madness.
• ’A desolate place: thunder and lightning. Enter three witches’

  • The opening setting establishes an eerie atmosphere which immediately highlights the ominous (dangerous) presence of the witches and makes the audience uncomfortable.

  • The thunder and lightning reflects a disturbance in nature. The pathetic fallacy warns the audience that a troubled time is coming.
• “Enter the ghost of Banquo and sits in Macbeth’s place’

  • Supernatural elements are also evident in the ‘gory’ ghost of Banquo which adds enormous dramatic tension. It takes Macbeth’s seat, showing that he is still a threat. Banquo’s son, not Macbeth’s, will indeed one day sit in that same throne. 

  • The ghost is a visual and dramatic reminder to the audience of how fate cannot be stopped. 

  • It is perhaps also a manifestation of Macbeth’s guilty conscience.
• Out, damned spot’

  As her mind disintegrates into madness, Lady Macbeth sees visions of blood. 

  • These visions could be sent by the evil spirits she once turned to in order to torment her and lead her to suicide.

  • An alternative reading is that the visions could be hallucinations from a troubled mind.

  Context: A superstitious Jacobean might well think the visions came from the supernatural while a modern audience would be more inclined to believe the psychological interpretation.
• “juggling fiends’

  • Macbeth condemns the witches when Macduff reveals that he was born via Caesarean birth.

  • The adjective ‘juggling’ shows that he finally understands that the witches have been playing with him.

  Context: This is Macbeth’s moment of anagnorisis, which comes from the tradition of Greek theatre and is the moment when a character makes a critical discovery. Here, Macbeth realises that his faith in the witches has been misplaced.
• Do the witches control the actions of the Macbeths?

  Yes: The witches send the dagger in Act 2 to ‘marshall’st’ (guide) Macbeth towards King Duncan’s chamber. Macbeth might yet have decided against killing Duncan if the dagger had not guided him at this crucial time. The witches’ spells manipulate throughout the play.

  No: The dagger is simply a manifestation of Macbeth’s own guilt. As the vision fades, he admits that ‘there’s no such thing’ and then with absolute purpose walks with his dagger to Duncan’s chamber. He is control of his own actions and the witches are not responsible.