Sample #3:
In ACT I: Scene 6, Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth “Your face, my thane, is as a book where men
may read strange matters…Bear welcome in your eye, Your hand, your tongue, Look like th’
innocent flower, But be the serpent under ‘t.” Lady Macbeth is telling Macbeth that his face gives
away his malicious intentions and that he should appear nice and innocent, concealing his true
intentions. In this quote, Lady Macbeth uses both simile and metaphor. Lady Macbeth uses the
simile of “Your face…is as a book where men may read strange matters.” Lady Macbeth’s
comparison of Macbeth to a book means that you can tell he has cruel intentions of malice
planned. In the metaphor “Look like th’ innocent flower, but be the serpent under ‘t” Lady
Macbeth is telling him that he must look innocent like a flower, while concealing the treachery of
the true snake that he is.
Notes A:
Score: ___2_____ / 10
● Only paraphrasing
● Includes unnecessary, long quotation
Sample #5:
Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth “Your face, my thane, is as a book where men / May read strange
matters.” Shakespeare uses simile to convey obviousness of Macbeth’s inner conflict. Lady
Macbeth is the character reading strange matters. She uses Macbeth’s inner-conflict to
manipulate and bring out the evil in Macbeth so that she can become queen.
Notes B:
Score: ____6____ / 10
● Vague and lacking depth
● Has some indication of analysis
Sample #1:
In act I, Lady Macbeth calls upon spirits and requests a variety of things in order to make her
more ruthless. One thing that Lady Macbeth asks is for the spirits to “Make thick [her] blood.”
Shakespeare uses this metaphor to show Lady Macbeth’s intentions to be shameless so that
she can help kill Duncan. However, in reality, in act V, she kills herself due to the remorse that
she feels from aiding in the murder of Duncan. On the surface Lady Macbeth was able to
become the ruthless person she wanted to be, but in the end, she killed herself due to her
inability to feel remorseless. Additionally, this act of trying to remove her sense of remorse
allows her convince Macbeth that killing Duncan is the right thing to do.
Notes C:
Score: ____7____ / 10
● Has analysis, but lacks nuance
● Too plot-based
Sample #4:
Shakespeare employs a metaphor in Lady Macbeth’s address to her husband. Lady Macbeth
fears he “is too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness”. Lady Macbeth shares her concern of
Macbeth’s lack of cruelty to slay of Duncan. Shakespeare points to the very roots of existance to
emphasize Lady Macbeth’s worries. The milk metaphor references motherhood and child.
Macbeth is accused of remaining a child, an innocent being, still depending on his mother. This
metaphor and comparison is the source of Macbeth’s desire to “grow up” and prove that he is a
man by commiting the savage act of murder.
Notes D:
Score: ____8____ / 10
● Interesting interpretation
● Could use further specificity and depth
Sample #6:
Symbolism in Lady Macbeth’s invocation of the spirits enhances the meaning of the passage by
connecting the passage to other parts of the text and establishing a motif. Lady Macbeth
beseeches the spirits “That no compunctious visitings of nature / Shake my fell purpose” (I.v.5253). By referring to the motif of nature, symbolizing natural occurence and purity, Lady Macbeth
reveals her determination to convince Macbeth to usurp the Scottish throne, although she
recognizes her plot against Duncan to be morally wrong. The reference to nature also relates to
Macbeth’s internal struggle, about the witches’ prophesy in Act I scene 3 because Macbeth
affirmed the murder of Duncan to be against the will of nature. The recurrence of nature in Lady
Macbeth’s soliloquy solidifies nature’s role in the text of revealing good and evil. Thus, the
symbolism of nature foreshadows Lady Macbeth’s later realization of her evil deed (plot against
Duncan) and descent into madness in Act V.
Notes E:
Score: ____9____ / 10
● Good, original ideas
● Misidentifies device
Sample #2:
When Lady Macbeth expresses her fear that Macbeth “is too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness”,
Shakespeare uses metaphor to compare kindness with milk, which causes the reader to
associate kindness with maternity and femininity. This comparison reveals Lady Macbeth’s view
that femininity prevents one from being ruthless enough to achieve ambitious goals. She uses
this argument often when convincing Macbeth to murder Duncan, accusing him of not being
enough of a man to do the deed. She also attempts to detach herself from her femininity in
order to make herself more ruthless as seen when she asks the spirits to “unsex me here” later
in the scene or tells Macbeth that she would kill her own nursing baby if she had promised to.
Quote #3 is the first instance of Lady Macbeth separating herself from femininity and shaming
Macbeth for having it, which sets the tone for how femininity is discussed in the play and allows
the reader to understand Lady Macbeth’s ruthless and determined character.
Notes F:
Score: ___10_____ / 10
● Thoughtful, original analysis
● Well-selected quotation and detailed discussion