Shakespeare’s Macbeth
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Structures: how a narrative is communicated e.g.
sequence of events, stage directions, acts and
scenes, chapters, narration
Features: elements of a text that are focused on
and purposely chosen by the author e.g. tone,
view and values, writing style, prose and poetry,
narrative voice(s), language
Conventions: practices that are common to the
text type e.g. use of symbols, motifs, themes,
points of tension, characters, plot, ideas, setting
You need to discuss the structures, features and conventions that
Macbeth uses to convey meaning in his text as it relates to the
topic you have chosen by using metalanguage (or language which
describes language, or is appropriate language for the text;
jargon/lingo)
 Every question will allow you to discuss these features so try and
weave metalanguage throughout your body paragraphs. The
purpose of this criteria is to demonstrate your ability to
understand how the author uses language to communicate his or
her meaning. The key is to remember that the author's words or
phrases are always chosen with a particular intention – it is your
job to investigate why the author has written a text in a particular
way.
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http://www.vcestudyguides.com/what-is-metalanguage
Manifestation
Frenetic
Culmination
Fatal Flaw
Iambic pentameter
Rhyming couplet
Protasis
Epitasis
Catastrophe
Ghost (Shade, Spectre,
Apparition)
Arbitrary
Noble
Tyrant/Tyranny
Megalomania
Regicide
Patricide
Blasphemy
Equivocate
“Vaulting Ambition”
Soliloquy
…be sure to add to this
list whenever you can!
 Find the definition of each of the
metalanguage terms in the
previous slide
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Normal Linear Narrative (a, b, c, d, e, etc.)
Macbeth is a Play
- not a book or a novel. Refer to it as either ‘the play’ or ‘the text’.
Refer to William Shakespeare as ‘the writer’, ‘the author’, ‘the
playwright’, or ‘Billy Shakes’ (…except that last one)
- It has no chapters or parts, but acts and scenes
- As a play, it was not initially meant to be read, but to be seen and
heard, so you should always position (imagine) yourself as seeing the
play being performed on stage as it was originally intended
In a Dramatic Play, the structure of the play is broken up into 3
section:
- the introduction (protasis)
- the middle, and action, of the play (epitasis)
- and the end of the play (catastrophe)
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No omniscient narrator: the play is
composed of just dialogue with some on-andoff stage noises and props
- but just because there isn’t a narrator
doesn’t mean that the author’s Views and
Values aren’t present
POV (point of view) the play is seen in
second-person perspective, as either seen by
the audience or read by the reader (you)
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Plot: main plot deals with Macbeth and his actions. There are many scenes
in which Macbeth is off-stage but the entire play still revolves around him
- there are not sub-plots (e.g. Ross and Angus decide to open their own
business)
- the only other narrative is that of MacDonwald and the King of Norway at
the beginning
Question: What is the
Narrative Structure (a.k.a.,
the narrative arch) of
Macbeth?
Activity time: In pairs,
discuss and write down
what you think the
narrative arch of the
play is (5m).
Introduction/Exposition:
Setting: Scotland after a war. Three witches
are introduced and allude to a man named
‘Macbeth’ (Act 1, Scene 1). King Duncan and
other discuss the aftermath of a battle and
how great a person Macbeth is
Complication:
Macbeth and Banquo meet the Three Weird
Sisters and they prophesise that Macbeth will
become Thane of Cawdor, in addition to
Glamis, and then king of Scotland. Macbeth
is enticed and begins to plot his next move.
- the reader is left wondering if the prophecy
spurred Macbeth or if it would have
happened anyway; Shakespeare leaves this
ambiguous
Conflict/Rising Action:
Macbeth, with assistance from his wife,
murder King Duncan when he visits their
castle. The events of the rest of the play are
set in motion: the princes flee and Macbeth is
titled King of Scotland; rumours of strange
occurrences being to circulate.
Climax:
Now King, Macbeth ties up loose ends and has Banquo
murdered, however Banquo’s ghost haunts Macbeth
during his royal feast.
Falling Action:
Macbeth visits the Witches and they predict his future.
Based on this information, Macbeth decides to have
Macduff’s family murdered and Macduff rendezvous
with the exiled Malcolm in England.
- at this point, the audience/reader is getting the
feeling that Macbeth is soon for demise
Denouement/Resolution:
Wracked with guilt, Macbeth succumbs to madness
and kills herself. Malcolm returns with an English army
and the Scottish nobles turn against Macbeth. The
three prophecies are fulfilled but to Macbeth’s
detriment and Macduff slays Macbeth in battle.
Malcolm is crowned king and peace returns.
Language:
- Shakespeare has an incredible mastery of the English language
and nearly every line is filled with figurative languages, such as
puns, similes, metaphors and irony. It is hard, but rewarding and
enriching when deciphered
- Reading: don’t pause at the end of each line, but follow through
as if it’s a normal sentence. Pauses only occur with punctuation,
such as commas, dashes and full stops.
E.g.
“The raven himself if hoarse
That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan
Under my battlements. Come, you spirits
That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,
And fill me from crown to the toe top-full
Of direst cruelty!” – Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 5)
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bM3h0Gb2O20)
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Fact: Shakespeare was a poet (e.g. The Sonnets) and this love of
poetic writing shines through in his plays.
Most of Macbeth is written in blank verse. This is a type of poetry
that is does not necessarily rhyme and is different to regular prose
(normal writing).
E.g.
“Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.” – Macbeth (Act 5, Sc. 5)
The general rule of thumb for Shakespeare is that he loved
iambic pentameter. This is a type of poetic rhyming. There
are other types of meter, such as iambic hexameter, but
Billy Shakes prefers I.P., so let’s focus just on this.
 An ‘iamb’ is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed
syllable (e.g. de-scend). Think of it as the beat of a drum.
These do not have to be in just one word, but can be spread
throughout a sentence or a line.
 In most of Macbeth, each line has 10 beats, divided into
iambs. As each iamb equals 2 syllables (one stressed and one
not stressed), we have 2x5 = 10. We call this iambic
pentameter because ‘penta’ is Greek for five (5). Each one of
these ‘penta’ is called a metric foot.
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So:
iamb = an unstressed syllable (x), or beat, followed by a stressed syllable (–). E.g.
te-DUM, te-DUM, te-DUM…
x –,
x –, x
–, …
foot = a line of writing that has an iamb in it is called foot.
E.g. / x – /
pentameter = 5 metric feet, e.g., x – / x – / x – / x – / x –
iambi pentameter = 10 syllables (beats) per line, made up of 5 feet, with each foot
having one iamb, and each iamb being one stressed syllable and one unstressed
syllable.
e.g. “But screw your courage to the sticking-place” – Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 7)
So more examples:
“That tears shall drown the wind. I have no spur
To prick the sides of my intent, but only
Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself
And falls on th’ other –” – Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 7)
“Is this a dagger which I see before me,
The handle t’ward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee.
I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.” – Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 1)
“Some say, the earth
Was nervous and did shake.” – Lennox (Act 2, Sc. 3)
“There’s daggers in men’s smiles: the near in blood,
The nearer bloody.
This murderous shaft that’s shot
Hath not yet lighted, and our safest way.” – Donalbain and Malcolm (Act 2, Sc. 3)
Why do you need to know this? There are 6 reasons
why you should know about iambic pentameter in
Macbeth:
1. It’s what Shakespeare used, and liked, most. It can
also be found in other plays, such as Hamlet and
Romeo & Juliet.
2. There are 10 syllables per line.
3. The syllables alternate between one unstressed (te-)
and one stressed (DUM). This is called an iamb and an
iamb is within a foot.
E.g., te-DUM/ te-DUM/ te-DUM/ te-DUM/ te-DUM/…
4. Shakespeare changes this structure from time to time to
create different effects, like changing stress pattern and
adding syllables, or sometimes even corrupting the meter
entirely to demonstrate chaos and tension (see Act 2, Sc. 2,
Lines 16-22)
5. Shakespeare uses his language to show who is noble and
who is common. The nobles (e.g. Macduff and Ross) speak in
blank verse-iambic pentameter, but the commoners (e.g.,
messengers and the Porter), speak in regular prose. It shows
the class divided and their level of education and status. After
all, the Porter is little more than a drunken peasant – literally!
6. Iambic pentameter is beautiful. Why? It’s the sound of a
heart beat ♥
Blank verse, as discussed, is poetry in the form of nonrhyming sounds, but Shakespeare does use classic rhyming
verse from time to time and always for a reason.
 In the play, it’s always easy to know when it’s the Witches
are speaking and not a noble or a commoner. This is
because they are speaking in a rhyming verse called a
rhyming couplet, and not in iambic pentameter. An
example of a rhyming couplet would be:
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“The rose is red, the violet’s blue
The honey’s sweet, and so are you.” – Gammer Gurton’s
Garland, 1784.
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Examples from Macbeth:
“By the pricking of my thumbs,
Something wicked this way comes.
Open, locks,
Whoever knocks!” – 2nd Witch (Act 4, Sc. 1)
“Fair is foul and foul is fair;
Hover through the fog and filthy air.” – The Witches (Act 1, Sc. 1)
“Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.” – 3rd Witch (Act 4, Sc. 1)
“Nought’s had, all’s spent,
Where our desire is got without consent;
’Tis safer to be that which we destroy
Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy.” – Lady Macbeth (Act 3, Sc. 2)
The Witches go about creating chaos and their language emphasises their
unnatural, even supernatural, features. They’re more lyrical, but also
insane.
 Sometimes Shakespeare ends a scene with a rhyming couplet.
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E.g.,
“It is concluded: Banquo, thy soul’s flight,
If it find heav’n, must find it out tonight.” – Macbeth (Act 3, Sc. 1)
“…the bell invites me.
Hear it not, Duncan, for it is knell
That summons thee to heaven or to hell.” – Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 1)
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Ending a scene with a rhyming couplet makes the audience and reader
fidget in their seats a little as the rhyme tells them that something is
about to happen, usually in the very next scene.
It also might have been a cue to the other stage actors that they were
soon meant to be onstage for the next scene. Structurally, it helps to tie
up a speech neatly and makes a point memorable. Tension is created.
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The tone of Macbeth is, as you might expect, very dark and serious. This is because it is a
tragedy and not a comedy. Unlike a comedy, a Shakespearean tragedy usually revolves
around one or more characters possessing a Fatal Flaw, or a quality which brings about their
downfall. |
E.g. – fatal flaws:
Hamlet – inability to take action
Romeo & Juliet – impetuousness
Othello – too trusting and gullible
King Lear – senile and vain
Macbeth - ???
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In Macbeth, the eponymous anti-hero is seemingly doomed and fated to suffer by the end of
the play. This is why it’s a tragedy: not because it’s sad, but because the audience sees and
experiences this transformation before their eyes. It’s full title is, after all, ‘The Tragedy of
Macbeth’.
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Shakespeare’s tone is dark and grim and this reflects in the setting and the conversations in
the play. Even the weather’s miserable. Granted, there is one scene of relative comedy (the
Porter in Act 2, Sc. 3) but this is used to break the unbearable tension just after Duncan’s
murder in the pervious scene.
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Like any writer, Shakespeare has his own style
of writing. In case you don’t know what ‘style’
is, style is simply the particular way in which a
writer writes and the tell-tale characteristics he
or she employs.
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Shakespeare often employs a selection of
literary devices, or techniques, to bring his plays
to life. These are puns, foreshadowing,
metaphors, similes, soliloquies and
introspection and irony.
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A pun is play on words. It might play on the fact that a word has a double
meaning, as in ‘lie’, as in lying down, or ‘lie’, as in to not tell the truth. E.g.
“We should have else desired your advice,
Which still hath been both grave and prosperous,
In this day’s council, but we’ll take tomorrow.” – Macbeth speaking to
Banquo (Act 3, Sc. 1)
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Macbeth is dark in tone so puns are rarely used, but when they are, they
reveal a lot about one’s character and intentions. E.g.
“True, worthy Banquo, he is so valiant,
And in his commendations I am fed;
It is a banquet to me.” – Duncan (Act 1, Sc. 4)
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The pun is on Banquo’s name. This shows that Duncan has a natural charm
and sense of humour, but that he also sees Both Banquo and Macbeth as
individuals who can support, or ‘feed’, him.
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Foreshadowing is a literary technique in which events that occur later in a story
are hinted at in advance. Shakespeare uses foreshadowing to build dramatic
tension. Dramatic tension is a feeling of emotion, usually unease, felt by the
audience and reader. It helps to make the text more engaging and appealing to
the recipient.
Foreshadowing comes in many forms and is used frequently in the play.
Sometimes Shakespeare uses it in relation to other features and conventions,
such as symbols and motifs, whereas other times foreshadowing is used to
express more metaphysical ideas about the play itself. In either case,
foreshadowing reveals to the audience a hint of what’s toe come E.g.
“The obscure bird
Clamoured the livelong night.” – Lennox (Act 2, Sc. 3)
- Here, Lennox is explaining that a bird was making noise all night and he says this
mere moments before Macduff finds Duncan’s dead body. This is foreshadowing
because owls are believed to make noises before a person is killed.
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“Thou seest the heavens, as troubled with man’s act,
Threaten his bloody stage.” – Ross (Act 2, Sc. 4)
- With this use of foreshadowing, the Bard is telling us that the stage
of the play is bloody but will be bloodier still.
“Come, we’ll to sleep. My strange and self-abuse
Is the initiate fear that wants hard use.
We are but young in deed.” – Macbeth (Act 3, Sc. 4)
- Finally, Macbeth is trying to calm his wife after he has learned that
Macduff did not attend the banquet, which Macbeth takes as a
slight. Macbeth then alludes to more killings to come by suggesting
that he and his wife are “young”, or ‘inexperienced’ in murder.
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A metaphor is a figure of speech that identifies something as being the same as some unrelated thing for
rhetorical effect, thus highlighting the similarities between the two.
Shakespeare uses metaphors as comparisons to other characters, ideas and events in the play, but as also
exposition. E.g.,
“Fair is foul and foul is fair” – The Witches (Act 1, Sc. 1)
In the above metaphor, Shakespeare is presenting the state of Scotland and setting the tone of the play in one
short, but effective, line. Consider the next metaphor, in which Shakespeare characterises Duncan and a good
monarch and Macbeth as wicked:
“[Duncan] had been
So clear in his great office, that his virtues
Will plead like angels, trumpet tongued, against
The deep damnation of his taking-off” – Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 7)
Finally, read one more metaphor which Lady Macbeth uses to chastise her husband for wanting the crown but
not acting to obtain it:
“And live a coward in thine own esteem,
Letting ‘I dare not’ wait upon ‘I would’,
Like the poor cat i’the adage?” Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 7)
An adage is a proverb or a saying and the proverb about the cat is that the cat desires to eat the fish in the river,
but is unwilling to get its paws wet. Therefore, Lady Macbeth is saying that Macbeth is the cat.
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A simile is the direct comparison of two things usually characterised by the use of ‘as’ and ‘like.’
Similar to metaphors, similes are used to express ideas and beliefs, usually those of a character.
For example, Shakespeare uses a simile in Act 2 to demonstrate the mind-sets of both Lady
Macbeth and her husband. Just after Macbeth has killed Duncan, he returns but still holding the
daggers.
E.g.
“Why did you bring these daggers from the place?
They must lie there. Go carry them and smear
The sleepy grooms with blood.”
“I’ll go no more:
I am afraid to think what I have done;
Look on’t again I dare not.”
“Infirm of purpose!
Give me the daggers – The sleeping and the dead
Are but as pictures” – Macbeth and Lady Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 2)
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Here, Lady Macbeth is trying to tell Macbeth that dead-Duncan cannot harm him, but this simile
reveals Macbeth’s fears and guilt and Lady Macbeth’s indifference to the deed.
A soliloquy involves a character talking when he or she is alone.
Shakespeare uses this device to help the audience understand the mind of
the character who is speaking and their motivations for what they are
doing or planning to do. We walk to ourselves all the time as we are
thinking and soliloquies reflect this.
 Soliloquies are essential theatrical devices in assisting the audience
understand the mind of the character and their motives, and how the
author seeks to characterise them.
 There are several soliloquies in Macbeth, but some of the most famous
ones include:
- Lady Macbeth’s “unsex me here” soliloquy (Act 1, Sc. 5)
- Macbeth’s “vaulting ambition” soliloquy (Act 1, Sc. 7)
- Macbeth’s “Is this a dagger I see before me” soliloquy (Act 2, Sc. 1)
- Macbeth’s “the seed of Banquo kings!” soliloquy (Act 3, Sc. 1)
- and Macbeth’s “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” soliloquy
(Act 5, Sc. 5)
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Similar to a soliloquy, an aside is a short introspection which
allows a character to express his or her thoughts quickly and
to themselves, without the other characters onstage being
aware of it. It is usually characterised by the actor physically
turning away from the other actors for a moment.
E.g.
[Aside] “The Prince of Cumberland! That is a step
On which I must fall down, or else o’erleap,
For in my way it lies…” – Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 4)
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They say that there are 3 types of irony: verbal, situational and dramatic.
Verbal Irony is when the opposite of what is said is the intended meaning. E.g.,
“I had else been perfect,
Whole as marble, founded as the rock,
As broad and general as the casing air:
But now I am cabined, cribbed, confirmed, bound in
To saucy doubts and fears – But Banquo’s safe?” – Macbeth (Act 3, Sc. 4)
“Some say, the earth
Was feverous and did shake.”
“’Twas a rough night.” – Lennox and Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 3)
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Apart from being the understatement of the century, Macbeth’s response to
Lennox is ironic because Lennox assumes that Macbeth is talking about the
supernatural occurrences, but Macbeth is talking about his murder of Duncan.
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Situational Irony is when the result of an action is different to the intended
outcomes. Shakespeare uses situational irony to demonstrate change in characters
and to display how there is a discrepancy between cause and effect. This is used by
Shakespeare to further his view and values that the natural order of things,
especially in Macbeth, should not, and cannot, be altered, lest provoking dire
consequences.
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Macbeth expects that attaining the throne would bring him peace, however it
does the opposite and creates his eventual demise. Another example would be
how he hoped to secure himself against Macduff by killing his family, however this
merely enraged Macduff to seek vengeance on the tyrant. E.g.,
“The castle of Macduff I will surprise,
Seize upon Fife, give to the edge o’the sword
His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls
That trace him in his line.” – Macbeth (Act 4, Sc. 1)
“Front to front
Bring thou this fiend of Scotland and
myself;
Within my sword’s length set him” –
Macduff (Act4, Sc. 3)
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The most important of the ironies in Macbeth is Dramatic Irony. Dramatic irony is the state in which
the audience member or reader of a play knows more than the characters onstage. For example, we
might know that around the corner is the monster of a horror film, but the unsuspecting teenagers
don’t know this and are about to be killed (see every horror film ever).
The reason Shakespeare uses dramatic irony is (yes, you’ve guessed it), to create tension between the
characters’ knowledge and our greater knowledge.
Consider the following exchange between Duncan and Banquo. Remember, we know that at this point
in the play, Macbeth is planning to kill Duncan in his castle that night.
“This castle has a pleasant seat; the air
Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself
Unto out gentle senses.”
“…I have observed,
the air is delicate.” – Duncan and Banquo (Act 1, Sc. 6)
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This is an example of dramatic irony because Duncan believes that he is safe in Macbeth’s castle. He
says that the air recommends itself to him, however Banquo sly points that “the air is delicate”, or
fragile and unstable in other words.
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Some other examples of dramatic irony in the play:
“He hath not touched you yet.” – Malcolm speaking to Macduff (Act 4, Sc. 3)
“Infected be the air whereon they ride;
And damned all those that trust them!” – Macbeth (Act 4, Sc. 1)
“Let every man be master of his time” – Macbeth speaking to his court after
Banquo goes out riding with Fleance (Act 3, Sc. 1)
“Duncan comes here tonight.
“And when goes hence?”
“Tomorrow, as he purposes.”
“O, never shall sun that morrow see!” – Macbeth and Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 5)
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Shakespeare’s Views and Values are the
beliefs, expressed in the play, of the author
and the society in which he inhabited, this
being Jacobean England (1603-1625).
The author’s views and values are deeply
interconnected with the themes of the play,
which will be described in more detail later,
however some of Shakespeare’s view and
values include:
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Ambition: don’t be ambitious or try to rise
above your God-given place in life
Honesty is necessary for the world to function
properly
Good people should turn away from evil
Men should be manly and women should be
womanly and not stray out of their ‘traits’
Good kingship will create a prosperous country,
but tyranny will destroy it
The wicked will be tormented by their guilt
Royal House of Scotland
Duncan: King of Scotland
Malcolm: Prince of Scotland, Duncan’s son
and the heir-apparent and later King of
Scotland
Donalbain: A Prince of Scotland and
younger son of Duncan
Macbeth’s House and Allies
Macbeth: Thane of Glamis and Cawdor, a
general in the Scottish army and later King
of Scotland (protagonist and anti-hero –
the play’s central character
Lady Macbeth: Macbeth’s wife and later
Queen of Scotland
Scottish Nobles
Banquo: A general in the Scottish army
Porter, Gentlewoman, Doctor, Seyton,
Murderers, Messengers and Servants
Other Characters
Witches, Hecate, Apparitions, Scottish
Fleance: Banquo’s son
Sergeant, Old Man, Messengers, Servants,
Macduff: Thane of Fife (antagonist –
opposes central character)
English Doctor, Soldiers, General Siward,
Young Siward
Lady Macduff: Macduff’s wife
Macduff’s son, Lennox, Ross, Angus,
Menteith, Caithness
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See page 25 of the Coursework booklet 
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Scotland: a cold a misty country which is
seemingly covered in perpetual fog. This
is connected to the motif of air. The air
in Scotland is always cloudy and fog.
This is important because it helps to
impair vision. Macbeth and Banquo are
lost on the heath in Act 1, but a heath is
really just a plain, shrubby field,
however the air is so dense that their
vision is obscured. This is almost like
foreshadowing for the rest of the play.
Scotland is also a land of political chaos.
Although Macbeth starts a civil war
against Malcolm and Macduff later in
the play, he is first introduced after
having won a rebellion and a foreign
invasion, at the same time!
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A theme is the central idea of a work of
literature (book, play, etc).
A theme is like the ‘moral of the story’, but it’s
more complicated than that. Themes are
universal – they apply to everyone. A theme
doesn’t just relate to one character in a book
or play, but to all of us. E.g., we can all relate
to themes of love, hate, tragedy and envy.
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Some of the themes in Macbeth include:
- Ambition
- Nature (the balance of)/Order and Chaos
- Kingship vs. Tyranny
- Witchcraft and Necromancy
- How Power Corrupts
- Appearances vs. Reality
- Expectations of Masculinity and Femininity
- Violence (pervasiveness and use of)
- Fate & Destiny
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Symbolism is when a colour, shape, object or character is
used to represent something bigger than itself or an abstract
idea. E.g. the colour red is usually symbolic of blood and
green is symbolic of envy.
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Some of the symbols in Macbeth include:
- Blood: blood is everywhere in Macbeth and Shakespeare
uses this to symbolise the type of king Macbeth his and to
symbolise Macbeth’s guilt. Blood is repeatedly associated
with rule, even his very character, and there is always talk of
blood in relation to rule as a bloody-tyrant. Moreover,
although he is a hardened general who is accustomed to the
sight of blood, Shakespeare uses it to show Macbeth’s guilt at
having killed his king and later many others.
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After the murder of Duncan, the play is dripping with
images of blood: Macbeth envisions Duncan’s blood as
“multitudinous seas” (Act 2, Sc. 2); Banquo is killed with
“twenty trenched gashes on his head” (Act 3, Sc. 4); and
Macbeth has Macduff’s entire family slaughtered (Act 4,
Sc. 2). In fact, so pervasive is the blood throughout the
play that Macbeth states that, “I am in blood/ Stepped in
so far that, should I wade no more,/ Returning were as
tedious as go o’ver (Act 3, Sc. 2).
Even Lady Macbeth is obsessed with blood as it too
consumes her with guilt and remorse. In Act 5, Sc. 1, she
washes her hands in her sleep and is fixated by “the smell
of blood.” It seems a fitting end to a bloody and violent
play that Macbeth is decapitated and Lady Macbeth
commits suicide.
Ghosts and Vision: all of the vision and hallucinations in
Macbeth are symbolic of a character’s conscience. They
are symbolic of the internal struggle the characters have
about their actions and deeds and whether or not they are
able to be at peace with them.
 What’s significant about the ghosts and visions is that
they are an expression of Macbeth’s mental state and the
corrosion of his mind. He grapples with the “dagger I see
before me” and is able to continue on with his deed and
deceive the nobles after it is done, but the appearance of
Banquo’s ghost is a turning point in the play: Macbeth
breaks down mentally and practically reveals his guilt to
his entire court. No longer the calculating, albeit
reluctant, assassin, Macbeth turns from being a
gentleman to an outright butcher.
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In the play, Shakespeare presents sleep as:
“the innocent sleep,
Sleep that knits up the ravell'd sleeve of care,
The death of each day's life, sore labour's bath,
Balm of hurt minds, great nature's second course,
Chief nourisher in life's feast –” – Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 2)

Plainly, the Bard is using sleep to symbolise peace, calm, rest and purity, a natural
and good state of being and one which the righteous people enjoy. Macbeth,
however, “does murder sleep” in more ways than one. Macbeth realises very early
that he has dismissed any peace that he once would have had and later as king,
Macbeth’s treachery and evil cause other whole country of Scotland to not be able
to sleep, therefore disturbed, as a noble Lord expresses in Act 3, Sc. 6:
“That, by the help of these, we may again
Give to our tales meat, sleep to our nights…All we pine for now.”

Lady Macbeth is also wracked by a lack of sleep. As the one of the chief motivators
of Duncan’s murder, Lady Macbeth is tormented by her guilt even in “this slumber
agitation” as she paces up and down as “she rubs her hands.” (Act 5, Sc. 1)
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The weather and natural state of Scotland is symbolic of the moral,
political and dynastic situation of the country.
Shakespeare uses the image of poor weather very cleverly to show
how low Scotland has fallen. For instance, the first lines of the play
are said by the Witches, who mutter:
“When shall we three meet again,
In thunder, lightning or in rain?” – 1st Witch (Act 1, Sc. 1)

Shakespeare doesn’t include many allusions to weather directly in
the play but fits them into the structure and presentation of the
play itself. For example, many of the descriptions given before
scenes commence are given as “Thunder and Lightning – “. This
tells the reader and audience that is in a continuously bad state.
This also helps to set the tone for the rest of the play.

Similar, though not exactly the same, to regular symbolism, a
motif is a recurring object or image used to support a main idea
or theme.

Sometimes, examples of motif are mistakenly identified as
examples of symbols. Symbols are images, ideas, sounds or
words that represent something else and help to understand an
idea or a thing. Motifs, on the other hand, are usually objects,
but also images, ideas, sounds or words, that help to explain the
central idea of a literary work, i.e. theme.

Motifs contribute in developing the major theme of a literary
work and help readers to comprehend the underlying messages
that writers intend to communicate to them.
*Plants
*Clothing
*Blood
*Animals
*Daggers/Knives


Plants: Shakespeare uses the motif of a plant to reinforce
the themes of Order and Chaos and the corrupting effects
of power.
Whereas most motifs are presented throughout the play,
Shakespeare carefully places only 2 references to plants in
Macbeth:
at the very beginning in Act 1 when Duncan says, “I have
begun to plant thee, and will labour/ To make thee full of
growing”; and again at the very end of Act when Malcolm
states, “What’s more to do,/ Which would be planted
newly with the time”. Whereas Duncan planted Macbeth,
his son Malcolm, who removed the ‘weed’ (see Act 5, Sc.
2), seeks to begin planting new things to mend Scotland.
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Shakespeare employs a recurring image of clothing to
show that Macbeth is unfit and not mean to rule Scotland.
The allusions begin early on in the play when the Ross and
Angus declare Macbeth to be the Thane of Cawdor, to
which he responds, “why do you dress me/ In borrowed
robes?” (Act 1, Sc. 3)
Macduff references the changing of clothing in Act 2, Sc.
4, when he say, “Well, may you see things well done there.
Adieu,/ Lest our old robes sit easier than our new!”
Finally, Angus makes a very clear remark when he says
about Macbeth in the final Act, “now does he feel his title
Hang loose about him, like a giant’s robe/ Upon a dwarfish
thief.” (Act 5, Sc. 2)
This motif is demonstrative of the chaos in Scotland.

see earlier slide 

Daggers are a recurring object and motif in Macbeth and they
reinforce the notions of violence and chaos throughout the play and
the overall tyranny of Macbeth’s rule over Scotland. They are also
closely connected to the bloodiness of the play. E.g.,
“Is this a dagger I see before me,
the handle t’ward my hand?” – Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 1)
“There's daggers in men's smiles” – Donalbain (Act 3, Sc. 2)
“or art thou but
A dagger of the mind, a false creation,
Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?” Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 1)

Why animals?
*used to convey events and emotions
*possible use of foreshadowing
*used as descriptions (Macbeth = serpent, Fleance = worm) and
comparisons
*helps to create dramatic irony

Snakes/Serpents
Birds (owls, eagles, ravens)
Horses
Other: cats, lions, scorpions, dogs

Snake: sly, evil, tempting, cunning
Owl: a owl’s hoot is symbolic of death; owls are symbolic of
wisdom
Raven: carrion bird who eats the scrapes; messenger of
death in Norse mythology; spies of the god Odin
Horses: loyal and strong animal; used often by the nobles
Lion: noble animal; king
Dogs: symbolise man in his many forms (Act 3, Sc. 1); can
be loyal but can also turn against man

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Shakespeare also uses the motifs of animals to help characterise characters and to
illustrate their transformation. By using animalistic comparisons, the author is
better able to reinforce his views on the corruption nature of power and on the
perils of “vaulting ambition”.
For instance, Macbeth is characters thrice with animals in the play:
- Firstly, Macbeth is presented nobly.
Duncan: “Dismay'd not this/ Our captains,/ Macbeth and Banquo?”
Sergeant: “Yes;/ As sparrows eagles, or the hare the lion.”
- Secondly, after Duncan’s murder, he is downgraded.
Old Man: 'Tis unnatural,/ Even like the deed that's done. On Tuesday last,/ A
falcon, towering in her pride of place,/ Was by a mousing owl hawk'd at and kill'd.”
- Lastly, Macbeth is downgraded even lower to the simple and ravenous dog, one
which has destroyed everything it cherishes.
Macduff: “Turn, hell-hound, turn!”