Macbeth , Character Analysis
Quotation Position of Quotation Analysis of Quotation including Shakespeare’s purpose and effect on the Audience Links to context/
themes/characters
Act 1, scene 1 The binary between fair and foul to normal people with socially acceptable code of conduct, makes the Witches' Witches, evil,
statement an enigma and a paradox. To the normal human world what is foul cannot be fair. But what Shakespeare supernatural, out of this
[Witches] suggests is that the Witches's invert and subvert the morality and ethics of the human world. There is no foul/fair binary world, outcasts of society.
in the witcher's world, metaphorically, the witches's statement is also a commentary on appearance and reality. What Foreboding,
might appear to be fair may be foul in reality. Thus Macbeth' commits a most ignoble act of murdering Duncan, who foreshadowing?
sees Macbeth as an embodiment of good and trustworthiness. Similar instances of the dichotomy between appearance
‘fair is foul, foul is fair’ and reality abound in the play.
Act 1, scene 5 In Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Lady Macbeth advises her husband to "look like the innocent flower, but be the Perspectives on women in
serpent under it." By this, she means that he should appear to be innocent to believe his devious and murderous plans. jacobean society,
[Lady Macbeth] Yet, despite assuming an innocent appearance, he must remain as murderous or venomous as a serpent. By telling manipulative
Macbeth to “look like the innocent flower,” she wants him to seem unthreatening and harmless to put his intended
victim at ease so that his plot will come as a surprise and others will not suspect him. After all, who would be afraid of a
flower?However, under that deceptive cloak of innocence, he should be ready to strike Duncan as “the serpent under it
[the flower]” would. This line is similar to the concept that "looks can be deceptive" or "don’t judge a book by its cover."
In fact, Lady Macbeth even says to her husband in that same scene, as she goads him to commit murder in order to
‘Look like the innocent flower, but attain the throne,
be the serpent underneath’
“|
Act 2, Scene 2 This quote suggests that Macbeth will be burdened by this murder forever and that there is no ]way to erase it. The Guilt, ambition, change of
language that Shakespeare uses in this quote perfectly portrays the way that Macbeth is feeling. He has recently killed character, realization.
[Macbeth] King Duncan and is engulfed in guilt. Shakespeare wrote this passage in verse, like the majority of the play, to express
the extreme emotionality of Macbeth. As the soliloquy progresses, the words are more frequently polysyllabic, which
shows Macbeth becoming increasingly agitated. Although written in verse, this passage strays from iambic pentameter.
This tells the reader that Macbeth’s thoughts are scattered, since he is not coping well with the fact that he has
committed a murder. Shakespeare breaks away from the ten syllable pattern used in most of the play in order to
portray the sporadic feelings of Macbeth. Another interesting aspect of language in this passage is Shakespeare’s use
‘ Will all great neptune's ocean, of feminine endings. Lines sixty-one and sixty-two both have feminine endings. This reflects Macbeth’s weakness and
wash off this blood’ guilt in the moment that he is speaking this.
“Lifes but a walking shadow, a Act 5, scene 5 In these lines, Macbeth first claims that life is something that really lacks substance; it is only a "walking shadow." Next, Realization, guilt,
poor player. That struts and frets [Macbeth] he uses a metaphor to compare life to an actor, "a poor player," who has but a very short time to be on the stage sympathy, empathy
his hour upon the stage, and then (because life is so short and passes so quickly. While on stage, this actor really acts; he stalks around dramatically and
is heard no more, it is a tale told emotes passionately, "strutting and fretting" for the audience. And then, as suddenly as the play seemed to begin, it
Quotation Position of Quotation Analysis of Quotation including Shakespeare’s purpose and effect on the Audience Links to context/
themes/characters
Act 1, scene 1 The binary between fair and foul to normal people with socially acceptable code of conduct, makes the Witches' Witches, evil,
statement an enigma and a paradox. To the normal human world what is foul cannot be fair. But what Shakespeare supernatural, out of this
[Witches] suggests is that the Witches's invert and subvert the morality and ethics of the human world. There is no foul/fair binary world, outcasts of society.
in the witcher's world, metaphorically, the witches's statement is also a commentary on appearance and reality. What Foreboding,
might appear to be fair may be foul in reality. Thus Macbeth' commits a most ignoble act of murdering Duncan, who foreshadowing?
sees Macbeth as an embodiment of good and trustworthiness. Similar instances of the dichotomy between appearance
‘fair is foul, foul is fair’ and reality abound in the play.
Act 1, scene 5 In Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Lady Macbeth advises her husband to "look like the innocent flower, but be the Perspectives on women in
serpent under it." By this, she means that he should appear to be innocent to believe his devious and murderous plans. jacobean society,
[Lady Macbeth] Yet, despite assuming an innocent appearance, he must remain as murderous or venomous as a serpent. By telling manipulative
Macbeth to “look like the innocent flower,” she wants him to seem unthreatening and harmless to put his intended
victim at ease so that his plot will come as a surprise and others will not suspect him. After all, who would be afraid of a
flower?However, under that deceptive cloak of innocence, he should be ready to strike Duncan as “the serpent under it
[the flower]” would. This line is similar to the concept that "looks can be deceptive" or "don’t judge a book by its cover."
In fact, Lady Macbeth even says to her husband in that same scene, as she goads him to commit murder in order to
‘Look like the innocent flower, but attain the throne,
be the serpent underneath’
“|
Act 2, Scene 2 This quote suggests that Macbeth will be burdened by this murder forever and that there is no ]way to erase it. The Guilt, ambition, change of
language that Shakespeare uses in this quote perfectly portrays the way that Macbeth is feeling. He has recently killed character, realization.
[Macbeth] King Duncan and is engulfed in guilt. Shakespeare wrote this passage in verse, like the majority of the play, to express
the extreme emotionality of Macbeth. As the soliloquy progresses, the words are more frequently polysyllabic, which
shows Macbeth becoming increasingly agitated. Although written in verse, this passage strays from iambic pentameter.
This tells the reader that Macbeth’s thoughts are scattered, since he is not coping well with the fact that he has
committed a murder. Shakespeare breaks away from the ten syllable pattern used in most of the play in order to
portray the sporadic feelings of Macbeth. Another interesting aspect of language in this passage is Shakespeare’s use
‘ Will all great neptune's ocean, of feminine endings. Lines sixty-one and sixty-two both have feminine endings. This reflects Macbeth’s weakness and
wash off this blood’ guilt in the moment that he is speaking this.
“Lifes but a walking shadow, a Act 5, scene 5 In these lines, Macbeth first claims that life is something that really lacks substance; it is only a "walking shadow." Next, Realization, guilt,
poor player. That struts and frets [Macbeth] he uses a metaphor to compare life to an actor, "a poor player," who has but a very short time to be on the stage sympathy, empathy
his hour upon the stage, and then (because life is so short and passes so quickly. While on stage, this actor really acts; he stalks around dramatically and
is heard no more, it is a tale told emotes passionately, "strutting and fretting" for the audience. And then, as suddenly as the play seemed to begin, it
