In the play Macbeth, certain words are used strategically to have more meaning and dive deeper than just the word's literal meaning. Throughout the play, words have a substantial impact on the way it follows the characters through the entire passage and what role these words truly play. For example, sleep is used in many different ways. It is used as a symbol for peace and tranquility and also used as the literal meaning. By Shakesapeare sharing what he means by his words and phrases, it gives a different perspective to his work. It allows the audience to be able to have a different reading experience than a traditional book or novel. Sleep is a word in the play Macbeth that holds such a high meaning. This word is used throughout the play, always following Macbeth. Macbeth reveals to Lady Macbeth, …show more content…
Macbeth does murder sleep', 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,—” (Mac. 2.2. 51-56). During this conversation between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth he explains he now has destroyed his peace and ability to sleep. Sleep is seen as a calm relaxing time but because Macbeth has murdered King Duncanin his sleep he is not able to enjoy it as he once was able to. Furthermore, later on in this act Macbeth runs into this word again. Sleep comes back into effect after Macduff finds King Duncan dead. Macduff screams in horror, “.......Awake, awake! Ring the alarum-bell. Murder and treason! Banquo and Donalbain! Malcolm! Awake! Shake off this downy sleep, death's counterfeit, And look on death itself! up, up, and see The great doom's image! Malcolm!
and they are also the rumors of Duncan’s nighttime murder. The murder was “unnatural” thus causing Lady Macbeth to experience “unnatural” sleepwalking. Because Lady Macbeth called “night” to herself, God can no longer save her because the darkness blocks him from her past deeds and current problems. After the Doctor says goodnight, it is clear Lady Macbeth’s death is coming because this is a closure to the nighttime nightmare of Lady
He then has a conversation with his wife saying that his “Sleep [is] in the affliction of [his] terrible dreams” (3.2.20-21). The author uses the motif of sleep to represent peace. This time Macbeth’s sleep is disturbed by terrible dreams, meaning that his peace is disrupted by the results of his actions. He even goes as far as to say that Duncan in his grave “sleeps well,” meaning that death is more peaceful than Macbeth’s life (3.2.25-26). Therefore, the author’s usage of the motif of sleep shows that one who is guilty of an immoral act will suffer consequences
In both, the characters provide insight into their insomniac states. They also mention their hand in pushing sleep away. For instance, Macbeth comments that he hears voices condemning him to “Sleep no more!” since “Macbeth does murder sleep.” King Henry expresses a related comment when he attests: “how have I frighted thee.”
Sleep is used to symbolize a number of things, one of them being innocence. Innocence plays a huge part in Macbeth, as it's frequently used to expose a character's intentions. “Methought I heard a voice cry, Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep, — the innocent sleep” (2.2.34). Macbeth did not only murder Duncan, but murdered his innocence as well.
As he begins to panic he exclaims:“Methought I heard a voice cry 'Sleep no more / Macbeth does murder sleep'..... great nature's second course, / Chief nourisher in life's feast” (2.2.34-39). Macbeth is starting to understand the severity of the crime he just committed. Shakespere uses sleep as a metaphor for innocence because people are their true, vulnerable self while sleeping. Macbeth refers to sleep as “The death of each day's life,” which indicates that he believes in the after life.
Following murdering Duncan, Macbeth exclaims “this is a sorry sight.” Contrastingly to the battlefield, Macbeth is not proud of his murder. Formerly taking pride in his killings, away from the battlefield the effect on him away from battle is drastic. Macbeths conscience displays feelings of regret and remorse here, conveyed by the adjective “sorry.” Shakespeare develops the motif of disturbed sleep further emphasizing his guilt by illustrating that Macbeth has murdered sleep both literally and figuratively.
Topic: Sleep and Dreams in Shakespeare's Macbeth Quotes: "Methought I heard a voice cry, 'Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep' - the innocent sleep" (Act 2, Scene 2). "O gentle lady, 'tis not for you to hear what I can speak: The repetition, in a woman's ear, Would murder as it fell" (Act 2, Scene 3). "I have done the deed. Didst thou not hear a noise?"
He cannot actually kill sleep. In this personification, sleep is given a human-like quality. Because of his guiltiness, Macbeth is paranoid and the lunacy is invading his mind in every aspect. When Macbeth orders Macduff’s family to be killed, he declares, “From this moment / The very firstlings of my heart shall be / The firstlings of my hand” (4.1.166-168).
In the beginning of the play, before King Duncan’s murder, the image of sleep is almost always accompanied by images of blood or death, foreshadowing the coming assassination of Duncan. In the end of Act I, after Macbeth and his wife, Lady Macbeth, are planning to kill Duncan while he sleeps, after getting
Sleep is one of the purest forms of altered consciousness however, traumatic experiences can impede one’s unconscious thoughts. Macbeth returns after killing Duncan and the guards, grief stricken and afraid. He tells his wife that sleep itself has been murdered and that nobody is immune his treachery (5.1.44). Macbeth’s crime is intensified by the act of murder being done at night and to sleeping rather than awake guards. The moment of guilt that Macbeth felt for his actions represents the hidden innocence behind the crimes.
The word “sleep” is used throughout Macbeth with various connotations. One of the ways to interpret Shakespeare's use of “sleep,” is as a symbol of innocence. This symbolism is used repeatedly in concerns to Duncan and his murder. When Lady Macbeth is unable to kill Duncan, she explains, “Had he not resembled / My father as he slept, I had done’t”
That they did wake each other: I stood and heard them: but they did say their prayers and address’d them again to sleep” (Shakespeare, 2.2.28-31). He then further explains how he thought he heard a voice saying, “Sleep no more! Macbeth doth Murder sleep” (Shakespeare, 2.2.43-44). Although in reality there were no voices that came from the house, it was all a figment of Macbeth’s imagination. Plus, as Macbeth is panicking that someone is coming, Lady Macbeth “tries to bring him back to a sense of reality, warns him against losing his strength and purpose and then urges him to take the dagger back” and wipe the blood on the King’s guards (Bali, 87).
The exclamation with “and after that the dark!” amplifies his excitement and acceptance of death, symbolised by the anonymity of darkness, and its entailments. The biblical allusion and metaphor in “I hope to see my Pilot face to face”, conveys the “Pilot” of the speaker’s boat, metaphorical for God, is leading him towards the ocean, towards his inevitable death with cumulative hope of meeting God. His anticipation reinforces his death is not lugubrious, but is a pleasant endeavour towards an unknown existence beyond death. Through the extended metaphor of crossing the sand bar, illustrative of humans passing from life to death, exclamation and metaphors, Tennyson expresses an inner journey, disguised as a physical voyage, eliciting the speaker’s dispositions to transform from fearing death to becoming confident and appreciative of a human’s ‘final’
Clearly, sleep is a major motif in Macbeth, by William Shakespeare. The word sleep alone is used over thirty times, with similar words pertaining to sleep such as rest and dream being used another twenty times. Throughout the short story of Macbeth, Shakespeare writes about sleep literally almost as often as figuratively, using sleep as a symbol of the king, comfort and well-being, all good things considering the gruesome events throughout the book. Macbeth’s direct involvement with the King’s murder left him losing sleep and feeling a false sense of security that would eventually lead to his own
Macbeth is extremely paranoid and guilty. He doesn’t believe he will be able to sleep after committing this