Blood In Macbeth Essay

Throughout the play Macbeth, by William Shakespeare there are several mentions of blood. Blood serves a bigger purpose in the play than some may or may not, based on the first impression, recognize. The play focuses on a tragic hero who, encouraged by his wife, falls victim to being the cause of a series of unfortunate events. There is an abundance of bloodshed and in the end, it doesn’t end entirely as Macbeth planned. Our tragic hero faces guilt often, as he is the cause of many deaths in his pursuit of power. The intent of placing the symbol of blood over the entirety of the play is to embody certain characters' intense internal guilt. Blood is also portrayed as a representation of violence as seen by many acts of savagery from the

As he makes his way to take the life of King Duncan, he sees an image of a floating dagger covered in blood. “Is this a dagger which I see before me,/ The handle toward my hand?/... And on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood,/ which was not so before.” (Shakespeare 2.1 52). It is apparent that the blood-spattered dagger is a figment of his imagination, yet Macbeth questions its legitimacy. The bloody dagger shows how Macbeth becomes plagued with a guilty conscience from even early on in the play. Furthermore, Macbeth rakes up the courage and ambition to commit the murder in hopes that he will be bestowed with the crown. Immediately after Macbeth commits the assassination of King Duncan, his guilt escalates. Macbeth wonders if all of the water in the ocean could rid the blood he now has on his hands (Shakespeare 2.2 60). Although there was physical blood on Macbeth's hands, the blood he couldn't seem to do away with was just fictional and a product of his wrongfulness. Again, blood emerges as a sign of guilt Macbeth must accept due to his choice of

Blood also serves as a symbol of violence and destruction. In certain pieces of Macbeth, blood is revealed as more of an illusion rather than a palpable matter. However, there are elements when we see blood and gore as physical aspects. For instance, In Act 5 scene 8, Macduff enters carrying Macbeth’s bloody head. He pronounces “Hail, king! for so thou art: behold, where stands/ The usurper's cursed head: the time is free:” (Shakespeare 5.8 216). This scene shows violence by signifying the ruthlessness Macduff demonstrates as he holds the blood-soaked head. In Macbeth, there are many bloody battles fought. One is the war at the beginning of the play, Macbeth slaughters the previous Thane of Cawdor, Macdonwald, and many others (Shakespeare 1.2 4-6) The play introduces us to the theme of violence by foreshadowing all the gore there is to