ipl-logo

Light And Dark Imagery In Macbeth

826 Words4 Pages

Alexia Bushi
Mrs. Aurigemma
EN110
3 March, 2023
Macbeth Imagery The idea of light and dark forces have been around the world for quite a long time, establishing a notion of good and bad characters. It can be shown throughout William Shakespeare’s plays, the most notable one being Macbeth. In Shakespeare’s novel Macbeth, Shakespeare employs light and dark imagery to illustrate, during Macbeth’s rise to power and loss of it, that there are both good and evil beings within the world. Dark imagery is used excessively throughout the novel to symbolize and illustrate the forces and ideals of evil. One of the more well known beings of evil within Macbeth are the witches, also known as the Weird Sisters, who Macbeth goes to to learn small pieces …show more content…

Light, for many, usually symbolizes good fortune, truth, and pureness. At the very start of the story, in Act 1, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were both planning on murdering Duncan to gain possession of his throne. During their planning of this event, Lady Macbeth exclaims “Oh, never / Shall sun that morrow see!” before sending Macbeth off to do the deed (1.5.59-60). Dark imagery is shown in this statement, however it focuses more on the idea of light. The King will be killed in the night, never waking to see the light of the next day. The night is meant to hide the Macbeths’ sins and prevent Duncan from seeing the truth of what has happened. “Shall sun that morrow see” can be interpreted as the King who will never know who murdered him in the morning when he would have woken. The light is meant to shine on the truth, and it reveals all things hidden. Later on, after Lady Macbeth plans the murder of Duncan in the first scene, she slowly becomes consumed and overwhelmed by the guilt of what she has done, unlike Macbeth. She begins to sleepwalk and talk about her regrets about the evil she has committed. Two witnesses of her sleepwalking, while holding a candle and repeatedly washing her hands, were the doctor and gentlewoman. The doctor asks the gentlewoman why Lady Macbeth is holding a candle by her side throughout her episode, and the gentlewoman explains “it stood by her she has light by / her continually. ‘Tis her common’” (5.1.24-25). Lady Macbeth has become so consumed by guilt that she desperately wants light by her side. The light is meant to keep her safe, along with sustaining her guilt of planning Duncan’s murder. She does not want to face the evil things she has done, so she uses the pureness of the light to help her get by. The light imagery is used throughout this novel to signify the pure and truthful nature of human

Show More
Related
1456 Words | 6 Pages

Shortly before her husband enters the room, Lady Macbeth calls upon the darkness to aid Macbeth in his plan to kill Duncan. Lady Macbeth states, "Come, thick night, and pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell, that my keen knife see not the wound it makes, nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark to cry, 'Hold, hold!" (Iv 57-60). Again the theme of darkness is used by Shakespeare to set the stage for the evil act about to be committed by Macbeth, which leads to the disruption of natural harmony in Scotland and to damn Macbeth's

Read More
897 Words | 4 Pages

It also represents how good and evil can easily be mistaken as one another, this is a prominent theme throughout the play. This immediately “fogs” Macbeth’s vision tempting him towards the unforgiving. Lady Macbeth’s bond with

Read More
522 Words | 3 Pages

“Stars, hide your fires! Let not light see my black and deep desires” (Shakespeare I. iiii. 52-54). Macbeth says this right before he kills King Duncan. Macbeth asks for darkness, which represents evil, because he knows what he is about to do is morally wrong.

Read More
492 Words | 2 Pages

In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the motif of eyes and sight is used to convey that while one can hide their sins from others, they can never truly deceive themselves. At the beginning of the play, Macbeth receives a prophecy that he will be king. As the current King, King Duncan, is thanking Macbeth for his service, Macbeth begins to conspire against him, believing this is the only way for him to become King. As he thinks, he remarks: “The eye wink at the hand, yet let that be /Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see” (1.4.59-60).

Read More
580 Words | 3 Pages

When Macbeth flees to England, Lady Macbeth starts acting unusual. Lady Macbeth's gentlewomen complains to Lady Macbeth's doctor about her past two episodes of sleepwalking, and talking about the blood on her hands. Lady Macbeth has her eyes wide open but is experiencing sleepwalking and hallucinations, she keeps rubbing her hands together which signifies her washing the blood off her hands. Lady Macbeth speaks on anything she does won't help remove the smell of blood, even if she used perfumes of Arabia, a strong fragrance.

Read More
1441 Words | 6 Pages

There are many symbols that appear throughout the novel, one of them being sunlight and darkness. Sunlight and darkness

Read More
433 Words | 2 Pages

Within chapters sixteen to twenty-four, light and dark function as symbols with very specific meaning. The light generally represents “good,” as well as the approval of God and happiness. The darkness, however, is associated with “bad,” as well as concealment of sin and even evil. The two are pitted against one another throughout the novel. Within the assigned chapters, the light and the dark illustrate conflicts between characters as and add to the importance of specific events.

Read More
1337 Words | 6 Pages

Darkness can be seen in many literary works with the intention of showing a turn for the worse in many characters lives. In Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Shakespeare displays examples of violence in order to show audience members how Macbeth’s desire for kingship, led to his demise through his guilt. The use of blood, nature and supernatural elements are used as a way of symbolizing Shakespeare's theme of Macbeth’s guilt. Is one man’s desire for nobility worth the cost of others lives? Blood alters the atmosphere throughout Macbeth through the effect it has on the main character.

Read More
1066 Words | 5 Pages

Lady Macbeth, who while plotting the death of Duncan beckoned and begged darkness to surround while they were committing these deed, however the murder left her guilt ridden and made her begin to sleepwalk constantly, like she is under a spell, with a candle by her side. “[Enter Lady Macbeth, with a taper] / How come she by that light? / Why, it stood by her: she has light by her continually; `tis her command.” (5.1.17-19). This scene shows the drastic change in Lady Macbeth’s character and how now she is afraid of the darkness because of what it he turned her into.

Read More
722 Words | 3 Pages

Regardless of where one lives, nature surrounds them. It is quiet in the winter, blossoms in the spring, flourishes in the summer, and then finally it lays to rest in autumn. Often in literature, writers utilize natural imagery because it is something that can be easily understood by everybody regardless of race, gender, religion, creed, and ethnicity. This imagery provides a deeper understanding of the book, play, story, or poem for the reader. The prominent playwright William Shakespeare uses natural imagery throughout his play Macbeth to foreshadow upcoming events in the plot (or provide a deeper understanding of the play/its characters).

Read More
1085 Words | 5 Pages

Darkness is the symbol of evil, death and fear. Light in this play refers to happiness, future, and true love. To begin with, the very first motif of light verse dark happen in act I “Madam, an hour before the worships sun peered forth the golden window of the east, a troubled mind drove me to

Read More
854 Words | 4 Pages

The author uses numerous darkness images in the poem as well as night images. In addition to this, he also indicates some of the sinister deals that are usually performed in places where there is darkness or at night. All this imagery is seen throughout the poem starting from the Act 1. To begin with, the popular play Macbeth reinforces the imagery of the good and bad in the world.

Read More
577 Words | 3 Pages

The “Stars” are being asked to give Macbeth darkness, so no one can see his “black and deep desires” is a metaphor, because the thoughts are not literally dark, but he is saying that they (black and deep desires) are dark because they are evil and Macbeth needs to be king. Macbeth describes his ambition as being “black and deep desires,” which makes it sounds well, wrong and his ambition force him into action doing things irrelevant by believing on the witches prophecy, which lead him to his

Read More
757 Words | 4 Pages

Shakespeare’s ability to illustrate the battle between good and evil is arguably one of his best skills as a writer. Incorporating the art of the morality play, he shows the battle of these two forces for a man’s soul. But the beauty of his writing comes to light in how he shows this process. In both Macbeth and Othello, Shakespeare portrays evil as corrupting, while the source of evil differs.

Read More
865 Words | 4 Pages

In Shakespeare’s Macbeth lightness and darkness are used to create the key ideas throughout the play of good and evil. Unnatural events in nature were accompanied by darkness often following evil deeds, where light has been overcome, shown through a metaphor and symbolism. Night is used as a motif, with characters frequently calling upon it to assist them in their crimes. Symbolism of light and darkness are used to show how Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are consumed by guilt which leads to their eventual downfall, and goods return to power. Shakespeare successfully compares ideas of light and dark to convey important themes.

Read More

More about Light And Dark Imagery In Macbeth

Related Topics

Open Document