The Guilt and Conscience of Macbeth “He was not of an age, but of all time!” (Jonson). British poet and playwright Ben Jonson may have been a critic of Shakespeare's artistic aspect, but he wrote in his dedication to Shakespeare through poetry that he had a wonderful ability to create timeless pieces with lessons incorporated that can be applied to all generations throughout all of time. Written in 1606, Macbeth portrays a complex story of murder, betrayal, and most importantly guilt. Throughout the play, Macbeth tries to outrun his former wrong doings and move on from the murder of Duncan and more importantly the murder of Banquo, but there's one thing that will always stay with him, guilt. Whether it is through anger, sadness, fear, or viscousness, it is evident to the viewer or reader how …show more content…
The repetition of these words forces the viewers to understand the severity of his actions and how much he is haunted by what he has done. It is now apparent that there is no way to take back his actions, which will follow him for the rest of his life. Justin Kurzel’s 2015 Macbeth movie adaptation may not be exactly the same as Shakespeare intended it to be, but there are quite a few similarities in the overarching themes. Macbeth (2015) is set in 11th century Scotland during an ongoing war versus Ireland. The director, Justin Kurzel, made the choice to not use Shakespeare's exact words and instead use a dialect that is easier for the audience to understand. In Act 3 Scene 4 the change of wording becomes especially helpful when attempting to understand the emotion Macbeth is feeling as the ghost of Banquo stands before him. Macbeth fearfully exclaims “thous canst not say that I did it!” (Kurzel), in fear that someone may know or believe that Macbeth was the one that killed