ipl-logo

Motifs And Motifs In Macbeth

519 Words3 Pages

In the play Macbeth, Shakespeare uses many motifs and symbols to help develop the theme. The most effective symbols and motifs that Shakespeare uses are the birds, blood, and sleep. In Macbeth, birds are mentioned many times. "The raven himself is hoarse / That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan / Under my battlements" (1.5.38-40). The quote displays that the raven has a raspy voice from repeatedly saying that King Duncan will die. This is important because ravens are usually viewed as a low and ghoulish species which foreshadows that something bad could happen to King Duncan. Later on in the play it states “On Tuesday last / A falcon, towering in her pride of place, / Was by a mousing owl hawk'd at and kill'd" (2.4.11-13). This shows an owl killed a falcon and can be interpreted as Macbeth being the owl and killing Duncan who is the falcon. The use of birds are an effective motif that foreshadows some future events. Another effective motif that was present in Macbeth was blood. In Act 5, Lady Macbeth says “Out, damned spot! out, I say!--One: two: why, then, …show more content…

"Eat our meal in fear and sleep / In the affliction of these terrible dreams / That shake us nightly" (3.2.17-19). This depicts that Macbeth is fearful, paranoid, and plagued with nightmares that will eventually lead him towards insanity. Additionally, in Act 5 it says "Rise from her bed, throw her night-gown upon her, unlock her closet, take forth paper, fold it, write upon't, read it, afterwards seal it, and again return to bed; yet all this while in a most fast sleep" (5.1.5-7). The motif is also effective in the quote because Lady Macbeth is acting like she is awake when she is actually asleep. As a result, she is slowly going crazy due to her sleepwalking and not getting enough of peaceful sleep. Moreover, in reality, lack of sleep can cause insanity which further reinforces the idea of sleep effectively symbolizing insanity and

Show More
Related
274 Words | 2 Pages

The story macbeth has a lot of theme. Some of the themes are mystery, murder, and greedy. The theme most seen is greedy. It showed when the power was given to macbeth. This essay is showing you quotes related to the theme “greedy”

Read More
1724 Words | 7 Pages

The voices he hears that threaten: “Macbeth shall sleep no more” indicate a relationship between guilt and madness. Therefore, the manifestation of the dagger suggests that he feels guilty because of his attempt to murder Duncan. There are three major transitions of thought. First, he contemplates about the dagger’s existence; the second is the invocations of dark images; finally, there is the bell that cuts off Macbeth’s contemplations. The transitions between topics indicate that while Macbeth feels guilty for the murder, his determination makes him ignore

Read More
1525 Words | 7 Pages

William Shakespeare is considered as one of the best play writers in history. One of his most well known plays is Macbeth where a Scottish general named Macbeth has a strong desire to be king which leads him to betray and murder his king, Duncan. He also kills the nobles who have been loyal to him in order to maintain his title as king. Throughout this play, Shakespeare uses the motif of ambition, guilt, and fate to characterize the characters, show the different themes present within the play, and how the motifs are still relevant today.

Read More
1367 Words | 6 Pages

The only bird mentioned in the play that is not evil, is the martlet. Banquo acknowledges, “[t]his guest of summer, [t]he temple haunting martlet, does approve [b]y his loved mansionry that the heaven's breath” (I.vi.3-5). Banquo points out that since a martlet is building its nest in Macbeth’s castle, it must have the nicest air. Banquo uses this bird to describe Lady Macbeth and Macbeth’s home, because of their specific taste. The reference to martlets is also used because after Macbeth has become corrupt the martlets no longer build houses in Macbeth’s castle.

Read More
1337 Words | 6 Pages

Macbeth becomes confused in his role in society, so nature's creatures become confused as well. An owl kills a falcon, which is much larger in size and is

Read More
446 Words | 2 Pages

Another way Lady Macbeth’s dialogue effects how she is characterized is by her use of imagery, which makes her character come to life in the reader’s mind. In her argument with Macbeth about keeping promises to each other she uses vivid imagery to assist the point “I would … Have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums and dash’d the brains out, had I so sworn” (VII.i.56-58). The dialogue used to make Lady Macbeth come to life assists in her characterization because of how vivid we can visualize her actions. Her uses of imagery help bring out her true self which proves she is dangerous and ambitious.

Read More
411 Words | 2 Pages

Lady Macbeth begins her soliloquy using a metaphor which denotes the raven to be an omen of evil. This raven, which “croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan / under my battlements” (1.5.36-37) symbolizes to her that it is destined that the king should die under her roof. Taking this as a clear sign, she begins to call on the “spirits / that tend on mortal thoughts” (1.5.37-38) asking them to “unsex me here / and fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full / of direst cruelty” (1.5.38-40). In these words, Lady Macbeth seeks to not only rid herself of feminine weakness, but of the natural human response of guilt that would accompany

Read More
927 Words | 4 Pages

Shakespeare uses foreshadowing, characterization of Macbeth, and the motif of unbalance in nature to develop the theme that unchecked ambition carried out in an evil way will lead to a person’s downfall. Foreshadowing plays a major role in theme development throughout the play, starting from Act I. The Thane

Read More
984 Words | 4 Pages

Oftentimes, birds are used to create false hope. As the play opens, Duncan asks an injured captain about Macbeth’s battle with the rebel Macdonwald, to which the captain responds that Macbeth was as scared by the enemy “[a]s sparrows eagles, or the hare the lion” (I.2.35).

Read More
963 Words | 4 Pages

Killing Duncan was his downfall that also brought down Scotland and because of this evil act, Macbeth was punished over and over through the play until his downfall cost him his life. His figurative nobility is brought up when Macbeth becomes king. Once a noble general now and noble king keeping secrets. The audience sees his figurative

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
715 Words | 3 Pages

Owls, represent Macbeth often because of the several terrible deeds he is responsible for. An owl is a predatory bird that is active primarily during the night. This is an amazing representation of the murder of King Duncan by Macbeth, referred to as a mousing owl. This fits the description of Macbeth during the murder of Duncan that happens while he visits Macbeth 's castle. The morning after the vicious murder of King Duncan, an Old Man, and Ross are talking about the other unnatural things that have been happening.

Read More
539 Words | 3 Pages

William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, sleep is used in every act, in both literal and figurative forms. Shakespeare had a tendency to use sleep in a figurative manner more often than his use of literal sleep. These examples can all illustrate the way sleep is discussed regarding the timeline of King Duncan’s life; before his death, during his death, and after his death when Macbeth becomes king. In scene 1 of act 2, Lady Macbeth discusses her plans to murder King Duncan.

Read More
1251 Words | 6 Pages

When this scene started, there have been accounts of thunder-again, a reference to the three witches at the beginning of the play-which would have foreshadowed Duncan’s death as well as the thunderous nature of Lady Macbeth- overcast and malicious to those unprepared for it. The ‘raven himself is hoarse’ , as Lady Macbeth comments, and ravens have connotations with death and witchcraft, especially black magic and the summoning of villainous spirits. This sets the overcast mood and is a striking introduction to Lady Macbeth as the audience would now immediately associate her with such darkness and not light- another theme of the play (light vs dark). The fact that she has been associated with magic, more specifically black magic, may be portraying her ambition and her willingness to stop at nothing for it, as another association with ravens is power.

Read More
433 Words | 2 Pages

Macbeth, Crime and Punishment Macbeth, a warrior, earns the title of Thane of Cawdor early in the play. His wife, Lady Macbeth, wants him to become king like the witches prophesied. They make a plan to kill Duncan while Macbeth starts to kill other people. All this murder begins to weigh heavily on the Macbeth’s and they start going crazy with guilt.

Read More

More about Motifs And Motifs In Macbeth

Open Document