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Macbeth Act 5 Scene 5 Language Analysis

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The selected passage is an extract of Act 5 Scene 5 from The Tragedy of Macbeth written by the world’s famous dramatist William Shakespeare (1564-1616). It is supposed to have been first performed at the Globe Theatre, London in 1611, though it is likely to have been performed earlier than this. Central to The Tragedy of Macbeth is the physical and moral destruction cause when; “An ambitious man usurps power and undermines social and political order. In the process, moral and spiritual are also seriously attacked, but in the end order is restored under a wise, strong and legitimate king.” (Total Study Edition, 2016)
This extract is the last soliloquy of the play. Macbeth has returned from his meeting with the witches and his confidence of …show more content…

An important technique used by Shakespeare in this extract is repetition mainly in the quote “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” to create powerful effects on the mind-set of the hero (Literacy device, 2017). This element of repetition deepen the pessimistic character of Macbeth towards his future. Shakespeare makes use of metaphor to depict the meaningless of Macbeth’s life, with “tomorrow” interpreted as nothing but only a repetition of the present day. The pause between each “tomorrow”, shows how Macbeth is tired of his existence and how after each word he is losing his purpose in life. According to David Thomas (20150, the repetition of the word “out” from “Out, out, brief candle” indicate “the slipping out of life and metaphor of the candle to show how life is …show more content…

For example, “tomorrow” is personified as a living entity which “creeps in this petty pace day after day” showing Macbeth’s boredom about life; while “yesterdays have lighted fools the way to dusky death” “is personified and compared to the foolish way where people follow to their graves” to express Macbeth undesire to live (ken Roy, 2nd Edition). The personification continues as “life” is given human traits of a “walking shadow” and “poor player” to deepen this short span of life as depicted on a stage which will soon be over as Macbeth life will soon end. This can be seen as a foreshadowing of the outcome of the final

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Act 2 from Macbeth is a very captivating and significant section of the book. It encompasses of King Duncan’s murder by Macbeth, so he could become King. Prior to the killing, Macbeth had an excentric hallucination of a blood-stained dagger that epitomised, to Macbeth, to go and murder Duncan. The next day, Macbeth blamed Duncan’s attendants for the killing. In fear of being killed Duncan’s sons, Malcom (who was heir to the throne) and Donalbain, flee the country.

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Whereas in the text of Macbeth, the setting is first presented as evil, stated by Macbeth “no foul and fair a day I have not seen“. On the contrary Macbeth is presented as ‘brave’ and ‘courageous’, ‘the savior of the day’, this implies that the writers chose the great difference in setting and character for the reader to

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Shakespeare Selected Plays Imtiaz Jbareen 204495170 A Close Reading of Macbeth Shakespeare’s brilliance lies within subtle details. Therefore, a close reading of his plays, including Macbeth, presents an insight into the structure of the play. Once this is accomplished, one reaches an understanding of the play and characters through their speeches. This paper discusses Act 2 Scene 1, Macbeth’s soliloquy.

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“Creeps in this petty pace from day to day.” (Act 5. Scene 5. Line 20.) Macbeth comprehends that life is in multiple forms in ways that humans never expect.

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The application of alliteration in this line emphasizes the way in which time marches on the same way everyday, expounding on the notion that living is a monotonous repetition of the same things forever. This establishes a grave tone that reflects the despondency of reality, as life being a boring repeat of itself that continues into eternity is a thought that contrasts with the audiences ideas that life has an innate meaning. Moreover, Macbeth further explicates his views, declaring life as “a poor player” on a stage who disappears after a gaudy hour of performance (5.5.24-26). The emphasis brought on by the alliteration in this line conveys the worthlessness and insignificance of the actor, who creates illusions through dramatization but is ultimately forgotten. This elicits a melancholy tone in that living is painted as being unimportant and, although providing the illusion of meaning, is disregarded once it comes to a conclusion, conveying to the audience that that their actions have no significance.

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Macbeth’s soliloquy in Act 5 Scene 5 may be Shakespeare’s way of telling the audience that no matter how we choose to live our destiny, fate could not be changed and nothing would matter in the end. Macbeth says “Tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow/ Creeps in this petty pace from day to day/ To the last syllable of recorded time” (Act 5 Scene 5 lines 19-21) and “All our yesterdays have lighted fools/ The way to dusty death” (Act 5 Scene 5 lines 22-23). The imagery of all the “tomorrows” and “yesterdays” in the soliloquy tells the audience that we should not pursue our own desires without recognizing our insignificance and triviality. The soliloquy writes “to the last syllable of recorded time;/ And all our yesterdays have lighted fools/ The way to dusty death” (Act 5 Scene 5 lines 21-23), meaning the past acts as a guide on the path to death. It implies that since time is displaced into “broken syllables” and the past is disconnected into fragments.

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