In the tragedy play Macbeth, Shakespeare uses the motif of appearance versus reality to reveal how guilt affects the human mind. He does this by showing how the guilt of Duncan affects Lady Macbeth and Macbeth with their hallucinations throughout the book.
In the first example, the audience gets shown how the guilt of going to kill Duncan affected Macbeth’s perception of appearance versus reality. In Act 2, Macbeth was standing outside, getting ready to go in and kill Duncan when he started hallucinating. He says, “Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand” (Act 2.1.33-34). Macbeth hallucinates a bloody dagger leading him towards Duncan. He is already filled with guilt, knowing he will forever have Duncan’s blood on his hands. This makes his mind hallucinate a dagger similar to the actual
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Macbeth also realizes that he only sees the dagger because of his guilt and his plan to commit a murder. In the same soliloquy, he says to himself, “It is the bloody business which informs Thus to mine eyes” (Act 2.1. 47-48). Macbeth realizes he is hallucinating the dagger because of his guilt towards the actions of later that night. He explains that he’s only seeing the dagger because he’s scared and guilty. The audience sees Macbeth hallucinate again in Act 3 at his banquet after he gets the news that the murderers killed Banquo. He claims to see Banquo’s ghost and says, “Avaunt, and quit my sight! Let the Earth hide thee” (Act 3.4.93). Macbeth hallucinates for the last time when he sees Banquo’s ghost at his banquet. He freaks out because his ghost has all the stab marks and he is guilty. After all, he’s the one who ordered the