Structures, Features and Conventions

Shakespeare’s Macbeth

What are they?

Structures: how a narrative is communicated e.g. sequence of events, stage directions, acts and scenes, chapters, narration

Features: elements of a text that are focused on and purposely chosen by the author e.g. tone, view and values, writing style, prose and poetry, narrative voice(s), language

Conventions: practices that are common to the text type e.g. use of symbols, motifs, themes, points of tension, characters, plot, ideas, setting

How do you write about them? You need to discuss the structures, features and conventions

that Macbeth uses to convey meaning in his text as it relates to the topic you have chosen by using metalanguage (or language which describes language, or is appropriate language for the text; jargon/lingo)

Every question will allow you to discuss these features so try and weave metalanguage throughout your body paragraphs. The purpose of this criteria is to demonstrate your ability to understand how the author uses language to communicate his or her meaning. The key is to remember that the author's words or phrases are always chosen with a particular intention – it is your job to investigate why the author has written a text in a particular way.

http://www.vcestudyguides.com/what-is-metalanguage

Macbeth Metalanguage:

ArbitraryNobleTyrant/TyrannyMegalomaniaRegicidePatricideBlasphemyEquivocate“Vaulting Ambition”Soliloquy …be sure to add to this list whenever you can!

ManifestationFreneticCulminationFatal FlawIambic pentameter Rhyming coupletProtasisEpitasisCatastrophe Ghost (Shade, Spectre, Apparition)

TASK

Find the definition of each of the metalanguage

terms in the previous slide

Structure Normal Linear Narrative (a, b, c, d, e, etc.) Macbeth is a Play

- not a book or a novel. Refer to it as either ‘the play’ or ‘the text’. Refer to William Shakespeare as ‘the writer’, ‘the author’, ‘the playwright’, or ‘Billy Shakes’ (…except that last one)- It has no chapters or parts, but acts and scenes- As a play, it was not initially meant to be read, but to be seen and heard, so you should always position (imagine) yourself as seeing the play being performed on stage as it was originally intended

In a Dramatic Play, the structure of the play is broken up into 3 section: - the introduction (protasis)- the middle, and action, of the play (epitasis)- and the end of the play (catastrophe)

Narration and Point of View

No omniscient narrator: the play is composed of just dialogue with some on-and-off stage noises and props- but just because there isn’t a narrator doesn’t mean that the author’s Views and Values aren’t present

POV (point of view) the play is seen in second-person perspective, as either seen by the audience or read by the reader (you)

Plot and Narrative Structure

Plot: main plot deals with Macbeth and his actions. There are many scenes in which Macbeth is off-stage but the entire play still revolves around him - there are not sub-plots (e.g. Ross and Angus decide to open their own business)- the only other narrative is that of MacDonwald and the King of Norway at the beginningQuestion: What is the

Narrative Structure (a.k.a., the narrative arch) of Macbeth?

Activity time: In pairs, discuss and write down what you think the narrative arch of the play is (5m).

Narrative ArchIntroduction/Exposition:Setting: Scotland after a war. Three witches are introduced and allude to a man named ‘Macbeth’ (Act 1, Scene 1). King Duncan and other discuss the aftermath of a battle and how great a person Macbeth is

Complication: Macbeth and Banquo meet the Three Weird Sisters and they prophesise that Macbeth will become Thane of Cawdor, in addition to Glamis, and then king of Scotland. Macbeth is enticed and begins to plot his next move.- the reader is left wondering if the prophecy spurred Macbeth or if it would have happened anyway; Shakespeare leaves this ambiguous

Conflict/Rising Action: Macbeth, with assistance from his wife, murder King Duncan when he visits their castle. The events of the rest of the play are set in motion: the princes flee and Macbeth is titled King of Scotland; rumours of strange occurrences being to circulate.

Climax: Now King, Macbeth ties up loose ends and has Banquo murdered, however Banquo’s ghost haunts Macbeth during his royal feast.

Falling Action:Macbeth visits the Witches and they predict his future. Based on this information, Macbeth decides to have Macduff’s family murdered and Macduff rendezvous with the exiled Malcolm in England. - at this point, the audience/reader is getting the feeling that Macbeth is soon for demise

Denouement/Resolution:Wracked with guilt, Macbeth succumbs to madness and kills herself. Malcolm returns with an English army and the Scottish nobles turn against Macbeth. The three prophecies are fulfilled but to Macbeth’s detriment and Macduff slays Macbeth in battle. Malcolm is crowned king and peace returns.

Macbeth’s Narrative Arch

Features Language:- Shakespeare has an incredible mastery of the English language and nearly every line is filled with figurative languages, such as puns, similes, metaphors and irony. It is hard, but rewarding and enriching when deciphered- Reading: don’t pause at the end of each line, but follow through as if it’s a normal sentence. Pauses only occur with punctuation, such as commas, dashes and full stops. E.g.

“The raven himself if hoarseThat croaks the fatal entrance of DuncanUnder my battlements. Come, you spiritsThat tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,And fill me from crown to the toe top-fullOf direst cruelty!” – Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 5)

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bM3h0Gb2O20)

Writing Style and Poetry

Fact: Shakespeare was a poet (e.g. The Sonnets) and this love of poetic writing shines through in his plays.

Most of Macbeth is written in blank verse. This is a type of poetry that is does not necessarily rhyme and is different to regular prose (normal writing).

E.g. “Life's but a walking shadow, a poor playerThat struts and frets his hour upon the stageAnd then is heard no more: it is a taleTold by an idiot, full of sound and fury,Signifying nothing.” – Macbeth (Act 5, Sc. 5)

Iambic Pentameter

The general rule of thumb for Shakespeare is that he loved iambic pentameter. This is a type of poetic rhyming. There are other types of meter, such as iambic hexameter, but Billy Shakes prefers I.P., so let’s focus just on this.

An ‘iamb’ is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable (e.g. de-scend). Think of it as the beat of a drum. These do not have to be in just one word, but can be spread throughout a sentence or a line.

In most of Macbeth, each line has 10 beats, divided into iambs. As each iamb equals 2 syllables (one stressed and one not stressed), we have 2x5 = 10. We call this iambic pentameter because ‘penta’ is Greek for five (5). Each one of these ‘penta’ is called a metric foot.

Iambic Pentameter (cont.)

So:

iamb = an unstressed syllable (x), or beat, followed by a stressed syllable (–). E.g. te-DUM, te-DUM, te-DUM…x – , x –, x –, …

foot = a line of writing that has an iamb in it is called foot.E.g. / x – /

pentameter = 5 metric feet, e.g., x – / x – / x – / x – / x –

iambi pentameter = 10 syllables (beats) per line, made up of 5 feet, with each foot having one iamb, and each iamb being one stressed syllable and one unstressed syllable.

e.g. “But screw your courage to the sticking-place” – Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 7)

Iambic Pentameter (cont.) So more examples:

“That tears shall drown the wind. I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself And falls on th’ other –” – Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 7)

“Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle t’ward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee. I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.” – Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 1)

“Some say, the earth Was nervous and did shake.” – Lennox (Act 2, Sc. 3)

“There’s daggers in men’s smiles: the near in blood, The nearer bloody. This murderous shaft that’s shot Hath not yet lighted, and our safest way.” – Donalbain and Malcolm (Act 2, Sc. 3)

Iambic Pentameter (cont.)

Why do you need to know this? There are 6 reasons why you should know about iambic pentameter in Macbeth: 1. It’s what Shakespeare used, and liked, most. It can also be found in other plays, such as Hamlet and Romeo & Juliet. 2. There are 10 syllables per line. 3. The syllables alternate between one unstressed (te-) and one stressed (DUM). This is called an iamb and an iamb is within a foot.E.g., te-DUM/ te-DUM/ te-DUM/ te-DUM/ te-DUM/…

4. Shakespeare changes this structure from time to time to create different effects, like changing stress pattern and adding syllables, or sometimes even corrupting the meter entirely to demonstrate chaos and tension (see Act 2, Sc. 2, Lines 16-22)5. Shakespeare uses his language to show who is noble and who is common. The nobles (e.g. Macduff and Ross) speak in blank verse-iambic pentameter, but the commoners (e.g., messengers and the Porter), speak in regular prose. It shows the class divided and their level of education and status. After all, the Porter is little more than a drunken peasant – literally!6. Iambic pentameter is beautiful. Why? It’s the sound of a heart beat ♥

Iambic Pentameter (cont.)

Other Poetry: Rhyming Couplets

Blank verse, as discussed, is poetry in the form of non-rhyming sounds, but Shakespeare does use classic rhyming verse from time to time and always for a reason.

In the play, it’s always easy to know when it’s the Witches are speaking and not a noble or a commoner. This is because they are speaking in a rhyming verse called a rhyming couplet, and not in iambic pentameter. An example of a rhyming couplet would be:

“The rose is red, the violet’s blue The honey’s sweet, and so are you.” – Gammer Gurton’s Garland, 1784.

Other Poetry: Rhyming Couplets

Examples from Macbeth:

“By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes. Open, locks, Whoever knocks!” – 2nd Witch (Act 4, Sc. 1)

“Fair is foul and foul is fair; Hover through the fog and filthy air.” – The Witches (Act 1, Sc. 1)

“Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble.” – 3rd Witch (Act 4, Sc. 1)

“Nought’s had, all’s spent, Where our desire is got without consent;’Tis safer to be that which we destroyThan by destruction dwell in doubtful joy.” – Lady Macbeth (Act 3, Sc. 2)

Other Poetry: Rhyming Couplets

The Witches go about creating chaos and their language emphasises their unnatural, even supernatural, features. They’re more lyrical, but also insane.

Sometimes Shakespeare ends a scene with a rhyming couplet.

E.g.,“It is concluded: Banquo, thy soul’s flight, If it find heav’n, must find it out tonight.” – Macbeth (Act 3, Sc. 1)

“…the bell invites me. Hear it not, Duncan, for it is knellThat summons thee to heaven or to hell.” – Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 1)

Ending a scene with a rhyming couplet makes the audience and reader fidget in their seats a little as the rhyme tells them that something is about to happen, usually in the very next scene. It also might have been a cue to the other stage actors that they were soon meant to be onstage for the next scene. Structurally, it helps to tie up a speech neatly and makes a point memorable. Tension is created.

Tone The tone of Macbeth is, as you might expect, very dark and serious. This is

because it is a tragedy and not a comedy. Unlike a comedy, a Shakespearean tragedy usually revolves around one or more characters possessing a Fatal Flaw, or a quality which brings about their downfall. |

E.g. – fatal flaws:Hamlet – inability to take actionRomeo & Juliet – impetuousnessOthello – too trusting and gullibleKing Lear – senile and vainMacbeth - ???

In Macbeth, the eponymous anti-hero is seemingly doomed and fated to suffer by the end of the play. This is why it’s a tragedy: not because it’s sad, but because the audience sees and experiences this transformation before their eyes. It’s full title is, after all, ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’.

Shakespeare’s tone is dark and grim and this reflects in the setting and the conversations in the play. Even the weather’s miserable. Granted, there is one scene of relative comedy (the Porter in Act 2, Sc. 3) but this is used to break the unbearable tension just after Duncan’s murder in the pervious scene.

Style

Like any writer, Shakespeare has his own style of writing. In case you don’t know what ‘style’ is, style is simply the particular way in which a writer writes and the tell-tale characteristics he or she employs.

Shakespeare often employs a selection of literary devices, or techniques, to bring his plays to life. These are puns, foreshadowing, metaphors, similes, soliloquies and introspection and irony.

Puns A pun is play on words. It might play on the fact that a word has a double

meaning, as in ‘lie’, as in lying down, or ‘lie’, as in to not tell the truth. E.g.

“We should have else desired your advice, Which still hath been both grave and prosperous, In this day’s council, but we’ll take tomorrow.” – Macbeth speaking to Banquo (Act 3, Sc. 1)

Macbeth is dark in tone so puns are rarely used, but when they are, they reveal a lot about one’s character and intentions. E.g.

“True, worthy Banquo, he is so valiant, And in his commendations I am fed; It is a banquet to me.” – Duncan (Act 1, Sc. 4)

The pun is on Banquo’s name. This shows that Duncan has a natural charm and sense of humour, but that he also sees Both Banquo and Macbeth as individuals who can support, or ‘feed’, him.

Foreshadowing

Foreshadowing is a literary technique in which events that occur later in a story are hinted at in advance. Shakespeare uses foreshadowing to build dramatic tension. Dramatic tension is a feeling of emotion, usually unease, felt by the audience and reader. It helps to make the text more engaging and appealing to the recipient.

Foreshadowing comes in many forms and is used frequently in the play. Sometimes Shakespeare uses it in relation to other features and conventions, such as symbols and motifs, whereas other times foreshadowing is used to express more metaphysical ideas about the play itself. In either case, foreshadowing reveals to the audience a hint of what’s toe come E.g.

“The obscure birdClamoured the livelong night.” – Lennox (Act 2, Sc. 3)

- Here, Lennox is explaining that a bird was making noise all night and he says this mere moments before Macduff finds Duncan’s dead body. This is foreshadowing because owls are believed to make noises before a person is killed.

Foreshadowing (cont.)

“Thou seest the heavens, as troubled with man’s act, Threaten his bloody stage.” – Ross (Act 2, Sc. 4)

- With this use of foreshadowing, the Bard is telling us that the stage of the play is bloody but will be bloodier still.

“Come, we’ll to sleep. My strange and self-abuse Is the initiate fear that wants hard use. We are but young in deed.” – Macbeth (Act 3, Sc. 4)

- Finally, Macbeth is trying to calm his wife after he has learned that Macduff did not attend the banquet, which Macbeth takes as a slight. Macbeth then alludes to more killings to come by suggesting that he and his wife are “young”, or ‘inexperienced’ in murder.

Metaphor

A metaphor is a figure of speech that identifies something as being the same as some unrelated thing for rhetorical effect, thus highlighting the similarities between the two.

Shakespeare uses metaphors as comparisons to other characters, ideas and events in the play, but as also exposition. E.g.,

“Fair is foul and foul is fair” – The Witches (Act 1, Sc. 1)

In the above metaphor, Shakespeare is presenting the state of Scotland and setting the tone of the play in one short, but effective, line. Consider the next metaphor, in which Shakespeare characterises Duncan and a good monarch and Macbeth as wicked:

“[Duncan] had beenSo clear in his great office, that his virtuesWill plead like angels, trumpet tongued, againstThe deep damnation of his taking-off” – Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 7)

Finally, read one more metaphor which Lady Macbeth uses to chastise her husband for wanting the crown but not acting to obtain it:

“And live a coward in thine own esteem,Letting ‘I dare not’ wait upon ‘I would’,Like the poor cat i’the adage?” Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 7)

An adage is a proverb or a saying and the proverb about the cat is that the cat desires to eat the fish in the river, but is unwilling to get its paws wet. Therefore, Lady Macbeth is saying that Macbeth is the cat.

Simile

A simile is the direct comparison of two things usually characterised by the use of ‘as’ and ‘like.’

Similar to metaphors, similes are used to express ideas and beliefs, usually those of a character. For example, Shakespeare uses a simile in Act 2 to demonstrate the mind-sets of both Lady Macbeth and her husband. Just after Macbeth has killed Duncan, he returns but still holding the daggers.

E.g. “Why did you bring these daggers from the place? They must lie there. Go carry them and smear The sleepy grooms with blood.”

“I’ll go no more: I am afraid to think what I have done; Look on’t again I dare not.”

“Infirm of purpose! Give me the daggers – The sleeping and the dead Are but as pictures” – Macbeth and Lady Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 2)

Here, Lady Macbeth is trying to tell Macbeth that dead-Duncan cannot harm him, but this simile reveals Macbeth’s fears and guilt and Lady Macbeth’s indifference to the deed.

Soliloquy & Asides A soliloquy involves a character talking when he or she is alone.

Shakespeare uses this device to help the audience understand the mind of the character who is speaking and their motivations for what they are doing or planning to do. We walk to ourselves all the time as we are thinking and soliloquies reflect this.

Soliloquies are essential theatrical devices in assisting the audience understand the mind of the character and their motives, and how the author seeks to characterise them.

There are several soliloquies in Macbeth, but some of the most famous ones include:- Lady Macbeth’s “unsex me here” soliloquy (Act 1, Sc. 5)- Macbeth’s “vaulting ambition” soliloquy (Act 1, Sc. 7)- Macbeth’s “Is this a dagger I see before me” soliloquy (Act 2, Sc. 1)- Macbeth’s “the seed of Banquo kings!” soliloquy (Act 3, Sc. 1)- and Macbeth’s “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” soliloquy (Act 5, Sc. 5)

Aside Similar to a soliloquy, an aside is a short introspection

which allows a character to express his or her thoughts quickly and to themselves, without the other characters onstage being aware of it. It is usually characterised by the actor physically turning away from the other actors for a moment.

E.g. [Aside] “The Prince of Cumberland! That is a step On which I must fall down, or else o’erleap, For in my way it lies…” – Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 4)

Irony They say that there are 3 types of irony: verbal, situational and

dramatic. Verbal Irony is when the opposite of what is said is the intended

meaning. E.g.,

“I had else been perfect,Whole as marble, founded as the rock,As broad and general as the casing air:But now I am cabined, cribbed, confirmed, bound inTo saucy doubts and fears – But Banquo’s safe?” – Macbeth (Act 3, Sc. 4)

“Some say, the earthWas feverous and did shake.”

“’Twas a rough night.” – Lennox and Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 3)

Apart from being the understatement of the century, Macbeth’s response to Lennox is ironic because Lennox assumes that Macbeth is talking about the supernatural occurrences, but Macbeth is talking about his murder of Duncan.

Irony (cont.) Situational Irony is when the result of an action is different to the

intended outcomes. Shakespeare uses situational irony to demonstrate change in characters and to display how there is a discrepancy between cause and effect. This is used by Shakespeare to further his view and values that the natural order of things, especially in Macbeth, should not, and cannot, be altered, lest provoking dire consequences.

Macbeth expects that attaining the throne would bring him peace, however it does the opposite and creates his eventual demise. Another example would be how he hoped to secure himself against Macduff by killing his family, however this merely enraged Macduff to seek vengeance on the tyrant. E.g.,“The castle of Macduff I will surprise,

Seize upon Fife, give to the edge o’the sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls That trace him in his line.” – Macbeth (Act 4, Sc. 1)

“Front to front Bring thou this fiend of Scotland and myself;Within my sword’s length set him” – Macduff (Act4, Sc. 3)

Dramatic Irony The most important of the ironies in Macbeth is Dramatic Irony. Dramatic irony is

the state in which the audience member or reader of a play knows more than the characters onstage. For example, we might know that around the corner is the monster of a horror film, but the unsuspecting teenagers don’t know this and are about to be killed (see every horror film ever).

The reason Shakespeare uses dramatic irony is (yes, you’ve guessed it), to create tension between the characters’ knowledge and our greater knowledge.

Consider the following exchange between Duncan and Banquo. Remember, we know that at this point in the play, Macbeth is planning to kill Duncan in his castle that night.

“This castle has a pleasant seat; the air Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself Unto out gentle senses.”

“…I have observed, the air is delicate.” – Duncan and Banquo (Act 1, Sc. 6)

This is an example of dramatic irony because Duncan believes that he is safe in Macbeth’s castle. He says that the air recommends itself to him, however Banquo sly points that “the air is delicate”, or fragile and unstable in other words.

Dramatic Irony (cont.) Some other examples of dramatic irony in the play:

“He hath not touched you yet.” – Malcolm speaking to Macduff (Act 4, Sc. 3)

“Infected be the air whereon they ride; And damned all those that trust them!” – Macbeth (Act 4, Sc. 1)

“Let every man be master of his time” – Macbeth speaking to his court after Banquo goes out riding with Fleance (Act 3, Sc. 1)

“Duncan comes here tonight.

“And when goes hence?”

“Tomorrow, as he purposes.”

“O, never shall sun that morrow see!” – Macbeth and Lady Macbeth (Act 1, Sc. 5)

Views and Values

Shakespeare’s Views and Values are the beliefs, expressed in the play, of the author and the society in which he inhabited, this being Jacobean England (1603-1625).

The author’s views and values are deeply interconnected with the themes of the play, which will be described in more detail later, however some of Shakespeare’s view and values include:

Views and Values (cont.)

Ambition: don’t be ambitious or try to rise above your God-given place in life

Honesty is necessary for the world to function properly

Good people should turn away from evil

Men should be manly and women should be womanly and not stray out of their ‘traits’

Good kingship will create a prosperous country, but tyranny will destroy it

The wicked will be tormented by their guilt

Conventions - Characters Royal House of Scotland Macbeth’s House and Allies

Duncan: King of Scotland

Malcolm: Prince of Scotland, Duncan’s son and the heir-apparent and later King of Scotland

Donalbain: A Prince of Scotland and younger son of Duncan

Macbeth: Thane of Glamis and Cawdor, a general in the Scottish army and later King of Scotland (protagonist and anti-hero – the play’s central character Lady Macbeth: Macbeth’s wife and later Queen of Scotland

Porter, Gentlewoman, Doctor, Seyton,Murderers, Messengers and Servants

Scottish Nobles Other CharactersBanquo: A general in the Scottish army

Fleance: Banquo’s son

Macduff: Thane of Fife (antagonist – opposes central character)

Lady Macduff: Macduff’s wife

Macduff’s son, Lennox, Ross, Angus, Menteith, Caithness

Witches, Hecate, Apparitions, Scottish  Sergeant, Old Man, Messengers, Servants,  English Doctor, Soldiers, General Siward, Young Siward

Plot

See page 25 of the Coursework booklet

Setting Scotland: a cold a misty country

which is seemingly covered in perpetual fog. This is connected to the motif of air. The air in Scotland is always cloudy and fog. This is important because it helps to impair vision. Macbeth and Banquo are lost on the heath in Act 1, but a heath is really just a plain, shrubby field, however the air is so dense that their vision is obscured. This is almost like foreshadowing for the rest of the play.

Scotland is also a land of political chaos. Although Macbeth starts a civil war against Malcolm and Macduff later in the play, he is first introduced after having won a rebellion and a foreign invasion, at the same time!

Themes

A theme is the central idea of a work of literature (book, play, etc).

A theme is like the ‘moral of the story’, but it’s more complicated than that. Themes are universal – they apply to everyone. A theme doesn’t just relate to one character in a book or play, but to all of us. E.g., we can all relate to themes of love, hate, tragedy and envy.

Themes (cont.)

Some of the themes in Macbeth include:

- Ambition- Nature (the balance of)/Order and Chaos - Kingship vs. Tyranny- Witchcraft and Necromancy- How Power Corrupts- Appearances vs. Reality- Expectations of Masculinity and Femininity - Violence (pervasiveness and use of)- Fate & Destiny

Symbolism

Symbolism is when a colour, shape, object or character is used to represent something bigger than itself or an abstract idea. E.g. the colour red is usually symbolic of blood and green is symbolic of envy.

Some of the symbols in Macbeth include:- Blood: blood is everywhere in Macbeth and Shakespeare uses this to symbolise the type of king Macbeth his and to symbolise Macbeth’s guilt. Blood is repeatedly associated with rule, even his very character, and there is always talk of blood in relation to rule as a bloody-tyrant. Moreover, although he is a hardened general who is accustomed to the sight of blood, Shakespeare uses it to show Macbeth’s guilt at having killed his king and later many others.

Symbolism: Blood

After the murder of Duncan, the play is dripping with images of blood: Macbeth envisions Duncan’s blood as “multitudinous seas” (Act 2, Sc. 2); Banquo is killed with “twenty trenched gashes on his head” (Act 3, Sc. 4); and Macbeth has Macduff’s entire family slaughtered (Act 4, Sc. 2). In fact, so pervasive is the blood throughout the play that Macbeth states that, “I am in blood/ Stepped in so far that, should I wade no more,/ Returning were as tedious as go o’ver (Act 3, Sc. 2).

Even Lady Macbeth is obsessed with blood as it too consumes her with guilt and remorse. In Act 5, Sc. 1, she washes her hands in her sleep and is fixated by “the smell of blood.” It seems a fitting end to a bloody and violent play that Macbeth is decapitated and Lady Macbeth commits suicide.

Ghosts and Visions

Ghosts and Vision: all of the vision and hallucinations in Macbeth are symbolic of a character’s conscience. They are symbolic of the internal struggle the characters have about their actions and deeds and whether or not they are able to be at peace with them.

What’s significant about the ghosts and visions is that they are an expression of Macbeth’s mental state and the corrosion of his mind. He grapples with the “dagger I see before me” and is able to continue on with his deed and deceive the nobles after it is done, but the appearance of Banquo’s ghost is a turning point in the play: Macbeth breaks down mentally and practically reveals his guilt to his entire court. No longer the calculating, albeit reluctant, assassin, Macbeth turns from being a gentleman to an outright butcher.

Sleep In the play, Shakespeare presents sleep as:

“the innocent sleep,Sleep that knits up the ravell'd sleeve of care,The death of each day's life, sore labour's bath,Balm of hurt minds, great nature's second course,Chief nourisher in life's feast –” – Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 2)

Plainly, the Bard is using sleep to symbolise peace, calm, rest and purity, a natural and good state of being and one which the righteous people enjoy. Macbeth, however, “does murder sleep” in more ways than one. Macbeth realises very early that he has dismissed any peace that he once would have had and later as king, Macbeth’s treachery and evil cause other whole country of Scotland to not be able to sleep, therefore disturbed, as a noble Lord expresses in Act 3, Sc. 6:

“That, by the help of these, we may again Give to our tales meat, sleep to our nights…All we pine for now.”

Lady Macbeth is also wracked by a lack of sleep. As the one of the chief motivators of Duncan’s murder, Lady Macbeth is tormented by her guilt even in “this slumber agitation” as she paces up and down as “she rubs her hands.” (Act 5, Sc. 1)

Weather

The weather and natural state of Scotland is symbolic of the moral, political and dynastic situation of the country.

Shakespeare uses the image of poor weather very cleverly to show how low Scotland has fallen. For instance, the first lines of the play are said by the Witches, who mutter:

“When shall we three meet again, In thunder, lightning or in rain?” – 1st Witch (Act 1, Sc. 1)

Shakespeare doesn’t include many allusions to weather directly in the play but fits them into the structure and presentation of the play itself. For example, many of the descriptions given before scenes commence are given as “Thunder and Lightning – “. This tells the reader and audience that is in a continuously bad state. This also helps to set the tone for the rest of the play.

Motifs

Similar, though not exactly the same, to regular symbolism, a motif is a recurring object or image used to support a main idea or theme.

Sometimes, examples of motif are mistakenly identified as examples of symbols. Symbols are images, ideas, sounds or words that represent something else and help to understand an idea or a thing. Motifs, on the other hand, are usually objects, but also images, ideas, sounds or words, that help to explain the central idea of a literary work, i.e. theme.

Motifs contribute in developing the major theme of a literary work and help readers to comprehend the underlying messages that writers intend to communicate to them.

Motifs (cont.)

*Plants

*Clothing

*Blood

*Animals

*Daggers/Knives

Plants Plants: Shakespeare uses the motif of a plant to

reinforce the themes of Order and Chaos and the corrupting effects of power.

Whereas most motifs are presented throughout the play, Shakespeare carefully places only 2 references to plants in Macbeth: at the very beginning in Act 1 when Duncan says, “I have begun to plant thee, and will labour/ To make thee full of growing”; and again at the very end of Act when Malcolm states, “What’s more to do,/ Which would be planted newly with the time”. Whereas Duncan planted Macbeth, his son Malcolm, who removed the ‘weed’ (see Act 5, Sc. 2), seeks to begin planting new things to mend Scotland.

Clothing

Shakespeare employs a recurring image of clothing to show that Macbeth is unfit and not mean to rule Scotland.

The allusions begin early on in the play when the Ross and Angus declare Macbeth to be the Thane of Cawdor, to which he responds, “why do you dress me/ In borrowed robes?” (Act 1, Sc. 3)

Macduff references the changing of clothing in Act 2, Sc. 4, when he say, “Well, may you see things well done there. Adieu,/ Lest our old robes sit easier than our new!”

Finally, Angus makes a very clear remark when he says about Macbeth in the final Act, “now does he feel his titleHang loose about him, like a giant’s robe/ Upon a dwarfish thief.” (Act 5, Sc. 2)

This motif is demonstrative of the chaos in Scotland.

Blood

see earlier slide

Daggers

Daggers are a recurring object and motif in Macbeth and they reinforce the notions of violence and chaos throughout the play and the overall tyranny of Macbeth’s rule over Scotland. They are also closely connected to the bloodiness of the play. E.g.,

“Is this a dagger I see before me, the handle t’ward my hand?” – Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 1)

“There's daggers in men's smiles” – Donalbain (Act 3, Sc. 2)

“or art thou but A dagger of the mind, a false creation, Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?” Macbeth (Act 2, Sc. 1)

Animals

Why animals?*used to convey events and emotions*possible use of foreshadowing *used as descriptions (Macbeth = serpent, Fleance = worm) and comparisons*helps to create dramatic irony

Snakes/SerpentsBirds (owls, eagles, ravens)HorsesOther: cats, lions, scorpions, dogs

Animals (cont.)

Snake: sly, evil, tempting, cunning

Owl: a owl’s hoot is symbolic of death; owls are symbolic of wisdom

Raven: carrion bird who eats the scrapes; messenger of death in Norse mythology; spies of the god Odin

Horses: loyal and strong animal; used often by the nobles

Lion: noble animal; king

Dogs: symbolise man in his many forms (Act 3, Sc. 1); can be loyal but can also turn against man

Animals (cont.)

Shakespeare also uses the motifs of animals to help characterise characters and to illustrate their transformation. By using animalistic comparisons, the author is better able to reinforce his views on the corruption nature of power and on the perils of “vaulting ambition”.

For instance, Macbeth is characters thrice with animals in the play:- Firstly, Macbeth is presented nobly.

Duncan: “Dismay'd not this/ Our captains,/ Macbeth and Banquo?”Sergeant: “Yes;/ As sparrows eagles, or the hare the lion.”

- Secondly, after Duncan’s murder, he is downgraded.

Old Man: 'Tis unnatural,/ Even like the deed that's done. On Tuesday last,/ A falcon, towering in her pride of place,/ Was by a mousing owl hawk'd at and kill'd.”

- Lastly, Macbeth is downgraded even lower to the simple and ravenous dog, one which has destroyed everything it cherishes.

Macduff: “Turn, hell-hound, turn!”

In sum: