Preview

How Does Shakespeare Used To Convey The Destructive Power Of Shame

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
161 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
How Does Shakespeare Used To Convey The Destructive Power Of Shame
Shakespeare uses symbolism to convey the destructive power of shame. Initially, Macbeth plans to kill Duncan in his sleep. Sleep is seen to be a state of peace. This foreshadows Macbeth feeling guilty about killing Duncan and people are usually unable to sleep when they feel guilty. This also foreshadows Lady Macbeth sleepwalking and washing her hands to get rid of the “blood” that is on her hands. This is an example of Lady Macbeth’s guilty conscience having a major impact on her actions. Secondly, Shakespeare uses the symbolism of hallucinations. The fake dagger that Macbeth sees in front of him symbolizes his desire to kill the king so he can become king. Macbeth’s hallucinations of Banquo’s ghost however, symbolize guilt and fear. Macbeth’s

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    How does Shakespeare present the flaws in Macbeth and in The Laboratory and The Last Duchess?…

    • 583 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    ‘Thou canst not say I did it. Never shake thy gory locks at me’, in this line Macbeth is showing the guilt he feels about having his closest friend mercilessly slain. If Macbeth had truly wanted to murder Banquo he wouldn’t feel the need to deny having Banquo murdered. The apparition of Banquo’s ghost would’ve been considered supernatural at the time but it is likely that Macbeth’s vision was a result of the extreme amount of guilt and anxiety he felt, not only for having Banquo murdered but also for killing Duncan and his guards and for framing Duncan’s sons. This display of emotion is significant to the play as it shows that Macbeth is not as evil as he wants everyone around him to believe and that he does feel fear. Banquo’s ghost is significant to Macbeth as it provides the readers or audience to see how Macbeth’s delusion and guilt affect…

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Macbeth's hallucination is a dagger which he wants to grasp but of course he can't, and he realizes that he is seeing the dagger that he plans to use in the murder, a dagger which beckons him toward King Duncan's door, and a dagger upon which appear thick drops of blood. He understands that "It is the bloody business which informs / Thus to mine eyes" (2.1.48-49), but he is not horrified. Rather, he wants to be as deadly as that dagger.…

    • 445 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Revenge is when you get back at someone for doing something wrong towards you. I feel like revenge is okay sometimes but sometimes it's not. If someone intentionally wronged you then it would be okay. If someone accidentally did something then it wouldn't be okay. For example, if someone stole your pencil because it was on the ground, then it would not be okay. The author of the passage "Revenge: Will You Feel Better?" thinks that it isn't okay. The article "Revenge: Will You Feel Better?" is explaining when you get revenge it doesn't make you feel better but it actually makes you feel worse. The author shows how what Shakespeare said in his speech, he agrees with revenge, he believes that it's nothing wrong with it. Confucius didn't really…

    • 143 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    While Macbeth is awaiting the signal that King Duncan is sleeping, which will summon him to commit the murder, Macbeth is struck by a vision of a dagger. This “dagger of the mind” symbolizes Macbeth’s last minute doubt and the choice of committing the murder that he is still facing (2.1.38). Even within his vision, Macbeth does not have hold of the transient knife; he has not reconciled himself to the inevitability of his treachery even at this late point. The illusionary dagger is in stark contrast to the physical dagger Macbeth pulls from his side.…

    • 143 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth’s guilt is causing him to see hallucinations of Banquo’s ghost. “Ay, and a bold one, that dare look on that which might appal the devil.” (Shakespeare pg.10) Macbeth hears from witches that Macduff is a threat and has his family murdered. “Seize upon Fife, give to the edge o’th’sword his wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls that trace his timeline.” (Shakespeare pg.14) Macbeth’s guilt takes him over and he starts to hallucinate and orders more people killed causing him to feel nothing.…

    • 502 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth, after hearing the prophecies the three witches gave him, becomes conflicted within himself, ‘If chance shall have me King, why, chance may crown me, without my stir’. Ultimately, Macbeth chooses ambition over morality, but not without pressure from his wife ‘Are you a man?’ and severe inner turmoil ‘My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical’. To contrast the devious character of Macbeth, Shakespeare included Banquo, a fellow noblemen and Macbeth’s closest friend, to act as Macbeths foil. He immediately chooses morality over ambition without question and forewarns Macbeth of the Weird Sisters and their ability to twist the truth: ‘instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray’s in deepest consequence’. Banquo’s undying allegiance to King Duncan demonstrations the difference between Macbeth and Banquo, and how the upkeep of morals keep us in check. After choosing power, Macbeth’s suspicion of Banquo and his role in the prophecy leads to Banquo’s murder. After killing his friend, Macbeth is plagued with guilt, and hallucinations become recurrent for both Macbeth; ‘our graves must send those we bury back’ and his wife; ‘will these hands ne’er be clean?’ This shows that ambition can lead to immoral acts when overcome by desire.…

    • 615 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Even before Macbeth commits any crimes, he hallucinates due to the enormous amount of stress he is under. Macbeth’s guilt over his imminent murder manifests itself as a dagger in Act II Scene i lines 45-49, and Macbeth utters, “I see thee still, / And on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood, / Which was not so before. There’s no such thing. / It is the bloody business which informs / Thus to mine eyes.” The blood spattered on the blade and handle of the dagger imply that the dagger was viciously and maliciously used on someone, foreshadowing the violent and gory act that Macbeth soon carries out. Macbeth even recognizes that the dagger is not real; it is the “bloody business” of the murder that he is about to commit that is causing it to appear before him.…

    • 577 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Guilt in Macbeth

    • 845 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Symbolism is used extensively to express the motivation of guilt in Macbeth. “Out, damned spot!” (Act 5 scene 1) is one memorable quote by Lady Macbeth. The spots of blood that the lady saw on her hand, while dreaming, is a symbol and metaphor of the guilt that she feels of the king’s murder. Despite what she does to try to wash the guilt away she can’t make the blood disappear. Lady Macbeth earlier on tries to repress her ‘womanly emotions’ in order to commit the murder but she is not successful and that guilt would later become her cause of death. Lady Macbeth says to her husband after the king’s murder, “A little water clears us of this deed”. Later, however, Lady Macbeth’s guilty conscience prevents her from ever washing the spots of blood off her hands. This is an instance of irony. Blood is a heavily used symbol. In Act 3 scene 4, Macbeth says “I am in blood / Step't in so far that, should I wade no more, / Returning were as tedious as go o'er”. This quote is just after he sees Banquo’s ghost. The blood represents a marsh of guilt and evil that Macbeth has waded so far in that he cannot back out of it. He has no choice but to accept his guilt and if need be, cover up his guilt with more murders. Symbolism gives the audience more insight to the characters and their feelings. It also adds depth to the concepts of guilt in Macbeth and enhances the experience of the plot.…

    • 845 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth and Guilt

    • 770 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Alright let’s face it; we all know Macbeth killed King Duncan & is guilty without a doubt. It’s no surprise there that the guilt sinks in him & Lady Macbeth throughout the entire play. Seeing ghosts, sleep walking, insomnia, it just says guilt all over it. It just shows that guilt on the human mind is highly critical, especially when you commit some type of murder. Others may bear with the guilt & hide it deep down like myself at times, but Macbeth, yeah that’s a different story. Human guilt on the mind is highly effective in this particular play.…

    • 770 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sleep In Macbeth

    • 936 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Macbeth carries the burden of his deeds on his shoulders, causing him to lose a terribly large amount of peace and rest in his life. When Macbeth goes to kill Duncan, he hears voices in his conscience telling him, “Still it cried sleep no more! to all the house./ Glamis hath murdered sleep and therefore/ Cawdor / Shall sleep no more. Macbeth shall sleep no more” (Shakespeare, 2.2.54-57). Macbeth gets a warning in his mind that is trying to get him to back away from his plan and show him that what he is doing is not justified. Macbeth still does not back away from the crime, which only leads him to guilt rising within him. Guilt is like a craving; it eats away at your mind and takes away the life necessities. It constantly nags at you and worries you to death because it will not suppress until people admit to it or suppress it in a way. Furthermore, Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth that he is losing sleep and he needs to stop worrying about the crime. As Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth, “You lack the season of all natures, sleep” (Shakespeare, 3.4.173). Sleep no longer comes easily to Macbeth because he is constantly replaying the horrendous crime in his head. Macbeth needs to force sleep upon him otherwise he does not get the sleep he needs to remain sane. The replaying guilt in a person is like a constant reminder of the crimes and wrongdoings someone did. The guilt only gets worse as…

    • 936 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As the play progresses the feelings of guilt begin to rise to new levels in terms of corrosiveness, Macbeth claims that that "[he] does murder sleep", sleep which "knits up the raveled sleave of care." The repition of the word sleep further emphasises how important it was considered, as sleep is an escape from reality, thus implying, having murdered Duncan Macbeth feels as if though he will feel guilty for the remainder of the time due to the fact he will not be able to sleep peacefully again. Sleep is seen as a prerogative of those who have no guilty conscience. It is evident that Macbeth does not sleep and when…

    • 1033 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth Ambition

    • 1084 Words
    • 5 Pages

    As a result, Macbeth begins to lose a grip on reality and starts to create erratic behavior. It’s late at night, Macbeth and Banquo are talking about their dreams and how a little unsettling the witches prophecy is, as soon as Banquo exits Macbeth starts to hallucinate a dagger. Macbeth is shocked of what he is envisioning, “Is this a dagger which i see before me, / The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee. / I have thee not, and yet I see thee still. / Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible / To feeling as to sight? Or art thou but / A dagger of the mind, a false creation / Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?” (2.1.32-40). Macbeth imagining things that aren't there show how mentally weak he is, which represents the bloody path he is taking by choosing to murder king Duncan and it disturbs him not to know whether it’s real or imagined. It is clear to see Macbeth is on the edge of insanity and has now let obsessive behavior of ambition take over him.…

    • 1084 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth Sanity Analysis

    • 233 Words
    • 1 Page

    Furthermore, symbols throughout the play participate in an important role of showing how guilt controls sanity and how they rely on each other. Sanity is tested when “is this a dagger which I see before me, the handle towards my hand? Come, let me clutch thee…and such an instrument I want to use…There’s no such thing: it is the bloody business which informs thus to mine eyes…” (2.1). The dagger is pointing away from Macbeth making one to believe that his mind wants him to kill Duncan. Macbeth’s thoughts have flourished into become mad and insane and wanting so much that he can’t hardly breathe. His sanity is becoming insanity by him thinking these irrational decisons based upon his fate told by witches. Macbeth’s guilty conscience is over…

    • 233 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    But numerous vulnerabilities that William Shakespeare anytime created the works credited to him, some still fall back on star Shakespearean disputes. John Drinkwater, maker and lover, felt that the blooms, banks, springs, pastures, additionally, woodlands of Shakespeare's youth home, Stratford, were by and large transfigured in his plays by his splendid verse, yet in spite of all that they remained the scenes to which he was imitated. Drinkwater acknowledged also, that not simply in Shakespeare's modest society, shepherds, plant experts, and serving men, yet furthermore in his rulers and rulers, he reflected the humanity with which he was normal in Stratford. The learning and quickness he obtained clearly from his own specific condition was…

    • 153 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays